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| Try a sippy cup with a straw for her milk and don't offer the bottle at all. I think she is associating milk with bottle and juice/water with sippy cup. |
| posted by Jena on 11/05/2008 02:06 PM
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Thanks Jena,
I'm not sure if that is the issue though. She drinks water like a champ out of a straw-like sippy cup and juice out of a tip-like sippy cup; besides I've already tried that and it's the same result. |
| posted by lorena on 11/05/2008 02:28 PM
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| My son would not drink milk out of sippy cup, ever. He started drinking it again when he went to a regular cup. I'd take the bottle away to. I didn't wean any of my kids from the bottle, I just took it away at 12 mos and they didn't seem to care.... |
| posted by Crystal on 11/05/2008 02:34 PM
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Thanks Chrystal-
I guess maybe I am being a bit overly concernced that if I just take her bottle away then she won't get enough milk to drink because she's not drinking it from a sippy. She only weighs 23lbs. All of her other friends her age weigh more than she does. I guess if she really wanted to drink it, she would from the sippy if there wasn't a bottle for back-up?!?! |
| posted by lorena on 11/05/2008 03:21 PM
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Thanks Chrystal-
I guess maybe I am being a bit overly concernced that if I just take her bottle away then she won't get enough milk to drink because she's not drinking it from a sippy. She only weighs 23lbs. All of her other friends her age weigh more than she does. I guess if she really wanted to drink it, she would from the sippy if there wasn't a bottle for back-up?!?! |
| posted by lorena on 11/05/2008 03:21 PM
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Hey, my two kids both weaned themselves from a bottle. Amber did it at 11 months. Andrew did it at 12 months. So, I honestly don't know what to say to help. Just don't give her the bottle. And don't worry about the milk thing. Kids get so much more nutriants than you would think in a weeks time. I was once worried but then talked to my kids' ped. and she said if you sit down and write everything they drink and eat in a weeks time, as long as it's not junk, they get everything they need and then some. So, my guess just take away the bottle and if she wants milk that much then she will drink it from a sippy or just plain cup. Good luck!
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| posted by Carrie on 11/05/2008 04:11 PM
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| My daughter is almost 17 months and isn't even interested in a sippy cup. Does anyone have any suggestions for me to help her with this transition? |
| posted by Wendy on 11/05/2008 04:42 PM
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Hi Lorena,
Yeah I would definitely start by permenantly taking the bottle away, It's going to be a hard transition for her but, if she's thirsty she'll drink out of anything. Also have you tryed nuby cups? I found my 3 took to that brand most after no more bottle, and finally just stay consistant if you keep offering the milk in a cup and she has no other choices eventually she'll take to it. Good luck |
| posted by Sarah on 11/05/2008 05:23 PM
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Thanks Sarah-
I do have the nuby, but haven't been using it. I use the gerber one because I can remove the valve from it so she doesn't have to suck on it so hard, it makes it not spill proof, but she is pretty good about not turning it upside down. What if I just took the bottle away for starters just at nap time and continued to give her one before bed. Do you think that would be to confusing for her? |
| posted by lorena on 11/05/2008 05:33 PM
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Lorena,
My daughter is 12 months old and refuses to drink milk out of anything too. Her doctor says that she doesn't have to drink milk as long as she gets 3 servings of dairy a day, which is easy since she loves yogurt, cheese, etc. He said that she gets more calcium from food than drinking milk. So I haven't worried about it since.
And to Wendy,
My daughter took a few months to use a sippy cup since she had never had a bottle. I gave her an empty cup to play with and one day she started sucking on it, so I put water in it and she's been using it ever since. I did have to take the valve out for a few times so she realized she had to suck harder. Good luck! |
| posted by Michelle on 11/06/2008 12:07 AM
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Sorry to horn in on your question Lorena, but i have a question about that too, my daughter is kind of the same... well actually, she has drinken (?) milk from a sippy, but that was when it was cold. (we tried to put formula in the sippy and it didnt go over well) and i am just about to start weaning her. should i put warm milk in the sippy, or start with a bottle? or just keep with cold milk since i know that works.
And the other problem i am having is that she drinks a bottle before her nap and bedtime to put her to sleep, otherwise she just flips out. should i just put her in the crib with the sippy and let her cry a little?
