11, 12, and 13 months plus can be a difficult time to determine a toddler feeding schedule with so many transitions from baby food and bottles. Get these sample feeding schedules with milk for 1 year olds from a feeding expert and mom.
A baby’s first year is filled with many changes, and as it comes to a close around 11 to 12 months, often one of the biggest changes is fully transitioning to table foods and totally leaving behind baby food.
At the same time, parents are also trying to navigate how to wean from breast or bottle. Many parents feel overwhelmed and are unsure how to make these changes, and understandably so.
Although I cover transitioning to table food and bottle weaning here in lots of detail, it is important to have a feeding schedule in mind too because it helps make these big transitions successful.
Today, I’m sharing three sample schedules with you that I use as a licensed occupational therapist for babies 11, 12, and 13 months old. Basically, a feeding schedule for 1 year olds, so you can see how to make the transitions work for you.
They are flexible and have options for a 1 year old milk schedule, or a 1 year old feeding schedule with or without milk included.
Feeding at 11, 12, and 13 Months (Aka The 1 Year Old!)
If I had to pick one word to summarize feeding babies at this age, it would be: unpredictable. Honestly, they are so busy and easily distracted that you’re baby won’t eat anything at some meal and others they may seem to eat more than you.
This is normal, and I want you to keep that mind. It is important to not jump through too many hoops to get your child to eat, because they will soon learn how to wield that power.
Setting up a routine and schedule around meals goes a long way in curbing the unpredictability and potential picky eating.
I would also encourage you to move completely to table foods by 11 months, if you haven’t done so already. An occasional pouch is okay when you are out and about, but by this age babies should be eating a variety of table foods.
The schedules I share below are made based on this assumption. See further down in the post if your child is having difficulty with this transition.,
In my 8-10 month old feeding schedule, I recommended introducing a straw. If you haven’t done that yet, no problem, they will likely pick it up very quickly. While the straw is a great choice, at this age, your child may be ready to drink from an open cup.
I know how shocking that sounds. It is a surprise to most parents, but stay with me.
Open cup drinking is an important developmental skill, and challenges children to use the muscles in and around their mouth in new and different ways. This helps them progress with managing different types of food, as well as their speech.
Great, right?
Yes, there is always the potential for messy eating with kids, but read why it is actually important to let your kids get messy!
So be brave and give the open cup a chance. It is a wonderful tool to add into your routine, as you can serve your child’s milk and water in it during mealtime.
Because this is a time of transition, I’m going to share with you three schedules so that you can see the transitions.
First, you will see the schedule at the beginning of 11 months, then you will see it once the baby is weaned, usually around the first birthday or in the next few months.
In the latter case, I gave you samples for either one or two naps, as this is often a transition at this age too! Of course, all of these factors vary from child to child.
Get more specifics for bottle weaning and breast weaning.
Sample Feeding Schedule Around 11 Months Old
*This schedule is just a sample. Your child may sleep at different times and you will need to adjust accordingly. I suggest taking note of the time intervals so that you can apply to you child’s individual schedule. You can use this 1 year old sleep schedule as a reference.
6:30-7:00 AM: Wake-Up – Breastfeed/Bottle upon waking *This is usually the second to last feeding you will take away. Sometimes it’s the last if your child is more attached to this than the night time feed.
7:00-7:30 AM: Breakfast – Water available in an open cup or straw cup, table foods (include a fruit/veggie, carbohydrate, and protein).
9:30 AM: Nap
11:00 AM: Breastfeed/Bottle upon waking *This is usually the first milk feeding I take away, if there are no complaints from the baby, and I promptly feed them lunch instead with milk in a cup. Some babies may start to nurse or take very little from a bottle earlier than their birthday. It is okay to follow their lead.
11:30-12:00 PM: Lunch – Water in a straw cup, table foods (include a fruit/veggie, carbohydrate, and protein).* Give milk at this meal once the previous formula/breast milk is eliminated.)
1:30-2:00 PM: Nap
3:30 PM: Breastfeed/Bottle upon waking, immediately followed by an optional small snack such as fruit and crackers/dry cereal/rice cake. *This is typically the second bottle or breast feeding I take away, but it can be the first if this works better. Once this bottle is gone, offer milk in a cup and some protein to the meal like peanut butter, hummus, cheese, or beans.
6:00 PM: Dinner – Water in an open cup or straw cup, table foods (include a fruit/veggie, carbohydrate, and protein).
7:30 PM: Breastfeed/Bottle before bed *Typically this is the last breastfeed or bottle you will take away, and it can be the most difficult. However, feedings at this time won’t interfere with their other meals.
7:45-8:00 PM: Sleeping for the night
*Times are given in a range of possible start times, not duration. If you are concerned about how much your baby needs to eat, see this post on Portion Sizes.
Sample Feeding Schedule for 1 Year Old with 2 Naps
Specifically, this is an example around 12 – 13 months
7:30 – 8:00 AM: Breakfast – 15-30 minutes after waking. About 4 oz. of milk in an open cup or straw, a protein, carbohydrate, and fruit/veggie.
10:30 AM: Nap
12:00 PM: Lunch – 15-30 minutes after waking. About 4 oz. of milk in an open cup or straw, a protein, carbohydrate, and fruit/veggie.
2:30 PM: Snack – About 4 oz. of milk in an open cup or straw, a protein, carbohydrate, and fruit/veggie.
3:00 PM: Nap
5:30 – 6:00 PM: Dinner – About 4 oz. of milk in an open cup or straw, a protein, carbohydrate, and fruit/veggie.
Sample Feeding Schedule for 1 Year Old with 1 Nap
Beginning around 12-13 months Old
7:30- 8:00 AM: Breakfast – 15-30 minutes after waking. About 4 oz. of milk in an open cup or straw, a protein, carbohydrate, and fruit/veggie.
11:00 AM: Lunch – About 4 oz. of milk in an open cup or straw, a protein, carbohydrate, and fruit/veggie.
12:00 PM: Nap
2:30- 3:00 PM: Snack – 15-30 minutes after waking: About 4 oz. of milk in an open cup or straw, a protein, carbohydrate, and fruit/veggie. *This meal should include all the elements listed, but will be on a little smaller of a scale.
5:30 – 6:00 PM: Dinner – About 4 oz. of milk in an open cup or straw, a protein, carbohydrate, and fruit/veggie.
Tips for Feeding 1 Year Olds
As a pediatric occupational therapist, I get a lot of questions about when and what to feed 1 year olds. Here’s some answers to the most common questions:
- Milk should be around 16 oz. total for the day after 1 year of age.
- Ideally, meals should be spaced 2.5 – 3 hours apart, counting from the start of one meal to the start of the next.
- Babies and toddlers are capable of feeding themselves a lot of food at this age. Yes, it’s messy, read the benefits of babies getting messy while eating. I encourage you to allow them to feed themselves as much as possible, even with a spoon!
- If your baby is gagging a lot or you’re nervous about their occasional gag, then head to What You Need to Know About Baby Gagging.
- Try to have as much variety in your toddler’s diet as possible, ideally not serving the same thing two days in a row. Need some inspiration? I’ve got you covered! See The Mega List of Table Foods or The Ultimate List of Meals for Toddlers.
- If you’re concerned about how many calories they’re eating or need to increase your babies weight, then see High Calorie Foods for Babies.
- Around this time you may also be considering getting rid of the binky or dummy, if so, I’ve got a guide that will help you know when and how to do it. Check out Everything You Need to Know About Pacifier Weaning.
What If Your Toddler Isn’t Eating Well? Is It Picky Eating?
If you feel like your baby isn’t getting the hang of table foods or is consistently eating very small amounts of food at 10 months of age, then I would strongly suggest scheduling an evaluation through early intervention (if you live in the states) or seeking out a private or outpatient therapist.
I highly encourage you to save a seat in our free workshop on how to get your child eating table foods, if you haven’t already. This will give you practical strategies on working through this transition with your baby or toddler.
To get you started with strategies you can use at home, grab my, Learn to Eat Table Foods Cheat Sheet, that I’ll send right to your inbox. It has a step-by-step plan and some other tips that will be helpful.
Unfortunately, many times, pediatricians advise to wait it out, but trained feeding therapists (usually OTs and SLPs) are able to catch early signs of underlying sensory or motor difficulties. The earlier these problems are addressed, the easier they are to overcome. Head to Everything About Feeding Therapy to read more.
More on Feeding Schedules for Babies from Your Kid’s Table
The Best 6 and 7 Month Old Feeding Schedule, So Easy to Follow
Introducing Baby Food: Everything You Need to Know
The Ultimate Guide to Feeding Milestones for Babies and Toddlers
Feeding Red Flags for Babies and Toddlers
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Alisha Grogan is a licensed occupational therapist and founder of Your Kid’s Table. She has over 19 years experience with expertise in sensory processing and feeding development in babies, toddlers, and children. Alisha also has 3 boys of her own at home. Learn more about her here.
Hi, I noticed after a year there’s no water at meal time, just milk. When and how much water do you give at this time? I’m still paranoid about water intoxication.
Hi Darrian,
It is currently recommended that 1 year olds drink 8-32 ounces max of water a day. This is 1-4 cups of water. The risk for too much significantly declines after 12 months. Hope this helps!
Best,
Laura
Your Kid’s Table team member
if you count CDC as a reliable source, then it recommends to continue breastfeeding past the age of 1, until 2.
We’re going until my LO is ready to stop and not a moment sooner.
Yes, breastfeeding to 2 and beyond is great and has many benefits! This article is for those who choose to wean at one, which is common in America, and has a lot of room for flexibility.
Best,
Laura
Your Kid’s Table team member
Hello! I found this schedule info SO helpful! My daughter is turning 1 in 15 days and I am trying to figure out how to wean her from breastmilk and onto cows milk and how much to feed her and when so this is great. My question is- for the 1 Year Old Feeding Schedule(s), they just stop after 5:30-6:00 PM Dinner. So is no more food taken in after that? When is bedtime? Is the bottle previously given before bed (from the 11 month schedule) taken away and not replaced with anything? Would appreciate the insight/advice! Thank you!
Hi Maggie,
I’m glad you found this schedule helpful! The general schedule for this is assuming that the child is also transitioning from a bottle to a cup, and/or working to decrease late night feeding, but there is lots of room for flexibility here. So many toddlers will still take milk or a snack after, but the goal is to start offering cow’s milk with meals to increase the solids eaten. This can be gradual of course! We have an article on milk you might find helpful!
Let me know if you have other questions, because we have a few articles on weaning as well.
Best,
Laura
Your Kid’s Table team member
This is the most realistic, best schedule out there. I was instinctively trying this schedule (it’s similar to French feeding schedules) but also wondering how my 11 month old is going to transition off the bottle. Thank you for explaining so easily.
So happy you found it helpful, Julie! We hope it goes well for you and your little one!
Best,
Laura
Your Kid’s Table team member
This is the best example schedule I’ve ever seen. It’s doable! It’s realistic! It’s not some fantasy schedule that assumes you have absolutely nothing else to do but stare at your baby all day long.
My older two children had no issues going on and eating schedule, as far as eating and meaning we’re concerned, they were a breeze. My third child, and my only girl, refuses any milk that’s not breast milk from the breast she won’t take it out of a bottle, or cup, or straw, I’ve gotten around her adamant refusal to drink water by adding a little bit of Pedialyte to it. 1 oz of Pedialyte and 5 oz of water. Just that tiny little bit of flavor and she’ll drink it right down.
I’ve been combing the web trying to find advice on how to get her on an eating schedule, because at this point I think she fights me on it just on principle, and what to feed her. At 18 months old she still does not like to self feed. She’ll eat almost anything if I feed it to her, but the only things that she’ll put in her own mouth are Graham crackers, cheerios, bananas, and frozen blueberries.
