Hi ladies I need some advice

[em1984]

Hi all :) Just after your opinions, was going to ring the aba but thought i'd ask here first. We are having a few issues with Noah's evening feeds. He feeds really well still during the day, usually a big feed when he wakes in the morning and then one before lunch and sometimes small feeds here and there in between. We are having problems in that he just seems no longer interested in feeding at night. Sometimes I'll get a feed into him late afternoon but if its anytime after say 4.30 he just is not interested. He usually has a sleep in the avo and wakes about 5ish and he just whinges until I give him solids? And then obviously he is full from dinner so isnt interested in a feed before bed either :confused:
I'm wondering if I should just drop this feed all together as it seems to just be creating more upset than anything. I'm not sure what to do really and wondering if this is a normal thing? He is 10 months old and as I said generally has 2 really good feeds during the day but thats all he seems to want. Is it too early to drop this feed or should I persevere, or maybe even try and sneak one in in the afternoon or something? I often hear/read about people who's bubbas are only down to one feed a day, say in the morning, what age does this generally happen? I'm feeling quite sad as I really enjoyed our evening snuggle but i'm just getting rejected :crying: I'm wanting to feed him till around 2 but at this rate it feels like he might wean himself before then, but I really dont want him to :(

[Tam-I-Am]

Given that 'food before 1 is just for fun' - I'd be offering him the breast before solids. He may be happier to take it that way.

I say this only because I wasn't aware of it when I fed my DD - the 'don't offer/don't refuse' principle is actually a weaning technique, and if that's what you're doing, you may need to prepare yourself for early weaning. If you want to keep going for 2 years or longer, it may be that you need to cut back (not eliminate, just reduce) the amount of solids you're giving for a while, and increase the number of breastfeeds, especially by offering the breast before solids.

However, having said that, I did much what you did with my DD, and she maintained 1 feed a day (her bedtime feed) for over 6 months, from 14 months until just before her 2nd birthday. That was the ONLY feed she was having at that time, too - unless she was sick or something.

My DS is VERY different, and at 14 months, some days he still has 10+ feeds a day.

What do your instincts tell you you should do?

[moozle]

I had this problem too when DS first started solids. We found that giving him "dinner" solids at about 5 and then giving him a night time feed after 6.30 meant that he took a little bit. As long as he's drinking milk at other feeds which it sounds like he is, I wouldn't worry too much. It may mean that he wakes in the night for a feed but it will probably only happen for a few weeks at the most. IMO, just keep offering the feed before bed but don't stress if he doesn't want it. It may also be because he's very tired at this stage and he can't be bothered to suck.. you could try expressing until you "let down" and then put him on the breast with the milk flowing. This helped us. Good luck!

[em1984]

Thanks ladies. Tam I always offer a feed before solids, and thats the problem. HE is refusing the feed and I persist but he just doesnt want a bar of it and grizzles till I give him food. He is definitely hungry at this point as its after his avo sleep so he hasnt had anything since lunch. hmmm so maybe if I give him a bit less for lunch? I dont know, he LOVES his food and eats so much I kind of feel I'd only be doing it for my benefit iykwim. moozle he does still occasionally wake for a feed in the night still, but its more a comfort feed as opposed to a hunger feed. He's dinner time is generally 5.30 as this is when he gets really grizzly from hunger, it's purely that he is just not interested in milk. My instincts kind of say keep offerring it, but its hard because most of the time he just gets so grizzly and by the time his dinner is heated he's so cranky I just don't know if its worth persisting?