https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Sat, 25 Apr 2026 07:13:26 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-674364 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 15:45:26 +0000 Ms.SK 674364@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@78h2o: sorry, I just saw this also - the AAP warns against adding rice cereal to bottles. It is never recommended (even if your Dr. tells you). </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-674351 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 15:43:17 +0000 Ms.SK 674351@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@78h2o: I would suggest a pacifier if you can get her to take it. Babies naturally want to suck. Please don't give in to the request for formula just yet (if you don't want to). Of course they tell your husband, it makes it easier on them! I question one part above, if they are feeding her on demand why is your baby crying at 3 hours? That is not feeding on demand. I think the smaller bottles will help them accomplish that. Please read/print this article for them. Please ask them to follow these directions when feeding your baby:<br /> <a href="http://www.bfar.org/bottlefeeding.pdf" rel="nofollow">http://www.bfar.org/bottlefeeding.pdf</a></p> <p>This is by far the best article I recieved from my IBCLC. I refer everyone to it. This is what I mean when I say there is a "right" way to feed a breastfed baby a bottle. I use the same bottles as you with the 1 nipples. You don't want to change them. The goal is to have the bottle replicate the breast so the baby needs to "work" for the milk. </p> <p>Now I will say something you may not want to hear. Your baby may not sleep through the night and even formula may not be the trick. For breastfeeding it is actually good if they don't, it keeps your supply up. Otherwise you may have to wake up just to pump. Sleeping through the night is a stage of development not a measurement of calerie satisfaction. </p> <p>Do you have any other questions, I am happy to help and offer support? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-674289 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 15:24:15 +0000 Kemma 674289@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I know nothing about bottle feeding but I just wanted to say that you're doing an amazing job with pumping and nursing! Also it sounds like the ladies above have all given you great advice :-) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-674269 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 15:13:29 +0000 T.H.O.U. 674269@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Sorry can't read all a comments but I would do smaller bottles. Maybe four 4 oz bottles? I don't think it relates to sleep at all. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-674266 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 15:12:52 +0000 78h2o 674266@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@NovBaby1112: Thank you for the reassurance! I do know that she's tired there because she's only napping for 1-2 hours total, vs. 4-5 at home. </p> <p>@kiddosc: That's true, she does sleep from 8pm until 2-3am... she probably wouldn't do that if she needed to catch up. Thank you for understanding.</p> <p>ETA:<br /> @MerryC: That perspective is helpful too. Thanks!</p> <p>Thank you ladies so much for your input. I think I am going to hold off on supplementing. I will first try going back to smaller more frequent bottles and see how that works. Then maybe I will try to pump and feed her from a bottle all day on Sat or Sun and see if it seems to me like she's hungry. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-674258 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 15:09:39 +0000 twinmama 674258@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My advice is non advice, but I think you just have to do some trial and error. Babies are different. (My son ate more than the charts said he should, but was still legitimately hungry, so we fed him. He has a fast metabolism.) Read kellymom but consider what your care providers are saying too. Milk can be a quick fix for a fussy lo, but sometimes it's what they want/need too. Pay attention to her temperament and weight gain. Kids don't all follow the same book for eating (or sleeping). </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-674234 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 15:03:23 +0000 kiddosc 674234@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@78h2o: I have been in your shoes... I stressed so much over whether he was getting enough. In the end though, she'd let you know if she was starving. She'd be fussy during the day and wake up more often in the night to catch up on the oz she didn't get during the day. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-674208 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 14:52:47 +0000 NovBaby1112 674208@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>First off, you are doing an amazing job feeding your Lo and I'm sorry that the daycare seems to think she needs more. I think the amounts you listed are plenty! breastfed babies are totally different than ff babies in the amount they drink and time in between. I am gone from my lo for 10 hours 2 days a week and she drinks 16oz at the most, and not more than 4oz a bottle. Breastnilk digests differently than formula, which is why smaller more frequent feeds are more common in breastfed babies. I know that my lo gets fussy, and an outsider might think hmm she is still hungry, and I'm sure if they offered her more she would drink it. But as her mom I know that she's not hungry, she's either overtired or bored or just wants to be held, and that even tho she drank more she didn't need it and would spit up from being overfull. I would question why they think she needs more and maybe explain to them everything you have read, etc. In the end, you know your baby best, I would just hate to see you have to stress about pumping more or supplementing if it was unnessessary. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-674207 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 14:51:25 +0000 78h2o 674207@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@kiddosc: What if she is starving though? That's my only concern since I'm not there... the fact that she's gaining weight just fine leads me to believe that maybe they are wrong and she is getting enough. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-674192 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 14:46:47 +0000 78h2o 674192@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@kiddosc: Thanks, I appreciate that input. My sister followed this book: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Twelve-Hours-Sleep-Weeks-Step/dp/0525949593/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top" rel="nofollow">http://www.amazon.com/Twelve-Hours-Sleep-Weeks-Step/dp/0525949593/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top</a> and swears by it, but my gut instinct is that she needs to eat more frequently, not less. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-674156 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 14:36:24 +0000 kiddosc 674156@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@78h2o: Just a side note... I tried larger bottles spaced further apart and it didn't help E sleep through the night. He's 10 months and eats solids and still has not once in his life slept through the entire night. It really is dependent on the child.</p> <p>ETA: I found my daycare ladies, as sweet as they are, are just very inexperienced with breastfed babies. All the other kids in E's class were formula fed, so they have a hard time coming to grips with babies that eat a smaller volume I think. It's generally a fact that FF babies eat higher volumes, and that the volume will increase as they baby gets older; and that's what they are used to. That doesn't apply to breastfed babies though. Stick to your guns! You know what's best, and she is by no means starving. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-674144 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 14:34:00 +0000 78h2o 674144@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@kiddosc: I do think that the main reason they think she isn't getting enough is that she's finishing the bottles... and I do worry that she will still finish a 6 or 7 oz bottle but would then spit up.</p> <p>Ok, I think I'm leaning towards maybe first trying smaller bottles more frequently... maybe 4, 4, 4, 3 (and that's if I can even keep up with getting 15oz). </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-674104 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 14:22:33 +0000 78h2o 674104@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Ms.SK: Thank you! I'd be happy to try smaller bottles more frequently. My only concern was that my sister read some book that said that if you feed too often during the day the won't sleep through the night - she breastfed and gave larger bottles every 4 hrs and her son slept throug the night... but I haven't tried that because 4 hours seems like a long time! I started her off at daycare with 4 smaller bottles and told them to feed on demand, but it seemed like they were only giving 3 bottles. So then I started sending just 3 bottles with a little more in each, thinking that she wouldn't quite finish... but she did and they started saying she needed more. So then I sent 4.5oz last week, then this week 5oz. Last night my husband picked her up and apparently they went on and on about how she needs more. So he is REALLY pushing formula. Which I am okay with if necessary, but I don't know if she really needs it or not. They say she is okay for 3 hours but really gets mad if she doesn't get a bottle at the 3 hour mark. Sometimes they have to feed her earlier than 3 hours. Maybe smaller more frequent bottles is the way to go...</p> <p>@Ms.SK: No worries about being critical. I want all the advice I can get. I don't think you are being critical anyway! I will try to find out more about why they think she's hungry. They complain to my husband more about it than to me. When I ask they just say that she's cranky and wants to be fed, then guzzles 3-4oz, burps, then drinks the last oz. She doesn't eat leisurely. I do use slow flow nipples in the avent "natural" bottles but I don't know how exactly they are feeding her. She doesn't use a pacifier, so that is the only sucking she is getting while she's away... that might be part of it too.