Is My Son Weaning???

he may be self-weaning... that is kind of what my son did, and he self-weaned at about 1 year old.

But yes, check with your Pediatrician.
And after 1 year old... a baby/toddler can transition to whole milk. Whole milk because the milk "fats" in it are essential for brain development and growth. So you can ask about that too.

Sometimes bottle strikes are also due to teething.
Or, they are simply too full to drink from a bottle or to nurse, because they are given solid foods first. Not after.
In my case, our Pediatrician advised to give their nursing/bottle BEFORE solids, for example.

But each Doctor varies.

Your son seems like a good eater, which is good, and he likes water.
Just make sure how much water/milk he should get getting at his age... how many ounces, and in relation to nutrients. I have heard some say that too much water can leach vitamins... but then again, water is a "nutrient" as well. So I don't know.

Did he stop taking bottles at daycare because he is not offered it (his milk), or because he just does not want it?

Each baby/child weans differently.

All the best,
Susan

i think u have the answer...its b/c he is filling up more on food than breast milk..that's ok..doesn't mean he has to ween..just cutting down..i went a long time w/ my son..til he was 3...u can still nurse..u can probably quit pumping ..if you have a lot of milk just pump and store it. My son would go through phases..he quit at 15 months and started back up a month later..my milk went up and down ..now it's been 6 months since we quit and i still have milk i hear it takes about 2 years to go away totally.

They go through stages like that every now and then. Some people call them nursing strikes. However, they often just want diff things at diff times. Remember they also balance their diets over a 3day period, not one meal like us. Could also be the sucking action is hurting his teeth, especially if he's getting mollars. Keep up the bf, THE best for them!

my daughter nursed WAY after she dumped the bottle... at least 2 years after.

If you´re giving him more water, as you say, it fills him up. There isn´t room for your milk.
If you´re breast feeding on demand, you need not worry to much about dehydration, because your milk changes consistency depending on the temperature. When it´s cold your milk has a higher fat content, and when it´s hot your milk is more watery, to satisfy your baby´s needs.

So the solution as I see it, if you want to breastfeed more, you should cut back on the water a little.

And if you are worried about dehydration, you can check for the signs like the skin on the top of his hand not snapping back immediately when you lift a little bit if up, sunken eyes, dry lips aso.

But yes, talking with your pediatrician is a good idea.

Good luck!

Hi M.,
I'm not sure if anyone else has said this, but have you tried putting the milk into a sippy cup? Maybe he's rebelling against the actual bottle! My son drank from a sippy and not a bottle when he was 5 months! Keep nursing as long as you and he desire! Also, I'm very sorry for your loss of the girls, just know that they are with their Father in heaven and you will see them again some day!
L.

11 month olds are such busy babies on the verge of becoming toddlers! It is normal for them to be so busy that it is a "chore" for them to take the time to nurse. Many people think this is them naturally weaning, or a nursing strike; and you could use this developmental time to wean at your own choice.

However, this business does not signal the end of your baby's need for breastmilk (especially if he is too young to be transitioned to cow milk). Help your busy baby by taking him to a quiet place with lower stimulation to help you focus on each other. Or take advantage of "sleepy nursing" by catching him in light sleep either after going down for the night or in the morning. Or plan on tanking him up during the night if he is co-sleeping.

Most of all, good job, working mama! You have given your son the very best start on life! You should be so proud of yourself for making nursing work as a mom who works outside the home. What a great tribute to the love you have for your sons and to the love you will always have for your daughters! Blessings

I doubt he's completely weaning, but he may be ready to give up the daytime bottle. My daughter did that at about 10mo and wouldn't take BM in a sippy either. She ebbs and flows with nursing...some days/weeks not nursing as long or often, but eating more...then other days/weeks it's like she can't get enough of mommy's milk! She is 15 mo and we still nurse a few times a day/night, but I don't force it. She went a few days a month ago where she refused to nurse at all, but I think it was related to teething or something (freaked me out, tho!). She picked right back up, though. I would just let him naturally lead the nursing relationship and see where it goes. If you feel it's necessary you can introduce cow/goat/soy milk to make sure he is getting all the nutrients he needs. My girl eats plenty of cheese/yogurt and other foods that I don't worry about it (while she's still nursing some). And she drinks lots of water, too.

Sounds normal to me too!
Around this age, both of my daughters were preferring to drink from a cup during the day (straw cups to start) instead of daytime nursing or bottles. We also started to migrate towards milk around that time too. They both still nursed mornings and bedtimes (and sometimes mid-afternoon) for quite some time after that. But, by 11 months I think that lots of kids are ready to eat and drink like "big kids" for meals and snacks. Particularly the second child!

Sounds like he's growing up. At that age my son was grown out of bottle and sippy cup! Drinking from a straw-like cup and practicing with a normal cup, (both is better for tooth development). Always have water available and continually introduce it. YES, he is getting enough vitamin D-so my DR. says since most of our food is fortified. With regards to the food, again, at this time my son flourished with finger foods!! Not just Gerber Puffs, but with REAL FOOD. Frozen mixed veggies,hummus and pita,diced sweet potato, bagels with crm chs, cheese (caution with string cheese), avocado, beans and cheese on tortillas-diced, pasta, every fruit (test 3 continual days for allergies)....
yeah for the big boy!

You've gotten a lot of great responses! My daughter slowed down a lot right around a year...we never did formula, only pumped BM in a bottle a few times/week. It was like someone flipped a switch and all of a sudden her nursing sessions were MUCH shorter. At that point, she was nursing about 4x/day. At 13 mo., we started a 4 month weaning process. She dropped the late afternoon feed, and then about 6 weeks later the midday. We continued with morning/bedtime nursing until almost 17 mo. The last couple of months, she almost exclusively nursed on one side (she'd latch on the other side, but for only like 3 sucks!), and she gradually nursed shorter and shorter until it was like around a minute! It was almost humorous how quickly she nursed, although it made me sad too! But she was ready... all that to say, you are doing great! As long as he's still nursing some, I'd say his habits are just changing and he's shortening or become more efficient. Don't worry about it! You are doing great!!
~R.