18months and no bottle?

Brandy - posted on 03/20/2011

My daughter is 21 months old and is still on her bottle for naps and bedtime. I'm not really too worried about it. I would say wait until you child is ready, it will make it easier on you and your child. You don't want it to be a traumatic event for either of you. Kids grow out of things when they are ready.

Christy - posted on 03/03/2011

Oh & my daughter is starting to get her 2 year molars so her food intake has cut back & her milk bottle intake has increased, so another reason not to fight it right now.

Christy - posted on 03/03/2011

My daughter takes her whole milk by bottle about 4 times daily. We have been pressured to get her off of it, but our Pediatrician advised us he has 5 kids & his youngest took a bottle until age 4. He says you have to just do it when they're ready & to ignore the comments you may recive otherwise. My daughter will use a soft nippled sippy for her "bubbly" as she calls it. (We gave her a tiny sip of Sprite ONCE & she called that bubbly & the name stuck!) It's actually 2-3 oz juice with 7-8 oz water. She gets one of those daily. We have tried to put milk in a sippy, but she'll take a sip or two & abandon it & keep asking for her ba-ba. We decided it was more important to get the milk in her than it was how we got it in her. I will attempt again to switch her to sippys, but I don;t feel as pressured with my Pediatrician's comment: "No kid goes to Kindergarten with their ba-ba!"

Franchesca - posted on 02/26/2011

I threw out all of my daughters bottles before her first birthday. My dentist had mentioned that giving a child a bottle after a year old can harm their teeth and cause severe complications to how thier teeth come in as adults and can also cause some gum desese... The first week was horible she hated the sippy cups i had, but i kept going out and buying a different kind until i found one she liked... Yes, it costs a lot to do this, but it was what was best for her health... we started with a bottle like sippy, one with a soft nipple on it, then moved to a more firm one, and then a toddler sippy... She is now using a cup

Talia - posted on 02/21/2011

I mostly BF'ed until my daughter was almost 6 months but towards the end had to give her formula to supplement my dwindling milk supply. I went back to work when she was 3 months so she always had some bottles from the beginning even while I BF'ed. At 1 year old I had her down to just one bottle a day and my pediatrician had me cut that one out to when she turned one. She was fine with it but she's never really been attached to anything until recently.

Krystal - posted on 02/20/2011

I actually hadnt thought about the fact that I breast fed...although my son had, and still has, quite an appetite and I was only able to breastfeed him until he was almost 6 mths...so yeah maybe that makes the transition easier...they already had to deal with the change from mom's nipples to bottle nipples...cuz I remember that one was a little hard...

Krystal - posted on 02/20/2011

I can't remember exactly what age my son was when I gave him his sippy cup but it was definitely before 18 mths. But at the same time, my son doesn't really have words yet either...so I guess it really does come down to them being ready for the transition. My son is now 20 mths...so it was around about 7-8 mths that i stopped him from taking the bottle. I actually did it the reverse way...he had his sippy during nap time and meals...and his snack bottle was his only bottle. But his transition could been due to the fact that I had nipples for the sippy that sort of resembled that of the bottle, and than I would alternate the sippy cover and the nipple...I know it sounds really confusing but it did work...I always go to WalMart, so that's where everything I have came from...I think their called Nuk or something like that...but now my son is almost drinking out of a cup without a straw or lid, so once the transition starts, it really doesn't stop!!!

Kelly - posted on 02/19/2011

Wow, I took all three of my kids' bottles away at 5 months, as soon as they could hold a sippy cup. Physically they don't need it anymore. I did breast feed all of them but I went back to work after just 12 weeks so they had to use a bottle, then at 5 months I handed them a cup and they used it.

Melissa - posted on 02/19/2011

Both my son (now 20 months old) and my daughter (7 years old) were off the bottle by their first birthday. They had sippy cups and were drinking with a straw before the bottle was totally gone. It wasn't really a 'cold turkey' but a gradual thing we started working on about 6 weeks before their birthdays. Neither have had any problems not having their bottles. Good luck.

