What should I couquer first?

Jael - posted on 10/27/2010

I think you should cut the bottle personally. My kids never had bottles they were breastfed so I never had to deal with that but the sooner she gets off the bottle the better because she will want to take it from the new baby or get jealous that the new baby gets one more often but if she thinks she doesn't need bottles at all she might not. Potty training takes a lot of time and should be done on the child's schedule. Although a toddler bed can still be used even though a child is not potty trained, my daughter has been in the process of being potty trained for awhile (4-5 months) still has not quite got the hang of getting to the potty in time but has been sleeping in her toddler bed for over a year. I think the best thing to do is to introduce your child to as many babies as possible to get her used to being around them. I have a 5 month old as well as a 2 year old. It takes awhile for any child to adjust to a new baby. I would wait on getting rid of the pacifier. It might actually help if your toddler is able to be comforted by it for a month or two after the new baby comes. I hope whatever you choose it goes well for you!

Sunrise - posted on 10/27/2010

WOW... I'll start by being bold face honest, I think you waited way to long for many of these issues. I'm surprised your pedi hasn't pushed you to take away the bottle long before now? I don't wish to offend you but the longer you wait for the bottle the harder it will be. I hope she is only getting water in her bottles because you are giving it to her at the two worst times... when she is sleeping and the contents of the bottle will sit on her teeth which is the #1 cause of tooth decay in infants and toddlers. You also have to understand that you need to take "baby steps" since there are so many things to change or start new. I would say you need to tackle one thing at a time and bottle should be first. After a few months with no bottle start on the next task... IE the paci. That way you’re not stripping her of all her security items at once and tossing a new sibling in the mix at the same time. Follow me?

I wouldn't start with potty training only because your a month or so away from having a baby and it's going to take you at least a month after to get back into a routine and potty training requires consistent routine. As for the crib, as long as you don’t need it right away for the new baby (IE the new baby will be in a cradle for a while) I wouldn't think that's a priority. For us, we are keeping our Sept 08 baby in her crib until she's 3 and then making a big deal of it as a "BIG GIRL" transition. I realize you may not be able to do this because your new baby may need it before then but I would think you could wait and do it next spring, once you've given the other changes time to settle.

The most important thing (IMO) you can do is remember that starting to many new things in a short period of time can set your child up for failure and often that is what causes regression.

Best of luck with all of this and congrats on your new little one!

Apol - posted on 10/26/2010

I have a two year old, and we're trying to potty train her first. She knows how to drink from cups even before she was a year and a half, but we still give her milk in her bottle. I don't mind if she drinks her milk from her bottle as long as she drinks her milk as much as she wants. My eldest daughter (who's 7 now) didn't stop drinking from her bottle until she started school when she was about 4 years old, and we were telling her that it's about time she drank her milk from a glass. My main obstacle right now is potty training my two year old. Sometimes when she gets into the spirit of things she tells us that she has to pee. But it can get awfully tiring when she does it every two minutes, and doesn't really pee. And when she does, she ends up peeing in her underwear!

Helen Katrina - posted on 09/02/2010

hey, im also in preparation for my 2nd child (due jan). and with my daughter i first started by putting her in a big girls bed, then after a while i took ker dummy away from her, i want to try potty training next but i think that can wait a couple more months as i just did the last two recently and they say dont make too many changes at once as it can cause the child to go backwards. good luck with your decision of what to do first and hope your child does well xx

Stephanie - posted on 09/01/2010

I only have one daughter and I took her bottle away when she was one and start her with different sippy cups so she can try them all and pick the best one bottles are a hassle especially if you are having two kids and they do no good for the teeth, and also the pacifer should be taken away at 18mos they will mess the alignment of your childs teeth!! My daughter had been sleeping in her toddler bed on and off and she loves it and she ll be 2 sept 29 but take things away from her lik by lil give her something up to preoccupy herself with and encourage her!! My daughter loves it when we tell her good job and "your a big good" cuz at this age they are not babies anymore even though they will always be babies in our eyes lol !! We just have to treat them like their age !! Congrats and good luck!!

Brittany - posted on 09/01/2010

My son is going to be 2 on 9/6 and he got off his bottle in May. He always cried for it but, oh well it's bad for his teeth. He also never took a binky so we were ok with that. But, I'd say potty training last. Do the bed first and then binky and bottle all at once. Find a stuffed animal or blanket to replace them for the comfort. If you dont do it now...it'll never happen. I see 4 year olds with binky's and it drives me crazy!!

Gabriella - posted on 09/01/2010

My son was down to only a nighttime bottle when he was 18 months old and his sister came along, but within a month of that, we took away his nighttime bottle. He had a hard time for the first 2 nights, but is great now. As for potty training, it is going to be tough to do with a small infant b/c you need to be able to drop everything and help you daughter when she needs to go to the potty which is tough to do with a new baby. I would start with the bottle. Good luck!