If I give her a spoon none of it goes in her mouth, but it will go everywhere else. Her hair, the table, her clothing, the walls.. she’s gotten very good at the catapult maneuver with that spoon. If I let her just play with the spoon and I feed her, she’ll eat most of what I put out for her, and she’ll spend a good portion of the time that I’m feeding her stirring whatever I’m feeding her with her spoon.
Hi Kasey,
I’m glad to hear you are feeling hopeful about this schedule! For self feeding, you might have some luck adding novelty to the presentation like mini food picks, various dishes, etc. Would she do any dips for the crackers or cheerios, or fruit in a skewer, frozen, mashed up, etc? Sometimes kids respond to novelty in this way. If you’re looking for other ways to encourage self feeding, this may help.
Best,
Laura
Your Kid’s Table team member
Hello! My 13 month old still refuses to drink milk from her straw cup but she is fine drinking water. When she was 12 months we weaned her from the bottles. She’s doing fine without them, she’s been eating lots of solids now but I can’t get her to drink her milk from her straw cup! In the meantime while she’s on her milk strike I’m serving cheese yogurt and calcium based foods. Any advice to how I can get her to drink her milk? Thank you!
Hi Mela,
This is common for some babies and toddlers. Have you checked out our article on milk and weaning? This may offer some insight, but serving cheese, yogurt, and calcium foods is perfectly fine. If you keep offering, and she continues to eat a range of other foods, she should come around, and if not she is still getting adequate nutrients, even without additional milk.
Best,
Laura
Your Kid’s Table team member
This is all great information! The only question I have is how many days do you go in between dropping a bottle? Do you drop one and wait a week before dropping the next, or just a few days?
Thank you for this post!
Hi Megan! Thanks for reaching out! Try doing every 5-7 days and adjust as needed 🙂
Best,
Kalyn
Hi there,
My son has turned 12 months old, still has milk morning and before bed and eats cheese, yogurt etc..
My question is if you have dropped milk feeds in the day, do you have to offer milk in a cup at meal times instead of water?
Thank you
Hi Vicky! Thanks for reaching out! Dairy recommendations for this age would be 16oz/day. So based off this example schedule, you could do 4oz of milk in a cup at breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack time, or however you want to break up that 16oz of milk throughout the day. However, that 16oz also includes cheese and yogurt. So, if your child doesnt want to drink milk, or only wants a little bit, that would be fine too. Water will always be the primary beverage, with milk on the side. Hope that helps!
Best,
Kalyn
Hi my baby is a year n refuses to hold her own bottle or food. Why us this?
Hi there! Thanks for reaching out! Most kids are motivated to eat and will figure out how to get it into their mouth. For those that want to eat, but can’t figure it out, the problem sometimes arises with the pincer grasp. We have a blog post with tips for this! Check it out here!
Best,
Kalyn
Hello! This is very helpful. I am having an issue getting my daughter to drink milk out of a straw cup. She drinks water out of a straw cup so I know she can. She has fully transitioned to whole milk. She does a 7oz bottle in am and a 7 oz bottle in pm. Your post is the first I’ve seen that has actual helpful info and breakdowns. She just outright refuses to drink milk out of a cup of any form. She drinks it totally fine out her bottle though- cold even. So I’m not sure why she won’t drink it out of a straw cup. Any advice??
Hi Amanda! Sometimes they prefer to drink milk out of a bottle because they associate it with comfort and sleep. To help transition her off the bottle for her milk, try gradually diluting her milk bottle with water— adding more water each time. Then, when offering her milk in a straw cup, do so without any water added. The hope is that she will think the milk bottle tastes worse than it does in a straw cup, and therefore, she’ll start to prefer the straw cup! Hope that helps!
Best,
Kalyn
Hi, there!
Thank you so much for your helpful advice/schedule. Question, are we simply replacing a bottle of formula with a straw cup of cows milk OR are we replacing a bottle with a solid snack and only offering cows milk at meals?
Thanks in advance!
Hi Michelle! Thanks for reaching out! We recommend replacing a bottle with 4oz of cow’s milk only at meals/snack. (Milk should be around 16 oz. total for the day after 1 year of age.) That would look something like: Breakfast- about 4 oz. of milk in an open cup/straw + a protein/carbohydrate/fruit/veggie; Nap; Lunch- about 4 oz. of milk in an open cup/straw + a protein/carbohydrate/fruit/veggie; Snack- about 4 oz. of milk in an open cup/straw + a protein/carbohydrate/fruit/veggie; Nap; Dinner- about 4 oz. of milk in an open cup/straw + a protein/carbohydrate/fruit/veggie. Hope that helps!
Best,
Kalyn
Thanks so much for this great site and very helpful article. I have scoured the web and this is some of the best information I have found along with great suggestions.
I have a son a week shy of turning 12 months and currently have him on a “schedule” like so:
6:30/6:45-wake up (as of late, he has been getting up earlier but I leave him babble in his crib/room as he is content).
7:00- 6 oz bottle (transitioning to cows milk and he has tried it a couple months ago per my doctors recommendation).
7:45-solids for breakfast (example: yogurt/baby cereal mixed in and some pieces of fruit).
9:45-11:15-nap
11:30-6 oz bottle
12:45-solid lunch (example: cottage cheese, veggie, fruit, beans).
2:45-4-nap
4:15-snack (usually milk in straw cup (4 days of this now), some avocado and crackers).
5:45/6-supper (example: pasta with veggie sauce, chicken meatball, fruit and veggies).
7:15-6 oz bottle during bedtime routine.
8:00- Usually asleep but had been babbling longer and content in crib.
He has taken first steps a month ago and now walking quite well on his own as of about a week ago, babbling a lot more but I am trying to decide if he is ready for a nap transition or if he is in a bit of a sleep regression due to all the new development.
Wondering if you would recommend adjusting the times for bottles/solids? I plan to drop the lunch bottle and offer milk in his cup with lunch in 2 weeks or so.
Thanks again!
*I also offer water in a straw cup or open cup throughout the day (approx 6 -8 oz total for a day).
I give my baby finger food, he grasps it and put it in the mouth, chew it and throw everything out. I gave him avocado, boiled carrots, raw carrots, chicken soup.But when I grind it all he swallows happily. He never drink formula milk more than 2 oz in one sitting. He is 12 months old. Please suggest.
Thanks for reaching out! Have you discussed this with your pediatrician? It’s always good to consult with your doctor, just to make sure everything is okay. It does sound like he may have some sensory issues or oral motor issues that could potentially be preventing him from chewing/swallowing/eating different textures of food. To help with this, try some oral motor exercises- we have a list of them here! Using a toothbrush to brush the sides of his mouth can also be helpful with desensitizing reflexes and strengthening those oral muscles. Continue to practice and offer foods, but be sure not to pressure him.
Best,
Kalyn
Hi Lisa! His feeding schedule looks and sounds great! Once he turns 12 mos, you can definitely try to transition over to 1 nap/day, and see if that helps with his bedtime— same with the milk! After 1, you can begin to transition from formula to regular milk and gradually replace a bottle feeding with 4oz of milk in a cup/straw cup. Milk should be around 16 oz. total for the day after 1 year of age. Ideally, meals should be spaced 2.5 – 3 hours apart, counting from the start of one meal to the start of the next. Hope that helps!
Best,
Kalyn
Hi, Lisa!
My bb is about to turn 1 (less than 2 weeks) and his schedule is almost exactly the same as your baby’s. I’m curious how things have been going as I’m looking to transition my baby from bottles of formula. Did you replace all bottles of formula with sippy cups of cows milk? Or did you start offering milk with meals instead and just do snacks of solids in between? How is your schedule looking?
Thanks in advance!
Hi, my daughter just turned one and I’ve been having issues transitioning her to table food. Currently she just picks her food up and licks it but that’s about it. She was doing well before with some food like sweet potato but she had about a few weeks where her appetite decreased probably because od teething and getting sick.
She is currently still taking milk 3x a day – in the morning, before her 2nd nap and bedtime totalling up to about 21oz. Her weight gain has been minimal if any.
Do you have any further suggestions of how to help with her eating? I can’t help but resort back to puree since I’m worried she’s not getting enough.
Hi Tina! Thanks for reaching out! Transitioning to solids can be tough! Keep offering, without pressure. Demonstrate eating to her with exaggerated motions, where everyone eats the same things. Allow her to touch/feel/play with her food so that mealtime is an enjoyable experience for her! Be calm and patient, don’t force. Try oral motor exercises if she has any trouble putting food into her mouth (brushing the sides of her mouth with a toothbrush or using teethers). We have a free table foods workshop that can also help! Save your seat here.
Best,
Kalyn
Hello, my 12 months old daughter is not swallowing any food even purée apart from her milk and I am so worried cos she’s loosing weight…..please can you tel me what to do
Hi Motty! So sorry to hear that your daughter is struggling with solids. We know how stressful it can be! Since she’s losing weight, we would definitely recommend getting her checked out by a doctor, who could potentially refer you to a feeding therapist. In the meantime, she may need help with her sensory/oral motor skills. Try using a toothbrush to brush the insides of her mouth- this will help desensitize her gag reflux and strengthen her motor skills. Try letting her touch/feel/play with her food- this will help her become familiar and more comfortable with different textures and sensory sensitivities. We have a free workshop available that helps to transition your baby to table foods. Save your seat here!
Best,
Kalyn
I am concerned my 11mo old (one in august) is eating too much. She dropped her morning bottle already and her rough schedule goes like this:
830-9a wake, breakfast (usually a waffle and half a yogurt or half a yogurt mixed in with oatmeal, I serve fruit with either meal.
Between 1130 & 1230 lunch (varies but is usually a protein, a carb and a veggie or fruit)
Between 12&1p 6oz bottle (depends on the days pace, not every day here is the same)
5/530 dinner – usually a carb, protein and veggie. Usually she takes a bottle between 430 and 6p – depending on the day, if she had her lunch bottle late then she doesn’t take this one as early. Often we find that we pack the bottle in even though she’s had lunch a few hours prior and either just had dinner or will soon.
815/830 6oz bottle
845/9p bedtime
We are first time parents and just want to be sure we aren’t over feeding her. She’s doing awesome with all solids and is eating 3 full meals a day now, consistently. We often find that we are giving her the early evening bottle, just to give it but not because she seems to need it. She is very high % in both height and weight since 4 months – but exceeds percentage in height vs weight.
Hi there! Thanks for reach out! Her current feeding schedule looks awesome! It’s great that she’s eating 3 meals a day successfully. If you’re concerned about the frequency of her milk, you can always try decreasing the ounces per serving, or if she seems to not need it during one of those times, you could try skipping a bottle and see how she does! But I wouldn’t worry too much about her weight right now. They tend to thin out after turning 1, when they start becoming more mobile and active! Hope that helps!
Best,
Kalyn
Hi! This was so helpful
My daughter just turned one year. I’m currently weaning off of formula and am doing goats milk (may introduce cows milk in small quantities but have read good things about goats milk and will mainly do that)
My main question is, do you offer water throughout the day during play time? Or is there set times that you offer water? I see that it was switched out with milk at meals and I’m wondering where I should fit that in.
Thank you!
Hi Jade,
You can offer water anytime during the day! We suggest that between meals/snacks only water is offered- but you can also offer it at mealtimes as well. I hope that answers your question. Let us know if you have any other questions!
Best,
Andrea
Hello, in the sample 11 month schedule it talks about offering milk in a cup if previous formula/breastmilk has been eliminated after 1st nap (1130am) at lunch time instead. If they are still on breastmilk, are we to offer breastmilk in or other milk alternative? Just a little confused. Thank you!
You can for sure still offer the breastmilk! What we are really looking for is proving the milk/breastmilk/alternative WITH the meal, in a cup so they can get used to having it with the meal. Hope that helps!
