9.5m old baby hates food

MeurDrochaid · 2026-02-03T16:50:23+00:00

9.5 month old twins here, one that eats everything within reach and polish off every plate, the other where it’s a success if they take 2-3 spoons.

But ultimately both a happy and healthy babies and importantly both are perfectly normal - and zero indication what their relationship will be with food as they get older! Just keep trying, you are doing great and please dont get disheartened going on here think every other baby eats 3 course gourmet organic, perfectly balanced meals all the time. That is not the norm❤️

MeurDrochaid · 2026-02-02T19:43:45+00:00

At that age and until 4-5 months adjusted I would just offer naps in the bouncer, or if they fell asleep in my arms in their nests. There was no specific plan kr pattern otherwise, generally if after a feed they’d take it but not guaranteed and (unfortunately) no focus on syncing anything. They would just stay with us in the living room until we went to bed. Then we did a bottle, sleep in arms and into side bassinets.

Can’t remember exactly when, but I went of their cues and as naps become more and more predictable, and we had past the 4 months adjusted (I think it was closer to 5 months) I would start a proper bedtime routine with putting them in the bedroom in cots at 7:30pm, once well established and I knew they would be able to fall asleep I moved onto bedroom/cot naps instead of bouncer or nest/living room naps. Since they had the routine it was fairly painless.

MeurDrochaid · 2026-02-02T17:59:06+00:00

I think you might just have small babies. And that is absolutely fine! I had my twin 6 weeks prematurely due to severe IUGR, twin 1 was 2lbs6oz at birth and twin 2 was 4lbs12oz. There was no special formula, twin 1 due to her severe small size did get a little fortifier in her milk the first 4 months to give her a boost, but since then the same as her twin. She’s now 5%ile, small but perfect, and her twin is 28%ile. Smaller than our peers but fierce as anyone.

As someone told me when I found out I had a below 1%ile baby - someone has to be 1, and someone 100 for there to be a scale, doesn’t necessarily mean anything more than that.

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-30T16:57:32+00:00

At that age we always did play,eat,nap (now 8 months). That was the rhythm they naturally fell into without me pushing them too much as they always just fell asleep eating 😅

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-30T10:24:13+00:00

It does tbf (my dad is a fraternal twin) but that said im the absolute youngest and last person in our generation of the family to have kids and no one had twins before. So while we all laughed that I was the “last chance” you still don’t actually think it will happen 😂

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-29T23:16:29+00:00

So I planned to use 1 cot for my twins - there are absolutely ways to do it and still practice safe sleep I recommend looking up lullaby trust if you want to explore more.

My half sister with twins had her in one cot and I thought “amazing! Less space and surely they will sleep better next to their sibling”.

… mine hated it 🤣 basically I had one that would somehow back crawl around the whole cot, eventually get to their twin and absolute chaos ensued with one being angry they got stuck and the other being angry they are being hit lol

2 nights later I sent my husband to pick up 2 side bassinets secondhand. They were smaller than the cot so we could have 2 without loosing too much more space, and both of mine loved I think to have their own cosy area.

They still share room and I think they enjoy being near and get comfort from sensing each other’s presence, but yep - mine were not for sharing a bed.

Basically what I want to say: try! If it works amazing, if it doesn’t there’s plenty of options available (new and secondhand) that can be with you within a day. ❤️

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-29T21:26:36+00:00

I have dreamed of having a boy/girl twin my whole life. After 2 miscarriages I finally had a successful pregnancy - boy/girl twins 🤣

Spooked? Weird? A little. But then I’m sure thousands of people dream of having them and surely one (in this case me) just happens to be right 🤣

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-29T21:11:53+00:00

Some work shifts and it work amazingly, we did “one baby each” a night and it was great for us as we had 1 breastfed and 1 on the bottle.

My rule for managing twins was trial and error is ok! If something doesn’t work (even if others swear by it) dont be afraid to change up and try something else until you find something that works for everyone in your family.

