how do i get my 20 month old to drink milk out of a sippy cup?! she won't do it!

Alyssa - posted on 10/31/2009

my daughter had the same problem i threw all the bottles out and eventually when she was thirsty she drank her milk out of the sippy cup. son't worry about your baby going thirsty that wont happen when they get thirsty and there's not a bottle anywhere they will eventually get so thirsty they will drink from the sippy cup. i hope this helps

Kylie - posted on 10/29/2009

My little boy was the same. Have you tired heating the milk a little bit so she gets use to drinking out if it. It helped with my son. Also you could add a little chocolate flavour or something just so she gets use to it.
Hope this helps

Michelle - posted on 10/29/2009

Season my lil girl is exactly the same....at bed time shes fine drinking milk from a bottle but try and give it to her in a cup of any sort and shell refuse it. I think that some babies like the warmth of the milk going through the teat of the bottle as it symbolises breast feeding. With a bottle they dont get to appreciate the full taste of the milk as it goes to the back of the tongue then down the throat. With a cup it touches the front of the toungue where taste buds may change the 'taste' of the milk.

I suggest you just let her have the bottle to have her milk in as it may well be a comfort as well as being nutricious. Its not like shes 4 and still does it. As she gets older you can cancel out having milk at bedtime and change to her having a yoghurt or cheese sandwich that still provides the calcium - dont forget brocoli is very good too!



Thats my advice as a mother going through the same thing and also a nursery nurse having to see mums stressing over this too... hope it helps x

Jessica - posted on 10/27/2009

Maybe try a regular cup with a straw...my daughter really enjoys drinking out of a cup with a straw...

Season - posted on 10/27/2009

yes-jessica- i have. i actually just bought some... but she still drinks it the same... a couple sips then wastes the rest. next i'm gona try a regular cup and see how tht goes...it's gonna be mess tho, i'm sure lol

Jessica - posted on 10/24/2009

Have you tried a straw cup? We used munchkin brand straw cup and my daughter loves them. She wouldn't use a sippy cup.

Shelley - posted on 10/23/2009

Hi Season: I'm in the same boat. My 20 months old will drink anything out of the sippy cup but refuses to drink milk from it. He started daycare 2 months ago and very quickly they switched him there to sippy cup (milk in sippy cup) for his after nap drink, but at home he still refuses the sippy cup in the morning (i don't mind him having the bottle at night). One idea that a friend gave me that worked on her son, but i still didn't try yet, is mixing some liquid yogurt with teh milk, just a little for the taste/texture. she said that she did that and that since then he drinks it in the sippy cup and not bottle. so give it a shot :-) if i may also comment on something else you wrote:



"it's just hard when my mother freaks out cuz she;s not havin milk so it makes me freak out thinkin i'm not doin a good job cuz my baby won't drink milk. i dunno what to do..."



the first thing you have to do is tune out all those voices of people (moms included) who make you feel like you're not doing a good job! trust that you and your child are helping each other out to do the best job you both can do. I quickly found out that I had to tune my mom out or i'd be second-guessing every decision about what approach to take to things that have to do with raising my son. She had her chance to be my mommy, now it's my chance to be my son's mommy :-)

Lindsay - posted on 10/21/2009

I had the same problem with my lil boy.... it was hard to give up the bottle that way he only wanted milk in the bottle and not the sippy cup. But i found some that he really liked. and I just threw the bottle away totally. He finally started drinkin out of the sippy cup with milk in it. you have to be persitant with it. just shell eventually start my take awhile but she will start.

Jennifer - posted on 10/20/2009

Skip the sippy cup! At twenty months they are closer to be drinking out of a cup than being in sippy cups. It may be messy at first but try it when sitting at meal times. My 20month old drinks from a cup at meal and snack times, only on the go do we use the sippy cups. Some kids are strong resisters but remember you are stronger!!! That is what it will take some strength and persistence on your part, you can do it!!!

Kristi - posted on 10/20/2009

Try one with a straw... my daughter took it immediately.

Kori - posted on 10/17/2009

My child REFUSED ANY sippy cup when it came time to do the switch from bottles. We used Born Free bottles here so I think she got used to them, eventually I went back to the store and got a sippy cup made by them and BINGO we found our solution. It could be as simple as same type of nipple (brand).

Heather - posted on 10/17/2009

I am in the same spot! My son drinks everything else out of a sippy cup but only wants milk from a bottle. And trust me everyone likes to give me their opinion about it! I figure he'll give up his bottle when he's ready and then at some point will realize that if he wants milk he's going to need to drink from a sippy but I don't know. The weird thing is he'll drink strawberry or chocolate milk from sippy just not plain.

D - posted on 10/16/2009

My daughter refused to drink milk at first so I used to heat up the milk for her and give it to her that way. She started taking regular milk without it being warmed after a while.

Nikki - posted on 10/16/2009

omg i know hwo you feel mine is 19 months and wont drink milk out her sippy cup either.

Jordan - posted on 10/15/2009

Hey, my little boy had the same problem he only wanted milk from the bottle this is what worked for us.... Colby LOVES getting to drink from a "big boy" cup at restaurants, the typical paper cup with lid and straw. Just something about that straw he really digs I guess, anyway we started asking for milk in his cups instead of juice or tea and his desire to drink from the straw won out over what he was drinking through the straw. A few days of that at home made it an easy transition to the flip-top sippy cups. Munchkin makes a really nice one that has a soft silicone tip that actually looks and feels like a straw rather than some other brands whose straw tip is huge. Good luck, she'll get it eventually!

Season - posted on 10/15/2009

thanks ladies! but i have tried those sippy cups. she'll drink out of them fine as long as it's not milk. it's just wen i put milk in them. she'll take a couple sips then waste the rest of it. it's just hard when my mother freaks out cuz she;s not havin milk so it makes me freak out thinkin i'm not doin a good job cuz my baby won't drink milk. i dunno what to do...

Michelle - posted on 10/14/2009

I agree with Michelle, finding the "right" sippy cup nipple for your baby makes all the difference. Nuby makes a sippy cup with stages of nipples, I saw it at Walmart, the starter nipple is pretty similar to the bottle nipple. I also suggest starting off with one bottle feeding. With my daughter I started with her morning bottle, warmed her milk and she took to it pretty fast. Eventually I hid all the bottles! She found one not too long ago and really wanted to use it!! LOL Make it fun for....let your baby know how much of a big kid they are! :0) Hope this helps!!

Michelle - posted on 10/14/2009

My little boy Owen was really stubborn when it came to making the switch from a bottle to a cup. I bought every kind of cup in the world hoping he would like one of them enough to drink out of it but all he would do is toss it around on the floor. I finally found a couple that he liked although it took him about a day of not drinking anything before he would actually drink from it. There are two different brands I would suggest trying. Munchkin and Nuby. The spouts on the cups are soft like a bottle nipple so i would try one of them and see how they work for you.