Sherry - posted on 08/31/2010

My daughter has been in her toddler bed since about 18months. We have the bottles down to at nap and bedtime. We have been introducing the potty since about 18 months also. Just really slow and no pressure about the potty. We ask her if she wants to use it. If we see that she is getting ready to go we take her to it. Sometimes she asks to go use it. She is a paci addict though. We try to limit it as much as possible. She "has" to have it for nap, bedtime, car rides, and if she gets hurt/falls she cries for it. I would like to get rid of the paci for good now that she is about to turn 2 Sept. 6.

Johnna - posted on 08/31/2010

You should definately eliminate the paci and bottle before trying to potty train...if she is still getting the bottle at sleepy time, she will most definately wet the bed. Recommendation: Just throw the bottles and pacifiers away, then you will not be tempted to give them to her when she screams and whines for them (at first of course). That is what I did and ONE day later, she didn't need them anymore. My daughter will be two at the end of Sept and we have decided to get her a big girl bed. We are starting potty training this weekend! Good luck with it all.

Cassie - posted on 08/31/2010

I took my son's bottle away completely at about 10 months. I took him to the store and let him pick out his own sippy cups and he was thrilled, so forgot about the bottle. He still has his paci, though. That is something that I will have a really hard time taking away. I think that having another baby may be a good way to get her into a toddler bed, but potty training is something that really has to be done on her own time. It won't work if she is just not ready. A toddler bed could really help her to understand that she is the big sister and that she has to show the baby what to do. It may even lead to other things such as potty training or taking away the bottle and paci. "The baby has to sleep in a crib so they don't fall out, but you're a big girl, so you get to sleep in a big girl bed." It may also help for you to take her to pick out her own sheets and bed so that she will feel like it was her decision. I hope this helps :)

Michelle - posted on 08/30/2010

With a second on the way I would aim to get rid of the bottle first and the crib. When I switched my oldest over it was because I didn't want him to try taking his brothers bottle so we switched him to a sippy cup. If he was thirsty enough to need a drink he was thirsty enough to get it from a sippy. As for his crib we bought him a cool one with Lightning McQueen on it and told him he was giving his crib to the baby and he loved it. Good luck.

Leslie - posted on 08/29/2010

I had my daughter off the bottle when she turned 1, she never took a paci & went into the toddler bed at 18m now we're potty training. I would suggest for you, to get her off the bottle & put her into a toddler bed before the new baby comes. If she's aware that a new baby is on the way try to explain to her that she's going to be a big sister & that means being a big girl. Another idea is after the baby arrives (if youhaven't thought of it already) is to try to make her feel like you couldn't manage the new baby without her helping & being such a big girl. My daughter responds a lot in a positive way when I tell her she's a big girl.

Annah - posted on 08/28/2010

I took my girl's bottle away shortly after she turned one. It was very easy though, she was happy to have a cupie. We took her paci away just 4 days ago. That was a huge fight but it only lasted for 2 days. Now all I have to do is keep her from her little brother's paci. She cried almost the whole first night but it was worth getting rid of. Next is potty training :)

Nicole - posted on 08/28/2010

Bottle and toddler bed would be my priorities.
Leave the potty training for after new baby arrives.
Pacifier... might go with the bottle, but really I'd worry about that one if she still has it by almost 3.

The bottle you can replace with a snack and a sippy cup/ regular cup of milk --which ever you use during the day.
The bed, if it uses her same mattress/bedding from her crib, can be an easy transition. She may need extra cuddles and attention the first week or so as she gets used to no sides.
Our son started taking every stuffed animal he owns to bed with him once we transitioned. He lines them up along his sides so he has almost a stuffed animal wall around him. It's very cute.
Unless your daughter is ready to potty train right now, you may find her unwilling and when baby sister comes along regress. I'd wait until January after all the holiday craziness to start.
If she is showing readiness now, then go for it, but don't force it. Again for some kids this is a skill that doesn't necessarily come until they are closer to 3.

Anyhow that's what my priorities would be.

Good luck!

Meg - posted on 08/27/2010

We had our 2nd daughter when our elder daughter was 27 months old. The first thing we transitioned her to (right after she turned 2) was the big girl bed. We wanted to give her time to get used to the bed before the baby came..and we didn't want her to think the baby was "kicking her out" of the crib! After the baby was born and things settled down, we tackled potty training. Last came getting rid of the pacifier. We were free of diapers and pacifiers by the time my elder daughter was 2 years 9 months.

Nicole - posted on 08/27/2010

my daughter is still on the bottle (2 a day too) and she will be 2 on sept 24th. i figured once she turned 2 im going to attempt to try and get her off. she cries for it sometimes but i distract her with toys, candy, etc.. haha!!! i would say as a mother the bottle first. im definitely going to try!!! :)