Cheers To Full Baby Bellies No Matter What’s In Those Bottles! My Tips For Formula Feeding!

With our breastfeeding days far behind us now, and our little girl fast approaching 8 months, we’ve definitely hit our formula stride. Formula feeding is definitely easier in some ways but way more expensive and a bit less convenient in others (i.e. when Mommy and her girls venture out alone for a morning of errands and fun and forgets to bring along a lunchtime bottle because she didn’t anticipate that long of a morning, yeah that’s what I mean). Even though you don’t tote along an endless milk supply anymore to prevent uh-oh moments like those, the plus no more pumping, no more thawing, no more freezing, and no more endless stress and worry on this Mommy. I know that the formula is doing its job for my little one and I no longer have the fear of whether my milk is healthy enough, filling enough, if I fed her enough, and so on and so on. 

I am a total advocate for breastmilk don’t get me wrong but for so many mothers it’s just not in the cards. Sadly for so many breastfeeding can feel like you’re fighting a losing battle rather than a blissful experience. And when it comes down to it I’d rather feed my baby formula than have her go hungry if my milk supply is too low. Now that we’re full time formula and food eaters I know that my little girl is full because she’s thriving everyday and growing like a weed. She’s as adorable as they come, strong as a baby bull, and so very smart, so for this little girl (and her big sister too), formula does a baby good.  

Just choosing your formula and figuring out that feeding road can be a task and a half though. With our second little girl we stuck with the same formula that worked for our first which thankfully made her sister equally as happy. But picking out the formula to how to introduce and finally figuring out how much to give can be really tough so I wanted to share some of my tips as a 2 time half breastfeeding/ formula mom.

Step 1, Picking Your Formula

No kidding, there are about fifty different options of formula out there, so where do you start? We always make big decisions like these through the pediatrician. Always start there. See what they recommend, they know your child’s health the best. Don’t be offended, yes we know our babies the best but they know how their systems work and what they need to be the healthiest inside and out. Our pediatrician recommended Gerber Good Start and for us both babies took to it immediately! We’re using Gerber Good Start Gentle most recently which is most similar to breastmilk, nutrient wise.

Step 2, Introducing Your Very First Formula Bottle

This can either go fantastic, eh okay, or be a total no go. My advice, be patient, heed the advice of your pediatrician, and save your frozen breastmilk for this time. Our ped recommended to mix breastmilk and formula when you first offer and gently shift the proportion OR go straight to formula and see what happens.

We did it both ways. With our first baby girl she was so tiny when we had to start formula so we were even more cautious and did half and half. With out second baby girl, she was twice her sister’s age, a whopping 4 months, so we figured we’d give the straight formula a try. Yay for us because she loved in since Day 1. A little suspicious at first but never turned it down. My advice, try straight formula first (unless advised by the doctor not to do so), then try half and half or less formula, and then if baby still isn’t a fan try another formula. Very tough to find the magic formula and make the transition but you will, be patient.

Step 3, How Much? How Often?

Isn’t this the unanswered question that’s plagued mothers for ages. And just so you know, no number that anyone gives you works for all. Every baby really is different. Every pediatrician will tell you that they’ll stop when they’re full but I can tell you both of my girls would’ve drank 10 oz bottles from the start if they could. So we tried it out with 4-5 oz about 5 times a day which seemed to do the trick for the most part. Our little girl was a colic baby from the start, not to mention a non-pacifier baby too, so fussiness was always very hard to distinguish from hunger. But I’m happy to say whatever we were feeding her and the amount seemed to pacify her because soon enough we were out of the over fussy stage and onto just normal baby fussy. 

Feeding babies is tough, no matter how you do it. But with formula, it’s all about trial and error from the start and the downside is it can be very pricey. When they’re available though, coupons will be your best friend, yes $3 can make a huge difference when you’re going through two formula containers a month. Also if you pick a formula your pediatrician recommends they more than likely have samples of those so ASK! Every time you go for your baby check ups ASK for samples, any free bit is a blessing. 

Best of luck formula mommies and babies! Cheers to full baby bellies no matter what’s in those bottles!

Sincerely, 

Lindsay