Introducing formula and bottle.

[Blah11]

Well Amelie is almost 6 months and I'm due back to work in September so I'd like to start introducing her to a bottle and eventually formula so she can have milk at nursery without me having to express. I don't want to stop her breastfeeds, maybe only give her one or two formula feeds a day?

I'm not actually sure how much milk she'll be taking at 8-9months

She'll get her BF upon waking and breakfast at nursery aswell as lunch as nursery but surely she'll need a bottle inbetween..

anyway, how is best to introduce the bottle? Should I give her EBM in it at first or should I just put formula in it so she doesnt confuse it with the boob?

 

[CountingDown]

When I first gave Olivia a bottle we used warm ebm and we tried the bottle half way through a feed so she wasnt starving and wouldnt get frustrated with the bottle.

O/H tried her with the bottle and after about 15 mins of chewing the teat and getting lots down her chin she got the hang of it. After a few minutes though she got frustrated as we were using the tt closer to nature teats and the flow was too slow for her (my bm flow is quite fast). We now use the avent vari flow teats.

I have just started making sure Olivia has a bottle feed once a day now as we stopped for a few weeks and when we tried again with a bottle she wouldnt take it at first.

I cant help with the amount or formula part though Im afraid, as I try to express 4 ounces a day at the moment for a feed, sometimes she will only have 3 ounces and other times I have to top her up with the boob.

Good luck xx

 

[Mervs Mum]

Obviously it's up to you how you do it but personally I wouldnt start yet. My LO is the same age now as Amelie will be. She's been weaning since 5 months and is eating 3 meals as of about a month ago. At first she didnt drop any milk feeds during the day then all of a sudden she went to morning and night only - she rarely has boobie during the day now. I thought I'd need to be pumping still (I go back a week today for 2 weeks, then back in September) but I'm not going to need to at all. I'm going to send her with cartons of formula and a sippy in case she does want some milk in the afternoon .

 

[Mervs Mum]

BTW the mid morning feed was the first one she dropped......

 

[Blah11]

ah thanks mervsmum! Just what I wanted to hear I dont want to confuse her and start combi feeding and pushing the bottle on her if I don't need to. X

 

[Mervs Mum]

Seriously I fretted about this ages ago. I went in to work sorting out a place to pump and all sorts. We just wont need it at all!

Has she ever used a bottle? I'm lucky that Hebe will with no probs. The only preparation you need IMO is to start giving her a sippy when you start weaning, if you havent already. she'll most likely chuck it around and not drink any for ages then all of a sudden she'll start to drink from it. Hebe messed with hers from 5 months till about a month ago and now she drinks it.

 

[Blah11]

Seriously I fretted about this ages ago. I went in to work sorting out a place to pump and all sorts. We just wont need it at all!

Has she ever used a bottle? I'm lucky that Hebe will with no probs. The only preparation you need IMO is to start giving her a sippy when you start weaning, if you havent already. she'll most likely chuck it around and not drink any for ages then all of a sudden she'll start to drink from it. Hebe messed with hers from 5 months till about a month ago and now she drinks it.

Thankfully she will drink from a sippy already. Started using one as soon as she was started on baby rice and she now uses one no probs. + no she refuses the bottle but I'll just put milk in her sippy if she needs it