Wish Me Luck on the Binky Front

I think it's going to be a long few days. We've decided that now that my daughter is one we will do away with the binkie. It's nice to know she's putting up 100x more of a fight weaning from it, than she did breastfeeding. Makes me feel great.

Anyway, I thought it would be easier than this. After all, for the last few months she's only used the binkie when she sleeps. A few times she's even gone to sleep without it....thanks to a tantrum that left two or three on the floor beside her crib.

I started my bye bye binkie plight yesterday, but I have to admit I wimped out and after 20 minutes of crying and tears I reluctantly gave it to her. She was asleep within the minute. Today...I'm holding strong. At least so far...I'm only 30 minutes in. My motivation now is knowing how hard it will be if I tried to take it away when she was, say, two. Just imagine how attached she'd be to it then. The thing about taking the binkie away is there's not really any middle ground: she either has it or she doesn't. At least with breastfeeding weaning I could replace nursing with a sippy cup of milk. What can I replace the binkie with?

Anyone with any insight, please share your thoughts. And please...the answer isn't just let her use it until she's four. I've decided now is the time, I'm just looking for advice on making the transition a little easier.

Baby Walking Toys: Get It or Forget It

Why is it that we moms can't wait to get our little ones walking? Here are some of my babies first steps! (I remember I had the same issue with crawling and I now I think "What was the rush? She's into everything!") We encourage with baby walking toys and lend a much needed finger for support. We take off the baby shoes knowing walking is easier in bare piggies.

While every baby will walk when they're ready, both physically and mentally, there are things you can do to help your child develop the gross motor skills needed to walk independently. I credit the push walker my daughter has been using for months with helping her gain the confidence to get up and go on her own two feet. So here's what to get and what to forget when it comes to reaching the walking milestone.


Push Baby Walkers

Fisher Price Stride to Ride Lion is not only sturdy for babies just trying out their legs, but it's still fun and entertaining for the experienced walker. Babies are rewarded when walking by the lights and music. I will say, like many walkers, it can be a challenge for babies to initially stand up while holding the lion, especially on hard surfaces. On hard floors, since the wheels are not rubber, the toy moves a little too quick for inexperienced walkers who may find it running away from them. For babies who find exploring the lion fun enough, pressing the nose offers a musical surprise. This walker easily converts to a ride on toy (you push or baby uses feet to scoot) by pushing the tail (seat/handle) down. Overall, I call this toy a GET IT!

The Step Start Walk 'n Ride walker is great for keeping a baby entertained, but it tends to look more fun than it is. Because of the rather odd construction, this walker poses more of a challenge for little ones who are just learning to walk. The close placement of the wheels makes it slightly unsturdy for babies who are relying on it for support. The wheels also seem to get in the way of the baby's legs when in the riding position. It's also not as simple as some of the other walkers on the market to switch into the riding mode. For that reason, I'd say FORGET IT!

Sit-In Walkers

Sit-in walkers were popular a generation ago, but now the American Academy of Pediatrics is strongly discouraging their use. So while the Safety 1st Sound N' Lights Activity Walker and many others are still on the market parents should know, according to the AAP these types of baby walking toys pose the potential for injury, specifically the danger associated with falling down the stairs. In addition, sit-in baby walkers make it easy for babies to "walk", which the AAP says delays the development of leg muscles needed to walk unassisted. I think there's enough evidence there to simply say FORGET IT!


Push Walking Toys

The Fisher Price Push Along Corn Popper is an oldie but goodie, that is still one of the most popular sellers when it comes to baby walking toys. The colorful balls that go "pop, pop, pop" are irresistible to young on-the-move toddlers. That being said, I would not recommend this toy for babies who are just starting to walk as it lacks a wide enough handle for two-handed support needed by inexperienced walkers. This is a definite GET IT!


Pull Walking Toys (For the Experienced Walker)

Pull walking toys are great for babies who've mastered forward walking. Pull toys like Melissa & Doug Deluxe Wooden Frolicking Frog Pull Toy help improve coordination by encouraging walkers to turn around and look at what they're pulling, while still walking forward. Pull toys offer little or no support for babies so they should only be used with experienced walkers, but otherwise GET IT.

