For those who weren't aware - I stopped breastfeeding D several weeks ago. I made it not quite to 16 months and still can't believe it. Granted he was only breastfeeding at night and in the morning at that point, but still, it counts. I made it nearly 16 months - and I feel like that is something to be proud of. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I'd last.
That being said - I had to start getting my difficult sleeper to sleep another way besides breastfeeding - and that came in the form of a bottle. D's been no stranger to bottles as I work full time and that's how he's gotten his breastmilk since age 9 weeks when I'm not around. However, he wasn't having them at night or in the morning with me around. Luckily for me - he transitioned WONDERFULLY and even started sleeping better!
D was having 3 bottles a day - morning, after nap and night. He's cut out the afternoon bottle but still slurping away in order to go to sleep at night, and it's the only way I can get him to go back to sleep if he wakes up too early in the morning. (It's also what he looks for when he throws his cup of milk back at me in the morning on the days he actually sleeps until the alarm!)
I know that you're supposed to start the bottle weaning process at a little over a year - and in essence, I did. However, I don't know how we'll ever get off this night and morning bottle routine. I would push the issue - but for a kid who at a few days shy of 17 months that JUST LAST WEEK started sleeping all night - I just can't. In reality he's only had these two bottles for about a month.
I know he won't go to school with it, it's not hurting him (I don't lay him down with it - we rock or he props up on a pillow in bed with me in the morning), he's not unusual and there are worse things in life. However...it's still on my mind. But here's the bottom line: he doesn't take a pacifier so I'll never have to go down that road with "weaning". So if he needs his "comfort bottle" to go to sleep and to slowly wake up...so be it. I'll worry about it, yes - but I won't ruin a good thing with his sleep for ANYTHING :)
1 comment:
Griffin didn't get off his bottle for well after 22+ months. For the people that said something to me, all I had to say to them is you don't get up with him in the middle of the night nor do you have to deal with him. He let go of it in "his" time and he did. I won't let it bother you.
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