</p> <p>@mrskc: Yeah, I am going to try to talk to the daycare more about it. They've asked me to add rice cereal to her bottle and I just told them, "I'm not doing that - her pediatrician said no" - even though I've never asked the pediatrician, I just don't want to introduce any solids until at least 6 months. They didn't say anything more about cereal after that. They did say that all the other babies get 4+ bottles with 6+oz... but she is the only breastfed baby there. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-674092 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 14:16:26 +0000 hellobeeboston 674092@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Wow, that seems like plenty to me actually! Now I'm worrying that my LO isn't getting enough while I am at work. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-674083 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 14:13:56 +0000 kiddosc 674083@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I would question why they think it's not enough also. Is it because she's finishing the bottle each time? I really followed kellymom's suggestion of 1-1.5 oz for each hour you are away from baby. I am away from E for 12 hours during the day, though he is sleeping for the first few of those hours. At his peak he was eating four 5oz bottles while I was away and I really don't even think that was really necessary. I totally stressed about whether he was getting enough because he always finished his bottles, but when I did a test of giving him more he always finished those too. Then he would spit up or be agitated because he was too full. My baby just had a slow off switch... it took him a while to realize he was full. I think you are feeding her plenty. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-674010 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:59:05 +0000 mrskc 674010@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Ms.SK: this is exactly. My son rarely takes more than 4 ounces from a bottle. </p> <p>I would question why they think it isn't enough.</p> <p>ETA: Just wanted to add that you're doing a great job! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-673993 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:55:15 +0000 Ms.SK 673993@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I have a lot to add and I really mean to be helpful and not critical. You should keep looking through Kellymom their advice is amazing. 5oz is a big bottle they would tell you to make them smaller and feed more often. They don't recommend anything over 4oz. My suggestion based on what I have seen is to send smaller bottles and feed more frequently. Breastmilk changes, not the amount you feed her. You only have to leave 1-1.5 oz per hour of separation. I am away from the twins for about 10 hours and they get a 3oz, 4oz, 3oz bottle.<br /> Is your daycare feeding to mimick breastfeeding? They need to feed slowly and baby should never feed themselves. Have they told you why they think baby is hungry? Could it be that she wants to be played or may be bored? I would question them more before rushing to conclusions. I have more to add but would like to see some of your reply first.<br /> So you know- you are doing an amazing job feeding your LO! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-673990 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:54:40 +0000 mrskc 673990@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@78h2o: With your schedule there it seems like plenty. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-673982 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:52:45 +0000 mrskc 673982@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>To me that sounds plenty. Why do they think she needs more?</p> <p>It is a myth that breastfed babies drink more ounces the older they get. You breast milk changes as your baby gets older. How many hours are you gone? Can you try three 4 oz bottles and one last 3 oz to hold her over until you can nurse her. The other thing I would try is a 6-7 oz bottle for her first and the other two 4 ounces. Otherwise, if you think she really needs more, maybe do a mix of formula and breast milk in her bottle. </p> <p>My son will only drink more than 4 ounces first thing in the morning. Usually he drinks a 3-4 ounce bottle and he's 5.5 months. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-673975 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:51:00 +0000 78h2o 673975@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@brownie: She's at daycare for more like 9.5-10 hrs and I'm sending 15oz, so maybe it isn't enough. </p> <p>Her schedule is like this:<br /> Nurse at 2am (4-5oz?? nurses for at least 30 min)<br /> Nurse at 4 or 5am (some nights, not every night)<br /> Nurse 6:30am (est. 4-5oz - that's what she takes in when she's weighed before/after)<br /> Goes to daycare around 7:30-8<br /> Bottle at 9:30 or 10 (5 oz)<br /> Bottle at 1 or 1:30 (5 oz)<br /> Bottle at 3:30 or 4 (5 oz)<br /> Nurse at 6:30 or 7 (est. 4-5oz)<br /> Nurse at 8 (est. 2-3 oz??) Goes to bed </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-673967 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:48:56 +0000 DillonLion 673967@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@78h2o: I'm pretty sure formula fed babies eat more overall than EBF babies, so I wouldn't necessarily compare them equally. </p> <p>I separate the bottles. I just send breastmilk and an extra empty bottle because daycare provides the formula. I want her to take all the breastmilk no matter what, so I never want the two mixed in case she doesn't finish the entire 7 oz. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-673937 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:42:46 +0000 78h2o 673937@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@zippylef: Okay, maybe I will try giving her much 6 or 7 oz bottles tomorrow so I can see when she will stop. My only concern is that I think she will eat until she throws up. She has done that before when I've given her a bottle of expressed milk too close to a time when she's nursed.</p> <p>@highwire: It does look like your LO is getting more to eat than mine (36-40oz). Do you put the formula and breastmilk in the same bottle, or does she get 2 seperate ones?</p> <p>@Freckles: She has been gaining appropriately. I think she's around 14 lbs 5 oz. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-673911 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:37:28 +0000 brownie 673911@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>For breastfeeding, the caloric content in your breastmilk changes as your baby gets older. Formula feeding is different because it does change by weight. You may not need to up the ounces. My son needed less milk more often. </p> <p>If she is at daycare for eight hours she needs between 1 1/2 and 2 ounces per hour. So about 16 ounces. So she may need a few more ounces. But that also depends on when you can nurse. I used to nurse him at lunch and that helped. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-673860 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:25:46 +0000 DillonLion 673860@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>We combination feed and here's what she eats</p> <p>6:00 AM: Nursing only - she usually STTN and my breasts are pretty full. I expect the takes 3-4 oz at this time</p> <p>9:00 AM: Daycare Feeding - 2-3 oz of breastmilk (depending on what I pumped the previous day) and 4 oz of formula</p> <p>12:00 PM: Daycare Feeding - 2-3 oz of breastmilk (depending on what I pumped the previous day) and 4 oz of formula</p> <p>3:00 PM: Daycare Feeding - 2-3 oz of breastmilk (depending on what I pumped the previous day) and 4 oz of formula</p> <p>5:30 PM: Daycare Feeding - 4 oz of formula only, no breastmilk</p> <p>7:00 PM: Nursing (I expect she takes 2-3 oz at this feeding)</p> <p>8:00 PM: 4 oz bottle of formula</p> <p>Usually STTN until 6 AM, but we are in a regression right now, so that is changing. </p> <p>She just turned 4 months old yesterday. 15 lbs. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-673856 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:25:31 +0000 Freckles 673856@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>How much does she weigh? The recommended intake usually depends on the weight.</p> <p>I would try increasing the amounts you put in the bottles to see if she finishes it. If she does, then she probably wants more milk. I think every 4 hours is a long time to go between feeds and it depends on the baby. Also, you have to think about growth spurts where they may want to nurse/drink more. At that time, i was nursing LO every 3 hours, sometimes more frequently because she wasn't able to take that much in one feed. I think the most she ever took was 120ml. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-673826 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:20:33 +0000 loveisstrange 673826@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Well... I don't have any input on what you should do but I know for me (a FF mom) I increased the amount per feeding when she started consistently finishing the bottles. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/should-i-supplement-change-schedule#post-673811 Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:18:26 +0000 78h2o 673811@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Daycare seems to think my LO is hungry and needs either more frequent feeds and/or more milk at each feeding. She is almost 4 mo old and currently getting 3 bottles with 5oz each. It is a major stretch for me to pump that much. I am currently pumping 5-6 times and nursing 3-4x on days when I work. When I'm not working, I nurse her ~6x and pump ~3-4x. </p> <p>Kellymom.com estimates that a baby 1-6 months old needs an average of 25oz of milk per day (range 19-30). Usually she nurses at least 3x and gets 3 bottles, so at the high end that would be 5oz at a time (with 6 feedings). However, she always finishes her 5oz bottles, so I don't know if she'd drink more if given the chance... I haven't really had enough in reserve to try it, though I could give her 6 or 7 oz bottles tomorrow to see what happens (I'd use up reserve though and not be able to replicate that without formula). </p> <p>Currently she is getting bottles every 2.5-3 hrs. </p> <p>If you were in my shoes, would you start supplementing to send more milk to daycare? Or would you send more smaller bottles, so she could eat more frequently? I'm trying everything, but I really can't seem to pump that much more.</p> <p>ETA: My sister actually advocates feeding her less often - every four hours, and giving her 7oz at a time. She feels that spreading out feedings helped her LO sleep at night. </p> <p>Thanks in advance for any input! :) </p>