Recommended Reading

More Get it or Forget It Baby Gear

Top 10 Baby Products

New Mama's Must Haves

Daily Feeding Schedule Post-Breastfeeding

Trying to figure out a daily feeding schedule as I weaned my 1 year old from breastfeeding was more of the same: trial and error. But I think I've finally figured out baby feeding schedule that works for her appetite. The challenge was filling in the holes left now that she's no longer nursing.

This is her...I just imagine her saying "Call me anytime, just don't call me later for breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, or dinner."


As I explained previously weaning was a gradual process, which gave me some time to get the whole feeding thing down to a science. Now, I kind of think of her daily feeding schedule similar to the adult recommendation of six small meals a day. Before I show you a side by side comparison of my baby's feeding schedule from 9-12 months there's something else to factor in. As my daughter quickly approaches the one year mark, not only is her eating schedule changing, so are her daytime sleep patterns. Because she's going down for naps, even 30 to 60 minutes later than just a month ago, it's made the meal/snack issue easier. (Keep in mind, at this age (and until about 15-18 months) most babies are still taking two naps.)

Let's compare how the daily feeding schedule has changed over the last few months.

So what's a "snack" you ask? Well, that's a whole other post, but I'll be nice and give you few, dare I say...toddler...snack ideas as a preview.

Sippy cup of whole milk (babies should be getting 18-24 oz of whole milk every day) + one of the following:

Half a banana
Plain Whole Milk Organic Yogurt mixed with fruit or apple sauce
Three or four crackers with cream cheese
Slice of cheese served with half a peach/pear/apple

I've found tons of great baby food recipe ideas and inspiration on WholesomeBabyFood.com. They also have a sister site WholesomeToddlerFood.com for older children.

For endless meal ideas for babies and (even picky) toddlers check out the following recommendations. (The Petit Appetite Cookbook is full of organic recipes).



Related Baby Foodie Posts
Weaning directly from breast to whole milk (in a cup)
Making Homemade Baby Food
Why Milk Products, But No Milk Before 1?

Bye Bye Breastfeeding: Completely Weaning (Pt 2)

It's been 36 hours since I last pumped and 48 hours since I last breastfed my daughter. Sounds like I'm in an AA meeting, doesn't it? But no...I've just weaned my daughter after a year of nursing.

As I blogged about last week, weaning from 4 to 2 nursings a day wasn't as difficult as I thought. But as I also wrote, and expected, dropping the last two (morning and night) was definitely more of a challenge. But as they say: the deed is done.


Before I continue...for all those breastfeeding moms who are deadset against weaning until their child does it on their own (hello, 8 year old!), please don't bombard me with your hate mail. I am, by no means advocating for early weaning. I am simply trying to help mothers who are already planning on weaning their breastfed children, by sharing my own experiences...all of which were a combination of trial and error and pediatrician recommendations.

Since I've already written, in detail, about my experience getting down to these two last feedings, I won't repeat all that. If you'd like help on starting the weaning process by cutting all feedings except for the morning and bedtime, I suggest you read the post on "Bye Bye Breastfeeding Pt. 1" before continuing further.

So to pick up from where I left off...about a week ago I was only nursing my daughter in the morning and in the evening. I decided, since she seemed slightly more attached to the bedtime nursing I would leave that as the last to cut out completely. Before I can explain who I cut out the morning I need to explain our normal morning routine.

Olivia would wake up around 6am. I would go into her room and nurse her immediately in the rocking chair in her room. I would then bring her into our bedroom and let her play on the "big bed" while my husband got ready for work. Around 7 we'd all go downstairs and within a half an hour I would start her on breakfast. I would then put her down for her first nap around 9:15 or 9:30. When she woke up from the first nap (around 11) I would give her a snack and then feed her lunch around 12 or 12:30.

I knew that cutting out the morning breastfeeding session would mean that I would have to give her breakfast pretty much as soon as she woke up. But my husband brought up the point that we should probably change things significantly enough that she realized things were now going to be different. The biggest thing we did, is had my husband get her out of her crib in the morning. Instead of bringing her into our bed to play, we went downstairs. My husband would occupy her for a few minutes until I could get breakfast ready...usually fruit and a waffle, pancakes, or toast and a sippy cup of whole milk. (I tried to include something kind of dry so she would be more likely to drink the milk. But remember, by this point she was already a fan of milk, which made it easier.) Around the same time, she's also been slowly extending her morning wake time. Because she eats so early now, she needs a snack (usually some yogurt and apple sauce or half a banana) before her morning nap. This actually works out well because it's allowing me to slowly push her nap back closer to 10am. By the time she wakes up around 11:30 we play for a little while and then I feed her lunch around noon. I give an afternoon snack before the second nap which holds her over until dinner. I followed this routine for about three days before weaning from the last and final feeding.