Sarah - posted on 02/17/2011

Forgive me for not reading all of the replies, it's 11pm here! I cut my son off cold turkey by switching to soft lipped sippies, like Munchkins and Nuby. Never once did his cry for his baba, and it's not even really cheating because they are legit sippys. Maybe this will throw him off and trick him into not needing his baba? Good luck to you!

Evita - posted on 02/17/2011

I'm so glad to see so many of you with kids the same age as my daughter that are still on a bottle. She's not a big eater unless its apples. This is encouraging to know that I'm not alone and to not give in to pressure from others who look down at me about still being on a bottle.

Laura - posted on 02/15/2011

well I started giving my son a sippy cup right after he turned one but he has a three year old cousin that drank out of a sippy cup so it was pretty easy getting him off the bottle. and he was of the passy at about 4-6 months old but he wasnt a big passy taker thank you Jesus! YOu can try giving him only water in his bottle and everything else in the sippy cup I have heard that works (:

Brenda - posted on 02/10/2011

I have no problem with my daughter having a bottle before bed. She does not suck her thumb or a binky. She will only drink water out of a sippy cup. She doesn't like yogurt or cheese so a bottle of milk at night is the only dairy I can get into her. She brushes her teeth after her bottle so there is no milk rotting her teeth over night. She will be 20 months tomorrow. The bottle will go when it goes. I'm not going to take it away from her

Jessica - posted on 02/10/2011

My son is 20 months now and has been "off the bottle" for one. Here's what I did: At first, only take away the first bottle of the day and replace it with a sippy cup or a cup with a straw. I had to buy a few before he took the one he liked. Once he "chooses" the cup he likes, don't switch, keep using the same cup every day at the same hour. To achieve this you must refuse to give him the bottle, even if it means he will throw a fit. Why? Because he will learn that you will always give in, so why try the cup? Once he gets used to drinking his milk from a cup in the morning or afternoon, then switch the nighttime bottle (which is significantly harder might I add). This is the step I'm at now, he took his first cup of milk at night last night!

I suggest you wait a while longer since he had a "traumatic" experience with the allergy. I'd say a few weeks, then try again.

Good Luck!!!

Allyson - posted on 02/09/2011

Have you considered it may be the sippie cup? My daughter has been off bottles since she was 9 months but one thing that helped us was figuring our which sippie cups she preferred. Some sippie cups seemed to restrict the flow more than others. My daughter didn't like any of the infant sippie cups and would only take the toddler disposable cups (Take & Toss). It works for me since they are cheap. The ladies at the child development center she wentt o at that time also confirmed that different children respond to different cups just like some have a bottle/nipple preference. Good luck!!!

Danielle - posted on 02/08/2011

Kids have long memories! I fed my daughter something a little to hot once and now she won't touch it for weeks. Sounds like he was traumatized by the allergic reaction to cinnamon. Good luck with the weaning off the bottle, it usually is not as bad when looking back at it as it seems it will be from where you are!

Tiffany - posted on 02/04/2011

I have to say, my experience with this, was actually more my problem than his. I wasn't ready to let go of my only baby so I'd give into whenever he was upset. Finally, one day, just after 12 mos, I put the bottles away so that not even I could pull them out and hand one to him.

I'd let him cry it out and eventually he'll realize the bottles are gone. That's hard for baby AND mom but bottles are truly a hazard for children with teeth and for their dental health in general.

Make it an exciting experience and praise him for being such a big boy. It'll make him feel better and even you a little bit too:)

Caitlyn - posted on 02/03/2011

If you're going to continue giving him bottles, I would put nothing but water in the bottle. Keep sippy cups for milk, juice, and whatever he drinks. Unless he really loves water he'll start veering towards wanting the cups because he wants the drinks in them

Candel - posted on 02/01/2011

my daughters been off the bottle since before she was one ... I started off giving her a bottle only when she was ready for bed. All other times she had her sippy cup. Eventually she could just have her milk before bed in her cup then go off to sleep ... i dont think you should do it cold turkey ... slowly start introducing him to like the sipper bottles from mc donalds and things

Vanessa - posted on 01/26/2011

The minute my son turned one I took the bottle away from him, that and the pacifier. I gave him a sippy cup with the cartoon characters and by 15 months he was drinking from an open cup with very little spillage. I say the sooner the better, I was afraid of the stories I'd hear about babies teeth rotting early.

