My daughter is 2 and still on the bottle

Alicia - posted on 01/12/2010

My son was on a bottle till 2 1/2 years old. I took him out to buy big boy cups, he got to pick what cartoon character he wanted. I also recommend removing the no mess plug at first it sometimes makes it harder to suck and my son would get frustrated and give it up. Good luck!

Nicole - posted on 11/17/2009

Try having her throw her own bottles away and buy her a gift for being so brave.

April - posted on 11/16/2009

it is not good to have her still on the bottle after formula is done it causes permenat damage to the placement of her teeth

if you cant just take it away then maybe take her to the store and allow her to pick out sippy cups to replace her bottle and once she buys them on the way out of the store have her throw her bottle away

she may cry later that night but remind her she was a big girl and did it herself and she will be ok in a day or two

just make her proud of herself

Nedra - posted on 11/14/2009

I kindda had the same problem with my my two kids, I think they both were about 2 when I first tried to take the bottle away, and they too threw a major fit, so I gave in and gave it back. So about when they were 3 I took the bottle away and again they threw a fit, but as bad as I hated to I just let them throw their fits. It will take a while but don't give in, she will give up and fall asleep without the bottle. Good luck.

Jill - posted on 11/14/2009

my oldest was still on her bottle at 3yrs old so we went out and let her choose her own cup she didnt want to part with her bottle so she put it on the tree for "santa"in exchange for a"big girls"present which did the trick xx

Barbi - posted on 11/13/2009

Just throw it out, let her have her fit, this will be short-lived. You are the parent, therefore you have the control. Quite simply if there is no reason she needs the bottle, get rid of it!

Karen - posted on 11/13/2009

Quoting Dana:

I used to work in the dental field so have some knowlege of this subject...putting a bottle with anything other than water in a child's mouth to put him/her to sleep is the worst thing you can do for the teeth. My children were weaned from nursing/bottles by a year old...however, my second son did tend to wake up thirsty in the middle of the night so I had a 6 oz bottle with water I let him keep in his bed...when he got thirsty he would help himself to a drink and go back to sleep...at about 18 months old we used a spill proof sippy cup intead. He outgrew this need for a midnight drink by age 3.

I also used to work in the dental field, and there is nothing worse than seeing a little child come in with rotten teeth because they are still sucking on milk/juice at night watered down or not at night.  There is sugar i (natural) in milk, and milk is thick and it sits in there mouth for 10 hours, its healthy or fair.  Water only if you want the compromise other wise get him off the bottle ASAP.

Nancy - posted on 11/12/2009

drinking milk from a bottle at that age can start tooth rot. especially at night .it will be hard but buy her a fun drink or big wiggley straw and give her a drink b4 bed or nap. it takes 3 weeks to end a bad habbit or get ajusted to a new one. bare with it but it is best for her .

Qiana - posted on 11/11/2009

hunny thats hard but if u dont want her to have bottle mouth the bottle has to go tell her that she is a big girl and only babies drink out of bottles so that's y she has to drink out of a cup beacuse big girls do

Elizabeth - posted on 11/10/2009

My daughter didn't want to get rid of her bottle either. I filled her favorite bottle with water and put about a half teaspoon of vinegar in it. She tasted that and gave it back. I put it in the refrigerator and when she asked for it again I got the bottle out of the refrigerator. She quickly made an ugly face and never asked for a bottle again! The vinegar won't hurt and by doing it this way, my daughter was the one that decided she didn't want it anymore.

Azure - posted on 11/09/2009

you need to just throw them away and let her cry. her teeth are in serious danger if you continue to let her have that bottle. i had to do this with my daughter and her binkies. at three she was still very relucatent to give it up and through a fit to be tied. we just had to tell her that big girls don't use them.

Chrystal - posted on 11/09/2009

I dont know if you celebrate christmas, but if you do have her put the bottle under the tree and Santa will take it. This works well because if she asks for it you don't have it Santa does so he is the bad guy not you. good luck

Trista - posted on 11/09/2009

Oh wonderful news! Congrats!