Best,
Desiree
My 10 month old has been refusing all bottles, nursing sessions (except morning but he only nurses for 3 mins, and I have extremely low supply), and also doesn’t like milk in any kind of cup. I keep trying to offer him bottles like in the weaning schedule (even though it’s a bit early) but I’m wondering if I should just give up and switch to the 12 month old schedule. He has the rare couple days every few weeks (this has been going on since 7 months) where he will start taking bottles again so I’m not sure if I should keep trying or if this is probably passing him off. Especially because he did used to drink around 3 oz from his cups and meal time, and now it’s 0 or 1 if we’re lucky. Did I just inadvertently make him hate milk?
Hey Stacy,
I’d definitely reach out to your pediatrician as you want to make sure that he’s getting the nutrients that he needs. If he’s not taking breastmilk still at this age it is recommended to be on some kind of formula until he’s 12months in age. I would keep trying but making sure not to force it with him, it does take some time for them to fully transition to drinking from the cups!
Best,
Desiree
I want to know quantity of meal and snacks and gap btwn 1 cup of milk and meal
Hi Priya! Check out our other blog post for more information on portion sizes 🙂
Best,
Kalyn
My 28 months son does not know to chew his food. Even chips he sucks, no matter how much I show him do crunch! Crunch!, He does not do it. He missed the milestone of self feeding. I have always spoon fed him. He eats only mashed food. If there a lumpy food he would bring out everything he has eaten. He just swallows the food. I tried to encourage self feeding after playing a bit he would say he is done. I am so stressed, need your help.
Hi Priya! Thanks for reaching out! Definitely consult with your pediatrician, due to his age. Your doctor can potentially refer you to a feeding therapist that can offer some hands on help. In the meantime, try using some sensory activities and oral motor exercises to help with the sensory sensitivities and oral muscles that work to chew/swallow. With food, the main thing will be to keep offering without any force or pressure. Allow him to touch/feel/play with his food and different textures.
Best,
Kalyn
Hey, thanks for the wonderful post!
I was wondering since I’m a bit in a bind, my little one is currently 1 year old, we have already eliminated all breastfeeding except at nights, it’s totally on-demand for going to sleep. Problem is throughout the night she continuously said every 2 hour more or less (sometimes even more frequent) so Mommy is tired. I’m totally going with your advice to shake things up and change going to sleep routine (daddy will have to get it done) 🙂 I don’t think it will be a big problem. Problem will be what do I do when she wakes up? She ask for a feeding every time adamantly. I just want to guarantee that she is also fully feed. She doesn’t do bottles, never have liked them, also hates pacifier! We are trying to introduce through the day cow milk without much success to my dismay 😅.
I’m a full time working mom, so It would be nice to transition to not breastfeeding at night to get a good rest 😌.
Thanks a lot in advance!
Loving parents
Hey Evelyn,
As you are working through the transition to cow’s milk are you attempting to mix it with breast milk at all (if able). This can help with the transition. I love your approach and you seem ready to tackle it. During the night waking, having Daddy be able to go in (as he can’t provide the milk like mommy) can be really helpful as well if you’re able to do that! But looking for another transitional soothing objects is really helpful too!
Best,
Desiree
Thanks for he information! I was beginning to feel overwhelmed and behind…
My son is almost a year old and I am now trying to take away bottles. So far I have taken away the bottle after his first nap and going straight to lunch. He also has a bottle first thing in the morning and before bed. I am following the feeding schedule you have for 11 months, however, his awake times are 3, 4 and 4 hours. When should I be giving him the second bottle and snack?
Hello,
My son is 13 months and we are struggling with table food at home and at day care. Lunch and snacks are at daycare with breakfast and dinner at home Monday-Friday. He seems somewhat interested in food when placed in front of him while at home but will barely eat. He plays with it, throws it on the floor, and squishes it. I normally give him a bottle of formula (5oz) when he wakes between 6:30am-7:30am, then I follow up with breakfast around 1 to 1.5 hours later. Some days, I start with yogurt and he takes to it well and we finish with a bottle at dessert before I take him to daycare around 8am. He then is offered breakfast again, snacks, and lunch that I either pack or they provide. He won’t eat when the food is placed in front of him nor will he let the teachers feed him. At home, I feed him from my plate with my hand or sometimes a spoon. He eats more in the evening and less in the morning. He is now consuming about 20-25 ounces a day of milk or formula. Also, I spoon feed him yogurt that eats just fine. Currently, baby or greek yogurt is our safety food. First, should I decrease to 16 ounces and offer milk with food in a cup? What do I do when he wakes and is crying hysterically for milk? When he is very hungry, he does not want food because it is not as easy to consume as a bottle of milk. Please help! I look forward to your response. Thank you
Hi Nicole,
Transitioning to table food can be such a challenge to figure out! Toddlers can be such spotty eaters! Based on what you’ve said, it sounds like you are wanting to phase out some of the milk during the day. Offering milk with one meal to start with in an open cup or a strawed cup, rather than in a bottle is a great way to do that. The early morning bottle is usually one of the last feedings to give up. This is also a great time to start letting your toddler self-feed. We have a post about it HERE that might give you some ideas!
Best,
Andrea
My daughter was exactly the same. At 12 months old I swapped her bottle times to after food. It worked. She was very hungry after she woke up and began eating really well. She loves her bottle right before a nap. She even began sleeping right through the night. She was a very full and settled girl.
Thanks for sharing, Donna! That definitely make a difference for some babies!
Best,
Andrea
Your Kids Table Team
Hi Diane,
Thanks for your response and tips. When I give him food first thing in the morning, he cries for the bottle and won’t settle until he gets it. I tried giving less ounces but he still won’t eat the table food. He’s grown to eat various snacks in the evening. I’m really trying hard to break the milk habit. This evening, I plan on offering a pouch at dinner and a bottle at bedtime. He currently sleeps through the night.
Hi Nicole,
I just wanted to chime in again! Many babies and toddlers still drink milk first thing in the morning. That is usually one of the last feedings to go. If your little one is insisting on the bottle in the morning, you might want to offer the cup at all other times and transition that feeding a little later. I also wanted to suggest our free table foods workshop to you. It focuses on a few tangible changes you can make to improve the transition to table foods. It might be really helpful! You can save your seat HERE.
Best,
Andrea
Quick question: When giving the milk or formula with a meal, do you want to ensure all the milk is finished or is it okay if they only had a few ounces and then just wanted water?
Hey Chrisy,
It would depend on their age and how much they are getting overall in a day! Check out this post on how much milk they need. If they are over the age of 1, then typically you wouldn’t want to push them to finish. Check it out here
Best,
Desiree
Can I feed my baby during the midnight and 4am in the morning? he is 14 months old…
Hello thank you so much for this, it’s super helpful. My baby is 15 months old and so far in the morning she is been having her bottle when she wakes up but been working on decreasing it and follow with breakfast, still struggling to get her to drink from a cup although she takes her water in one. Any tips around breakfast and how do you get them to drink milk and have solid at same time. She used to have 8oz we dropped it now to 5 and she is usually not happy about it and then she heads to daycare where they serve her breakfast. Many thanks
Hey Tanya,
If you haven’t tried yet, I’d try utilizing a fun straw cup! These can make it more appealing to kids, also utilizing a different cup (for the milk) can be helpful as well. Getting any characters from shows your child enjoys can be helpful as well. It can take some time for the transition but be consistent with offering the milk during the meal!
Best,
Desiree
Hello
I have problem with my both kids. My first one is 2,5 years old. He doesn’t want to try any food only eat certain kind of cereal, peanut butter and jelly sandwich, nutella sandwich, pasta with milk and sugar, muffins, rice with apple and sugar, that is all. From the beginning he only ate 3 oz of formula it never increases. We tried many kinds of formula to see if he doesn’t like the taste but no it was always only 3oz. Refused to eat solid food or even try any food. He weighs 22 lb now and I am worried that he is not gaining much weight. Any advice here. My other one is 12 months old and she also drink 3-4 oz of formula mixed with baby cereal. She likes to play with solid food but after trying she spits everything out. Right now she doesn’t eat anything besides a little bit of formula. I am worried that both my kids have some problems with eating. Please help
Hey Anna,
Thanks for reaching out! We can understand where you are coming from and know how hard it can be! I’d first start off with getting them to play in different textures and food. This can be really helpful as touching is the first step to eating. As for your 2.5 year old we do have a free workshop you can save your seat for free. This will help you with setting up mealtimes and removing pressure. While these principles can still apply to your 12 month old, we do have a different workshop for younger children with difficulties eating that might be more helpful as well. This can help with strategies for transitioning to solid foods. You can save your seat here
Best,
Desiree
My child is obsessed with his bottle making it very difficult to transition to an open cup or straw cup for his milk. He’s 12 months old and when we present an open cup he just throws it all over himself and can’t sip from straw yet. How do we transition off bottle and ensure he’s getting the 16oz?
Hey!
Thanks for reaching out! We’d suggest going with the straw cup so it’s not going everywhere and can be fun for kids. We do have an article on teaching them How to Teach Your Baby to Drink from a Straw you will get a lot of tips for working on the straw drinking.
Best,
Desiree
Hi,
My boy 15 month old doesnt like sweet food or fruits like chikoo,banana..He gags if he tries. Doesnt like honey..Doesn’t like banana,will have one or 2 bites if he is too hungry..Not liking oranges, or any juices.Please help in identifying underlying issues and he is not gaining weight..he is just 8.5kg.
He is still breastfeeding and not taking cows milk.
Hi there! It could be that he prefers to breastfeed, so he may not be hungry enough to try eating different foods. Continue to practice and offer different foods, flavors, and textures. Also, try feeding him before breastfeeding. Allow him to touch/feel/play with his food, so that he becomes more comfortable with it. To help with gagging, try using a toothbrush to brush the sides of his mouth a few times each day, to help desensitize his gag reflex. For more help, check out our free table food workshop here!
Best,
Kalyn
My baby girl is 1year and refused to eat accept breast milk what do Ido and I want to wean her and she is weighing 6.8kg
Thanks for reaching out! For tips for weaning from the breast you can check out this article. But also, for working on eating of Table Foods, we do have a free workshop that will help get you started. You can save your seat HERE
Best,
Desiree
Thank you so much for your all your resources they are really informative! My only question with this schedule is how much formula should I be giving my baby at each feeding while weaning from bottle? Typically she takes 5oz every 5 hours. I also cannot get he off the middle of the night feeding. She wakes up every night at 3am crying until she gets a bottle. I try to make these bottles smaller (about 3/4oz)
Hey Estella,
You can use this guide for nutritional content. Hope that helps!
Best,
Desiree
Thank you so much for a very informative article, my now 10.5 months old baby he 3 bottles of expressed milk per day 8 oz per bottle and 2 meals around 10 oz each ( breakfast of cereal and fruits and lunch of veggies and carbs and protein ) he is not very happy when he drinks his milk wants to stop before finishing plus gives me a very hard time at lunch. What do you suggest should I eliminate the middle of the day bottle and give him a third meal ? Or give him half a bottle and half food ? He is my first baby and I’m very confused
Hey Nada,
Since he is 10.5 months, I’d work on providing his milk with his meals. The milk is still his main source of calories, but he’s getting closer to that 1 year mark. So getting him in a routine of providing the milk with all of his meals will be helpful.
Best,
Desiree
Hi! I have a 12.5 month old. I love your example schedules but was wondering how milk comes into play if still nursing? My kid wakes up at 7 and wants to nurse right away. Do you recommend delay giving breakfast or give it right after? Thanks for all the advice!
If nursing in the AM, you can push breakfast back 30 minutes or so… Each child is different, so I’d see if he’s eating a good amount with that time span. If not, then you can try to adjust to what works your child.