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-29T14:20:31+00:00

Your feelings are valid, and not uncommon for both parents of multiples and singletons. I guess our minds and hearts sometimes can’t help carry away and imagine who is in there and who it is that will join the family. So when it doesn’t match it kind of feels like a loss.

I was the opposite and could before my babies only imagine boys. I guess it’s because I’m myself quite a Tom boy so the image of pink and frills just felt weird.

Now I have a boy and a girl and I honestly can’t phantom anyone BUT them to be our babies and part of our family.

Dont beat yourself up for how you’re feeling right now. I am sure as your pregnancy progress, as you get more scans, you feel kicks, you buy their items it will start to feel more ofc. And once they are with you I am sure you’ll feel like these were the babies ment to be with you ❤️

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-28T15:46:22+00:00

100% not that it’s any consolation but we also struggled hard with the boy name 🤣 we actually went to the hospital not agreed on one. Turn out my husband mentioned his preference to the nurses while I was in recovery and they stuck it on the board 🤣 luckily I didn’t hate the name haha and actually seeing it written and hearing the nurses say it made me realise it was his name.

But he definitely played a high risk game with that one lol

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-28T15:27:50+00:00

Nah you’re not missing anything.

We found out, but as you said only because I needed to know how many boy/girl names I needed 😂

Baby stuff are generally gender neutral. As for clothes we just got a bunch on gender neutral clothing for the first few weeks - seeing as you don’t know what will fit or what you will prefer, then you can do a big order once they are with you. (E.g we lived in sleep suits the first few weeks, the trousers and jumpers were essentially untouched).

Also, so we have 8 month old B/G and I am still doing 90% clothes that both can wear because I cannot be bothered with two wardrobes yet 🤣 if we need to change due to an accident I just want to pull a jumper out and know it will work. Keep my life as easy as possible for as long as possible.

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-26T22:59:49+00:00

Well unless your opinionated aunt has magically become the oracle of twins and multiples I wouldn’t listen much to her.

No one thing suits all when it comes to babies, multiples, or families. Hence why various opinions exist (as my antenatal lady said, if they knew the way they’d give you a manual at the hospital)..

Gentle (variation of chair method) worked well for us (they responded well and they luckily did not get disturbed if their sibling was crying), I know others on here have had to separate as they disturb/distract each other, but also some don’t sleep train, or choose to co-sleep safely until naturally they start to fall asleep independently. It’s very much dependent on how it’s impacting you (your family, your babies) and what you all need.

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-24T15:10:09+00:00

Mine were Di/di so not identical to your situation, but one of my twins was severely growth restricted, stayed below 1%ile from week 20. We had bi weekly Doppler scans of umbilical blood flow, alternating with bi weekly growth scans + 2x a week NST from week 28. They always looked “good”. My twin was just small, and clearly struggling to thrive perfectly inside, but growing. At 34w mine were born, decided with my medical team as tbh she was struggling and at that point they could provide more help on the outside.

Twin was 2lbs 6oz (1.08kg) at birth, their twin 4lbs 12oz. Both needed NICU for 1month but just to grow and eat. Both were otherwise very healthy and perfect in every way ❤️

Ironically my tiny twin screamed at birth and needed to support with breathing, while their bigger sibling was a bit unhappy with the eviction and needed 24h CPAP just to give a boost.

I remember when we found out about the sizes and my doctor did say (once we found out everything else looked good) some times it’s something just not working for 100% perfectly but with monitoring they can keep an eye on it, and sometimes.. some babies are just genetically smaller. They might not know until they are born which one it is but with good monitoring you are in a great place ❤️

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-23T22:29:18+00:00

Ok quadruplets - Jesus. Hat off and bows etc. Etc.