Actually, the opportunity kind of feel in my lap. My husband and I were going out to dinner and my neighbor, girlfriend, and the mother of my daughter's same-age playmate babysat for us. (We do a baby swap so we can all have a couple's date every few weeks.) Anyway, I knew that when offered a bottle or sippy cup, before bed, my daughter usually refused it...but still went to bed fine and slept through the night. So, I told my girlfriend to offer her expressed milk in a sippy cup and/or a bottle. Olivia refused both, as I thought, but went right off to sleep. That was my opening (and it's now your excuse for a night out sans the baby!). I told my husband while at dinner, that if she didn't take the bottle/sippy cup that would be the end of breastfeeding. Even though she went to sleep without the milk, I wasn't sure how well she'd take it when I was there...ya know, boobs bulging with 24+ hours worth of milk. So tonight was our big night. Instead of nursing my daughter, I used that same time to read her a few books and snuggle in the chair where I normally breastfeed her. My husband and I laid her down did the normal routine and left. She didn't like that too much. In fact, she cried for about 10 minutes. I thought she might need a little extra snuggling tonight, it was her first night of non-nursing. So I rocked her and rubbed her sweet little face for a few minutes. I laid her down, awake and she drifted off to sleep.

It was tough not to nurse her...that precious little baby doing the baby sign for milk, not to mention I forgot what engorgement felt like...but we're done. With each day it will get easier for both of us. While I already miss the closeness and the special breastfeeding bond we shared, I think we're both ready. For us...it's time.


Recommended Links

Weaning 101: Tips for Breastfeeding Moms
More Breastfeeding Resources

And just to leave you on a high note...that's my girl (and the son of my wonderful friend, Christie!)

Bye-Bye Breastfeeding: My Weaning Experience (pt 1)

From what I've found there's no exact science to weaning. You basically slowly cut back on breastfeeding sessions one at a time and replace each with whole milk, formula, a sippy cup, a bottle - or a combination of them depending on when you wean a baby. I have been breastfeeding my daughter from day 7 (more on that later) until now, just shy of a year. Our breastfeeding journey has been a wonderful one, although I have to admit it's a miracle it's lasted this long. It's been filled with nipple shields, finger feeds, 24 hour a day pumpings, a brief return to overnight work, a week apart (with 100+ ounces of milk pumped and dumped), a nursing strike and a few bites. But as my milk supply slowly dwindles, due in part to my daughter's increasing appetite for solid foods, I'm slowly weaning her from breastmilk directly to whole milk in a cup. Am I doing it the "right" way? I don't know. Am I doing it the way it works for us? Yes!


Why am I getting teary-eyed writing this? To be completely honest I was never emotional about breastfeeding. Sure, I loved the bond that my daughter and I shared. She needed me to survive, even more so than a child who gets a bottle. She needed me. I was happy to provide a boob and a meal, but now the time has come. My husband might tell you it's been too long. About six months ago he was afraid my daughter would soon look up while nursing and say, "I'm done." That's when I reminded him that he was breastfed for a full year and when I added...some moms breastfeed their children far longer...like 8 years!

When I started I was nursing Olivia about 8-12 times a day, every 2 to 3 hours. It took forever...nearly 45 minutes per meal. It felt like as soon as she was done nursing she was ready to start again. But for the last two or three months it's been down to four times a day and now the last week or so I've cut out all breastfeeding except the morning and bedtime feeding. I'll need to back up a bit to explain exactly how I got from 12 to 2...so bear with me.

When I envisioned breastfeeding my daughter I imagined it would start a few minutes after she was born, in my hospital bed. Everyone kept telling me the sucking reflex is natural and is strongest in the first 20 minutes after birth. Well, for me and her it wasn't so smooth. Not only did she not nurse right away, it wasn't until about 3 hours later that we even tried..and we weren't in the delivery room anymore, we were in my post-partum room. The first few attempts didn't go so well. So much so that the nurses insisted we supplement with formula. I pumped and got a small amount of milk which the nurses then saved so we could finger feed. That was only supposed to last while we were in the hospital, but as you can see in the picture, that's my husband feeding my daughter expressed milk with a syringe and feeding tube...10 cc's at a time.

