I know "food before one is just for fun" (which I don't know if I actually agree with but anyway), but at what point did you feel like your LO became hungry for solids, and milk wasn't cutting it anymore? To the point where you felt like you couldn't skip a solids meal or kind of be willy-nilly with offering solids?
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I feel like we're getting there right now at just shy of 9 months. We had a super slow start to solids and she still eats 1-2 meals a day, but I don't think I can skip days like I used to.
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8-9 months here
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I'm curious about this too! We just added a second meal but I don't think he'd bat an eye if we skipped a day. (7.5 months)
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I think I noticed it most at 9 months. And actually at our 9 month check up yesterday, our doc said to focus on 3 meals and 2 snacks (solids) in the next 4 months & if her formula intake goes down she's okay with that because food is important at this time. (I don't agree with that saying either, and it sounds like our doctor doesn't either!)
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I tried to delay solids. DS has never been a great eater when it came to bottles/breast (I'm a WOHM and returned at 7 weeks, so he had bottles from the get-go). He never downed more than 3-4 ounces at a time, ever. But around the 5 month mark he would lick his lips eat his hands and cry for food, real food, anytime we were eating. I tried some purees and he loved it, gobbled it up and would bat away the bottle (sometimes breast!) if he was offered it instead.
I'm not sure when he really "needed" it, maybe closer to 8/9 months I would think, but he made it clear that it was what he wanted and wasn't interested in anything else until he had it. -
I'm curious about this as well. My best guess would be when they completely devour their "meal". I know my LO does not yet finish all of what I give her, so I feel like skipping a meal here and there wouldn't affect her. We usually only do 2 meals a day too at 8 months.
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@sloaneandpuffy: I feel bad now if I skip a meal, but I don't know if it's because he actually would miss it/needs it or if I'm just making that up!
@sorrycharlie: how could you tell?
@scg00387: I think at that point, if I skipped a meal, it wasn't a big deal...especially when we were traveling and I sometimes just forgot! (mother of the year over here!).
@LuLu Mom: interesting! I was wondering about snacks/when to intro them...I used to love that saying when LO was younger because it took the pressure off but now I am not a fan because it just doesnt seem to be true!
@rachiecakes: ah ok so he was very clear about his needs/wants then!
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She was really hungry at 10.5 months.
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@autumnlove: hungry like m ore often during the day? or like she was finishing her meals and wanting more?
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Prior to about 8.5 months, if he was starving, he would refuse solids and scream until he got a bottle. Since then, he has very little interest in bottles during the day but cannot miss a meal. Gets excited as soon as you open the fridge. We do 3 meals and one afternoon snack (following day care schedule).
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Maybe 10 or 11 I felt I couldn't skip a meal or snack anymore? That's also when she started 3 meals + 2 snacks daily.
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For our older daughter, it truly was a year. She actually refused all food until then. We didn't stress about it.
Our younger daughter (maybe because she was formula fed?) was much more interested in food earlier and by 9-10 months she was eating and needed real "meals".
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Around 10 months he started refusing the bottle in favor of a "real" meal. I don't know, maybe he realized he likes food better than an all liquid diet? We do 3 meals and 1-2 snacks a day here.
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@hilsy85: More often during the day and she also drank her bottles faster but didn't want more milk...just solids!
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I'd say that at about 11mo I felt like I couldn't skip. Now at 12mo I am realizing that he needs a snack in the afternoon too!
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@hilsy85: Yeah I just realized we skipped on Sunday when we were driving home.. durr! I don't get the 'food before 1 is just for fun'- at least not if you plan to wean, or start weaning, around 1 they'd better be eating something else, right! I'd be curious to see FF vs EBF & how it played out. All 3 of my nieces were FF and my family is very confused that my son is pretty ambivalent about eating. One of my nieces allegedly just stopped all or most formula once she got "real food" - she was MSPI so I guess her formula was disgusting.
