Last meal before bedtime question

[OmarsMum]

Omar's main meal is at 4:30-5 pm & he sleeps at around 10-11 pm. He only eats yoghurt or a cheese stick for dinner & sometimes he refuses his bedtime bottle. For the past few days he's waking up starving at 5:30-6 am & he asks for food (cheese & bread not bottles).

I want to give him a proper meal before bedtime, but I dont know what's suitable.

When do your toddlers eat their last meal, & how long before bedtime? What do they usually eat, & do they drink milk before bedtime?

 

[twinklestar]

Kane eats dinner of meat and veg plus youghurt or something at 4 then milk and bed at 6

why don't you try offering cereal an hour before bed? Or swapping his meals so the bigger is at a later time?

He may settle again and it's just a growth spurt though

x

 

[OmarsMum]

Kane eats dinner of meat and veg plus youghurt or something at 4 then milk and bed at 6

why don't you try offering cereal an hour before bed? Or swapping his meals so the bigger is at a later time?

He may settle again and it's just a growth spurt though

x

He doesnt eat cereals, & most of the time he doesnt eat breakfast. He doesnt like food in general. But he's ok with lunch which is usually cooked food. I cant swap it with dinner as he will end up eating almost nothing all day (he doesnt snack or eat fruits)

We dont eat anything close to bedtime, this is why I dont really know if it's ok for him to eat a heavy cooked meal before he goes to bed

 

[MNORBURY]

I would try him with a cooked meal before bed and see how he goes on, you can always stop it if you don't think it is agreeing with him. Evie has a jar or pasta or something else (hot meal) around 5/5.30 and is usually being put to bed between 7 and 8 x

 

[mummytobe]

My LO has her dinner at 530-6pm and sleeps at 8pm. However, she has her milk at 730 along with either a couple of breadsticks, or ricecake with hummous or cheese spread

 

[claire23]

Sophie has a meal at 5.45-6pm, e.g chicken, mashed potatoes, lots of veg, mainly carrots, cauliflower, beans, then small pot of yougurt, milk, and bread (I know bread is a bit random, but she loves brown bread). She goes to bed at 7pm, wakes up between 7-7.30am. xx

 

[LiLu1211]

The twins have dinner at about 4:30pm. Usually pasta or some sort of hot meal. They have a bottle of milk at 7:30...they go to sleep around 8:30 and sleep until about 7am.

They also snack sometimes on crackers. usually 3 or 4.

 

[holywoodmum]

How old is Omar?
Charlotte has her tea between 5-6pm, pasta and then a yogurt or something like that. She goes to bed at 7. So I guess sometimes she eats only an hour before bed... I'd offer something he likes a bit later in the day maybe?

 

[Koobie1982]

B has dinner around 4/430, then milk at 6/7 before bed at 7.30

 

[KZD]

My little one has his 'meal' 6 and then has an oz. bottle before his bed time at 8:30

 

[wispa86]

Ben has his main meal at 5pm, which is a cooked meal usually the same as what we have - sausage and mash, spaghetti bolognaise etc etc followed by a yoghurt and some fruit and then bed (no bottle or juice) at 7pm, he sleeps through until 7-8am.

He wont eat a big meal at lunch time so gets offered sandwiches, crisps, fruit, yoghurt and eats as much or as little as he likes. we've always had a bad relationship with food and have only had a decent routine for a few months and since we swapped things around a bit, he is eating more and ive stopped stressing!!!

 

[andbabymakes3]

Holly has dinner at 4:30/5 - then bottle at 6 and in bed by 6:30, sleeps until 6:30/6:45.

One of her favourite things for dinner is a little omlette/frittata with cheese and veg in it. Nice and quick to cook, high protein so keeps them full longer. Or pasta with whatever sauce I have made that week. She also loves potato wedges.

x

 

[joeyjo]

G has a big meal about 5-5:30. Tonight its baked potato, pork & cauliflower cheese, he'll have fruit or yogurt for pud and then he has a small supper about 6:45 often banana or a slice of toast. He goes to bed at 7:15.

