Hi Helen

Jasmin is soon to turn nine months old and I would like to adapt her feeding routine to her age.

She started to crawl three weeks ago, which is wonderful.

She does not eat much in general, I prepare small meals for her and yet she does not finish the whole meal. She prefers to eat on her own which is rather difficult at her age.

At night she is still a little restless. If we are lucky, she does not wake up before 05.00am where I breastfeed and we go back to sleep until 07.00am. She sometimes wakes up at 03.00am where I have to settle her over and over again, but she cannot fall asleep without having a breastfeed.

Best regards
Jane

Answer

Dear Jane

In the following please find a daily routine for at baby at nine months of age:

Early morning 05.00-06.00am: breastfeeding and go back to sleep

Morning 07.30-08.00am: Oatmeal cereal, perhaps prepared of full cow's milk, with oil added, full cow's milk from a cup

Late morning 09.30-10.00am: ½ bun with butter, cheese slices, ½ banana or another kind of fresh fruit, water form a cup

Settle her for a nap

Lunch 12.00pm: Rye bread snacks with different kind of topping, meat, mackarel, tuna, cod's roe, herring paste etc., dinner left overs such as boiled fusilli, pieces of meatball, boiled peas, maize, carrots etc. At nine months of age, you you still supplement with some vegetable purée to ensure that she is full. Water from a cup

Settle her for the afternoon nap, if needed offer her a breastfeed - this way you are sure to cover her milk intake and to avoid an extra milk feed at night.

Afternoon 04.00pm: Natural yoghurt topped with müsli, fruit purée or similar. ½ bun with butter, cheese, ½ banana or another kind of fresh fruit, fresh berries. Water from a cup.

Dinner 06.00pm: the same as the rest of the family, family food, rice, pasta, meat, fish, vegetables, different kinds of sauce. Water or full cow's milk from a cup.

Offer her cereal with fruit purée with full cow's milk for dessert or a bedtime cereal to ensure that she is full before settling her for the night.

Settle her for the night with a breastfeed at approx. 08.00pm

11.00pm-12.00am: Breastfeeding, if needed, depending on her milk intake during the day, and whether you may avoid to breastfeed her later at night.

Her restless sleep has to do with her age and is purely a development stage. Is is much to prefer that you help her to stay asleep without breastfeeding her, as you otherwise risk to increase her milk intake at night with the new routine that she might demand a breastfeed every night ...

I wish you and your daughter the best of luck:o)

Kind regards,

Helen Hansen