Should I Switch to STAGE 2 Baby Food?

I believe stage 2 is just the combination of different foods that were jarred by themselves in stage 1, and just slightly lumpier. stage 2 is designed to be used when she is competent with eating, and it is determined that she doesn't have any allergies to the foods by themselves.
you may want to try giving her a bit of stage 1 fruit in the morning as well, to balance out her meals a bit, and then see if she's so hungry in the afternoon.

it's possible she may just be full, but try small first and offer her a zwieback or a biter biscuit before giving her another jar, that way it takes time, and she may not be all that hungry in the first place.

also, try putting a little bit of rice cereal in the bottle with the milk. I never really measured when I did it myself, i kinda just eyed it, but giving a tablespoon of rice cereal with the milk for starters, and adding more as you feel comfortable, will probably help fill her up, and most likely will sleep longer for you if you give her a decent amount before bedtime.

Stage 2 foods aren't going to fill her up anymore. Their the same size and slightly (very slightly) thicker. She's still at the age when she should be drinking a bottle every 4 or so hrs. I wouldn't introduce stage 2's until she's gone though all the stage 1's. Because the stage 2's combined a lot of combos from the stage 1's and if you haven't gone through them all and she has an allergic reaction you won't know what it's too. They combined things like strawberries and banana's and if she hasn't had either what is she allergic too? You won't know. You can add some cereal with her lunch and dinner. That will help to fill her longer.

C.,

Your baby may be ready for stage two, in terms of both quantity and texture. I don't think that's the problem, though. If the jars weren't filling her at meal time, she would cry THEN. It would be a situation where the jar is empty, and she's still looking for more.

Baby tummies are pretty small, so they can only hold a bit at a time. If your little girl is crying about 4 hours after she last ate, it's because she's hungry again, not hungry still. Just like those bottles were 3-4 hours apart when she was just drinking, her food intake should be about the same intervals. Most babies need a small snack, either a bottle of formula or a bit of cereal or something in between lunch and dinner, because 5 or 6 hours is just too long for her to go.

Jess

If your baby isn't quite full on the stage one, you should definately switch to stage 2. The jars are bigger for one and for two the food is a little thicker, which seperates the different number stages. If your baby has any teeth or is able to chew a little bit, after dinner try a few treats, such as Gerber graduate stars. They dissolve easily and babies love them. You could also try a few during the day. Good luck and let me know how it turns out.

I would try giving her cereal in the morning and at night for dinner. This is the schedule that my 6mo is on..and she has been eating stage 1 since 4months with breaks in between because of being sick.

Morning bottle 6-7oz at 6-6:30am
Cereal(and now adding fruit) any where between 8-9am
Lunch aprox. 12-12:30 fruit and 6 oz bottle
5:00pm(aprox) 6 oz bottle
7:00pm cereal and fruit
9 6-7 oz bottle

It may seem like a hectic schedule but she rarely ever cries because she is hungry. Within this week we will begin stage 2 foods.

I have a 6 month old son who eats like a champ. We started Gerber Stage 1 at 4 months and after he went thru ALL fruits and veggies (3 days on each) we started Stage 2. Stage 2 Gerber tubs are bigger. I feed my son 2x per day cereal & tub. Here's my schedule which is working out well for me.

7:30am - 7oz bottle
9:00 - 3tbls cereal and tub of fruit
12:00 - 5oz bottle
2:00 - 3tbls cereal and tub veggie
4:30 - 5oz bottle
7:30 - 7oz bottle

My son is 20 lb 8oz.. so this schedule definatly works for him! My doctor said the trick is to give food throughout the day, not large "meals". THey should eat every few hours until about 9 months- 1yr.

If she's not crying she's probably not still hungry. She might be thirsty. If you aren't giving her a bottle between lunch and dinner that's probably why she so readily takes the one offered near dinner. At 6 months old she should still be having breast milk or formula every 3 hours or so, except during the night if she is sleeping through. Good luck.