Hi! I've read through the posts to try answer my questions, but im still at a loss, every baby is a different! First off here are my sons measurements.
Birth- 8lbs 20 in
2 week- 8.12 lbs 21.5 in
2 month- 12lbs 24 in
4 month- 14.9lbs 27in (this was 2 weeks ago)
At his 4 month appt. doctor recommended we start formula because he is "skinny". I told her I was going to try and increase my supply and would get back to her at his 6 month check up to let her know how it was going. He also is still not sleeping through that night which i know is normal but my ped thinks its because hes not getting enough. He goes 3 hours between feedings at night except for the last one before he wakes up he will go 2 hours.
I went to the nutrition store that we shop at and talked with the owner who was a LLL leader. She said that he may appear to be "skinny" but he is just very long (his dad is 6'10" btw). She suggested to try and increase the fat content of my milk to see if that helped him sleep longer/ gain some weight. Per her advice i have been eating a tablespoon of coconut oil every morning and night (bleh) and have tried to add good sat. fats to my diet. He is still sleeping on the same schedule when bf. Sometimes he will go 4 hours though (woohoo).
I work 4 days per week, my schedule varies but im normally away from him from 8-10 hours and I bartend so its normally at night. I pump every 3 hours and I also pump after his morning feedings. I have a medela advanced pump in style and I always double pump. I almost always get at least what he's eating when im away, sometimes less but my morning pumps make up for it. He does fine with the bottle and drinks anywhere from 10-15oz. He seems to sleep more when he is bottle fed. He will always go a 4-5 hour stretch and then its back to 3 hours (once im bf-ing him). When I bf him sometimes he will be done in 5 minutes sometimes it takes 45.
Also within the last 2 weeks he has gotten one of his bottom teeth. He is not nursing as frequently and is very fussy (teething im assuming). Im trying to keep my supply up so I put him on the breast as often as possible but it usually goes something like this: go into his nursery where it dark, try and get him to latch, he arches his back, turns away, pushes away, I force my breast into his mouth and squeeze a bit of milk out, then he latches and sucks for a few minutes. After that its near impossible to get him back on until the next time I try.
Sorry for the crazy long back story, I just want to be thorough...here are my questions:
How can I know for sure he is getting "enough"?
Does teething cause a decreased appetite?
I do not want to start formula, is there a way to make sure he is getting the hind milk?
At almost 5 months, is sleeping in 3 hour stretches at night "normal"?
When I pump I feel like my milk looks watery, and sometimes it has a green tint, is that normal?
Should I start cereal before 6 months? (My mom & mother in law are hounding me about it and swear it will help him sleep but everything i've read says that's not always true.)
Thank you in advance
Karlie