Best,
Desiree
Hello…
I’m a mother of a 15 month old boy.. I am really having difficulties of feeding him even letting him drink his milk (bottle feed). When he turns 8 months and I started for baby weaning, it turns very well. He tries to eat small foods that I put into his table specially vegetables. But when he reached 11 month, he started refusing table foods that I offer. I tried feeding him with rice and soup and other varieties of solid foods. Sometimes he swallows it but most of the time he spit it or he’ll shut his mouth hard so that food from spoon won’t enter his mouth. He plays and thows fruits and vegetables that i offer him (when those are his favorite foods when he’s just starting baby weaning). He doesn’t even want to drink milk when he’s awake. So the only time that i can make sure that he’ll drink it is when he’s near asleep (that gives me a hard time to teach him holding the bottle by his own while drinking his milk.) I am really worried about what’s happening and I am hoping that someone could help me what to do. Your help/suggestions will be very much appreciated. You may email me @ kgonalacerna@gmail.com
Hey Katee,
Thanks for reaching out! If you haven’t yet seen our free workshop, I’d recommend starting there!! I’d keep working on having him play and touch a variety of foods (even outside of mealtimes) You can save your seat for the workshop HERE
Best,
Desiree
Do you have a printable version of the sample schedules
Hey Chelsey,
At this time we do not, but we will keep that in mind!
Best,
Desiree
Good morning! My son is about to turn a year old on Monday. My question is about the 12 month schedule. You have it listed to feed breakfast at 7:30-8, about 30 minutes after waking. My son wakes at 6 because we leave by 7 for daycare so we generally feed him breakfast around 6-6:30. Is it feasible to give him a snack around 9:30 before his morning nap since 6:30 to 12 for lunch is a pretty long time? If so, should milk also be given at the 9:30 snack or just water? Thanks!
Hey Rebecca,
YES! Add the snack in there, you are looking for around 2.5/3 hours in between each meal, unless they are napping and its a longer break. You can provide milk with all snacks/meal times. The goal is to make sure there is no milk in between and just water so that he is hungry for food during the appropriate times!
Best,
Desiree
I’ve read this and your weaning article- very helpful! Any advice on how to use this schedule when a 12 month old is still nursing (no bottles) and is not drinking cow’s milk yet? I’m particularly unsure of when to offer so it doesn’t interfere with meals. Is it better to offer before or after meals? Thanks!
Hey Wendi,
So glad you are finding some helpful information. If your ready you can try to do breast milk in a straw cup to see if she takes to that better than the straw. You’d want to do feedings after meals, but not too close so she’s not making that connection that she doesn’t need to eat table foods as she will fill up on milk! Hope that helps!
Best,
Desiree
Hi,
My one year old is in a similar situation. What would be considered too close in time for a meal and nursing session?
Hey Jazmin,
If you are still nursing then I’d follow more on the 11 month old schedule looking at doing a nursing session 30 minutes before a meal. If you are weaning this off, then it’s best to provide the milk with each of the meals!
Best,
Desiree
My son turned a year old on January 1st and we started baby led weaning at around 7 months, with the except of being spoon fed cereal and yogurt. He did really well until about a month ago when he started getting to be a fussy eater and barely wants to eat anything I serve him; almost everything ends up on the floor. He takes 2 naps a day, but he’s always been super inconsistent despite us doing exactly the same thing 99% of the time (naps can be anywhere from 20 minutes to 90 minutes). He’s also still nursing and refuses milk (in a bottle or cup – regular, sippy or straw – even mixed with 80% breast milk, warmed or cool…). I want to wean him off the breast as he’s super dependent on it to fall asleep at naps and at night, generally waking at least twice a night still. I just don’t know what to tackle first…should I wait until this “hunger strike” ends to wean him or just start cutting out a feed at one of his nap times? I’m afraid since he’s barely eating solids at the moment, he’s not going to get enough nutrition once he’s no longer breastfeeding; he’s already on the smaller side in the 25-30th percentile. Any help would be much appreciated!
Hey Jade,
We can totally understand where you are coming from and how hard this is! My question would be to think about when you are offering the breast milk. Is he not eating much solids because he is just waiting on breast milk rather than solid foods? Or is the spacing not far enough apart so that he is not hungry. Depending on what you think could be happening you can try to drop a feed or work on scheduling such as in the post to space meals out for having him be hungry for solids!
Best,
Desiree
I can’t give my 11 month old too many table foods because she still has no teeth so what am I supposed to do?
Hey Lauren,
That is a common misconception that kids need teeth to chew, their jaws are incredibly strong and made to chew. You can check out this List Idea of finger foods for your child!
Best,
Desiree
Hi. I have an 11 month that we are trying to get year to turn a year. We have already dropped the two daytime bottles, but are stuck mainly on the morning bottle. He is consistently waking up at 545. We have always given him a bottle at 6. Breakfast usually isn’t into 7:30(at home) or 8:30(daycare) how do I switch him over when those times are so far off from his waking time. He jus cries and is so hungry when he wakes up. I mean come on so am I! Lol. Nighttime bottle should be fine. I will just have to hold off on supper another half hour. Also do you recommend giving the milk with the meal or after the meal, and water with the meal? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Maybe we can get him to sleep in longer with some kind of method. Thanks!
Hey Amber,
Thanks for reaching out we know how hard this can be. The morning may be the last bottle to go. I’d just make sure that he had a good dinner and possibly snack before bedtime to hopefully decrease the hunger in the am, sometimes the schedule can’t be perfect so I’d try to adjust to fit your needs. We do recommend Milk with meals and then water in between so they do have time in between meals to be hungry and not filling up on milk! Hopefully this continues to get better for you!
Best,
Desiree
Hi. I have a 12 month old who is having some eating challenges. We did baby led weaning since 6 months and she was doing fine…not eating too much but tasting everything. I wasn’t worried because she was having breastmilk. Last 2 months feeding her is a challenge. She will only eat if completely distracted ( in the park, store, dad playing with her etc). She will not open her mouth unless fully distracted no matter how hungry.if distracted she opens her mouth wide and lets me put the food in. If in the high chair she just keeps dropping her food on the floor and none in her mouth. It’s getting exhausting having to constantly find new ways to feed her. I hate that I’m doing this but not sure how to ensure she gets the calories she needs ( she only takes 4-5 oz of milk a day as she refuses all the rest ). Her doctor says to just offer her the food in the high chair and she won’t let herself starve. I tried this for 1 day. All she ate all day was 1/2 of an egg. Any advice. Thank you
Hey Sara,
We get it and do believe that this is not true advice for all kids! We have a free workshop video series, I think you’d get some great insight from! Sign Up Now as the videos are only available for a limited time!
Best,
Desiree
Hi, my baby is 21 months old and still prefers pureed food. He refuses table food and even a small chunk in his food makes him gag and he throws up the entire food that he ate. We are concerned at this point as he will be 2 years old in another 3 months. He drinks whole milk at 6am ( while sleeping), wakes up between 9 and 10am and breakfast is usually between that time, lunch around 2 pm. He takes a nap between 3 to 5.30pm. He drinks milk at around 5.30pm and dinner around 7.30pm. He drinks another bottle of milk at 9.30pm and goes to bed at 10.00pm. He refuses to put anything in his mouth even the snacks like yogurt melts and other flavored puffs. He licks on cookies but doesn’t take a bite. How can we get him eat regular food. Please help. Thank you
Hey Sangeetha,
We hear you, this can be hard and we understand. You are doing great and trying to figure out his feeding journey. I’d try to only provide milk during meals at this time as providing between meals can decrease their appetite to want to try any foods. You can also complete some food play with him to get him used to touching a variety of textures!! Check our our free workshop for more ideas and transitioning to table foods. Save your seat
Best,
Desiree
Hello, I am trying to get my 13 month old off of the bottle but when he drinks milk or water out of anything else (I’ve tried various sippy cups, straw cups, open, etc.) he almost always spits it out or lets it dribble. Do you have any recommendations regarding this? He also spills a lot of food while he eats and puts his fingers in his mouth and the food comes out. I am worried he isn’t going to be getting enough. Thank you.
Hey Katharine,
I get where you are coming from!! Transitioning from a bottle can be difficult and we always seem to try a variety of cups with no success. What you are saying here as well as paired with the food coming out of his mouth, I’m thinking there may be some oral motor skills to work on first to help strengthen his face/mouth muscles to assist with drinking and feeding. Take a look at this article here. It will explain what we mean by oral motor skills as well 🙂
Hope this helps, please reach out if you have any other questions!
Best,
Desiree
Hi! Thanks so much for this post. I have a question regarding the 11 month old schedule. For the mid morning and afternoon bottles, it says to serve milk in a straw cup if we were able to wean them from the bottle/breast for that feeding. Are you referring to formula in the straw cup or actual milk? I am in the process of doing this now with my 11.5 month old, but wanted to double check!
Hey Kim, thanks for reaching out, so glad you are following along with the schedule here to help your child. The “milk” is going to depend where you are with your child!! If you have given straight milk and they are drinking that, then it is fine. You really should try to do a mixture so 25% Milk/75% of formula or breast milk for a few days to see if they tolerate the milk well, I would be doing this closer to turning 1. The schedule is helping you make the transition to drinking any kind of milk from a straw and open cup so that you can transition away from bottle as well. After they tolerate the mixture, you would then increase and do 50/50 a few days, then 75/25 till you are at 100% milk with the goal to be on straight milk after they turn 1, or when you are ready to make that transition!! Hope this helps and makes sense, but reach out if you have any more questions!!
Best,
Desiree
My 12 month old daughter is drinking toddler transition formula which her doctor recommended, and I’m having troubles giving her whole milk. She doesn’t seem to like it and will only drink a ounce or two at a time. I have been putting milk in with her toddler formula. Any advice?
Thanks for reaching out! I’d try to mix it in slowly overtime, so that it is a less noticeable change. So you can add 25% of milk (or lower if she’s still not liking the taste), wait a few days and continue at the same rate, then add 50% milk, wait a few days and continue with the 50%. Keep continuing this until she’s drinking the milk.
Best,
Desiree
Hi Alisha,
Thank you for all your help and advice! So my son is just over a year, and we started cows milk, (and trying to wean completely off nursing/breastmilk) but he doesn’t want to take it via zippy cup or straw. He drinks his water via straw cup or sippy cup and does fine with it! But the second you put cows milk in those, he won’t drink it. I even tried mixing it with breast milk. He will drink the entire thing (3 part cows, 1 part breastmilk) if it is in a bottle. Any suggestions as I would like to get him completely off the bottle AND the boob;)
Yes! In fact I have two posts for you. Check out weaning from bottle and weaning from the breast for lots of specific tips!
How much protein should 1 year old be eating per day? Aren’t they already getting a lot of protein from the 16 oz of whole milk per day? Thanks!
Hey Kelsey,
We have an article all on portion sizes from a dietitian, you can read about it HERE. Hope this helps!
Best,
Desiree
Hi alisha,
My son is 17 months old and he weighs 8kg. He barely eats anything but breast milk. Any tips on what we should do to have him start eating actual food?
I am happy you found our site and are looking at a feeding schedule. We understand transitioning to table foods can be tricky!! This article may be helpful with the transitioning 🙂
https://yourkidstable.com/how-to-transition-your-baby-or-toddler/
Hi Mohammad, this is my girl exactly. I was wondering how it’s going and if anything helped? We are desperate…
I just came across your website and this article has already been so helpful. My son just turned 11 months, he is exclusively breastfed, nursing usually five times a day. I am leaving town in three weeks and will be gone from him for a week. I have started the weaning process and want to be done by the time I leave town, but he just will not drink either pumped milk or formula from bottle or sippy cup/straw cup. Multiple people have tried. Do you have any recommendations on what to do? My thoughts are to drop a feeding about every 4 days before we go but I don’t know what to do if he won’t drink any milk from cups to replace those feedings?? I have about 55 ounces of pumped milk left. It would be so helpful to get some insight from you!! Thank you in advance!
