The Windows of (Food) Opportunity

2 to 4 Weeks – Bottle to a breastfed baby – This is the time when you should try a bottle. The best thing to do is to try to give the baby a bottle once a day. This is very important if you are going back to work. If time is a factor get a mack daddy electric pump. If you don’t want to pay out the wazoo you can buy a hand pump that is a little slower, but works equally as well.

4 to 6 Months – Get the Baby Sleeping Through the Night - Go about it whichever way works for you and your baby, but now is the time to start sleep-training. If you wait until 8 months supposedly they remember that you will come running. Most of the time the kiddos can go without the midnight feeding at this point, but remember through the night is only 6-7 hours in baby land.

6 Months – Start Solid Food – Look for cues that your child is ready: sits up with help, has good head control, puts things in their mouth, and seems interested in what your eating. Don’t wait to start solids because the kid needs the calories. For more solids tips check out our food timeline.

7 to 9 Months – Sippy Cup Time! (Our favorite) – Put a two handled cup on the high-chair tray at each meal and encourage away. It won’t take long for your kid to get the hang of things and this will make weaning easier.

12 to 23 Months – Time for the Paci to Go – At this point you should start slowly removing the time spent with the paci. It can slow down speech development and can affect your child’s ability to interact