Nursing and Solids...Making It All Work!

If you don't like to mix breastmilk with cereal, try mixing some fruit with it. I mixed applesauce or bananas and if it was too thick, a little water. You can mix anything with cereal. My kids didn't really like it, so I mixed different things with it to flavor it up.

Hi K.!

Eating Schedule depends on your son of course. He's still pretty young to do a full 3 meals a day plus nursing. Do you have a local La Leche League? Great support group!

This was mine with my son from what I can remember, he just turned 4!

nurse in the morning (mind you was usually 6:30 or so) then about 8 we'd do a little cereal. You can mix the cereal with a little water and the veggies or fruit too and nix the bm. Or save that meal for later in the day and in the morning just mix with a little bm. My son had a huge appetite and loved all the baby foods and cereals. My little girl not so much, she didn't have much of the baby foods from the store. She had what we had for dinner chopped up really fine.

So anyway nurse am, breakfast, nurse around lunch, nap, nurse before dinner (about a half session) cereal/veggies, nurse right before bed.

2. I would make sure to keep you supply up on the frozen milk. You will probably be able to "restock" this summer while you're home. A lot depends on how long you plan to nurse.

3. I think I answered number three with the schedule. I oftened nursed a partial session, with my son he liked LONG nursing sessions so after 20 mins I'd pull him off, finish up dinner and then he was ready to eat with us.

Hope this has helped!! I highly recommend finding you local LLL though! It was so nice to bounce off idea and have local help. I didn't find them until my 2nd child. Good luck!

B.

I recently had all of these same questions - my son is now 13months old. The Super Baby Food Book is very helpful!
We started solids at 6 months, so for the first few weeks he ate just once per day gradually leading to more at each time, and then twice per day morning and dinner. I always used BM in his cereal - more nutritious than water. I went from rice to oat to mixed cereal before starting any purees. Then veggies then fruits. I just had to pump an extra time every day or two to have enough for the cereal (I used 2oz in his cereal). When he got ready for thicker solids, I used cereal in with the fruits/veggies and a smaller amount of BM if any at all to get the right consistency. I cooked/pureed all my own foods for him, unless we were out and I used babyfood jars. My son has never been 100% on a strict schedule. Our lives are hectic and we don't live on a schedule either. He always eats solids around lunch time, around dinner time, and usually a snack in between. I always did (and still do) nurse on demand. (I wish we were on a stricter schedule, but just doesn't work out that way. He is on a routine schedule at daycare though) The amount he takes in a bottle has been about the same since he was 8 months old, we just add more solids to his diet to get the calories in (and nurse on demand, so hard to tell how much he is taking in. I work full time, so pump everytime he takes a bottle at daycare. It seems to always have worked out.... in 13 months I have never supplemented with formula, and always mixed his cereal and some purees with BM. Also - I never gave my son juice. He gets enough fruits/sugar through eating fruit purees and whole milk yogurt, so i have always given him 2-3oz of water in a cup after each meal. He loves water - and it is much healthier than the added juice! Better for his teeth too!
But watch his extra liquid intake (water, juice if you give it) so he doesn't drink too much of that and not enough BM.
Good luck!

When my kids were 6 months old a typical day was this...
nursing for 15-20 minutes as soon as wake up
breakfast - a small bowl (few tablespoons) of oatmeal (regular quick canister kind) with rest of family at table
mid-morning - nurse 10-15 minutes before morning nap
lunch - few tablespoons of food (fork-smashed fruit/veggie) followed by 20-30 minutes of nursing before afternoon nap
sometimes nurse a few minutes mid-afternoon
dinner - few tablespoons of food (fork-smashed whatever the rest of the rest of the family was eating, yogurt, applesauce, etc)
nursing 15-25 minutes before bed

So they were sitting at the table eating 3 meals a day with the family but most of their nutrition was coming from nursing -- which they did 4-5 times a day. We've never had allergy issues, all the kids are/were 50-75% in height/weight and had no underlying eating issues like GERD. We also rarely used baby food, including baby oatmeal. Rice cereal has zero nutritional value. We just gave them regular oatmeal like the rest of the family eats. The kind in the canister is very healthy and you control what goes into it (plus it's much cheaper). Baby yogurt is chock-full of sugar so we just gave them "normal" yogurt from a big tub (much cheaper, too). Babies can mash anything with their gums so we just fork-smashed fruits and cooked veggies when needed the first few months of doing solids. Meat can just be finger/fork shredded with a little water/gravy to make it softer. And, of course, stuff like applesauce and mashed potatoes are just eaten normally.

OK, first, you don't need to give him cereal. It's meant for babies who are started too soon on solids (before 6 months) and have to "learn" to eat solids while overcoming their natural tongue reflex. It's also iron-fortified for formula-feds. But, if you breastfeed and he's 6 months, you don't need to give him cereal ever. If you want the convenience of breakfast cereal, just get some quick oats, run them through a food processor or coffee grinder and cook them with water. It's better than baby cereal anyhow because they strip baby cereal of all nutrients and then just add back in a couple things they think your baby needs.
Right now, all he needs is breastmilk. Until around 1-year, babies get EVERYTHING they need from breastmilk and solids are just about teaching tastes and textures. So, no reason to get stressed or confused. Just keep nursing on schedule and add snacks in between (wait 30-60 minutes after nursing each time).
Best foods to start with:
bananas (mash)
avacado (mash)
sweet potatoes (bake or steam in the skin and then peel and mash or puree)
blue berries (mash or cut in half)

Check out the book "Super Baby Foods" or "Whole Foods for the Whole Family" for lots of great info.