Hi Sarah! So glad you found our post helpful! We know how hard weaning can be. I’d really try to focus on having him in the same positioning as he would if he was breastfeeding, making sure you are not nearby and have someone else keep trying to feed him (since you will be out of town soon). Making sure to find that “just hungry” window can play a huge factor as well- where he’s hungry, but not fussy and starving, so that he has more patience with trying the cup or accepting solid foods. Your thought of taking away one feeding at a time is also a great idea! Start by eliminating the easier feedings first. But remember to continue offering either breast milk or formula until he turns 1 year old. You can find more tips in this post here!
Best,
Kalyn
Breastmilk is healthier than cows milk it is not good to suggest weaning from breastmilk it has better nutrition plus immunity benifits .let baby lead with breastmilk weaning or at least give it in a cup not cow or other milks . babys still get thier main nutrition from breastmilk even until age 2.other than that ok.
I totally agree, but a lot of moms can’t or don’t want to continue nursing or pumping. So yes, breast milk first, if that’s an option 🙂
My son is 13 months old and refuses to eat table food. I have tried giving him Puffs and he will pick them up and then won’t put them in his mouth. Same thing with Cheerios and other crunchy things. He eats baby food very well, but if I try to put any other texture in his mouth he gags as he doesn’t chew, but just tries to swallow it. Any suggestions on how to get him to try eating some basic table food? Thank you for your help!
Yes! I’ve got you covered, head to how to transition your baby to table foods. I’ve got a free printable there and a brand new free workshop is coming in the next few weeks that I think will be REALLY helpful!
Do you have a schedule for an early riser? My almost 1 year old wakes at 5:30am and still naps twice (9-10 and 1:30-3). He goes to bed around 7:30pm. It’s been hard to find a schedule that sounds like what our day looks like. Any help would be appreciated! Thanks.
The schedule in the post is just an example. You can use roughly the same schedule, just adjust the times to start when he wakes up.
Hello, my daughter just turned one and I am trying to wean her off the bottle. She is a good solid food eater but she still takes 4 bottles a day. I started mixing formula (30%) with whole milk (70%) and it seems like milk change does not bother her at all. I took away one of her mid-day bottles and started giving her milk in the sippy cup during meals but she seems to be thrown off by it… as she always had water in it and does not want to drink the milk from the cup, but if I give it to her in the bottle before/after her naps she will chug it. On the other hand, if I give her water in a cup she will drink it no problem. I think she is just confused as she always got water from the cup and milk from the bottle. I am concerned that if I take bottles away and she does not want to drink milk from the cup she will not get the needed nutrition as she can’t just drink water. However, I also feel it’s time to take the bottles away. Any suggestions as to the easy transition and how I can encourage her to drink milk from the cup? Thank you!!
Check out this post on How to Wean a Baby From Bottle to help with the transition.
Hi. I’m happy that I ended up at the right place after a lot of searches. My DD is 13 months old. She was born at 2.3 kg and currently weighs 7.7 kg. Though she is on the lower side of the weight she follows the curve. The pediatrician isn’t much concerned about the weight. Coming to her eating habits. She has 3 meals and 2 snacks in a day and is breastfed on demand. Around 3 to 4 times a day and 1 to 2 times at nights. I am trying to wean her at nights. Eating part, she is not that a great eater. She is totally into family food. She is good with all kind of textures of food. She self feeds and sometimes I feed her. But the portion of food she takes seems to be very less. I feel she gets full very quickly. Once she decides not to eat it’s done once for all. It’s either one or two meals a day she would be eaten satisfying. The rest goes to the floor. Though I offer food from all the food groups she picks only the ones she wants to eat. She takes 3 to 4 oz of milk at one serving and that seems to make her full, she refuses to eat beyond that. She drinks from a straw or open cup. At the end of the day the total food intake would be equalling to one complete serving meal. Besides she breastfeeds on demand. How do I know if she is eating enough? How couldn’t sneak in an extra bite or two here and there. She poops once or twice a day. No loose stools or constipated stools.
The past 3 to 4 days, she turns her head when any kind if food is offered, even her favorite ones. She doesn’t try to put a bite or two into her mouth. All she wants is to be breastfed the whole day and doesn’t want to eat any kind of food. She has stuffy nose and mild cough though. How do I address her eating issues?
In this case, there a lot of factors that could affect feeding. It sounds like she’s getting the nutrition she needs, but I’d recommend talking to your doctor and/or scheduling an evaluation with a feeding therapist. So you can have specific direction. You can read more in this post on feeding therapy.
Dear Mona, I am curious how your daughter is doing now? I’m in your position woth my 17 month old and we are at our wits end. Thank you! Best wishes, Maria
Hi
I live in India and my dad is 11 months old.
She would earlier sleep through the night but has now started getting up, should I nurse her or offer formula when she gets up.
Also my other question is that what should be the gap between breastfeed and solid meal.
She gets up in the middle of the night 2/3 times but my nanny offers her water and makes her go back to sleep. Kindly advise
It’s really a personal choice, it’s fine to still breast feed her. Check out the schedule above to see the spacing between meals:)
Is it good to leave 11month old baby sleep without having milk in the middle of the nights
It usually is, but I’d check with your pediatrician.
I have an 11 month old and he only has 2 bottles a day and he has two weeks till he is one. I know at one he starts cow milk but do i switch him completely or does he still get formula for a bit.
You’ll want to gradually mix them, check out this post on bottle weaning!
My Baby is 1yr old & 1 month, but everytime we feed him with some of solid foods, he always seems to vomit what he is eating and it fears us that he might get choke. What should I do? Then at night what is the best time to last feed him then when is the next?
You can give him a bedtime snack or if he’s still weaning that could be his bottle/nursing before bed. Breakfast is within 30 minutes of waking.
As far as solids go, I do have a post on transitioning to table foods, I highly recommend going there to check it out and grabbing the free printable too. Also, I’d check with your doctor, and consider feeding therapy, which can make a huge impact.
I would also check with your pediatrician to see if he is tongue tied! Sometimes this makes children gag and it is helped with a simple procedure and some OT.
Hello
My son is 11+ months. He takes a feed for his morning nap which he can sometimes do without, and afternoon nap- it puts him to sleep or he needs to be bounced…he also needs nursing to sleep at night and wakes up frequently for feeds at night too..any advise on how to wean him off nursing and bouncing, also how to put him to sleep without that. Especially during the night
So sorry this has been hard on you! We do have an article I think may help with transitioning from breast feeding. I’d try changing up his routine so that everything is different for him to start a new routine! You can read more in the article HERE
Best,
Desiree
Hi! I’m so glad I found your site. My daughter turns one next week and I’m hoping you can help by pointing me in the right direction on what to do next. My daughter is breastfed and a great solid food eater. I nurse her in the morning, before naps, and at bedtime then her nanny gives her a 3oz breastmilk/2oz whole milk bottle 3x a week before her nap on the days my daughter is in her care. It looks like we’re doing it wrong… that instead of giving her milk before sleep we should be giving her milk after she wakes up. I’m not worried about her solid food intake, she is a great eater – we did baby lead weaning starting at 6 months and I truly believe that made all the difference. But here is my biggest concern, I nurse my daughter to sleep at night, I know its terrible!, but how can I stop this? Shes a great sleeper, 7pm-7am with one middle of the night nursing session. I am worried as I’m hoping to wean her in the coming weeks; first middle of the day bottle/nursing then morning, and lastly evening. What about middle of the night feedings? Any help you can offer is appreciated!
You guys are doing great, nothing wrong at all! I’d definitely try to wean from that middle of the night feeding, but you’ll have to decide if you’re okay with some tears and maybe Dad, if that’s an option, going in to comfort her.
I’d take away the night feeding before bed last, and that could take a couple of weeks or a month or so. It sounds like you guys are on the right track!
I have the same question! How do I transition her from needing milk to sleep? My daughter does bottles before her 2 naps and nurses before her bedtime.
If I just fed her first, and then snuggled/ rocked her for a couple of minutes and put her in her sleepsack in the crib I imagine she’d stand up, holding on to the rail, and scream until if I went to get her.
She does not want a comfort item, doesn’t use pacis….
Hi, the schedule is only showing 16 oz of liquid. One year olds need 40-44 oz of liquid a day (20% coming from food, which leaves at least 32 oz of liquid from a cup/bottle). There are 16 oz of liquid needs by cup/bottle missing from the schedule. Where is that supposed to be fitted in and what should it be? I know my son won’t drink 16 oz of water a day, we are lucky to get 4 oz.
The schedules shown are just examples and will vary from child to child. Milk should be around 16 oz. a day for a year old. Water should be available at all other times of the day. I typically recommend having a water cup that is on the table or within their reach at all times. Sometimes you may need to hand them their water or remind them to take a drink if it has been a while since they have had anything.
Hi
My little boy is turning one this week. I breastfeed him and although he does take the bottle during his stay at daycare, he wont take a bottle while he is with me. He still drinks ALOT during night time and I want to start his weaning process but I have no idea how to start or where to begin.
Any advise is welcome please
The weaning process can be tough. Have you check out my post on How to Stop Breastfeeding (when you’re ready). There’s a lot of tips in there that can help you out.
I offered him straw bottles since 8m but he doesnt seem to take it till 10m. After which we gave him munchkins 360 cups which he gladly takes. How can we train him to drink from straw?
Check out this post on How to Teach you Baby to Drink from a Straw.
Hi, I’ve been using these straw like cups with my 12 month old since we’ve started solids (he struggled with traditional sippy cups). I’m wondering what your thoughts are on these cups from a developmental perspective?
https://www.amazon.com/OXO-Transitions-Straw-Removable-Handles/dp/B079K7899F/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?ie=UTF8&qid=1531149606&sr=8-2-spons&keywords=oxo%2Bstraw%2Btransitions&th=1
These cups with the handles are great! The straw size is a little large, but it looks pretty good. I’d use it with my kids.
Hi Alisha,
I love your site! However, I’m worried that I am starting too late. My daughter is now 13 months and still eats a majority of baby food as her diet. I try to get her to eat more table food but she shakes her head no and doesn’t want it. Used to give her 4 bottles of day of milk, varying in oz depending on the time of day for bottle, but going way over the recommended 16 oz/per day. I would give her the milk after she eats breakfast, lunch, and as a snack and then for her nighttime bottle before bed. If we are supposed to be giving them milk WITH their meals/snacks, when do they drink water? I thought you give water with meals and then give milk afterwards. Shouldn’t water be a big part of their diet as well? She also doesn’t like to pick a lot of stuff off her tray with her hands. She’ll eat cheerios, puffs, anything dry with her hands, but try to give her slices of bananas or avocados and she refuses! I stress all the time that we waited too long to push for table food and I hope you tell me its not too late!
Definitely water should be a big part of there diet. Water should be available in between meals and at all points of the day. I have some posts on helping toddlers with table foods that I think will be helpful. Check it out here.
My son is 14 months old. His weight at birth was 2.8kg and now the weight is 9.5kg. He has 8 teeth now. I breastfeed him in the morning and the for the afternoon nap and then during night whenever hewakes up. In the day time I give him oats, yoghurt, mashed banana,wheat flour cooked in water with salt, jeera and dhania powder mixed in it., cerelac. I give khichdi in the night. I started semi solids from 9 months as he did not eat with ugh interest till then.
When I started solids I started with cerelac, and khichadi blended in mixer. At that time we used to make him sleep on our legs and then feed. Now he can sit but if I try to feed him in sitting position he just takes 2-3 spoons and then refuses. But in sleeping position he eats well. My first question is is it ok to feed in this position and how to change this habit of eating in sleeping position. My second worry is that till now he is used to all soft blended, pureed feeds.
