Stella, reviewing today's blog post. She's a stickler for accuracy.
Today, Stella had 700 mls, which makes it a great day. It’s all part of her overall upward trend in bottle feeding.
I’m excited report is that Stella is no longer swaddled. At all. She is not swaddled when she sleeps, nor when she eats! This is huge! She seems more able to calm herself, which is an important skill–especially in her case, as not so long ago she would get very agitated at the mere SIGHT of the bottle.
At the suggestion of Marguerite in Graz as well as Stella’s dietician, I just tried adding a bit of sweet baby food (apple and pear, both of which she has enjoyed in recent weeks) to her bottle, to sweeten the formula and perhaps increase its appeal. Well, she just took all 150 mls of this new concoction! We are flying high right now. The best part is that she drank it all down with one hand in mine, and the other hand resting peacefully on the neck of the bottle. How far she has come! I, on the other hand, was able to sit in bed comfortably while feeding her, totally relaxed. How far I have come from the days of standing, shushing, squatting and stressing! Okay, I still get stressed, but not with the intensity and frequency of previous weeks and months.
Interestingly, Stella has moved on from quaint motorboat noises to raspy monster noises. We take turns growling at each other, and it’s great fun. My throat can’t take much more of it, but judging from her persistance and enthusiasm, she is determined to continue this pattern for days on end.
In other Stella news, flood warnings have been issued in our area as her drool output continues to soar! I am using BLANKETS to sop it up. That’s right, blankets. I think tomorrow I’ll put a bucket under her bouncy seat. It’s really quite impressive.
All in all, Stella continues to amaze us in every way.
The Life and Times of Stella 
Yay! What a great birthday present to hear Stella doing so well! You all have come so far, we are so proud of you guys and wish we could be closer, but you are on our minds constantly!
You go girl! You and your mom are showing every ounce your great strength of heart. Keep on growing and drooling. We are all looking forward to seeing those new teeth in that beautiful smile…
Hey double that on the birthday present, as Corinne and I must share today. Stella looks so cute in that picture and love the caption. I think adding baby food to her menu is a great addition! So glad Marguerite is helping.
All right – go Stella, Mom and Dad – what a rollercoaster ride you all have been on, so happy to hear of the vast improvements. I remember the bouncing, swaddling, juggling act that bottle feeding used to be – Amber your arms must be made of steel!
Well, of course, Stella is a drooler, it is the Hescock in her!
Love – Mimi
I was sent this site by someone on tube fed kids deserve to eat. i read your story and it matches mine apart from breast feeding for 3 months, i could only manage a day. My Maria could never do it. she has a ng tube at almost 3 months, bottle aversion, lactose intolerance. your tube weaning story is amazing and i wish i could have the courage and support to do this. she is now almost 5 and a half months and im still waiting for someone to help me to do something. she wont go near the bottle or even have it in her mouth. she is on medication for silent reflux, i just need to wean her now. i just dont know how?
amazing mummy, and amazing little girl.
fiona xx
thanks so much for the kind words, fiona. i’m so sorry you’re going through this terrible stress and worry, and that you don’t have the support you need. yet it’s admirable that you’re out looking for any answers you can get to help her! do you see an occupational therapist or other feeding specialist? it’s not just about courage–i’m sure you have plenty of that! i had support from graz (before netcoaching got so expensive) and hands-on help from our occupational therapist, who supported the wean. i also had a baby who didn’t completely reject the bottle, she always ate at least a little (not at every feeding but every day she took something). i suppose finding some expert support, another type of cup or bottle that she doesn’t have a negative association with, and allowing her to be a little more hungry are some things to consider. but again, it’s almost impossible to do it alone. i wish i could help somehow–please let me know if there’s anything i can do. and hang in there!