Tina - posted on 11/09/2009

Well thanks for everyones advice were going on the second day of no bottle i told her it was going to make her teeth all yucky and she wanted to throw them away right away. she cried a little bit last night for it but once she seen there is non she went right to sleep and on top of that she slept threw the whole night without waking up, what a relief thanks everyone!!!

Trista - posted on 11/09/2009

I was told you try to give better tasting drinks in sippy cups and only use water in the bottle, soon she will catch on that the yummy stuff is in the cups. You could also make a big deal out of her using cups for dinner or lunch and reward her for it.

Christina - posted on 11/09/2009

Trust me i know it hurts you to see her cry and get upset but if you push thru and do it like for a week she will come around and as for the milk and water deal its not gonna happen i had to try for like 6 mo. to get my son to drink milk out of a cup.Just one step at a time ok mommy

LaKeshia - posted on 11/08/2009

You have to work the cup in gradually. It's good that she only takes it during her sleepy times, but you have to be careful with that because it may make it easier for her to get ear infections. You may also want to try letting her drink from a straw or buy the character cups with the built-in straws to get her to drink more from a cup. Just keep trying. Good luck!!!!!!!!!!

Trudy - posted on 11/08/2009

She is not small forever... I would worry if she is going to prom with it.

Stacie - posted on 11/08/2009

We must remember are their parents not their friends we have to be tough at times or do things for thier own good ween her of the bottle now she will cry but stand strong she will get over it good luck

Sophie - posted on 11/08/2009

hii my daughter wil be 2 in 2 munths and she is stil on the bottle i do not see the probelm with a 2 yr old is on the bottle aslong she is of it by time she starts school you wil be fine my little girl wont drink anything in a cup just has everything in her bottle and tbh i ent cared aslong as she is healthy an happy whats the matter wi that take care xxx

Laurie - posted on 11/08/2009

Get a sho box and decorate it and tell her that the baby bottle fairy wants to know if she can send her bottles to new little babys that need them. And tell her the fairy will send her a gift back for giving her bottles to new babys. Then if she does it get an envelope and decorate it and fill it with feathers, confitie and a little toy like toy animals or something else she likes . And the next day after putting the box on your door step put the gift in the same spot so she can find it . Hope this helps.

LYNNE - posted on 11/07/2009

You should try and wean her off the bottle on to a sippy cup. She could be doing damage to her teeth and her speech if she carries on with the bottle. Good luck!!!

RongoMarie - posted on 11/07/2009

the best advice I can give you is the same advice everyone else is giving you. that and remember you have to cruel to be kind. on the other note. my eldest was the same and I didn't want to be the bad guy. imagine how I felt when he was 2 1/5 he had 11 filling and 7 extractions all in one hit. I had to gas him to sleep for surgery and then when he woke up he looked me in the eye and had no idea who I was. for 1 whole hour I had to sit in the same room as him and watch other people do my job cause I couldn't handle the fact that he didn't know or want me anywhere near him. not I feeling I wish on anyone love.

Amy - posted on 11/07/2009

throw them out immediatly trust me hun shell get over it it is better off you do i have a 4 year old and i baby her with the bottle. i gave it to her and iregret it now. she is off the bottle now and has been of for 2 years but it was hard. i relize her teeth were decaying the enamel was off of her 4 front top teeth and is still like that. trust me you dont want to go through the same things i did but if you want to go and still give her the bottles its ok but like my dentist told me if you still want to make sure you wipe down her gums and teeth with a gauze pad when she sleeping. i wish someone told me this i regret not knowing all the stuff i needed to know so my 4 year old teethwould not be like they are today.i know she gets new teeth in but still it was hard when people asked me what happen to her teeth. or when some kids make fun her in school. it killed me her old teeth wont fall out untill shes six or seven. the dentist offered me to give her root canal but she is 4 and i dont want my baby to go throught that. please just take care of her teeth and wipe them down when you can get the bottle away from her.i dont want anyone to go through what i am going through now.