If now we give him anything to b chewed n eaten he refuses after maximum a bite or two. Then I have to blend it as my first priority is that he should eat. How should I make him eat lumpy food. Also every day we give him same dishes. I worry if I change his routine he might end up staying hungry thruout the day and only cry for bf. Pls advise
Hi Anshika, there are some dangers with choking and aspiration seated in this position. Are you in the USA, if so I’d definitely look into feeding therapy, as there are so many considerations a therapist would make based on your specific situation.
Hi Alisha!
My baby pretty much follows your 11-month schedule. He is now 10.5 months old. Today is the 2nd day I took away his mid-day bottle since he’s been doing well with table food. He seems fine without this bottle. However, should I have still given him formula in a cup instead of totally eliminating it?
I’d check with your doctor to make sure he is getting the total number of ounces he needs with his formula. But it would be great to get him used to drinking his formula from a cup, although he is probably not going to drink a large volume.
Hello,
Your sites are full of useful information. Thank you! It’s making us feel a lot less stressed about her turning one soon.
We are looking at your sample schedules and we’re hoping you could give us some insight. Our daughter’s naps at 11 month is pretty much as stated, 9:30am and 2pm. Do you think at 12 months and 13 months it will start to move and be at 10:30am and 3pm like your example, or could it hugely vary and might still be at 9:30am and 2pm?
This is all new to us as our first child has special needs.
It could definitely vary. The schedules on the post are just examples, and you will have to adjust to your child’s needs.
Hello again. Still trying to wrap our heads around this. It’s highly variable how long our daughter’s naps are. At two naps a day, our goal is 1-1.5 hours but sometimes we only get 40 mins. Our question pertains to timing of food. Is it better to
-stick to set times for when she eats?
-stick to duration of time from when she gets up?
Or
-stick to set times but vary it a bit if need to adjust schedule for the day (example: early bedtime)
Also, for the last few months her bottles have been thirty minutes after waking in the morning and thirty minutes after waking from each nap and bedtime. We waited the 30min for her to “build an appetite” for her milk after waking. Do we need to move the bottles to be immediately after waking before we start the weaning process in a few weeks?
Follow her lead and keep to the 2.5-3 hours between meals, that’s the most important interval. But, since this is a transition it’s not always going to line up right, which is hard for us as parents. The specific time doesn’t really matter:)
Hi! The issue we have is my son(13.5 months and 16 lbs) hasn’t been growing very well and his dr is concerned. We even see a feeding therapist due to dr orders. The issue seems like he will have milk or solids but he can’t tolerate both. It’s almost like he gets full very easily. Within the last month we tried taking one milk feeding away so he would eat his solids better. He has a milk feeding(with 3.5 oz whole milk and .5 heavy cream) at 7, 2 and bedtime given with a nuk soft spout sippy. I usually try to wait 1.5-2 hours to offer a meal after he drinks his milk. And at meal time he takes about 4-5 small bites of food and then gets fussy and is finished. He is also a super slow eater. Those 4-5 bites seriously takes like 20-30 min. We recently tried giving his milk during his meal and he drank 1.5 oz and ate about a 1 inch cube of egg quiche, 1 bite of waffle( a bite of his is like less then a dime) and then got fussy and was done. An example of portion sizes he eats and drinks…..3-4 ouces Of milk 3x a day(which isn’t even his 2 servings usually), breakfast 3-4 small bites of waffle(pretty much 2 quarter size pieces) 1/4-1/3 of a egg quiche in shap of a small muffin and a couple blueberries, and that’s a good breakfast for him), lunch he may have a 1.5 quarter size piece of pbj and half a cracker and couple bites of fruit, dinner last night he ate 4 rotini noodles and was finished. It was 4 hours since his milk and he only ate 4 noodles! For snacks we are lucky if he eats half of a cracker. Please keep in mind these examples are of good meals! Usually these don’t hope. In a day. Maybe one meal will be like the examples and the rest will be less.He can drink through a straw but absolutely refuses to have milk that way and it has to be warm. Are these portion sizes enough and am I being to critical or should I try another type of schedule. Maybe this is normal for his age and size. I am constantly concerned he isn’t drinking or eating enough. Calorie intake is always on my mind so his milk is important to us cause it’s 30 calories per oz cause we also add heavy cream to each milk feeding. Decreasing that any further scares me because I’m afraid that he will get that much less calories per day since it’s seems like he is such a poor eater. His eating is so frustrating that family even hates watching him if it crosses a meal time. Any advice is appreciated. And please tell me if I am being to critical about his portion sizes. My grandma says I’m to critical but is growth chart speaks otherwise. You may need more info than what I gave you so please just ask.
I totally understand your worry! The first thing I would do is check with your doctor and get their recommendations. I think it is totally justified to be a little concerned. I would highly recommend this post on high calorie foods because there are some really simple ways to increase their calories and get more bang for you buck with what they are eating.
I’m in the exact same boat with my 11 month old! It like you were talking about my son except he is still on formula. Did you see improvements or changes with time passing or find that a different schedule helped things?? It stresses me out with him turning a year soon
Hello! We are transitioning to whole milk and off bottles (13 month old twins). For the “12-13 month old – On 2 Naps” you have Breakfast at 7:30-8am and then lunch at 12pm. This is 4-4.5 hours but you say that meals should ideally be 2.5-3 hours apart. Should there be a small snack before 1st nap to account for this? We wake at 7am and then 1st nap is 10-11:15 so lunch is 11:30. This makes for 4 hours between meals.
The schedule is just an example, but generally it’s okay for the meals to be spaced a little further apart while napping. I will often tweak schedules based on how well they are eating. If an additional snack is needed before nap time, then add it in if it works for you. It sounds like you are doing great though!
We are looking at the sample schedule above and were wondering why the milk and then afternoon snack is AFTER the second nap before weaning but the afternoon snack/milk in cup is BEFORE the second nap once weaned.
The schedules are just a sample. You can adjust them to whatever works for you. The nap time is later in the second example.
Hi Alisha,
Thanks so much for the great advice! We have been pretty close to following what you have layed out except one piece I was wondering if you could share your opinion on the feeding schedule. My LO (12 months) wakes daily at 5:00-5:30 and is awake. No going back to sleep until 6:00 or 7:00. Right now we give her a bottle when she wakes and feed her table foods at 8:00. We’re working on weaning her off her last two bottles in the morning – 5:00 and night – 7:00. Any ideas on how you might tweak the schedule you have for such an early riser? Thanks!
My son is 11 months and I’ve been at a bit of a loss in how to go about transitioning from formula to whole milk when it’s time. This post was the most helpful one I’ve read. Thank you!!
Yay! You’re so welcome!
Hi Alisha! My baby has been drinking from an open cup and straw cup since he was 6 months old. However, I can’t get him to drink his milk from a straw cup. How should I go about this?
Also, we are weaning from night breastfeeding. My baby is not sleep trained. Will I have to sleep train him in order not to give any bottles at night? Thanks!!
Hi kathleen, this is such a common problem with the milk in a cup. Scroll up and click on the links for bottle weaning (there’s tips in there for both questions). You will probably have to sleep train to wean at night. Hope that helps!
Alisha,
My 21 month old still loves to nurse. She often wakes up 3 or 4 times a night, and nurses back to sleep. I am so exhausted. I didn’t ever let any of my babies cry it out. She is weaning during the day. But I don’t know how else to get her to self soothe back to sleep at night, and if she cries, she wakes everyone up.
I have tried binkies. I have tried having daddy do it. Nothing works. She just screams unless I put her to sleep.
How about water? My son has water with every meal now. When should I give him some if he gets milk with every meal instead?
In between meals, have it always available where he can grab it and drink it himself:)
I am looking at the “Feeding Schedule Around 11 months”… Do you recommend a specific amount of ounces for the 11am + 3-330pm bottles?
My son is currently 10.5 months and gets 3 – 4oz bottles + Breakfast + Lunch while at daycare between 7am-5pm… if we eliminate one bottle we will be right on track with your recommendation which should be an easy transition for us!
I’d check with your pediatrican’s recommendations for the total amount of formula they want him to have daily and divide that with the schedule your moving towards!
Hi Alisha,
Hoping you have some advice for me.
My daugther turns 14 months at the end of January. She’s been in kindergarden since 4 months of age and use to eat really well at school up until the schools closed for the December holidays (We live in South Africa).
Obviously it’s a new year, new class, new teacher and assistants so this in itself is an adjustment of sorts. I am however finding myself concerned about her eating habits.
Since monday she’s not eating much at all! On monday she didn’t want to have breakfast at school which is typically served around 8am, nor did she have lunch, and when we got home she also refused dinner. Tuesday we fed her some cereal before school as we figured she must be starving and didn’t want a repeat of what happened the previous day, so she ate breakfast well at home, but then once again skipped all the meals at school and also did not want any dinner. Since she’s not eating solids I’m offering milk on demand but calculated that she bottomed out at approximately 45oz of milk (1.3Liters) in a 24 hour period since that was all she had during that time.
The teacher at the school confirmed that she seems to be teething although I could not see or feel anything, but it does seem there seems to be a tooth on the way. She got her first set of bottom teeth at 7 months and nothing since. The top two have not yet popped but now it seems the bottom ones will be next.
I decided today, to drastically cut back the milk intake to 17 oz, because surely if she gets hungry enough she will eat the solids, but I’m concerned that she might just take whatever milk she can get and refuse the solids wholly during this time.
What am I to do?
I gave specific instructions regarding how much milk the teachers should offer and when, and was told that she had atleast half a bowl of porridge this morning, but she didn’t want to have her lunch. I also need to mention that the routine at school is as follows:
8Am Breakfast followed by a bottle
08:30-09:45 AM Morning nap
11AM: Lunch followed by a bottle
12:00 – 01:30pm Nap
Snacks are offered between 2-3pm and then I pick her up at 4pm
I suspect that the mealtimes are too close to each other for her liking (since every child is different) and if she has an afternoon bottle anytime after 2pm she refuses dinner. I have therefore asked the teacher to decrease morning and lunch bottles to 4 oz and not to give another bottle in the afternoon, but I will give one before bedtime since we’re trying to cut back on the milk and she still has them during the night.
There was a time where she’d only have 1 6oz bottle during the night but of late she seems to wake up at least twice during the evening and have 5oz each time. It almost feels like things were going much better when she was smaller but getting worse as she gets older. I know things can get difficult when they teethe but I’m absolutely at the end of my wits with getting her to eat.
Do you think we’ll see an improvement when cutting back on the milk? Or is this a phase we need to ride out until the teething is done. I’m so concerned because I know at this age they can’t just live on milk and main nutrition should come from solids, but what do I do if she doesn’t want to eat. She isn’t sick and doesn’t have an ear infection so no other reason, other than teething that could be the cause of her not wanting to eat.
She used to eat very well, especially at school. Most days she’d be satisfied from the meals at school that she wouldn’t even want dinner but nowadays we’re lucky if we can get a breakfast in.
Please help.
It will definitely be helpful to keep milk at 16 oz total for the day. Pair them as much as you can with meals. This will help with appetite. Do you have the opportunity there for feeding therapy. You can find more at yourkidstable.com/feeding-therapy
I also have a class that includes my help with picky eaters. You can find more out at yourkidstable.com/mealtime-works
I just found your website today and have totally gorged on all your articles. Thank you so much for your excellent advice! Not feeling quite so overwhelmed now and feel like I have a plan.
Thank you for your great posts!
Aww thank you Erin, that’s wonderful!
We are really struggling with our 11 month old who used to be a good sleeper. He is now waking up so many times during the night. He had been on only two 8oz bottles one morning and one at night. He has 3 big meals during the day.
Hi Alisha
Really helpful post
Just wondering if having milk with meals won’t affect iron absorption and how much milk you are giving at these times.
