Snack feeder or time for solids??????

Hi,

My wee man feeds a lot and I'm confused over whether he is snacking or needs more?

We start well first feed of the day he will take 180-200, then is up for a while and will sleep for about an hour, when he wakes he wants feeding I hold him off until its been 3 hours and try holding him off longer but he goes nuts and so much so that he then doesn't feed well.

So if I feed him after 2.45 or 3 hours he will take about 140 - 200 depending on well who knows.

Same happens again around 1, then like today he was going nuts by 3.30 but only wanted 120. this is not unsual.

We offer him a small bottle before his bath as he cannot get through without something so he has 120 then will take 200 after a bath, so all this is within 2 hours and sometimes he will take 260 after a bath.

We were waking him to feed at 10.30 which would get him through the night but now he is waking at 10 wanting feeding, but is still making it through the night.

All up in a day he is now having about 1100 - 1200, but not in say 5 big feeds, its more like 7/8 bottles.

I tried a spoonful of baby rice yesterday morning and he seemed fine with it, and for the first time in ages went happily to 3.5 hours and may have gone longer but we had to go out so needed to feed him.

He does watch me when I eat and gets all excited but I am aware he is not 4 months yet.

any thoughts?

Hmmm... hard to comment in the opposite situation!

He's doing really well on just the milk, isn't he? Could you try to distract him to wait a bit longer for food, in the hope he'll consume more at each feed? I have to do that with Jackson, usually I can take his mind off it by putting him in his jumper or in his cot to look at his mobile. Obviously the amount per day is heaps, he just needs to stop the snack feeding, he probably would if he went longer between feeds.

Would Finley want solids after his milk if he doesn't want the milk? That's probably the biggest indication. Cos if he is just full, then he probably won't eat solids and the cycle will stay the same.

Baby rice is pretty safe, and your pretty darn close to 4 months. You could wait a week to be safe, but can't see what the harm would be if he really, really wants it.

Is it possibly the heat that's doing it, and he's wanting it cuz he's thirsty so needing it more often but not as much to quench his thirst? And his naps might be shorter cuz of the heat? That seems to be what's happening with Bethany.

Just offering my two cents, ignore it if you've already thought of it and eliminated the possibility

It sounds like he is having a decent amount at each feed for his age but he obviously needs more. I would wonder if he is thirsty as well, Isobelle is waking up after about an hour to an hour and a half all hot and bothered. I have been giving her a drink of cool, boiled water from a bottle then resettling her with her dummy. Might be worth a try. I'd hold off on solids for another week or so.
It might be worth going to your local family centre just in case he has got himself into a bad cycle of being to tired to feed properly and then too hungry too sleep properly. Plunket can direct you to your local family centre.

thanks for the comments, i think I will hold off a bit longer, i'm in no rush.

I am going to try offering more water, we started this yesterday from a cup (hated it from a bottle) and so we end up quite wet but he seems to like it.