Sandy - posted on 01/26/2011

We took Anya's bottles away a while ago, but when we did we used a "transition" sippy cup. First the one with the softer spout so it felt like a bottle but reacted to sucking like a sippy cup, then the hard sippy cup topper.

It took us a bit with both kids tho to find a brand they liked, at first they were both picky so we had to try a couple before they would take one.

Now we are replacing the sippy (except on long trips/car/vacation) with a regular straw cup or a regular cup.

Our son was all for swapping, but our daughter fought it. She liked lazy mode drinking! So we "cheated" and at first offered things like her juice in a sippy so she had to have the sippy cup to get her "sweeter" drink. (It was 75/25 juice/water) Then the soft sippy with juice & milk and baby stepped our way in.

That started about I don't know 7-8 months tho, so you may be able to cheat and get your son to swap using juice or whatever. Or try a sippy .. or maybe add a teeny bit of chocolate (My Dr. suggested this) or Ovaltine in milk, but only if it's in the sippy and slowly add less til it's milk only in the sippy.

Of course that depends on your personal views on sugar, etc. But it's what worked for us.

Barb - posted on 01/26/2011

I weenied my daughter off of the bottle she was off by new years she was 12 months old. Then I just stopped giving her them she didn't freak just hide them away or get rid of them. She doesn't even miss them.

Kristie - posted on 01/25/2011

I took away all my daughters bottles at 8 months and just used sippy cups. She is now 19 months and we are working on just using cups now but she still has a pacifier at bed time : )

Kathy - posted on 01/24/2011

My doctor said to put water in the bottle and give him a sippy cup with milk. He will eventually get used to the sippy all the time because the water is so bland.

Amy - posted on 01/24/2011

Yeah, I don't let Victoria go to sleep after her bedtime milk without brushing her teeth. It's part of our routine though.

Amanda - posted on 01/24/2011

So just an update, about 1 week and 2 days ago i decided to take my daughters bottle from her cold turkey and replace it with a sippy cup with the soft tip and the first 2 days she was kinda mad about it lol but since then we have had no problems at all. At first her dad (the stay at home parent) would give her bottles during her nap while i was at work but i threw them out so now he cant lol but yea cold turkey worked for me!

Laura - posted on 01/24/2011

I took my son off of a bottle when we switched from formula to milk about 3 weeks before his first birthday. He threw the sippy cup down for a few days but after that he was completely fine with it. My son is 18 months and my doctor is even telling me to get him off a sippy cup and onto a regular cup by the time he's 2 for the sake of his teeth.

Shawna - posted on 01/24/2011

I am a pediatric dental assistant. We do recommend never to put a baby down with the bottle. actually with milk or juice. The bottle isn't bad just what is in the bottle. I would give him the bottle with water. Or start with diluted milk or juice. After he falls asleep I would take it out of his mouth and wipe his teeth with a wash cloth. Maybe give him water trough out the day and help him acquire a taste. Also brush teeth and gums 2 times a day. This will prevent decay. Good luck. And you are the mom, you know your kid, do the bottle if he isn't ready, every kid is different and you are the best mom for your child, listen to your intuition,

Jennifer - posted on 01/23/2011

You should definitely get him off of the bottle quick. Try getting him a variety a different cups,sippy's, straw tops, etc., that he may be interested in (cars, cartoons,etc.) Have them lined up all in a row and ask him Which cup would you like to use today? That way he will still feel that he has control over this situation. Its all about who has the control and although we are the ones who do, it's ok for them to think they do for these types of situation

Amy - posted on 01/23/2011

You know, it's interesting. I had a lot of push back from doctors/mother-in-law/well-meaning friends to get Victoria off the bottle after she turned a year. I didn't feel she was ready, so I let her keep having bottles, but started to introduce sippy cups more often. By 15 months or so, she used sippy cups most of the time, she still wanted the bottle at night before bed. So, for that bedtime drink, I started alternating between sippy cups and bottles (depending on what I reached for first) and now at 18 months, she's gotten to where she doesn't care what her "bedtime" drink comes in. She just likes the comfort of a little nightcap while reading our books before bed.