I tried constantly, but for nearly two weeks she couldn't or wouldn't latch on. Finally, frustrated and about to give up on nursing altogether I called a lactation specialist at the hospital where I delivered and she recommended a nipple shield. It's a silicone cover that goes over your nipple making it somehow easier for the baby to latch on. It worked instantly and from there our breastfeeding journey began.

At two months and after constantly being told by the pediatrician that my daughter had an enormous amount of gas and her stomach was always bloated, I put two and two together. I did a little investigating and realized that perhaps she was getting too much air while she was nursing because of the nipple shield. I took the shield off while nursing and she latched right on. At this point I was still nursing her at least once or twice through the night. That continued until she was about 4 months old when she started sleeping through the night. I did continue to give her a "dream feed" or an 10pm feeding which carried her through 6am. I knew she was ready to stop that feeding around 5 months when she stopped sleeping through it and started waking up and resisting it. I stopped offering it, but she still slept through the night. Around the same time we cut back on a few daytime nursings as well when she started solid foods. This was a complicated time for me. I wasn't sure exactly how to merge breastfeeding and solid foods. Doctors will tell you different things: nurse before the meal so the child gets the breastmilk, or nurse after the meal so the child gets used to eating and doesn't fill up on breastmilk. I tried several different methods and eventually found what worked for us. As the solids started to more closely resemble meals here's how I integrated both breastfeeding and solids: breakfast, lunch and dinner the nursing took on a different role.

Breastfeed at 6am when she woke up
Breakfast at 8am
Breastfeed after the first nap (10:30 or 11)
Lunch at 12:30 or 1pm
Breastfeed after the second nap (3:30 or 4)
Dinner at 5:30
Nurse at 7pm before bed.

This was our routine from about 7.5 months until 11.5 months. Around 11 months I started to sense that Olivia was getting hungrier earlier and earlier after nursing. She could no longer make it until 1pm for lunch or 5:30 until dinner. I was starting to feed her lunch closer to 12:30 or even noon and dinner around 5pm. I believe two factors played into this: she's more active so she's burning more calories and requiring more food and she's not nursing as long because of both the solids and a lack of interest in sitting still long enough to wait for a second letdown.

That brings us to now, when I decided to make a conscious effort to wean her. Here's how I'm starting to cut out the last four feedings. About a week ago (11.25 months) I replaced the post-nap 1 breastfeeding with a small, healthy snack such as half a banana or crackers with cream cheese AND a sippy cup of whole milk. (Introducing milk deserves it's own post, but I will say my trick was to offer it when she had something dry to eat so she wouldn't refuse it, which she did at first. You can also mix it with expressed breastmilk if you have any, I did not.) I then pushed lunch up to 12pm. (If she got up from her first nap close to noon I would feed her lunch and then offer the same type of snack as mentioned around 2pm, before her second nap). I did the same thing in the afternoon, offering a sippy cup and small snack to replace the post-#2 nap breastfeeding. At times I was so tempted to lift my first and offer her what she really wanted...afterall, how can you refuse a little baby pointing at your breast and giving you the baby sign language sign for milk (especially after working so hard to get her to use the sign)??? It was difficult, but after a few days she started to really accept cow's milk.

Now we're down to breastfeeding twice a day and I'm still torn on which I'm going to let go of first. The morning seems the most logical, but I think that's one the she's most attached to. There are nights she goes to sleep without having the breast or bottle first, so that seems the easiest to give up next. I guess we'll see what works for both of us. Until then...I'll continue to update you on our weaning breastfeeding journey.

As promised, here's your update (8/10/09) with more on how I've successfully completely weaned my daughter after a year of nursing.

More Breastfeeding Resources

Increasing Breastmilk Supply

Tips for Breastfeeding Moms When Returning to Work

Breastfeeding & A Baby-Free Vacation

Donate Unused & Sample Formulas

TSA Rules for Traveling with Breastmilk (with and without baby)

Pumping & Dumping

Nursing Strike??? My Baby Won't Breastfeed

The Real Smart Pill: Breastmilk

Why Milk Products, But No Milk?