This blog was inspired by Charlie. Mum had come to see me at the pharmacy. He was decorating the floor with his food instead of eating it. Mum was beside herself.

Flexible Day Routine for 6-12 mth old baby

6 am – Wake, change nappy and milk feed.

7am – Breakfast. Followed by playtime and/or morning walk.

9 – 10 am – Morning sleep.

11:30 am – 12 midday – Lunch, give main and dessert to appetite.

1 – 3pm – Afternoon sleep (no more than 2 hours).

5pm – Evening meal, give main and dessert.

Bedtime routine and wind down – Bath, story time and milk feed.

7pm – Bedtime and sleep till 6 am.

There should be no night feeds offered from 7pm to 6am

How much milk does a 6-12 month old baby need?

Breast milk or infant formula is the main drink until 12 months old.

Full cream cows milk can be used in cooking or on cereal from 6 months old.

Solid food becomes more important after 6 months old and this is because of an increased need for calories for brain growth and development. Just think, does your 6-12 month old ever sit still when they're awake? I'm sure your answer is a resounding NO!!!

If your baby has too much milk then they may start either not to gain enough weight or even lose weight. This occurs with babies that have too many night time feeds. I've come across babies that have 5-6 night feeds then will not eat hardly any solids at the 6-month-old plus age. Often to correct this we need to move the milk feeds to after their solids. This will help them increase their solid intake and we need to feed to appetite and I mean by that, feed them until they are closing their mouth tight shut, turning away from the spoon and even throwing food from the high chair!

So the amount of milk feeds is either 3 breastfeeds or 500-750mls of Infant formula.

And here is the handsome little chappie, Charlie eating his food and loving it. Go Charlie!