Introducing Baby Cereal

I knew that my baby was growing up faster than I ever imagined, the moment my pediatrician mentioned I could start feeding him a couple spoonfuls of rice cereal a day.  Feeding with a spoon already??  YES, it is time!

My little one is almost 5 months old and apparently 2-3 spoons of baby cereal mixed in with expressed milk or water will help him hold out a little more between feedings…especially through the night.

Thus the new chapter began…

Sunday evening I ventured over to the local organic market and picked up a box of brown rice cereal.  Just like the doctor prescribed, I sat baby in the high chair and broke out the BPA-free spoons I had received months earlier from my baby shower.  After mixing a couple teaspoons of the cereal with some expressed breast milk, I approached Chili.

I was a bit apprehensive to see baby’s first reaction.  But to my surprise, he puckered up his lips and opened wide, just as I brought the food to his mouth!  And then…he wanted more!!  Oh YES! He LOVED it! 🙂

Now the REAL test was to see how much longer the food would help him sleep through the night!  So I waited….  That night, he slept 6.5 hours!  The most he had slept to date!  I was excited to know that progress was being made!

Monday, we went through the same routine at dinnertime.  That night he slept 6.5 hours once again!

By Tuesday he was sleeping 7 hours straight…a personal best!

However, on Wednesday night the pattern broke.  He was back to 3.5 hours.  Not sure what happened then.  Maybe it was the extra spit-up I noticed that left him wanting more.  Oh well.  Whatever it was, I hope it’s not repeated.  Fingers crossed that things are back on track, because when baby sleeps more, I’m a happier mama!

Did introducing rice cereal to your baby, help him sleep through the night? How much longer?