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| posted by Becky on 11/06/2008 01:00 AM
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Hi Lorena,
Yeah I would take all bottles away, cold turkey. You dont want to give her mixed messages. Trust me it's going to be harder for you ( to watch ) then it will be for her. I tryed a million different cups in the being with my first, for the same reason as you I felt like he wasn't getting enough, but it's like anything else, they have to learn. Eventually you'll see she'll find one that she likes. I dont know about the other mother's but, I would definitely NOT put chocolate or anything in her milk, just to make her drink it because then she's going to expect it and it will become a habit. Hope that helps!
PS- one other sugg. check with her ped. and according to her diet, they'll let you know how much dairy ( not just milk ) she needs |
| posted by Sarah on 11/06/2008 09:47 AM
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I slowly weaned my son off the bottle around thirteen months. Each week I would take a serving of milk away until he was down to just the bottle before nighttime. Eventually he would swat it away and laugh when we gave it to him. Try doing something else before bedtime like reading some of her/his favorite books. Also, my son now has a 'blankie' that he is attached to when he sleeps (I don't let it leave the crib though). Now, instead of the bottle comforting him, he has his 'blankie'.
My son also had trouble with using a 'sippy cup' for the longest time. I was so frustrated with him. Then, my in-laws were here for a week and my mother-in-law just let him sip out of a regular glass. He LOVED it! I bought him the Coolster Tumbler by Playtex (which resembles a sort of coffee traveler mug). He loves his. Also, try buying cups that have her favorite characters on them. I recently bought him Thomas the Train sippy cups and he LOVES them (they also have Sesame Street, etc.). GOOD LUCK! |
| posted by Heather on 11/06/2008 11:00 AM
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Thank you Sarah,
Ya I agree cold turkey is the best way too. It's worked with other things I've done with her as well. She gets really p.o.'d in the beginning but adjusts to it eventually. I totally agree with not putting chocoalte in her milk, that's just asking for trouble. I'm a bit nervous about the night time bottle though. I'm afraid she is going to just freak out. I'm not sure how to do it. Do I just tell her if she wants to drink milk before bed then she has to drink it out of the sippy cup? Do I just hand her one and say drink it, or go out and buy her a special one. It seems like I have 5 different ones already though. I totally want to do this because it will be good to brush her teeth and not give her milk before she goes to bed (which is what we do now) and also not to have her diaper soak and wet in the morning. Geeze... I never thought teaching a toddler to drink out of a cup would be so hard.
Thanks Michelle-
I was told from my daughter's pediatrician that the reason for whole milk was the fat for development of the myelin sheath of the brain. It's very difficult to find whole milk dairy. I have found some whole milk yogurt, but it's really runny and difficult for her to eat. She does love cheese also, but it can be constipating for her.
Thanks Heather-
Alaina has been taking sips of water from a regular cup for some time now, but she is no expert at it. I think I may go out and see what kind of cups are out there for her. |
| posted by lorena on 11/06/2008 11:37 AM
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Have you tried to give her a bowl of cereal about 45 minutes before bed along with a sippy of milk. Tell her it's a bed time snack. That if she would like some milk there are two ways for her to have it. Cereal and a sippy. Then about ten minutes before bed, clean her up brush her teeth and let her know that it's now bed time. Read her a book, then put her in her crib. If she starts to throw a fit, cry, scream or whatever. Just let her go. It will take about a week at the most of doing the same thing over and over again. But it will work and it will feel so good once it's done and over with. :) Promise. And if you feel the need to go check on her don't let her see you peek in on her. We did something similar when my son was almost 2 because he wouldn't sleep on his own at night. Took us a total of four days, some sleepless nights of waking up and just listening to him screaming and crying for hours, but when it was all said and done it was the best feeling ever to just be able to tuck the kids in at night and not have to worry about it. No matter what you try though stick to it. It just takes a couple of days for it to work. Never back down from what you start. Otherwise it's harder. Good luck.