Tina - posted on 11/07/2009

Well i have tried letting her pick sippy cups she has a million of them and will drink water out of them all day long but once it comes to bed time its a huge fight, i have a son that just gave it up before he was one and it was simple but with her if she doesn't have it in her arm and she wakes up she freaks out for it like its a security type thing, i think the only thing that is going to work is just throwing them away and not giving in, Thanks to everyone for there advice it helped me so so much!!!

Dana - posted on 11/07/2009

Quoting Susan:

So is my son, do not push her eventually when she starts school and see the other kids without she will not want the bottle anymore

Ok...a 2 year old still wanting to hang on to a botlle I can kind of understand...but wait until they are in school?? I certainly hope you are joking! 

Dana - posted on 11/07/2009

I used to work in the dental field so have some knowlege of this subject...putting a bottle with anything other than water in a child's mouth to put him/her to sleep is the worst thing you can do for the teeth. My children were weaned from nursing/bottles by a year old...however, my second son did tend to wake up thirsty in the middle of the night so I had a 6 oz bottle with water I let him keep in his bed...when he got thirsty he would help himself to a drink and go back to sleep...at about 18 months old we used a spill proof sippy cup intead. He outgrew this need for a midnight drink by age 3.

Natasha - posted on 11/06/2009

she's only 2, let her just be little, i think including myself we expect way too much from our kids.
i was in a real hurry to get rid of my first borns bottle and o look back now and think "why" he was happy, only very young, had it only at night which made him content whats the hurry maybe in a yr u will need to throw it out but shes only a baby

Arpana - posted on 11/06/2009

forgot to mention my Mom through away my bottle one fine day when I was two. I have never liked milk after that day. I still don't like plain milk. Maybe this is an extreme but hey it happens!!!

Arpana - posted on 11/06/2009

Exactly like my son. He drank milk in a bottle till he was 5yrs and when I told him if his friends in school will find it funny, he would just reason that they wouldn't come to know! When I stopped the bottle finally he didn't drink milk for a while. I gave him other products to take care of his calcium needs. I re-introduced milk in a glass/cup after a couple of months and he gradually became accustomed to it.
I also have a younger son who is still on the bottle for milk only so far (4yrs).
Since I am working and my sons were resistant to giving up the bottle I didn't make a battle out of it. Also, I did not have to clean up the mess children can create by dropping milk in a cup. Those are the positives. Their teeth are in good shape and in my view if there are many other things that you'd rather focus on, that's fine.
The pediatrician certainly wouldn't like to hear this!!! Just to let you know you're not alone in this :-D

Kelly - posted on 11/06/2009

my daughter was 2 years old when she gave up her bottle, as I SWITCHED TO THE NUBBY SOFT TEAT SIPPY CUPS, she got rid of these when she was almost 4, she was only having them when she went to bed and that was it and it was only to drink her milk from them. It was the only way she would have plain milk. i even spooke to doctors and dentist and neither had a problem with it, as long as they she wasn't sucking on it all the time. My grandma even said to me, shes not doing anyone else any harm, she'll give it up when she is ready. Ultimatly the decission is with you, but never water down milk, as this still a major part of thier nutrition.



Hope it works out for you, but go with your gut, its a mothers best friend I believe. Not what the NORMAL thing is, as your normal may be different form everyone elses. :)

Heather - posted on 11/06/2009

My daughter had the same problem. We went to the store and let her pick out a few new big girl bottles (no spill cups) and she never looked back. I hope this helps. Good luck!

Crystal - posted on 11/06/2009

I know how you feel I'm in the same boat your are in

Laura - posted on 11/06/2009

My daughter has a non-spill sport bottle that she keeps in her bed all night. She can drink when she is thirsty but her teeth are safe. Would your daughter take one as a "big girl" bottle and let the other ones go away?