Schedule? Just stick to whatever your nursing schedule is and add some solids in between. Whenever you sit down to eat, put him in his high chair to join you at the table and give him bits of what you are eating. No baby ever needs jarred purees (they are also made for babies who start too early). They are convenient for traveling, but unnecessary, especially at home.

Good Luck!

I'm right there with you! I have a 7 month-old :) I think the only difference is that he's my third, and it's amazing how much more relaxed I am about the whole breastfeeding thing with the third. I know that no matter what I tell you, you'll probably stress about your supply until you stop! I remember very clearly how much I stressed about it with my first! Just know that formula is OK! Personally, I used that to mix the cereal sometimes (just because it was easier than thawing a thing of milk for such a small amount). Now my son doesn't want cereal, so he eats jar foods and has about 2 8oz bottles during the day while I'm at work, and then when I'm at home, I only breastfeed. That makes it easier on me, and my supply won't go down. Since you'll be home with him this summer, I would suggest maybe pumping once a day and feeding him solids during that time? Then maybe skipping a nursing session for solids? I'm not much help because I'm not a teacher, so I've never been home for a long period of time when my child was nursing and eating solids. I just wanted to offer encouragement for you and try to tell you not to worry too much...your son will grow and thrive whether it's with 100% breastmilk or 100% formula (but I know how you feel wanting it to be the breastmilk!).

Hi K. -
You've gotten some great advice. I will add just a few things:
1. At six months, don't worry about the quantity he eats at this stage. Some days my son would eat a ton, other days he would hardly eat. At this point, breast milk is still his main source of calories, the solid foods are just to for "practice". I slowly added meals - at six months I started with one meal of cereal, and by the time he was 9 months he was eating 3 meals a day & nursing 4 times a day. Someone else mentioned the website www.wholesomebabyfoods.com - that is a really good reference.
2. Sometimes I would use formula mixed with cereal if I was feeling lazy and didn't want to pump. My son liked it better than water. It was nice to have that option. Or, I would pump after he nursed to get a few ounces to use for cereal the next day.

I felt the exact same way when I started my son on solid foods. Just relax and use common sense - he will get everything he needs! Do what works best for you and your son!

Enjoy having the summer off with your little guy!

Hi K.,

Congrats on your little guy and on breastfeeding while working!!

Our "schedule" (I use the term very loosely) was--eat something at the table with family (whatever baby food or cereal he was eating, and/or mashed family food if he'd been introduced to those items--we were really strict about one new food per week due to allergy concerns), then nurse whenever, and snack sometimes (baby food, cheerios, applesauce, whatever he was eating). Mine are both teens now so this is what I remember, may not be completely accurate.....His schedule should look like whatever works for you guys!

I'd use water in the cereal to save on the breastmilk.

You might think about doing a pumping session when you are home sometimes, not necessarily daily, maybe a few times per week, if you are really worried about losing your stocked-up supply. Don't cut back on the nursing because I think that is till their main source of nutrition at this point. Plus all thhose other great benefits..immunities, development of facial/jaw muscles etc.

I agree with whoever suggested La Leche League. They also have a toll free number 1-800-LA LECHE and a website (don't know the address but I'm sure you can find it).

you're right, it was easier when all he did was nurse! It sounds like you are doing a good job. Enjoy his baby days, they go by so fast!

K. Z.

I would say you only need to add breastmilk if you want him getting more calories (say, if he isn't nursing well), or if he's getting used to the taste of solids (so you want it mixed with something familiar). Otherwise, I'd say water is fine. I personally wouldn't use juice, because it's mainly just sugar (even if it's 100% juice).

Kellymom.com and wholesomebabyfood.com both say you should nurse just before feeding solids. I generally try to do this, but I've also noticed that if I switch it for some reason, my baby will let me know he's had enough solids, but still want to nurse. I guess it's all about following their cues!

My baby is 9 months old. We nurse when he gets up, then breakfast, then nurse before or after his morning nap and give a solid snack, then lunch, then nurse sometime in the afternoon before/after his nap and give a solid snack, then nurse, supper, nurse before bed. I think someone else gave a more organized schedule. :)

Good luck!

Try using a little juice in his cereal. He'll like it, it'll be a new flavor for him. And it will slow down the consumption of your frozen supply. As far as an eating schedule, when he's hungry. Some infants never take to a schedule. They eat when they need to. My son is 13 months old now and didn't get on a schedule until around 9 or 10 months. Try not to worry so much. If he's eating cereal and veggies he'll like the fruit juice. Also, you can try to mix baby food with his cereal too. Fruits usually make the best mix for that. Like some stage 1 bananas or pears. Good luck.

You got a lot of great info already but I wanted to chime in here. I know your doctors has probably told you to start solids a couple months ago, as did WIC if you receive it. it isn't necessary, breast milk is all a baby actually needs for the first year.

Juice be it alone or in his cereal just adds sugar, there's no real reason to ever give your kids juice when fresh fruits can provide all the nutrition needed without the extra sugar.

suplimenting with formula is probably not necessary, if you can pump more over the summer or while you are home, It sounds as though you'd like to continue nursing once school starts back up again. pumping in between feedings should give you plenty of milk to freeze.

as for a schedule, babies are people, really little people, but think how often you want a little snack during the day, and it may come on about the same time or it might be totally random, choosing healthy items is a must but if you're hungry you should eat, same goes for babies. nurse on demand, and spread out the two small meals he's getting now to like breakfast and dinner, then add in lunch and snacks as he gets older.

also skipping baby foods and just offering mushed versions of what you are eating is perfectly ok, just avoid added salt. it will help your child adjust to the foods you eat. and avacado is a GREAT first food, very soft and full of lots of good things.

good luck, you seem to be doing just fine, and it isn't a first time mom thing, you learn something new with each one, so keep asking questions and trying new things and just be the best mom you can be, don't stress it.