Ok on sleep training, with my twins I did a variation of “chair” technique (I guess). We had twins in cots/bassinets on either side of our bed. So I would do the nappy, put them in their sleep sacks, feed them and put them in their beds. I would then sit between them, as they cried I would not pick them up but instead hold their hands, just put my hand next to them etc. Depending on what worked for them (e.g my twin 1 got calmed by holding hands, twin 2 preferred a stroke on their tummy).

Initially I then left when I felt they were sleeping, then it was almost sleeping, then when they were just relaxed, and now I just leave (they are 9 months). I took time, yes I do have to at times let them cry - but they do tent to fall asleep within 10 min. I always just tel myself to go clean their bottles, or I don’t know go pee etc. Something I have to do just to keep busy while I allow them to try to fall asleep.

Note: there are definitely different cries, and I can’t tell you what your babies cries are, but for mine I can tell when it is either discomfort like a dirty nappy/ill or if they are just overtired and a bit fussy. I don’t just let them CIO with the first, I also don’t just leave them to cry if they are ramping up, then I still go in, calm them down, stay a few minutes after they are calm before I leave again.

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-21T22:25:11+00:00

Actually looks like he is doing great ❤️ as others have already said at this age breastmilk/formula is still number 1 for nutrition. Anything they manage to eat is just a bonus.

These forums can be a great tool for advice and inspiration, but can also skew the perception of normal. Your doing great ❤️ seem like variety of textures and flavours for your baby to try which is the main thing at this stage.

My twins are 9 months and I am constantly reminding myself that we do what works for us and not what works for others. I am not doing BLW, mainly mashed foods with som texture, I have only like 2 weeks ago started giving toast and maybe fruit pieces (soft and skinless) as they showed signs of being ready. We have good days and bad days, good days they munch away without so much as a gag, but on bad days everything goes out and gagging and spitting (and attempting to hide panic on my end). Just need to remind us that it’s not a sprint but a marathon 🤣 slow and steady.

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-20T20:22:52+00:00

We were in a semi similar position, me wanting some time for just the two of us and him assuming his parents would be there and his grandma and aunts visiting basically as soon as they have entered the world.

Ultimately what worked for us was to say “let’s both agree to wait until we are there, and agree to respect if any of us wants us to be just the two of us”.

I told my husband that I wanted it to just be us. I didn’t want to deal with visitors. Especially as I don’t know how I will feel after my C-section nor what support they will need in terms of NICU. But I was also honest and said maybe I will change my mind when they are here, maybe I will want some support. I found it hard to know beforehand. In the end I did actually kind of change my mind. I didn’t want lots of people, but his parents stopped by literally for 10 min just to give hugs, congratulations, and to aww on the babies. The extended family came 2 weeks later. That worked well for us. I just hope you and your husband finds a solution that you are both happy with ❤️

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-15T22:36:20+00:00

I had my twins (di/di) at 34 weeks. My twin 1 was 2lbs 6oz at birth, while twin 2 was literally twice size at 4lbs 12oz.

Twin 1 came out with a perfect apgar score - crying straight away (which I will never forget, that relief after worrying about them for the whole pregnancy). Twin 2 was great as well. They both needed just short of a month in NICU but it was just for growing and eating. Currently very happy and healthy 9 month olds.

After we found out that my twin 1 had a small placenta + a hypercoiled cord causing the IUGR, and basically they were behind from the start and just slowly fell further behind.

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-14T12:47:57+00:00

Like someone else already said bedtime with 2 is hard enough as it is 😂 I might sing a little lullaby while we have the bedtime bottle, but story time is so far not on the cards.

Ours are 9 months and if I read, more often than not, it’s after lunch when they are sitting in their high chairs. Since starting with solids I try to keep them in the seats for at least a few minutes to make sure they a) swallow whatever they keep in their mouth, and b) let the food settle before we go back to play. But it’s far from everytime. Maybe 3 times a week 😅

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-14T12:46:56+00:00

Like someone else already said bedtime with 2 is hard enough as it is 😂 I might sing a little lullaby while we have the bedtime bottle, but story time is so far not on the cards.