Michelle - posted on 11/06/2009

I would not worry about it. I would not water down the milk. I would only offer it in a cup, and have a bottle fairy come(if it would help) and the bottle fairy would take the bottles, and leave some REALLY cool cups..with sparkles in them, the little bathroom cups with duckies floating in them...etc. And maybe some pink milk and cookie dough milk straws to help with the cups. My son went from bottle to cup. NO sippy cups... no pacifiers.. I think accidentally leaving somewhere would be wonderful. After about 3 nights, if she wants the milk and the milk taste, it can be in a cup. Maybe lose the top of the bottle so it looks more cup like.... Good luck. And though it is a mess for you, throwing fits for her is more of a mess. I stopped fits for a while..by sending mine out to the back porch for a yell or scream. That happened about twice, then no more tantrums. He didn't want to be outside, and just the interuption of going outdoors was enough to make him forget why he was so angry. And the few times he screamed outdoors, I made sure the neighbors knew it was a yelling zone for his "angry fits". NO more tizzy fits became our mantra.

Tina - posted on 11/06/2009

Quoting Michelle:

The best advice I can give is how many children do you see going to school with a bottle. My daughter was three and a half before she gave up the pacifier and use to worry about that all the time until someone told me that children will give up the bottle or pacifier when they are ready and all give it them up before they start kindergarten. Do not fret about it. Just keep trying to take it away from her slowly. Reduce the amount of milk and add water to water it down slowly. As the milk starts tasting more and more like water and less like milk she will eventually give it up.

I think watering it down is a great idea! Thank you so much for your in put.

Aideen - posted on 11/06/2009

we accidenty left the bottle at home when we visited granny for a weekend. she understood that it was only for a night or 2 and didnt panic and then by time we got home she was grand without it and didnt even look for it. it was a genuine mistake though...so dont panic it will eventually happen for her...maybe you could run out of milk though and she'd have to try the water and at least u wouldnt be worried about tooth decay. :)

Laurie - posted on 11/06/2009

Wow. I can see that your situation is very hard. I never had that problem with any of my three girls since they were breastfed. I love the intimate moments of feeding them and expecting a fourth one this February. I hope that you will succeed on getting rid of the bottle. Good luck

Michelle - posted on 11/06/2009

toss the bottle she's not in charge you are

Wanda - posted on 11/06/2009

when you throw it away dont let her see you do it whens she sleeping i have 3 girls thats what i had to do yes she will thro a fit at first but get a sippy cup with her favorite cartoon on it an show it to heran on tv sho her its the same good luck

Mia - posted on 11/06/2009

The question you have to ask yourself is how good is your dental insurance? If it is great than let her pick the time to let the bottle go be prepared for the dental bills later though cause they will come. Take heart though if you don't want to be the bad guy eventually kids will do it for you. They will pick on her about using a bottle if she hangs on to it for much longer and that will stop her (or make her an outcast until she lets it go).
If your insurance is not good or you don't have any than it is best that you take the bottle and deal with the fall out. She may not stay angry for as long as you think but she will definately try to throw a fit to see if she can be the boss about this. It may take some time but eventually she will want some milk no matter what container you give it to her in. The choice is up to you and depends entirely upon your circumstances and what you are willing to deal with.

Michelle - posted on 11/06/2009

The best advice I can give is how many children do you see going to school with a bottle. My daughter was three and a half before she gave up the pacifier and use to worry about that all the time until someone told me that children will give up the bottle or pacifier when they are ready and all give it them up before they start kindergarten. Do not fret about it. Just keep trying to take it away from her slowly. Reduce the amount of milk and add water to water it down slowly. As the milk starts tasting more and more like water and less like milk she will eventually give it up.

Keisha - posted on 11/06/2009

The best thing I can suggest is to throw it away and let her throw a fit. I know it's really hard to do that but she will stop. It's going to be like hell for the first couple of days but once she knows you are serious about it then she will realize she isn't getting it back. The milk in the bottle especially at night will begin to break down her teeth and you will have many problems when she grows up with her teeth not being healthy. She will eventually forgive you and begin to drink milk in a cup just like she does with juice and water. The important thing to remember is that you need to stay strong. If you cave she will know you will cave if she throws a big enough fit. Trust me you don't want that. I wish you luck. Remember you are not doing this to be mean, you are doing it for her health.

Susan - posted on 11/06/2009

So is my son, do not push her eventually when she starts school and see the other kids without she will not want the bottle anymore