https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Sun, 26 Apr 2026 09:10:05 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2856412 Tue, 13 Nov 2018 14:00:38 +0000 JJ2626 2856412@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@periwinklebee: thanks!! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2856391 Tue, 13 Nov 2018 12:46:04 +0000 periwinklebee 2856391@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@snarkybiochemist: Awesome, thank you! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2856384 Tue, 13 Nov 2018 12:38:41 +0000 snarkybiochemist 2856384@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@periwinklebee: Meatballs and shredded/pulled meats are great places to start. E was eating those when she only had her 2 bottom front teeth. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2856380 Tue, 13 Nov 2018 12:26:07 +0000 periwinklebee 2856380@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@JJ2626: Yeah, we also use a sposie. The outer diaper hasn't for the most part been getting wet, so we can reuse, but just helps to hold everything in somehow (better than a cloth diaper cover). I hope the leaks resolve soon, ugh... </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2856372 Tue, 13 Nov 2018 12:13:37 +0000 JJ2626 2856372@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@periwinklebee: I was about to post a question for you because LO has started waking up with a leak every morning but the bigger diaper is too big, so this timing is perfect. I’m going to try a bigger size over the smaller one! Do you also use sposies? Sorry, I’m threadjacking again! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2856371 Tue, 13 Nov 2018 12:11:34 +0000 periwinklebee 2856371@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mrsbells: He gets some of that with soups but I think we just need to keep trying different things... </p> <p>@Petitduck: I started putting a size 5 diaper over his size 4 diaper. I was worried it would be uncomfortable/too much diaper, but so far he doesn't seem to mind and it has worked wonders for leaks (along with reducing the nighttime bottle). </p> <p>@snarkybiochemist: I should try grill cheese or quesadilla. We haven't done much in the way of meats yet as he has just recently had his front teeth come in, but I should do more there as well. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2856180 Mon, 12 Nov 2018 04:41:00 +0000 Mrsbells 2856180@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@periwinklebee: A lot of the examples you gave sound like soft puree textures. Have you tried fuss like pasta, rice etc that have a different texture? At that age even with finger I would try feeding him the finger food to see if he eats more that way too. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855937 Fri, 09 Nov 2018 14:03:03 +0000 Petitduck 2855937@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@periwinklebee: my second kid is an early waker. It suuucks. Haha. </p> <p>Glad it was overall very positive. Overnight leaks that cause a wake up suck. Sizing up for diapers just overnight could help with that too. If they’re not too too big in the next size up. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855875 Fri, 09 Nov 2018 09:24:11 +0000 JJ2626 2855875@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@periwinklebee: that’s awesome he slept longer! I count that as sleeping through the night! Some babies are just up at 5, unfortunately but hopefully he’ll sleep even longer soon. I’m going to try cottage cheese and soup for LO-I like those ideas. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855874 Fri, 09 Nov 2018 09:20:57 +0000 snarkybiochemist 2855874@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@periwinklebee: I don't have a lot of advice on milk and sleeping and all that but I do have some thoughts on food. E loves meat which is obviously a good source of protein and helps keep her full. She also enjoys grilled cheese or quesadillas. As we start the dropping milk and bottle process I'm looking to get her more protein rich foods particularly at night, but its hard. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855867 Fri, 09 Nov 2018 08:52:33 +0000 periwinklebee 2855867@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Update: I called daycare yesterday and asked them to at least try giving him the morning snack I'd packed with lunch/afternoon snack - even if they didn't want to do it in the morning. They did that, and gave him his last bottle close to pickup. So I gave him 4 oz less milk last night. And he slept from 7:30 - 5, which is a major record. I think the longest stretch he's made otherwise is 7:30-2. And no diaper leaks! He did decide to be up for the day at 5, so I still feel like I've been hit by a truck, but I'm counting it as a win :silly: And going to keep persisting with the less milk at bedtime strategy. Thanks everyone, this has been hugely helpful! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855866 Fri, 09 Nov 2018 08:49:09 +0000 periwinklebee 2855866@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mrsbells: That would be AWESOME! Our main staples are soups (whatever we happen to be eating but often pureed a bit further), yogurt (his favorite), smoothies, cottage cheese, and pureed fruits and veggies... He gets a bit of finger food every single day - and has good fine motor skills - but the vast majority of the time he just wants to play with it and it never makes it to his mouth. I try eating the same finger foods and illustrating, but so far our luck has been very limited. He has never been a fan of oatmeal or other cereals and seems to prefer savory to sweet. He has peanut, tree nut, and egg allergies. </p> <p>@JJ2626: My view is if it ain't broke don't fix it :silly: But I do also worry about the transition towards solids/WCM at a year and how that will affect sleep, so I'd love to hear anything about that... </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855836 Thu, 08 Nov 2018 23:03:39 +0000 Mrsbells 2855836@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@periwinklebee: can you share what solid foods you offer and maybe we can give suggestions of other things to try </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855810 Thu, 08 Nov 2018 17:32:11 +0000 JJ2626 2855810@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>So we are in a similar boat though LO is tiny at 9 mos and having about 26 oz of formula per day. But-she has 6 right before bed and sleeps through the night so I’m hesitant to change it but also don’t want her to all of a sudden not get it at 12 mos and stop sleeping. Do most people just cut babies off cold turkey at one year? LO only has like 2 jars of baby food a day and doesent seem all that interested in more yet. Sorry to hijack the thread but curious for any specific suggestions on types of food to try. And also maybe someone to say it’s okay to load babies up before bed? Ha </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855804 Thu, 08 Nov 2018 16:17:01 +0000 periwinklebee 2855804@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@mrsbubbletea: Thank you! We will keep experimenting - I really hope this is not a sign that LO is going to turn into one of those ridiculously picky kids... </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855786 Thu, 08 Nov 2018 14:49:05 +0000 mrsbubbletea 2855786@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@periwinklebee: I think you gotta just experiment and keep pushing solids, trying different textures and presentations. I would try to decrease the ounces of that last bottle but focus my energies more on getting him to eat more in a low stress (haha) fun way! I think both my kids were never that in to purées or being fed, they picked up more when they got the hang of self feeding a food they really liked! I think the advice of trying at diffeeent levels of hungry is good too. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855784 Thu, 08 Nov 2018 14:36:48 +0000 periwinklebee 2855784@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Rocker2014: Thank you! This is a great point that there is an optimal level of hungry for encouraging solids, I'll experiment with giving him different amounts of milk before dinner to see if that will lead to more interest. </p> <p>@annem1990: Thank you! Are go to at dinner is full fat yogurt because that is his favorite, but I think diversifying food may also help. I've been trying to think of dense protein/fat options. May try a cheesy mac&amp;cheese tonight. I want to get more creative with avocado as well. Peanut butter is out due to an allergy, but I'm really hoping that we can find a solution and cut the early, wet wakeups too.</p> <p>@Mrs. Goose: Our ped's office is a bit all over the place when it comes to discussing solids. In our well checks at 4, 6, and 9 months, we've gotten three different opinions from different doctor/nurses about how much solids, when to start finger foods, when to night wean, etc. Based on these super helpful responses, I'm going to gradually cut back the milk before bedtime but not increase it elsewhere - as well as implementing the other suggestions - and hope it will start to move him more towards solids. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855772 Thu, 08 Nov 2018 13:51:26 +0000 Rocker2014 2855772@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I don't have any advice about whether to decrease milk ounces, but I will mention that my LO was a reluctant solids eater as well. She's 4 now and would still prefer milk to pretty much any food! We had great luck with giving the milk first, and then letting her enjoy solids after. She struggled with managing solids when she was really hungry (and she was ALWAYS "hangry" after daycare!), but by giving her a bottle first she was in a good mood and much more able to enjoy the process of eating solids. When we started doing this, her solids intake really increased, and we eventually were able to give solids for snack too. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855770 Thu, 08 Nov 2018 13:40:52 +0000 annem1990 2855770@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Could you try some oatmeal, rice cereal or yogurt before bedtime? Or something else you know he really likes? My LO is 14months and has dinner around 5. Then we offer oatmeal with peanut butter around 6:30. Some nights he eats a ton of it, others not as much, but either way it's cut down on his before-bed milk intake (from a sippy cup). We were struggling with him waking up super early and wet every morning. This has helped a lot. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855767 Thu, 08 Nov 2018 13:31:54 +0000 Mrs. Goose 2855767@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@LBee: I also don’t believe food before one is just for fun. My kids would have dropped very big percentiles if they didn’t eat solids. I think it’s the only reason my second didn’t have more issues. </p> <p>40 does sound like a lot. What does your doctor say about the whole thing?