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Around 9.5 months for us
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M is FF and she is still (9 months) not really interested in solids. She sort of plays with the food and puts some in her mouth and might swallow it or might not. It's frustrating cooking and offering and cleaning for not much eating. We're doing 2 "meals" but it's really hard for me to picture her getting many calories from meals by 1 year.
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@scg00387: that's exactly the confusion I have with it.
@littlebittyhouse: what has made you realize that? I'm wondering if LO could use an afternoon snack as well, but not sure if I"m just thinking he's hungry when really he's fussy due to teething. -
@hilsy85: have you tried offering a snack? If he's teething he won't want the snack.
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At 7 months, we regularly skip solid "meals". She doesn't seem to miss them.
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I didn't actively offer meals until LO was 9 months old. Our pediatrician wanted us to encourage him to eat more food at that point. He wasn't interested in sitting down to eat a meal and would have probably lasted a few more months on just milk alone.
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@regberadaisy: the only snacks I've really tried have been puffs, or a cheese stick...and I don't think he woudl ever turn any of that stuff down! But maybe that means he's really hungry?
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7.5 mths...we sometimes skip lunch or a snack. But don't think he could go wo banana for bfast and his dinner!!
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@hilsy85: he was getting fussy in the afternoon and when i offered water + snack he was happy as a clam!
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I'd say 13-14 months. We didn't start solids until 9.5 months & have done a slow progression of increasing solids & decreasing nursing.
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We basically skipped dinner last night (7.5 months) because we tried carrots for the first time and she hated it. There were no adverse effects to her mood or sleep...
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@littlebittyhouse: ah gotcha. I think I may try this in the longer stretch between lunch and dinner if he gets fussy. Do you do high chair for snacks as well?
@highwire: @rawrasaur: @mrsjyw: yeah I think at that point LO wouldn't have cared much either! But I felt bad when I realized that I forgot to feed him lol.
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9 months
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@hilsy85: yes - high chair for all snacks. I will offer a water cup throughout the day. on a particularly fussy day I will let him snack on the couch with an episode of thomas (something i said i would never do!)
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Around 8.5m.
He turns 9m this week and I just started noticed these last few days that, he will eat his bottle and have his food. It used to be either or, or I'd give a full bottle with a little food, or I'd give a little bottle with a full meal of food. Now? Now, he eats both.
He gets 2-3 solid meals plus 3 full bottles. It used to be 2 meals 2 bottles. -
Really around 7-8 months. He was very into solids and his appetite increased.
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It was closer to a year. He happily would have nursed all of his meals up to that point and probably even longer. He started taking in more food around 10-11 months, but I still think it was more fun and trying new things than actually needing it.
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Around 10.5 months she really started to not mess around with her food!
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He's 9.5 months now and really ambivalent about solids. He'll scarf a purée like nobody's business, but finger foods he'll toss on the ground unless its carbs. He used to be great about fruits and veggies, but not lately. We're doing 1 meal of purée, plus 2 meals of table food and maybe 1 snack. I try not to skip any, since he never eats much at any meal. "Food before 1 is for fun" keeps me sane some days!
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I don't know..but I don't really skip much. I think I started being more serious about it at 8-8.5 months (started solids at 6 months) and I think only around 9-9.5 months did I start to feel like it was really missed if we skipped. Of course if she drinks more formula in a day, every now and then we miss a solids meal, but she really seems to want her solids these days.
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11 months is when she started to eat more at meal time and got upset without eating solids.
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Around 9-10 months, although we still don't do breakfast. That'll change when he goes to daycare next week though.
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@hilsy85: I find that the "French" way of eating at 8, 12, 4 (snack), and around 8 (it's usually 7ish around our parts though) works well.
(Of course, ideally he wakes up at 8, & naps 10-12, and again 2-4, with bed 8-8:30, so the schedule works for us perfectly. I'm not sure it would if you had a different nap schedule)
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