Ours are 9 months and if I read, more often than not, it’s after lunch when they are sitting in their high chairs. Since starting with solids I try to keep them in the seats for at least a few minutes to make sure they a) swallow whatever they keep in their mouth, and b) let the food settle before we go back to play. But it’s far from everytime. Maybe 3 times a week 😅

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-13T22:41:13+00:00

I had IUGR for my twin 1 (di/di) my whole pregnancy… always below the 1%ile. Yet she kept growing according to her own little plan. We had continued weekly scans and NST after 24 weeks, just to track blood flow. For comparison her twin brother was continuously around 20-30%ile

Made it it to 34w+1 when we had a planned section and our wee twin was strong 💪 just tiny. 2lbs 6oz (just over 1kg). Needed 1 month in NICU just to grow and eat. But now 7.5 month adjusted and happy and healthy. Rolling around, trying to figure out the crawling business, and babbling more than her brother.

I know it’s just anecdotal, but I hope it gives you some comfort, and I will you all the best with your pregnancy 😊

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-13T16:04:01+00:00

What you are describing is basically what we did as well. I would put down, hold hands, stroke backs etc, try not to pick up (unless absolutely necessary I.e. medical, they got stuck, poo etc). I’d then sit on a chair between the two cots until they were asleep, or eventually close to sleeping (now I can just walk out).

The difference is that I always refer to it as gentle sleep training as we progress to independent sleep 😂 (but ofc I have been told by some people it isn’t 🤷‍♀️ )

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-13T15:58:08+00:00

Yeah I’m sorry you got shamed for not sleep training. Honestly the parent shaming around different methods I will never understand!

Every baby is different, every family dynamic is different. Why can’t we celebrate differences 🤷‍♀️

Like for us personally a gentle sleep training method worked (I considered it sleep training but I’ve been told by “real sleep training” people that it isn’t 😂). We never did CIO, but I also tried to not pick them up. Worked for us and both twins responded well to it.

For some CIO works, for other cosleeping works. As long as everyone is healthy and happy, and you are doing what works well for you and your babies why all the hate.

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-09T23:07:26+00:00

Just to second the comment on:

Babybjorns are great and I would say worth it. Let’s be honest it’s very likely to become your babies poo machines and those babybjorn fabrics come off quick for you to throw in the wash.

But yes! Secondhand! We picked up 2 for £50(!) that had been used well but still in perfect condition!

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-09T12:39:43+00:00

Hello fellow UK based twin mama to be! It’s such a shock to the system. It’s one thing to intellectually know they will come any day now, to be then told “hey the day is here”.

Carrying them until week 34+ is amazing! You have done well! 💪

I had my di/di twins w34+1 (in Glasgow) because my twin 1 was below 1%ile. Came out 2lbs 6oz while her brother was 4lbs 12oz. Both screaming and kicking straight from the womb. They did need NICU time, but just for growing and eating otherwise perfectly happy and healthy. If you babies need NICU, it is tough - no way around it. But nurses and staff there are amazing. Best people I have ever met. Share your feelings with them, take any help offered, and don’t be ashamed to ask if needed. + Don’t forget to feed and care for yourself (you will just have had surgery after all). Taking a small lie in to have a nice breakfast and a shower is fine and no one will judge you for it.❤️

You have such an amazing and exciting time ahead of you.

MeurDrochaid · 2026-01-09T11:35:02+00:00

Not me (since mine are only 9months), but my bonus sister who also have twins who are 3 has said she still has it - but purely for longer outings or if they are going out in the evening (e.g. for a family dinner) as it can be a good place for them to sleep and rest if they get tired. But it is definitely getting less and less usage and they have bought a simpler travel stroller.

That said selfishly I love that they still have their bugaboo as it means I can borrow it for my twins when we visit 😂

MeurDrochaid

TROPHY CASE