Food and Stats

First up!  Teddy's 4 month check up was this morning.  He weighs 13lbs 13oz(15%) and is 25.5 inches(50-75%).  His head is 16.25 inches around(25-50%).  The doctor says he looks great!

We started him on rice cereal Saturday night.  He thought everyone sitting around the table watching him was great, but he didn't' really get the whole "eating" thing yet.  He did much better last night.  Tillie was SO excited that he was eating.  "Teddy need baby SPOON!"

Breastfeeding This Time Around

Breastfeeding with Tillie didn't go very well.  I went into it this time figuring it would be the same, but still wanted to give breastfeeding a shot because, hey, formula is expensive.

For the first week I just breastfed on demand(and still are).  Teddy didn't have screaming fits in the evening, so I figured he must be getting enough.  I was pretty surprised at his one week check-up when he was 3oz over his birth weight already.  Tillie wasn't even back to her birth weight at 2 weeks.

I never bought one of the fancy electric pumps because I wasn't working enough to justify the purchase.  I still have the Avent Isis manual pump I bought when I was pregnant with Tillie.  It didn't work for me then and it doesn't work for me now.  It has good reviews, so I don't know why I get nothing when I use it.  It's still not worth buying an electric pump.

Teddy tends to cluster feed every couple of hours, chills out staring at the wall for a little and then sleeps for a while.  (Sometimes.  He really had not much of a schedule.  Not that I would expect him to at 2.5 weeks.)  At night this gets a little old.  I really enjoy reading in a bath at night.  Teddy just wasn't letting me do it.  So, I decided that we should start giving him 1oz of formula just so I could get a break.  Also, I didn't want him to be a kid who would never take a bottle.  That was me as a baby and I know it was frustrating for my parents from stories I've heard.

It was a little bit of a fight the first few days.  When we finally got him to take a bottle, he would only take it from me.  I know, weird kid.  Finally this week Tim has been able to give him a bottle and it's lovely.  I don't get a long bath, but at least I was able to finish The Hunger Games this week!

What We're Eating

I mentioned recently that I was slowly moving away from formula.  Well, I kind of misjudged how much formula I had left so it was a little less gradual than planed.  I really didn't want to buy another can.  So, now at 11.5 months, we're basically on whole milk.  She's a very good eater of solid foods, so this will work out just peach for us.  She took a few sips of milk out of a Take N Toss sippy cup yesterday, so we're getting somewhere on that front.  I don't see the total switch to sippy cups anywhere in out future.

Now onto food.  Breakfast is still always jarred baby food.  She likes it and it's quick and easy.  Lunch often times is yogurt.  I buy YoBaby because it's made with whole milk.  I can't seem to find any other brand that is made with whole milk.  Any suggestions?  Dinner can be a wide variety from jarred beans to pizza.

Foods she does not like:
Eggs, jarred meats, Gerber Pasta PickUps and one other thing I can't remember right now.

Foods she loves:
Yogurt melts, cheese, pancakes, broccoli, pizza, diced pears and chicken noodle soup.

What does your kid like to eat right now?

Broccoli-Woccoli

I steamed some broccoli for Tim and me for dinner, then I kept steaming some extra long for Tillie.

It was cute to see her eat "real" food. ('Cause ya' know, baby puffs are fake.)

 

She really liked that.  I know because after she ate all the big pieces off her tray, she would look over at the plate with little florets waiting for her.

 

Next up, mushy carrots.

Baby Puffs

Tillie has become a big fan of feeding herself and eating things that are more solid than pureed peas.

1) Baby Puffs.

Do you know what the serving size is on these things?

SEVENTY-FIVE!

I don't think she's eaten 75 in the last week and a half.

She can pick them up.  But, she hasn't really figured out that she needs to let go to eat it.  She is, however, perfectly happy to let me place pieces in her mouth as she plays with the two on her tray.

2.) Bitter Biscuits

It's possible that she likes them.

Cake Order

For her birthday, Kizie wanted a marble cake.

With red buttercream frosting.

 

With two jars of Wilton No-Taste Red, I still had just a gorgeous shade of watermelon.

Tillie thought baking was great.  I let her have a baby spoon of frosting.

 

Next year, I hope she wants a lovely shade of pale blue.  Tillie doesn't care, as long as there's frosting.

Baby Bird

Tillie loves solid food.  The moment you open the jar of food, she opens her mouth.

I've been giving her a sippy of water to play with when she's in the highchair.  She totally understand the idea.  She just can't get it high enough.

All Kinds of Baby Food

Tillie is a formula fed baby.

Did I intend for it to be this way? No, I planned to breastfeed for at least 6 months, most likely 12. I was going to for a number of reasons. I believe in the benefits of breast milk and it's a heck of a lot cheaper.

I had supply issues that made that not possible. I started supplementing with as little formula I could so that she would still get as much breast milk as possible. Thankfully, she took to a bottle with formula right off the bat. By 3.5 months, I was sick of fighting with my lame milk producing breasts. As of today, she gets one breastfeed a day, but I question how much she actually gets from that.

Unfortunately, I feel like I have to justify why I give her formula instead of breastmilk. I felt bad enough already, I didn't need other people making me feel worse. I've gotten over feeling bad, because, look at this kid. She's happy and well fed.


When she was only getting breast milk, she wasn't happy. She was hungry.

I had big plans when I was pregnant to wait until 6 months for solids. Why introduce something else when she was eating the world's perfect food for her? So hey, I'm already ruining her with formula, why not give her rice cereal at a little over 4 months. At 4.5 months, we've added carrots into the mix. She loves it.



I don't feel bad, because my baby is happy. And, she sleeps 12 hours every night. But, there are a lot of people out there like me, so don't shame anyone who uses formula.

It give milk and cookies a whole new meaning.

At Tillie's two week doctor's check-up we discovered that she'd only gained 1 oz since she left the hospital. The doctor recommended that I supplement with formula every other feeding and do things to increase my milk supply.

I went out that day and bought Fenugreek. It's an herb that boosts milk supply, but also makes you smell like maple syrup. Sadly(?), I haven't been smelling like pancakes like I was told I would.

Tillie, however, was thriving on her new addition. After a few feeds with formula, she was back to her birth weight on Saturday!

I was talking to my online friends and was recommended a cookie recipe. This oatmeal cookie recipe has been used by many to increase milk production. So, I spent my holiday making Lactation Cookies.





Well see if this helps!