Thanks
I have an 11 1/2 month old, and I am trying to see what I can do to transition her to a sippy cup and have her eat closer to meal times. She fights to drink out of a bottle, always has. She has to be very hungry to drink milk or eat food, thus we have to space them apart by 1.5 hours. We have to hold a toy or book in front of her as she lays down to drink. Will not hold her bottle for longer than a minute, will let go and want to play. In turn, we have to entertain her to drink. This said, she also does not ever let me spoon feed her, she only will eat what she can pick up. I have been giving her a sippy cup with her meals (water) for a couple months now, and will not get the hang of tilting it up to drink, thus i have to tilt it for her, where she will only drink a few sips then plays with it (chews). She still has no teeth.
Please help in any advice on what I need to do to transition her to have milk in a sippy cup (yes have tried all sorts of cups), and get her to eat food closer to when she has her milk.
Just a side note, she sleeps 12 hours through the night since she was 4 months old, has been walking since she was 7 months old, so is not behind physically, sometimes I feel she just doesn’t care to do it since she has very little interest in drinking.
This is what her schedule looks like:
7am: wake
7:30: 6 oz formula bottle
8:15: Breakfast: eggs and spinach, fruit (refuses bread, pancakes, muffin..etc)
9:30: naps (usually 30min, but occasionally over an hour)
10:30: 5 oz formula bottle
12:30: lunch: chicken or beef, potatoes or squash, green beans,peas, carrots etc)
1:00: 2 oz bottle since she hardly drinks from sippy cup at lunch
1:30: naps (1:30 hr-2hr)
3:45: 6 oz formula bottle
5:30: dinner (similar to lunch, but I give her a couple pieces of fruit as dessert
6:30: 3 oz milk since she hardly drinks from sippy cup at dinner
7:00: sleeps through the night for 12 hours.
Thank you for any advice in advance!
Hi Sarah, I’d definitely try straw cups, if she doesn’t know how to drink from them I’d start here.
I’d also try to start moving your schedule to look something like the one I shared in the post, at her age now she’s going to need a good 2 hours with no milk or food to be hungry. I’d also consider early intervention, which is free in home feeding therapy. You can read more about it here.
My son is 11 months now.
6:30 wake
7:00 breakfast
8:15 bottle 8-9 oz
9:30 nap
11:30-11:45 lunch
1:00 bottle 8-9 oz
2:30 nap
3:30-3:45 some yogurt and snack
5:00 dinner
6:15-6:30 last bottle 7 oz
7 bedtime
Now my question is, how do I transition to milk? It seems 8-9 oz is a lot for a feeding. Do I lower the amount and do 4 milks a day instead of 3? Do I do cups with milk thru the day and keep the night bottle for a while? So confusing. He loves his straw cup and also the 360 cup. He eats well but I’m sure can do more soon. Also we are on organic babies only toddler formula. Since he was 5 months old. We decided this was a good fit for him. But now he’s almost 12 months and I’m confused on how to do this transition.
Lenah, this is definitely just a guide. I’d check with your doctor as well. For me like to take one feeding and start offering it at a meal and giving them milk or formula in a cup. From their I keep eliminating. Transition is hard, its a process, sometimes it’s 2 steps forward 1 step back 🙂
Hi my baby 12 months old how many male can I give to her thank you
At 12 months the recommendation is 16 ounces:)
Hi
Could you give me some advice. My baby is about to turn 1 year old and she just decides to not drink any milk, from formula, cows milk, even I try to mix yogurt with milk or the instant breakfast mix (for a boost of calcium). What can I do? I feel like the more food I introduce to her, the pickier she gets.
Hey! Thanks for reaching out. That can be so frustrating! We definitely suggest you keep offering the different foods and milks during mealtimes. It can be helpful for you to model drinking it as well. Our free table foods workshop is a really great resource that I think would be helpful for you. It gives you some more tools and ideas to start using right away. You can save your seat HERE. Let us know if you have any questions 🙂
Best,
Andrea
I’ve read several of your articles now and I really enjoy them. I think you offer such great advice for battling picky eating and preventing an unhealthy relationship with food. I only have one concern… extended breastfeeding seems to be completely missing in your articles for toddlers. It is been proven time and time again that the continuation of breastfeeding into the toddler years is greatly beneficial for the child. Even the AAP supports breastfeeding beyond one year of age, as long as the mother and child continue to be comfortable with it. How come you never seem to talk about it?
Goo question Nicole, I personally did do it, so its not my experience, BUT I think it can be great as long as its structured. I’ve seen a lot of kids who don’t learn to eat because they continue to nurse like they did when they were babies. I admittedly have a little hesitancy because of that. I think its wonderful if mother’s are able or wanting to continue though!
My LO has been giving me so much hard time with milk. I exclusively breastfed her for 9 and a half months (no bottles incorporated). Weaning was very hard but i managed to give her 20-24 oz a day. Now her birthday is in 10 days and for the past 20 days she has been barely accepting 8-12 oz of milk a day (most is put into her food), doesnt matter if formula or cow’s milk. She drinks water with a straw or from an adults cup or glass but she refuses milk in them when i try. She got disgusted by the sippy cup. I even tried a little sugar in her bottle but with barely any results. I tried changing her formula brand but i got same reactions. Can u suggest anything else i can do? I feel helpless and frustrated every single day.
Hi Alisha! Thank you so much for your blog. I’ve learned so much through your different articles. I have a few questions similar to a previous poster. I read your response to her and that was helpful, but still need a little advice. I’m a FTM of a 13 month old who has transitioned to table foods well over all. I went the traditional route of purees first then slowly adding in a variety of bite sized finger foods, ect. The main issues we are having are weaning her from her bottle to a straw cup, decreasing her milk intake and increasing her water intake, and figuring out a better morning routine. She’s at daycare from 7:45 am until 4 pm. Currently she has all meals and bottles at daycare except a morning and before bed bottle of 5-6 oz whole milk, and dinner at 5:30/6pm. I’ve tried to reduce her morning bottle and give her table breakfast foods at home, but unless it’s at least 8am, she’s not interested in table food. They will not feed her solid food until 9am at daycare.
Her schedule looks like this:
At home:
7:00am – 5/6 oz bottle
At daycare:
9:00am – 3 oz bottle with breakfast
12:00pm – 3 oz bottle with lunch
3:00pm – 3 oz bottle and snack
At home:
5:30/6pm – Dinner
7:15pm – 5-6 oz bottle
I always offer her water with dinner and with her meals when she’s home with me on the weekends. They also offer her water at daycare, but she mostly just plays with it or chews on the straw. I’ve tried to offer her the milk in a straw cup, (have also tried the 360 cup and a few other traditional sippies with no success), with her meals but she’ll only drink maybe an ounce total, if that. I know she’s capable of drinking from a straw, so I’m wondering if going cold turkey with her might be the way to go? Perhaps starting with taking away the 3 middle bottles and replacing them with straw cups? And at what point do you stop the before bed bottle. I’m sure she won’t be happy about it when that day comes.
Any and all advice and suggestions would be very welcome!!
I love how thoughtful you’re being about these decisions. This is a tough call and to be honest is a bit of judgement call. I’d do a gut check for yourself… what do you think is best… cold turkey? Or giving it another month or two? For me I’d probably wait a little longer, what she’s doing is really normal for her age. However, I’d cut back on some of those bottles, one at a time. I think this bottle weaning post will be helpful if you haven’t caught it already! Hope that helps!
FTM of 13 month old girl. Her current schedule is:
6am wake – 8oz bottle (4oz whole milk, 4oz formula)
8:30am – breakfast (table food w/ water in sippy cup)
11:30am – lunch (table food w/ water in sippy cup)
12pm – nap
2:30pm – snack (table food w/water in sippy cup)
4pm – 8oz bottle (4oz cow’s milk, 4oz formula)
7pm – dinner (table food w/ water in straw cup)
9pm bed – 8oz bottle (4oz whole milk, 4oz formula)
4 issues I’m having that I could use some advice on. Help :), thanks!
1) She refuses to drink milk by itself in any type of cup (sippy/straw/360). I’ve even tried adding strawberry/chocolate syrup to it and no luck.
2) I’d like to eliminate the 4pm bottle next but due to our schedule that produces a large gap until the 7pm meal.
3) She doesn’t drink that much water with her meals. Just occasionally sips at the cup so I’m worried about her getting enough fluids and staying hydrated, especially if I eliminate another bottle feeding.
4) She is very dependent on the first bottle as soon as she wakes up. And our schedule doesn’t allow for breakfast until she gets to daycare a bit later. I’m worried I won’t be able to eliminate this anytime soon.
Hi Jenny, Great questions. The first couple can be answered in this post on how to wean from the bottle.
As for the water, that’s normal. Have it available to her all the time. Generally speaking we only need half our body weight in ounces of water a day. So if she weights 20lbs she needs 10oz total. Don’t make yourself crazy with counting this, just to give you an idea! She’ll regulate this herself and she’ll still be drinking around 16 oz of milk too!
I’d keep trying the milk in cups, just keep offering it. Try different cups too!
As for the morning bottle, you might want to start to decrease the amount you give her in the bottle and then have the rest in a cup she can drink in the car. Ideally I’d get her up earlier for breakfast at home or have everything ready so she can sleep later and eat within 40 minutes of waking at daycare. Experiment to see what works best for both of you:)
I wish I’d come across this post earlier. My LO is 15m now and she still doesn’t touch/eat anything that is pureed. I’ve been complaining to the pediatrician but she made me wait. We just got approved by early intervention and I hope she will finally start showing interest in eating finger foods.
*is not pureed
Ahh, also check out: how to transition to table food!
Early intervention will be great! Keep trying and read this post: my baby won’t eat solids.
How about after waking ..15 mins. after waking(7am) feeding food only…. and by 10am feeding bottle?…is it good nursing??
If they are under 12 months that sounds like a plan! Otherwise I like to pair together the meals and milk, but experiment and see what works for you!
I do not want to give my daughter cows milk and she is allergic to nuts so I can not give almond either, which is what my husband and I drink. I am reading more and more about how milk actually isnt necessary after 1 if they are getting enough calcium from food. Can the milk in your sample meal plan/schedules be substituted with water and juice?
Absolutely!
So I’m a ftm, and have never dealt with going from formula to milk and table food before. My daughter is 11 month old today and we have switched her to a sippy cup successfully a month ago due to a lip tie and that’s fine and dandy. She also drinks water from a straw cup regularly and tries to drink from my cup lol. I am trying to figure out what I need to do to start transitioning her to a toddler schedule vs the infant one weve been on for 11 months! Im baffled. I read this article and want to use the 11 month feeding schedule you have above because it is already close to what were on right now. But what type of food do you mean when you say carbs, protein? I already offer fruits and veggies as finger foods with baby food and as snacks. Also I should add that she doesn’t want her formula anymore, we’ve tried a few different brands and found only 1 that she will kind of drink and I have decided I want to incorporate whole milk into her diet as well. I know it’s before one year but she likes it way better than her formula. Any advice would be appreciated really! I don’t even know where to begin with stopping the morning and night time formula feedings… or how to get her to only drink from a straw cup. Help! Lol. Thank you!
So for carbs: noodles, crackers, breads, etc.
For proteins: meatballs, cheese, yogurt, chicken, fish, nut butters, eggs, etc.
Everything you’re doing sounds great! It’s definitely a process and I think you’re in great shape. She can drink from a sippy cup still, I would just make sure she has the straw at least some of the time. As she gets older this will be easier. I have another post on weaning from the bottle, click here, it will be perfect. Let me know if you have more questions!
My son is 11 months old and we’re trying to transition from nursing to bottles/sippy cups. I have plenty of frozen breastmilk to get him past a year but I’m struggling with the morning feeding schedule. He goes to bed at 7:30pm (I nurse him) and consistently wakes up at 4:45/5am to eat. I nurse him then and he goes back to sleep until 7:30am. He might have a couple sips of milk from the sippy cup when he wakes up but typically doesn’t eat until breakfast at 8:30am. I feel like the 5am feed is more out of habit than anything. Would you recommend trying to cut this feed out? As much as I love our bonding time, I’d also like to sleep past 5am once in awhile…and it also seems to put him on a weird morning schedule. Thanks!
