It was just 2 short weeks ago that I introduced my first bit of formula to my baby. I was hopeful, but shocked when he took right to it. Now, two weeks later, I can say that he is officially weaned. It was a difficult road for me emotionally, but weaning him proved to be not as difficult for him.
In fact, my little man has been sleeping in his own bed for the past three nights! That, coupled with the fact that he is also sleeping longer has made me believe even more that my decision to switch him to formula was the right choice. Looking back, it was one of the most difficult choices I ever made, but now, as I see my baby happy, growing, no longer spitting up all the time, no tummy troubles, and no blow outs, I know that I made the right choice.
If you are looking to wean your baby to formula, it might happen quite easily like it did with us. I feel very blessed for that fact. I started with getting a calendar and tracking how many ounces of formula he took each day. The first day was only 5, then the next was 8, and then I went to feeding him entirely from a bottle during the day. He was doing great!
The next part was more difficult. I had to decide how to introduce the bottle at night. The first night was incredibly hard! I was up every 2 hours with him. It is much harder to get out of bed and prepare a bottle than it is to roll over and offer the breast in bed. Since I was having to get up anyway, I decided to try putting him back into his own bed every time too. After 3 or 4 nights in a row of very little sleep, we had a night where he only woke up every 4 hours! And, last night, he only woke up at midnight, and then 6 am. I finally got a 6 hour stretch of sleep for the first time in almost 6 months.
My husband told me that he noticed a change in me too the past couple of days. I’ve had the freedom to add foods back into my diet, finally, and getting more sleep has changed my attitude tremendously. I already feel like a better Mom. I am so thankful I was able to breastfeed as long as I did, but am also now confident in the choice I made to wean.