1 year and question about milk

[@llli*firsttime]

My baby is over a year now. Even though I planned to stop at a year, I am still nursing. He just seems so small still and likes nursing so much, I don't have the heart to stop. Plus, I enjoy yhe closeness (except I would love to have a full night's sleep without nursing). I don't like pumping, however, so I am weaning off of that. The problem is that DS doesn't seem to like the cow's milk/breast milk combo that daycare has been giving him to start the process of getting him used to having just cow's milk. Are there other alternatives he might like better? Is there a way to help him like cow's milk more? I am down to one pumping a day for 10 minutes. The irony is that I only pump a few less ounces doing this small amount than I did before I started to wean off of pumping. My milk supply took a nose dive around the time he was 10 months, but has stayed stable since that nose dive. However, I used up all of my saved up milk because of it. He ends up nursing 5 to 6 times a night and I think it may be because he isn't drinking enpugh during the day (besides the fact that he is having significant attachment stuff going on - needing me to hold him as much as when he was a newborn). Thanks in advance for your help.

[@llli*lovemygirlso1]

Unfortunately I don't really have advise. A1 never did adjust to cow's milk. To this day she won't drink it. I tried soy milk, rice milk, almond milk, chocolate milk, strawberry milk, warm milk, cold milk. Nothing worked. I did read once that have a "special" cup that's only for milk can sometimes help. Didn't work for us but you could give it a shot. Hope all goes well! Good luck!

[@llli*elisabetsey]

I'd look into other types of milk. Also, there are plenty of people who don't have milk at all...so nothing says you HAVE to add cow's milk to your diet

[@llli*still.here]

My daughter never drank cow's milk either. As long as you're nursing at least 3-4 times a day your baby doesn't need a milk alternative. Water and solid foods should get her through the day until she's with you again.

ETA: He may be clingy and nursing more because he's trying to get molars. Right around a year is when that usually starts kicking in.

[@llli*firsttime]

Thanks everyone. I will try other options and then just let him drink water until I get home. He wakes 4-6 times a night so he probably gets enough milk in those night wakings to make it through the day. I don't drink milk either, but I read that babies need 24-36 ounces of dairy a day. Is this wrong? I can't remember where I read it. I guess those other alternatives to milk wouldn't be dairy anyway .

Also, can molars come in when he only has 6 teeth so far? The Dr said she didn't see his molars at his 12 months check up, so I think he isn't teething for his molars at least, but maybe other teeth (I don't see any close to the surface, but that doesn't mean it doesn't hurt before then).

[@llli*still.here]

They won't usually come in until the other teeth are in, but other teeth could be bothering him as well. I think the worst ones for my daughter were her eyeteeth.

You can get dairy in solid foods as well as milk, though it's not absolutely required. Especially if baby is still nursing. Those 3-4 nursings a day should cover a good portion of those nutritional requirements. Add in some yogurt or cheese or whatever and you're covered. There are also other foods that can replace dairy in your diet, though it doesn't sound like you're necessarily wanting to do that.

[@llli*mommal]

24-36 oz would be for an exclusively breastfed baby, I think. A year-old baby doesn't need that much.

[@llli*momtodom09]

The only time my son has cow's milk is when he has cereal, and he's almost 3. We gave him one kid sized Organic Valley once and after about 2 sips he didn't want it. Cow's milk is NOT a neccesity.

[@llli*kgr1976]

As long as you're nursing at least 3-4 times a day your baby doesn't need a milk alternative.

Don't mean to hijack the thread, but does this mean if LO stops nursing that much, they need a milk alternative for the additional calories (meaning water and solids don't suffice alone without a milk alternative)? My DS is 17 months and still nurses at least 3-4 times a day (usually morning, nap and before bedtime and then a few times during the night since he's not night-weaned yet. So, technically it's not a problem then that he would need a milk alternative. But he has decreased his nursing sessions during the day (down to three usually where he was once an every 2-3 hour nurser, and I am considering night-weaning soon, though I am not sure about it yet). So, I have tried whole cow's milk and he is simply not interested. He either spits it out or hands it back to me and points at his other sippy for water (I use a metal, insulated sippy for the milk, so it is a "special milk" cup). I stopped trying the cow's milk after the first few tries, but then today I bought whole milk again thinking I would give it another shot -- and try it with chocolate Ovaltine. Nope -- he was having none of it. I plan to continue trying it but not push it, of course. Did anyone have better success with another milk alternative other than cow's milk? I guess it depends on the child, of course. I hesitate to use soy milk because we're raising him a vegetarian, so he already gets a lot of soy in other forms with tofu and such. He does eat a lot of other dairy everyday -- he's big on cottage cheese and regular cheese, plus yogurt. I also use milk when I make him oatmeal or other cereal, etc. Is almond milk safe to try since he's younger than 2 years? He hasn't had any nut products yet. Any thoughts are much appreciated!

[@llli*mommal]

Yes, if your LO is nursing less than 3-4 or 3-5 times a day, some sort of dairy or dairy alternative is important. That doesn't have to mean milk or other beverage in a cup, though. Yogurt, cheese, cottage cheese, tofu, etc., all count towards filling baby's needs for fat and calcium.

ETA: AFAIK soy milk is not a great substitute for dairy. Something about the type of fats and sugars in it...? I can't remember. But go for whole-milk yogurt before soy milk- it doesn't matter that it's a solid rather than a drink.