This is my first baby, so it's all a new adventure to me. But it seems to me that kids will wean themselves when they're ready; they just need to be allowed time to let go of the beloved bottle, and be given encouragement to move on to new things. I think if a child was seeming unusually attached to the bottle or pacifier and was 2 years old or more, then maybe it would require a new tactic. My daughter -- and I know all kids are different -- seems to have benefited from me not pushing her into new things, but instead guiding her (often showing by example) to gain a little confidence.

In response to the main question -- I wouldn't worry about a thing. Just start your tactics over (taking away bottles one by one) and he'll get back into the groove. Victoria had a couple of illnesses which made her take a few steps back, but we were always able to get back on track again.

Amy

Cortney - posted on 01/22/2011

I took my son off at 12 months I have done this with all 3 of my kids i just throw away all the bottles in the house and yes they will throw a fit for a day or two but after that it gets eaiser and just gave my kids sippy cups with milk in them to replace there bottles.

Dawn - posted on 01/21/2011

I am dealing with the same thing at this time.

Lauren - posted on 01/21/2011

we went cold turkey when my son was 13 months old and by the end of the first day we was using a sippy just fine. we are now training to use a regular straw.

Tanya - posted on 01/20/2011

No, I don't think you should just suddenly take it away. What if someone suddenly took something away from you that you loved dearly? I don't think 18 months is all that old for a bottle but I do think you should try to wean him down for sure. Good luck!

Aniceta - posted on 01/20/2011

my son is 19 months and he has 3 bottles a day.morning, evening and at bed time. i'm in no hurry to cut him off even if my doc tells me the same. i'm a mother of two. wvwntually he will get off it. if not quick enough i will get himm off when i feel it's the right time for both of us.

cita

Anitra - posted on 01/20/2011

my son's daycare wouldn't allow bottles in the 1 yr old room so we (me and the daycare) just went cold turkey. i was afraid it would be hard, but it was easy. the first couple of days he didn't much like it but he caught on fast. the same thing with the pacifier. a little girl in his room liked to take other's pacy's so i just quit sending his and quit giving it to him at home, too. didn't have any problem with that. this was all when he turned a year old and he's now 19 months old. he gets 3 sippy cups of milk a day and lots of juice and water but what he really likes is food, loves everything and isn't picky. just do what feels best for you and your child.

Edwina - posted on 01/20/2011

I just took my 19 month off his bottle cold turkey. He was only taking it at bedtime but then he was starting to want it at naptime and any other time he could con me into it. I just threw them in the trash and it's been about 5 days and he doesn't even miss it. I knew if I didn't do it cold turkey he would never leave it behind.

Samantha - posted on 01/20/2011

My son has been weaned from breastfeeding since he was 12months and the bottle since he was 14 months. Since your son is old enough maybe make him a part of the weaning process by throwing his bottles in the garbage together and tell him that he is a big boy and big boys don't need bottles any more. I wouldn't hold on to the bottle much longer.
It seems like he is using his bottle as a comfort thing, so maybe introduce a blanket or toy that he has had since he was very small, and every time he would have a bottle give hi the blanket/toy and milk in a sippy cup.

REBECCA LOUISA - posted on 01/19/2011

hey my son is 18 month too and my midwife has told that its my choice weather to take him off bottles but you can ween him. my son is still on bottles and when he has juice he has a cup so if they telling you its wrong just ask your self is he ready because as you no all babys are differant

Holly - posted on 01/19/2011

My son is 19 mos old and has not had ANYTHING by bottle, including breast milk when I was away and my husband had to heat it and give it to him, since he was 9 mos old. He has been 100% using a sippy cup since 9 mos old. We are now working on drinking out of a regular cup at meals with only sippy for playtime or in the car. Good luck to you!

Rachael - posted on 01/18/2011

My 19-month-old has a bottle before bedtime. He doesn't fall asleep with it, and he has his teeth brushed afterwards. The only concerns with their teeth (this information was told to me by a dentist) is rotting from falling asleep with milk sitting in their mouth, and biting through the nipple (which he has never done, and has had teeth since 8 months). If you are concerned, then cold turkey is usually the best way, and remove all bottles from his sight. Good luck!