That’s a tough call, it does sound like habit. I think its totally fine for you to cut that out if it feels right to you! I know that sounds a little vague, but your mama instincts are the best judge here. Just remember its a transition and you’ll likely have some protesting or some back and forth before your able to move past it.
Do you have any posts like this for a little one who is 15 months old? I am really trying to hammer out a consistent feeding/napping schedule for my little boy… thank you!
Cassie, the second schedule is perfect for any child once they are weaned! My two year old is still on that schedule with the one nap option:)
Alisha,
Love this information! My daughter is 13 months old tomorrow and is a slow weight gainer and eats like a bird (not necessarily picky). We feed her 4 6 oz bottles per day and feed her 3 meals + 2 snacks… similar to your schedule, but we try to sneak in a morning snack. Sometimes I feel like it’s too much and we usually only wait 1.5- 2 hours between feeding (food or bottles). Do you recommend waiting longer? Do you think that can build a healthier appetite for a child who has basically no appetite and little hunger pains?
I do actually! But, every child is unique, I’d experiment for a week or two and see if it helps, my guess is it will!
Hi Alisha
My daughter is 8.5 months old and is currently breastfeeding up to 6 times in a 24 hour period. St present, she feeds at 7am upon waking, at 11am and 3pm (after naps), 6.30 before bed and often 2 night feeds which isnt ideal.
Im due to go back to work in 8 weeks and was hoping to drop the 11am feed. She wont take a bottle so should i substitute this feed with formula or given that she had so many feeds throughouy day /night, could i drop it all together?
At 11 months, would it be ok to have a morning and night breast feed with all other day feeds being replaced by full cows milk?
Thank you in advance
Most doctors would say no to cows milk even at 11 months old, but ask yours. I thinking using formula is just fine, but you can experiment with dropping that feeding and shuffling things around a bit in the next month. Hope that helps!
Hi!
My daughter will be 1 year old in just about 2.5 weeks. I keep reading elsewhere that cows milk shouldn’t be introduced until AT LEAST 1 year old. Do you disagree? I’m currently nursing 3 times a day. I cut out the lunch time nursing session but didn’t think about the idea of replacing with milk with her lunch. She usually just has some water in a sippy cup with whatever she’s eating for lunch. I plan to cut out the other afternoon nursing session soon so that we are only nursing morning wake up, and bedtime for the time being. So, should I be offering cows milk at these that I cut out instead of water?? I dont want to be cutting her short on calories!
Yes, I totally agree! Since this post goes into 12 months plus thats why you see milk listed in places, before 12 months use breast milk or formula.
I love your plan and are already making great strides!
My son is 11 1/2 months old and we are working on his schedule as he will be going to daycare when I go back to work in a couple of weeks. He just made the transition to whole milk. We were mixing it with his formula for a couple of weeks and then yesterday we dropped the formula and just did all whole milk. I do know the recommendation for whole milk is 12 months and I asked my doctor if it was ok to make the transition a couple of weeks early so that I wasn’t creating a new routine as I was starting back at work. When we were doing the formula/milk mixture we were doing 4/day but I’d like to just do milk feedings 3x/day. Is that ok?
Here is an example of his schedule right now:
7:00 – wake up
7:30 – 5oz whole milk in sippy cup then breakfast (today was a small handful of multigrain Cheerios, an egg and blackberries)
9:30 – nap for 1 1/2 hrs
11:30 – 5 oz whole milk in sippy cup then lunch (today was baked sweet potato cut like fries with a bit of olive oil and spice on them, half a banana and a slice of watermelon)
2:00/2:30 – nap for about 1 hr
3:30 – ***this used to be the 3rd milk/formula feeding…can I just give a snack with some water in a straw cup instead? Maybe blueberries and a half a piece of toast with hummus? What do you suggest for a good snack here?
5:30/6:00 – supper (whatever I am having…tonight is probably homemade chilli or spaghetti)
7:30 – 6 oz whole milk in bottle
Then bed.
Would like to know if this looks ok or what you would recommend changing. When he goes to daycare he will have to get up about an hour earlier as we will have to be heading out the door around 7:00.
Thank you!
I think this looks great! Love how proactive you’re being! Once he is officially 12 month old I’d start giving him those sippy cups with milk with his meal instead of right before, but start with one meal at a time:)
Thank you!!
Hi Alisha,
Thanks so much for your advice, so valuable 🙂
My babe is 10.5 months and is breastfed 4x/day and will not take a bottle, for love nor money!! (any tips on this front would be incredible if you have any!)
We have removed breastfeeding her from her bedroom at night and instead do it in a quiet area elsewhere in the house before dad reads and puts her down (which takes several attempts of her standing in her cot & putting her down again before she settles) but at least she isn’t using the boob as a crutch at this time. However, she does still feed during the day and does fall asleep on the boob, if she doesn’t it takes forever to get her settled with many tears too… which of course makes us all anxious!! Any tips on the settling front here?
I have a course I need to go on for a week at the end of June (she will be almost 13months) and will not be around to breastfeed during the day, only morning and night. Do you have any tips on what I can do in preparation for both her and I to get her weaned off these feeds by the?
Thanks so much in advance Alisha X
You’re so welcome! As far as the bottle goes, I know its so hard. You can check out this article, it is really hard to switch at this point and might just want to move onto a straw cup at this point.
I also have how to wean from the breast. Take a look at these and let me know if you have more questions!
Dear Alisha,
I am confused the schedule.
Should I go with protein, veggies.. first and after 30 mins, a cup of milk?
Or milk first then food?
My baby is nearly 14-month-olds.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Thank you very much
Hi Stephanie, yes offer milk with the meal, which should have all the foods you mentioned but 3-5 foods total. Offering immediately after the meal is okay too as long as they drink it all right away and aren’t walking around with it for an hour. Hope that helps!
I was reading your 11 month old feeding/nap schedule and my son is pretty much on that same time frame give it take 20-30 mins. For the second bottle/breastfeed where is says that is he first bottle you take away depending on the child do you take the bottle away and give formula in a cup with lunch? It’s says milk but I thought they can’t have milk until 1 year ? Thank you 🙂
Yes, you are right- until 12 months (since this schedule is for 12 month olds + as well I said milk) but whatever “milk” is for them at 11 months is great.
My baby will be 12 months the 20th we have been feeding her table food and she eats it really good matter of fact her formula and baby food no longer seems to be enough so she eats her baby food and has a sippy cup of formula plus she eats when we eat also we go to the health unit for WIC vouchers Tuesday the 2nd will they go ahead and start her on milk and regular food for this month of January or wait until next month
They will probably wait until next month, they can be really strict about the being exactly 12 months!
So happy to have found your website.
I have a 10.5 month old. I usually give him his formula and then solids around an hour and half after his bottle. Should I move his solids (as in breakfast and lunch) to half an hour after his milk as suggested in the schedule?
Also if he only has an hour nap do I give him a snack or just give him his bottle earlier eg at 10:30am instead of 11 and lunch at 11 instead of 11:30?
And one last thing, he has dropped his afternoon formula bottle on his own so I have been giving him a small snack instead with no milk. Is that okay?
Thanks for all your advice!
I think you’re fine but want to be moving towards that once he’s 11 months old, this is so he can start to understand that his his bottles aren’t a “meal” and his appetite will adjust, too.
The snack with no milk is okay for sure, you may add this once he’s drinking cow’s milk.
As for the nap, its okay to play it by ear for now, you want to start paying attention to the intervals and getting 2 to 2.5 hours between meals and milk. Does that make sense?
Makes perfect sense. Thanks so much
Great advice! I’ve cut out our 3pm nursing session and replaced it with a snack and milk. I’ve been giving her about 3oz? Will cut out the 11am nursing session next and replace with a snack and milk again but I’m wondering when I cut the morning and bedtime session how much milk should I be giving her at breakfast and dinner and before bed? Thanks!
Great job Kimberly! You got this. So, you’ll want to have around 16-18 oz milk total for the day, if you want to spread that across three meals think about 5-6 ounces at those three times. Don’t get overly worrisome about those amounts though, especially when she’s nursing. It’s a transition so there is a lot of back and forth and at times relying on milk a little more as they are learning to eat more.
I’m curious to know why cow’s milk from a cup is a better choice for a 13 month old than formula in a cup or breastmilk from the breast? I notice you said in a reply that a mom of a 10 month old should continue to breastfeed a couple more months, but your article indicates that weaning from breast and bottle should be complete by 13 months. I’m curious to know the sensory and developmental reasons that weaning at a year old is ideal so I can balance that against the World Health Organization’s nutritional recommendation of breastmilk until 24 months. My son is 11 months now and still getting his first two teeth in, so I’m not worried about cavities (especially as the ADA study on that was focused only on bottles, and my son won’t take a bottle.) I want my son to have good nutrition, but I don’t want him to face developmental problems either. He already drinks broth with a straw, handfeed himself (though he actually consumes very little) and we’re working on using an open cup. I’d like to know the developmental and sensory reasons that make 12 months ideal for weaning? Thanks!
Oh, no no no. I’m sorry if you misunderstood and I’ll have to go back and look and make sure I do a better job, but breastweaning is totally different than drinking from a bottle AND if you have breastmilk to use in a cup that’s wonderful, by all means use that as long as your able to. The WHO and AAP differ on their recommendations, some believe its because the WHO is looking at second and third world countries and is trying to ensure the maximum nutrition for toddlers that may not get it, if not on breastmilk.
Around 15 months babies cognition develops further and they can become very attached to the bottle or breast. The latter is fine, but can make weaning more difficult. Bottles are really the primary reason for concern because of the reasons you listed. One other point that is really important, a milk source is really important still from 12-24 months, but often it can interfere with a toddlers regular meals and cause them to eat less because they are filling up on milk, that is what we don’t want. And, its totally normal at 11 months to eat small amounts.
So my husband is trying to take away my son’s bottle of formula/milk of 7oz when he first wakes up. He isn’t willing to budge on the situation but I feel like it is necessary for him to start his day off good with what he’s most comfortable with. Generally he’ll get 2 more of those mixed bottles the rest of the day ( morning nap and before bed). I’m even willing to give up the bottle in the middle but I really feel like he should have one when he first wakes up otherwise I noticed he gets really cranky and irritable.. now,I’m all for weaning and setting him up for success and which he eats snacks and little meals throughout the day but I’m still attached to the idea that he NEEDS that wake up bottle to set his day off right. Am I wrong in wanting this for him or should I just stick to what my husband thinks and that is that?
If you’re son is under 12 months, then yes stick to it. If over 12 months, it doesn’t matter which bottles you take away when, you just need to comfortable, and the baby needs to be adjusting. I’d try taking away the afternoon bottle instead and see if that’s easier:)
thanks..i find it difficult feeding my 13years old boy..he doesnt eat atall…he only feed on cerrlac and lactogen…what should i do?..
WOW!!! This is very valuable information. I really appreciate! I will try with my son.
Hi Alisha great post! My baby will eat any fruit purées but will not eat any as a finger food or on his own. Any advice ?
I actually have a post to help with that Andrea, take a look here and let me know if you have questions: yourkidstable.com/2013/07/teach-your-child-to-feed-themselves.html
In the one nap schedule, is the second nap at 3:00 just a typo?
Yes! Just changed it, thank you!
We still heavily rely on nursing to sleep for naps. Can you talk about strategies for eliminating this crutch?
This can be tricky, do you think you can start to alter the schedule so that they aren’t nursing right before nap, maybe just one nap at first? You could also try changing up your routine and not nursing him in a spot he would normally fall asleep, then take him to his room and do a little routine before nap to help get him used to sleeping without nursing. It will take some time and their will probably be some tears. Proceed with how you feel comfortable.
nice advice,thanks