 

[Erised]

How old is Omar?
Charlotte has her tea between 5-6pm, pasta and then a yogurt or something like that. She goes to bed at 7. So I guess sometimes she eats only an hour before bed... I'd offer something he likes a bit later in the day maybe?

Pretty much the same here with Eleanor. We'll have dinner around 5 / 5.30, she tends to have the same as us. Pasta, chicken salad, noodles, cauliflower and potato mash [her favourite], baked potato with tuna, beans on toast etc. She does eat a large serving of fruit with every meal as well.

We go up between 6 & 6.30pm and she's usually asleep around 7. She does still get a milk feed before bed, but I think that at nearly 11 months she's a fair bit younger than Omar. I'll be trying to get rid of this feed in the next few months some time. She'll sleep until somewhere between 5 & 6 then wakes up for a milk feed, breakfast is usually around 8.30 / 9 ish.

 

[Siyren]

we have dinner ready for 6 and lyssa is in bed for 7, she's never had any problems with this, and usually sleeps til between 7 and 8

 

[DaisyBee]

Megan eats a hot cooked meal at 5pm. She has a bottle right before bed (the only bottle still left in her day -so now she's drinking more w/ it - 4-6oz. She is in bed by 7pm.

At 5pm she eats meat, veggies, pasta, fruit, etc. It is her biggest meal of the day.

Typical day and example menu:

4oz in sippycup when she wakes (7am lets say)
8am breakfast - cold cereals (like corn chex, cheerios, raisin bran) mixed w/ milk then she eats w/ her fingers or I help spoon feed her. Fruit - 1/4 Cup usually of pears, peaches, kiwi, banana, etc. Milk left from her sippycup from earlier (maybe 1 oz - or more if she didnt drink much earlier)

9:30 Snack - 2oz juice diluted w/ water. 1-2 crackers or something little

11:00 Lunch Either sandwich type thing (cheese, chicken, etc) or hot meal (sometimes leftover from night before - so anything from roast w/ rice, leftover pasta noodles, pancakes w/ eggs, mac & cheese w/ chicken tenders. She always has fruits & veggies w/ either the sandwich or hot food. Sippy cup of milk - typically drinks about 2oz

3pm Snack - cheese & crackers, graham crackers, muffin, toast, cookie, etc w/ either water or milk in sippycup 3-4oz of either

5pm - main meal of the day - Will either have hotdish, meat /w rice, meat w/ noodles, so always is meat, carb, fruit, veggie. Sippycup of milk 3ozish. She eats a ton of food at this meal.

6:30-6:45ish is her bottle 4-6oz milk

She doesnt have any drinks or food during the night & doesnt wake out of hunger in the morning.

If he is liking more of the lunch type foods that you are feeding (the hot meal) then I would offer 2 meals of that type to him during the day.

 

[OmarsMum]

Thanks ladies. He didnt eat breakfast today & had a bottle (6 oz) at around 1 pm. At 4 pm he had lunch with us -2 tbsps of cooked food (chicken & mixed veggies stews & little rice) which is great. He didnt eat or drink anything (other than water) until 10 pm. I had some pasta with chicken & mashroom sauce leftovers & he ate around 2 tbsps + 1 cheese slice After 30 mins he had his bottle(6 oz) without a fuss & went to bed. I hope it works as he ate well compared to other days. xxx

 

[DaisyBee]

Hopefully it works!

He isnt a big eater at all - is he? Is he typically only drinking around 12oz milk a day too? Most daycare kids who werent big eaters where taking in lots more milk - so its surprising he isnt wanting either one more than he does.

 

[aimee-lou]

Good luck,

Earl has his 'Tea' at 5pm - cooked food - jars or home cooked dependant on whether it's a work night or not. He will then have his bath at 6 and depending on how much he ate for his tea and how late it's gotten (sometimes, especially as I don't get in from work until 6.45=7 some nights, we wont start 'bedtime' until 7.30 just so I actually get to see him) he will have 1/2 a slice of toast or some cereal with his bedtime milk (about 6oz). It's whatever works best for you. Earl only just started to sleep through but will go til 6-6.30 no problems on that.

hope the meals did the trick

 

[holywoodmum]

Hope it goes well tonight!!