</p> <p>At 10 months I was doing:<br /> Am wake up nurse<br /> Breakfast 1 hour later (which was 4-5 oz. of pumped milk mixed with enough baby cereal to thicken it for spoon feeding)<br /> Nap<br /> Nurse after nap<br /> Lunch 1-2 hours later<br /> Nap<br /> Nurse after nap<br /> Dinner<br /> Nurse before bed. </p> <p>However, my kids aren’t and weren’t big nursers or milk drinkers and my first barely ate any solids, but my second probably ate the equivalent of a jar of baby food or a bit more at each meal.</p> <p>Interesting that they refused to do that at daycare, I would push it and it’s not really up to them. I’d go with the above suggestion of it being doctor’s advice if they’re going to be weird about it. At this point kids should be moving towards eating more solids and decreasing milk. That’s the whole goal. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855727 Thu, 08 Nov 2018 10:49:27 +0000 LBee 2855727@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@periwinklebee: I would try communicating to them he is eating 40 ounces and that even if it does impact his bottles thats a-okay. I might would consider playing the, "his pediatrician says we need to decrease his milk intake." I think some kids naturally cut down on bottles and some kids have to be encouraged. Also, if your son is still waking up in the MOTN I'd be inclined to say that the top off bottle is really just giving him excess calories and not really impacting his sleep. I'd drop it. I would view the sleep issues and the eating issues as separate. I'm not saying to hold back milk by any means, but I will say our ped said that babies who take bottles aren't like babies who nurse where they say that they won't over eat. Bottle fed babies will very much over eat. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855719 Thu, 08 Nov 2018 10:38:22 +0000 periwinklebee 2855719@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@LBee: Thank you, this is super helpful! This is exactly my fear that it doesn't just happen naturally and becomes a huge issue when we want to transition to WCM. I asked them at daycare if they would give him a morning snack this morning, and they actually refused, saying milk is more important and it might affect his bottles. I may push the issue further. </p> <p>I think my LO is taking solids about as often as yours was, but in small quantities and then he refuses more, even when he is clearly still hungry and will gulp down a bottle of milk or breastfeed right after. We've tried a fairly wide array of foods. He was late to get teeth - they've just started coming in this past month - so I'm hopeful that might help. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855715 Thu, 08 Nov 2018 10:21:13 +0000 LBee 2855715@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I know this is an outlier opinion on HB, but I don't believe food before one is just for fun. I think telling yourself that sets up for a huge struggle when you are supposed to drop bottles at 1, especially if your child isn't taking to solids. My kids are huge eaters, but 40 ounces of formula / BM is A LOT. At her height, my daughter was taking about 30-32 ounces and the pediatrician said that was on the upper end. By 10 months she was probably at around 24 ounces (again, also at the upper end of the recommendations). What does your feeding schedule look like right now? </p> <p>At 10 months we did this:<br /> 6:30 AM - nurse (6 ozs)<br /> 10:00 AM - morning snack (we do BLW, but probably equivalent of baby jar of food)<br /> 10:30 AM - bottle (7 ozs)<br /> Noonish - lunch (more BLW)<br /> 2:30 PM - snack + 5 ozs of milk<br /> 5:30 PM - dinner<br /> 6:30 PM - nurse (6 ozs), STTN </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/drinking-too-much-milk-before-bedtime#post-2855712 Thu, 08 Nov 2018 10:10:59 +0000 periwinklebee 2855712@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>LO (10 months) is an active and big (98th percentile) baby. But he's been slow to take to solids. He's gotten in the habit of taking all his increased caloric needs in the form of a formula top off before bed time. At first it was only an ounce or so to compensate for my slightly lower breastmilk supply in the evening, but now he's taking 8 (!) ounces, in addition to around 4 ounces of breastmilk and a bit of solid food for dinner. We have had more and more trouble, concurrently, with avoiding diaper leaks. And once he's up at night, it can be for an hour or two - he does not go back down easily. </p> <p>He always gets offered solids first when we get home from daycare, but is not that into it and will hold out for the milk. I've tried sending more food/milk to daycare, but he doesn't take it. I worry a bit that because we combo feed, it's discouraged him to take up solids because he can easily meet his increasing caloric needs with milk (now I think 40+ ounces of bm+formula / day). </p> <p>Do I take away an ounce at a time from his nighttime bottles and add it to his daycare bottles, or take away the nighttime bottle a bit at a time and hope he will just make it up with solids? I know that food before one is for fun, but he's taking so much milk that I feel like there's scope for him to have more solids. But I don't want to be too impatient and push the issue if it just happens naturally. </p>