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| posted by Carrie on 11/06/2008 11:51 AM
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| I slowly weaned Mackenzie from her bottle. Starting with the early one and eventually the one before bed. I too tried many different cups (I think a total of 5). She liked the one that Heather described that looks like a travel coffee mug. The playtex tumbler I think it is called. (Now she will drink her milk out of any type of sippy). To wean her from her bottle before bed (as funny as this is going to sound, it worked!) I put a straw through the nipple of the bottle and allowed her to drink it like that! Lol it worked we did this for 2 days and after that she drank from her sippy without any problems. She now gets 3 sippy cups of milk a day. (6oz. each) 1 in the morning, 1 before nap and 1 before bed. After her tubby, we rock while she drinks her milk and read some stories. After she finishes her milk I brush her teeth and she goes to sleep. If you want to do cold turkey all together and eliminate all the bottles at once you could explain to her that the "bottle fairy" is going to come and pick up the bottles because she is a big girl now and doesn't need them anymore, and she will leave a present for you in place of the bottle. Allow her to help gather the bottles and leave them out. Another suggestion is if you know anyone with a smaller baby you could tell her that she could give her bottles to the baby because the baby needs them and she is big girl who doesn't need them anymore. Once again allow her to participate in gathering the bottles and boxing them up. Good Luck and keep us posted! |
| posted by Amanda on 11/06/2008 09:56 PM
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| Here is what I have done so far: We threw her bottle away together. I gave it to her and told her no more bottle and she threw it into the garbage. She didn't seem bothered by it. At nap time I gave her some milk out of a sippy cup. She hardley drank any of it. Since Thursday I have been giving her a sippy cup of milk before nap and bedtime and she has only taken sips. It's been 4 days since I took her bottle away and she had hardly drank any milk. She is supposed to be getting 18-20 ounces of milk a day according to the advice nurse. Now I'm starting to worry that I did the wrong thing since she is not drinking any milk now. What should I do? |
| posted by lorena on 11/09/2008 11:34 AM
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| Here is what I have done so far: We threw her bottle away together. I gave it to her and told her no more bottle and she threw it into the garbage. She didn't seem bothered by it. At nap time I gave her some milk out of a sippy cup. She hardley drank any of it. Since Thursday I have been giving her a sippy cup of milk before nap and bedtime and she has only taken sips. It's been 4 days since I took her bottle away and she had hardly drank any milk. She is supposed to be getting 18-20 ounces of milk a day according to the advice nurse. Now I'm starting to worry that I did the wrong thing since she is not drinking any milk now. What should I do? |
| posted by lorena on 11/09/2008 11:34 AM
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| Offer her cereal with milk in it, yogurt, cheese, things like that. You could even try cottage cheese which is good with calcium and tastes pretty good (with my kids anyhow) if I slice some apples and let them dip them in it. Also, with my 3 yr old (he doesn't get much milk in a weeks time or days time) I give him one Tums a day. It has great calcium in it and his peditrician says thats fine for him so long as it's only one tums and no more than that a day. I also give him one flinstones vitiaman a day. And our peditracian told us that we are doing great with that. But make sure that your peditrician is ok with everything that you are doing. And by all means don't freak out. Your doing fine. :) |
| posted by Carrie on 11/09/2008 12:27 PM
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| I know that Aaron (my son who is 19 mos.) doesn't get milk before naps/bedtime but only with his meals or while he is watching his early morning sprout shows. I think if you try to give her milk with her meals instead of before bed you will realize that it will help you in the long run when you start potty training. It is hard for a child not to wet themselves if they've been offered milk right before their nap. It was very hard to convince my husband of this because he always puts him down for the night and he thought he NEEDED the milk to sleep through the night. I finally convinced him otherwise and now we are potty training my son because he NOW wakes up with a dry diaper. GOOD LUCK! It is quite a struggle! |
| posted by Heather on 11/10/2008 09:40 AM
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My husband thinks it's more important that our daughter gets the daily required amount of milk than having her not drink from a bottle. So we are going to continue with the bottle until she is two (the time she no longer is required to have whole milk) and we will probabaly start potty training at that time as well. I think I will still offer it to her in a sippy cup throughout the day just to get her used to it.
Thanks for all your advice. |
| posted by lorena on 11/10/2008 10:26 AM
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| It's important to not let anyone tell you otherwise too. My pediatrician told me that it was okay to keep him on the bottle till he was two too. Eventually my son just weaned himself off of it. He didn't want it anymore. I hope you have the same luck. I had all kinds of people telling me to take him off the bottle. I didn't force it. They are only babies for a short amount of time. Enjoy it while they are still a little dependant on you. |
| posted by Heather on 11/10/2008 07:22 PM
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