Suggestions needed to help stop extended BF please

[cath_x]

My little girl is almost 3 now and I'm at a place where I would like to stop BF, although I'm extremely happy that we made it this far after a very difficult start. We're down to two feeds a day, one at bedtime ( although if OH puts her to bed then she's more than happy with books and cuddles) and one in the morning which we've tied into her Gro Clock wake up time to try and stop the 5 am wake ups we had for ages. So now it's 'booby in the morning when the sun comes up' (on her clock).
She never asks in the day or if she wakes in the night, and we got down to two sessions completely of her choice.
I was just looking for advice maybe from any of you who have been there and found a stress free way of introducing the idea that she won't have booby any more.
Thanks x

 

[cath_x]

Anyone?

 

[Millnsy]

Sorry I can't help with a child that age. I stopped feeding my eldest at 15 months when I fell pregnant. She had almost stopped on her own by then so one day I just refused and she never asked again. However she is now 3 and i can't imagine her forgetting anything g that easily! At 3 you should able to explain your decision and make her understand?? Best of luck!

 

[kbkb]

Sorry no advice...but kind of looking for that kind of help myself...stalking this post!

 

[Brieanna]

DD still breastfeeds a lot, so no personal advice, but maybe during the time that you would normally bf do something special just between you two so she still gets the closeness.

Do you offer or does she ask? Maybe try to distract her or change her routine for a bit for a day or two and see how she reacts. Maybe she is just bfing out of habit and won't actually be bothered if you stop or do something else.

Sorry I can't be more help,

 

[Rachel_C]

Could you try getting up before you know she'll wake for a few days so you're not there when she asks and have OH offer her a drink instead, maybe warmed cow's milk or whatever you'd like her to drink instead of breastmilk?

We're not there yet but my 2 year old is happy enough to be distracted now, so when it's time to wean if she doesn't stop of her own accord I think I will just try regular distraction until the distraction becomes the new norm

 

[Claudia83]

...try regular distraction until the distraction becomes the new norm

This. I am working on gentle weaning with my 2 year old. Currently we are only nursing for bedtime and through the night if he wakes up. What I found is that adding a FUN replacement is key. When my son asks for his 'boo-boosh' I ask him if he's hungry. I ask him if he wants to "nom" and he'll sometimes say yes, and when he says yes, I get so excited and say "Oh my, we can make you a PBJ and get you a nice glass of milk! YUM! Does that sound good?" and he will be so happy to see my excitement about him eating and he'll gladly accept the replacement. When he is done eating I praise him for being a good boy and telling me he was hungry. He won't ask for boob again. If he says no, that he's NOT hungry I ask him if he'd like to go outside and play ball. I make a big deal of it and he's usually so excited about it he forgets he even wanted to nurse. I try to tire him out playing ball and as soon as he walks in the door I'll offer him crackers, fruit and milk.

 

[cath_x]

Thanks for your suggestions She's pretty determined it's booby or nothing unfortunately, but there's some good ideas there and I'll try a couple. I love the closeness and it is still so special, but for my own reasons and definitely not external pressure of any kind, I'm ready to move on to the next stage of our lives together.

 

[cath_x]

Oh and Rachel, a big part of the problem with the Mormon is that she still often gets up at 5 am and comes into our bed (which is fine, we still co-sleep whenever she wants) The thought of getting up earlier that that kills me lol!! The bedtime feed I could probably get rid of more easily, if I'm out and OH puts her to bed, he just reads her stories instead (although she won't accept that from me at the moment).
I'm sure there are ways I could abruptly stop, but in trying to do it gently, in a way that makes us both feel good about the end of our journey if that makes sense?

 

[freckleonear]

I would try and drop the bedtime feed first by getting your OH to put her to bed for a few weeks. For the morning feed, how about starting to cut down the time? For example, tell her that you will count slowly to ten and then she needs to finish. As her birthday is coming up, you could start explaining to her that she won't be having booby anymore when she is 3. Perhaps you could both agree on doing or getting something special to mark the occasion, either as a one-off or a regular replacement.

 

[cath_x]

Thanks Freckleonear - some really good suggestions there (oh, and I meant morning in my previous post, not Mormon!! Stupid autocorrect!)

 

[misspriss]

I was weaned when I was 3, on my 3rd birthday. I was down to 1 feed though, in the AM. I would get up early and come get in bed with Mom and feed. She told me after my 3rd birthday I would have to quit, and sure enough, I came in the next morning and she rolled over to the edge of the bed, I tried to go around the other side but I wouldn't fit, so that was it.

It was pretty easy, but we talked about it for a week or two before and had a "milestone" (my birthday), so it wasn't too bad.

That's how I remember it anyway, I have no idea how it was from Mom's perspective!

ETA: I'm pretty sure we still came and cuddled with mom in the morning, I had my older sister who was 5. Mostly it consisted of putting our cold feed on Mom, and giggling and stuff, I don't know if we actually slept much.