Tara - posted on 01/18/2011

My son has been off of all bottles since 15 months. It was actually by accident, my husband forgot to give him his bed time bottle when I was out one night. Our son never really complained. We did have an issue going from the initial bottle to cup in the beginning. He would throw the cup on the floor and cry. We let him throw his fit and when he was thirsty enough he drank from his cup. I guess you could say it was "tough love" but whatever it was it worked. It was hard but he has been fine ever since. Its true, every baby is different but remember, it will be A LOT easier if you take it away now, than wait until he is a little older. Good Luck!

Katharine - posted on 01/18/2011

IMO, he should have been off the bottle 6 months ago. But since he's still getting one, and you want it to be done - then just take it away. If he throws a fit, then let him. Then when he's done with the fit offer the sippy again. If he doesn't take it, then he doesn't take it. Offer it throughout the day. And if you're concerned about calcium and fat intake then offer yogurts and cheeses to make up for the lack of milk he may be getting.

Erin - posted on 01/18/2011

Every child is different and you have to do was is right for your kid. What works for one parent may not work for another. Maybe just try to givr him a ltille less each time he has a bottle until there is no more left. He will probably realize he doesn't even want it. Most of the time it is just a comfort "thing" to them. Good luck!!

Samantha - posted on 01/17/2011

My daughter was primarily breastfeed and only supplemented with a bottle when I was working so she may not have been as attached to her bottle as some. At 12 months we switched to sippy cups and the transition went fine. She didn't cry or even seem to miss it at home. It did take her another month or two to be ready for the switch at daycare so we just kept using the bottle there until she was comfortable with it. What may have helped is we used Avent bottles and you can buy a sippy cup attachment for them (it comes with a little handle and a sippy cup tip that goes into the slot where the nipples go) so it looked very similar to her bottle. Once she got used to using the sippy cup attachment we then gradually switched over to other types of cups.

Kimberlee - posted on 01/17/2011

i got rid all my son's bottles away when he turned 1 and he did not miss the bottle at all i used the nuby cups with the sillion top that is like a bottle the i got him the regular ones with the hard covers

Elizabeth - posted on 01/17/2011

my son is 19 months old and has one bottle a day which is his night bottle, my midwife never said anything to me about not giving him a bottle when he had his 18 month old needles so i figure he will give it up when hes ready. he drinks from any kind of cup so i guess a bottle is a lot easier and spill free when getting later at night and he is tired.

Melissa - posted on 01/17/2011

My pedi also said no bottle after 12 months but she told me this at the 12 month appt so I wasn't going to have dd quit cold turkey. At this point we were already steady with sippy cups so the only bottle that remained was the bedtime one. Each week I reduced the amount in the bottle till we worked our way down to just a short bottle, which is the size of a sippy cup. Then I started giving her the sippy cup in place of the bottle EXCEPT on those days where I knew she needed the comfort of the bottle. Right around the 18 month mark she pretty much gave it up all by herself. So our nighttime routine is to pick up the toys, get ready for bed, go brush our teeth and then we sit in the rocker and read and when she's sufficiently drowsy, I put her into her crib. I think every child is different and if your baby isn't ready to give up the bottle, then he's not ready. Momma knows best IMO!

Kimberley - posted on 01/17/2011

easy to say just take it way but my son wont sleep with out a bottle 5 hrs I had to try for the last 5 nights I say give him a bottle lol

AJ - posted on 01/17/2011

Hi, by the sounds of it your wee man may have regressed a little bit when he had that allergic reaction and has gone back to the form of food that provided him with comfort, I guess if it were me i would just let my boy have his bottle untill he is ready to give it up again, if he did before he will again, I wouldnt push him.As long as he is not going to sleep with the bottle in his mouth at bed time and as long as he is cleaning his teeth I wouldnt think that this would be really bad for his teeth as long as it doesnt go on for an extended period of time. Also now that he can understand alot of what you are saying too him, you could try and encourage him to give up his bottle, by explaining to him that they are for little babies - not making him feel bad or anything but just explaining that babies need bottles of milk because they cant eat real food but he can etc....Anyway i hope this helps in some way, good luck :o)