Happy to report that we have had a bit of success...

DS is allowing water to go into his mouth from a small Ikea sippy cup without a valve - I think he is swallowing some although a lot of it is coming back out - but he seems happy to allow both the cup and the water into his mouth. Today, our nanny (on her 2nd day!) got him to take 40 ml of formula from a bottle (I'm around - working from home in a separate room and he can't see me). I had run out of EBM and didn't want to skip a day of trying with a bottle. Funnily enough, he did this 2 hours after a breastfeed so he wouldn't even of been that hungry or thirsty.

I've also been putting EBM into his food and he's taken it and the nanny put formula in his lunch today - so he received more liquid via his breakfast and lunch as well (and his eating has improved). I'm finally beginning to believe that we will get there. Tried the straw including Barb's suggestion above - he didn't take to it but we will also persist with the straw option but he's a bit younger than Little Chicken's or Belfie's little ones (plus he was a month early so he's even younger) and I think that he's not quite ready for a straw as he just wants to chew it. I do have to "show" him how it's done a bit more though.

The times he has taken the bottle (these little amounts of late), the people (DH or nanny) have used distraction techniques. Although I did not want DS exposed to television, DH was watching sport while he was trying and that seemed to distract DS from the fact that there was a bottle in his face and he took 20mls. Today, the nanny walked around while feeding him. Although I know my MIL had tried the walking around approach before - it could also be the nanny's attitude - like "this will happen"!

Gosh Belfie - they are stubborn aren't they - FOUR days!!! silly little ones! they like what they like, that's for sure.

Now I'm encouraged to get back into an expressing routine - I was throwing so much out that I lost motivation to make the time to express - but now that it won't all get tossed, I'll get back to it....although maybe he will only want formula from a bottle and BM from the breast - who knows!