KATHRYN MEWES Q&A

Q

A guide on how to help your child sleep, eat and behave well

Questions answered by Kathryn Mewes, Author of ‘The 3 Day Nanny’.

MY 8 MONTH OLD REFUSES TO TRANSFER FROM THE BREAST TO THE BOTTLE. WHAT CAN I DO? I RETURN TO WORK IN 4 WEEKS TIME!

If you have been feeding exclusively from the breast it might be too late for your baby to accept a bottle.

At 8 months old your baby should be eating 3 solid meals a day and having 3 breast-feeds. I suggest the 15.00 milk feed is substituted with a beaker of formula milk and a yoghurt or cheese and cracker afterwards. This milk feed is not essential if your baby has a balanced solid diet.

You may well find that you need to continue with the morning and evening breast feed at 07.00 and 18.30 / 19.00 for another 4 months. On the days you cannot give these feeds a beaker of formula can be given. If it is not drunk it will not be a concern.

Once your baby is 12 months old, if not before, they can have their formula milk from a beaker.

I suggest you focus on your baby drinking from a beaker. Practice continually through the day with water.

Think positively – your baby has skipped a stage for you. You can be a ‘bottle free’ house!

MY DAUGHTER HATES HAVING HER HAIR WASHED. SHE IS 2 YEARS OLD. ANY IDEAS?!

• I tend to stick an interesting picture on the ceiling of the bathroom and ask them to look up at it. • I ask them questions about the picture and pour water down their back at the same time. • I then wash the ‘back of their hair’ and move onto the top. • Keep asking questions about the picture. • Eventually your daughter will get the concept of tilting her head back without having a visual aid. • Change the picture from time to time until it eventually isn’t needed.

MY 2.5-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER WILL TANTRUM THE MOMENT SHE DOES NOT GET HER OWN WAY. WHAT DO I DO WHEN SHE TANTRUMS?

We cannot suppress a child’s emotions and ask them not to get cross.

• If you can see that your child needs to shout and rage you need to ensure they are in a safe place and allow them to ‘let off steam’. • Do not stand staring at them or continually asking them if they have finished. • LEAVE them to vent their emotions.

A child will continue to perform for longer if they feel they have an audience.

• Once the shouting calms and quietens simply approach and bend down and make eye contact. • “All the shouts are out now. All finished. Now let’s go and find some puzzles to look at.” (Think of an activity that would distract your child) • Once calm and playing you can say to your child “We must remember that Mummy does not like you shouting. Mention the reason for the shouting and state that you don’t think it will happen again because You are my good little girl.’ • Continue playing and do not mention it anymore.

MY SON IS AGED 3 AND REFUSES TO EAT ANY FRUIT OR VEGETABLES. WHAT CAN I DO?

Between the ages of 2 – 5 years old all children go through the ‘fussy eating’ stage. The key is not to ‘make an issue’ of mealtimes.

Continue to place vegetables on his plate. Two types each day. It is ideal to sit and eat with him but talk about topics that do not involve focusing on food.

You can start a chart where each fruit or vegetable eaten is drawn on the chart and 3 vegetables tried = a small prize. The prize can be wrapped in foil and hidden somewhere in his bedroom. Do not make the prize sweets.

At the end of each meal give your son a chopping board and knife and ask him to cut up some fruit. If he nibbles it, the smallest amount, it must be drawn on the chart.

Be inventive with the chart to inspire your son and give him an incentive to try new flavours.

For treats you can make smoothies and ice cream together from fresh fruits and cream!

For further guidance on challenges you are having with your children you can contact Kathryn Mewes through her website bespokenanny.com or contact her direct on 07787 821 525.

KATHRYN MEWES

Author of The 3 Day Nanny

A practical 3-day guide to overcoming key parenting challenges from sleeping and eating to potty training and behavioural problems.

Nanny extraordinaire Kathryn Mewes helps parents solve common parenting challenges quickly and easily - and in just 3 days. With step-by-step advice for different issues and ages, Kathryn will guide parents through the relevant 3-day plan to give them more confidence as a parent. The 3-Day Nanny will help parents with children aged 6 months to 6 years to:

• Sleep through the night • Try new foods and enjoy healthy eating • Transform negative behaviours and habits • Potty train with ease

Kathryn’s 3-day plans work on the basis that it normally takes a child three days to settle into a new routine. On day 1 she helps you to identify the cause of the issue, choose the right positive bespoke solution and to begin to implement it. On this first day the new routine will feel new and unfamiliar to parent and child but on day 2 the new routine will start to be more familiar. By the end of day 3 the change will be accepted by the child and a fresh start will begin to unfold for all.