We started introducing whole milk a week after Sam and Anna's birthday. Truth be told, I was a little nervous to take this step because in Sam and Anna's short history, we've had too much trouble with what they drink and I didn't want history to repeat itself. We had also just weaned Sam and Anna's last reflux med dose the week before successfully and so I was worried that the whole milk would cause a big time reflux flare. I also wanted to talk to our pedi to see if she had any specific recommendations for approaching this because of the GERD background and Sam and Anna's past bottle refusal period. We gave Sam and Anna milk during their meals for three days, but held onto their morning and bedtime bottles of formula until our 1 year well child pedi appointment. Sam and Anna did great. No problems at all- they drank it like it was no big deal.
We didn't get any tips that I didn't already know from our pedi, so since the first few times of whole milk sippies went well, we went semi-cold turkey only 3 days after we first introduced it and dropped the last two bottles. We never mixed formula and whole milk as I know some people do... I was and am a little against offering whole milk in a bottle. (Not that I wouldn't try it if giving it straight at first wasn't working.) I think it is easier for a child to probably drop bottles/formula if the two are only associated together, and the option of whole milk in a bottle doesn't exist. I knew that Sam and Anna wouldn't have attachment issues from losing their bottles, and they seemed to like the milk enough to drink ounces of it at a time, so I thought we were good to go. Friday night we gave them a sippy of whole milk before bed as a "nightcap." I was so pleased that it seemed to be so easy to switch from formula to whole milk for them.
That night a few hours into bedtime, Sam vomited all over himself and his crib. The next day was a big change because he refused most of the whole milk we offered. We were pretty sure that the whole milk HAD triggered a reflux flare and laying down exasperated the problem. (He showed no other signs of possibly being sick.) He hardly drank anything that day and the next.
Two nights later (Sunday night), Anna vomited all over herself and her crib at about 2 am- so badly that she got a bath in the middle of the night, and this momma took a shower because of holding a vomited soaked baby before climbing back into bed (I got up 1 1/2 hours later at 5 am for work the next day). We were even more sure that whole milk was causing stomach issues for both babies, and decided that maybe holding onto a bedtime bottle of formula for a little bit might help their tummies adjust to whole milk.
But then I got sick in the middle of the night Monday night... and we realized that Sam and Anna probably had gotten the flu, not-so-conveniently timed to coicide with the transition to completely on whole milk. This was a good thing for the whole milk issue we thought we had, because it should have been only a temporary problem, but there have still been lingering effects.
Although there has been no more vomit soaked babies or cribs since last weekend, Sam no longer likes to drink whole milk at home. He will drink it at daycare, but not at home. We think he has an association with drinking it here and throwing up that is making him resistant to it now. We have tested several factors (cups, locations in our home, etc.) with the same result. When we went out to eat for dinner the other night, he happily drank it for us at the restaurant- milk from the same carton; same sippy cup. So the only constant is that he will not drink much at home. (We're talking like maybe 1-2 oz total in a day at home, even if he's home all day.)
We've upped his intake of other dairy foods like cheese and yogurt and are banking on the idea that over time as the flu incident is farther from his memory, he'll gradually forget about it and happily drink whole milk again at home. I'm also trying to remember that at this point, milk is not as important as it was, and is now only a complement to a meal rather than a meal itself. He will be fine if he only drinks a little, as long as he gets a lot of other dairy and calcium rich foods. He is a pretty good eater besides this.
Thankfully, so is Anna. And Anna seems to have no association with throwing up and drinking milk as she's been drinking whole milk great for us at home or at daycare. I'm so glad that for her at least, this truly has been an easy change.
6 comments:
Oh my! That timing is craziness!! Hopefully Sam will forgot as more time goes by and drink milk at home too :)
Isn't it perfect how some illness always manages to creep up when you're trying something new? Kennedy had a milk allergy and I had all the same hesitation you do. I'm glad it was just the flu, but I'm sorry that Sam now has a negative association with it. I hope it doesn't last too long!
Crazy - I once caught the flu and it reared it's effect after I ate cornflakes. It was 10-15 YEARS before I even tried to eat cornflakes again. Here's hoping your babies don't last that long!
Poor Sam. The same thing has happened to me with hamburger helper and pizza hut dessert pizza. Gross.
You're right, whole milk is just a convenient source of fat, calcium, vitamin D, and vitamin E. If he is getting those things in adequate amounts for other sources, he doesn't need to drink a ton of whole milk.
Just a question - when your babies wake up in the night, how do you decide when you go to them or not?
And to answer your question - Noah really likes food, but only in small quantities. I offer him "real" food throughout the day, sometimes he wants it, sometimes he doesn't. He just doesn't eat a lot of it. Even at dinnertime now, his one "meal" of solids (which is still purees), he doesn't eat nearly as much as he used to.
And if he's eating solid-solids, like finger foods? He likes them, but he doesn't eat much of those at all. He ingests much more food when its in the form of purees. Although thats less now, too.
I have tried on several occasions to serve him purees at other times in the day, and he'll barely eat a tablespoon or two. I can tell he's eating them more for my benefit than for his.
So yeah, that's whats up with Noah's eating. I have done the research, and it is normal and *very* healthy for breastmilk to continue to be the main source of nutrition throughout the second year. And it is fine that he still gets 90% of his nutrition through nursing. He is gaining weight well, and is meeting milestones on time or early. And Noah DOES eat food, he just wants more breastmilk than regular food. I'm just following his cues. Whenever he indicates he wants solids, he gets solids. I also offer them to him at other points throughout the day, and its up to him how much he eats. So he will naturally increase his solid to breastmilk ratio. I'm just letting him do it on his own timetable.
:)
Oh, poor Sam! I hope he's able to erase that from his memory soon.
I hope you're feeling better! I can't imagine being sick with twins.
In reply to your reply... lol
We are the same here. If I go in, it ALWAYS makes it worse and makes it go on for longer. I don't mind nursing him once a night, but I refuse to get into the whole soothing him back to sleep several times a night thing. He doesn't need it. So if he wakes up before the appropriate time, I don't go in there at all. I DO peek through the crack in the door if the crying goes on for awhile, but I can't really see anything but him. Like, I can't see if he's thrown up or something. And if I go in and really check on him, enough so I COULD tell if he's thrown up, then like you said, it makes it a lot worse. The first night he was sick with his really bad cold he was coughing a lot, and then would have short bursts of crying or fussing (very short, less than a minute), then fall back asleep. When I got him in the morning I saw there were little dried splotches of orange barf all over his crib sheet and his sleep sack, and dried in his hair. He had had carrots for dinner. I felt so bad.
I just often feel guilty. Like I should be doing more. But like I said, it makes it worse! And 95% of the time he's crying just for the sake of crying and it doesn't last long. But I still feel bad, even though I know that most of the time this is the right thing for both me and him. He's just one of those kids who still feels the need to fuss or cry everytime I put him in his crib, even though for the past 5 months I have NEVER picked him back up again. He should know its not going to happen. But he won't give it up.
This is long and rambly. I guess what I'm saying is that this is one of those areas of parenting where I'm always wondering if I'm doing the right thing. So that's why I was curious how you decide what you're going to do about Sam and Anna when they cry overnight.
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