Battling with bottle

Janise - posted on 12/22/2012

Great suggestions ladies. My boys are 21 months old and we will implement some of the suggestions from here so that we can transition them from bottle to sippy.


Janise

Shauna - posted on 12/14/2012

I also did the same thing as Jessica. My first daughter was hard to ween off the bottle, but we eventually just took them completely away and gave her the sippy cup. She too threw tantrums, but she too realized how much she wanted her milk and started drinking out of it. Now, my second child was a lot easier because she always sees her sister drink out a regular cup so she does too. She gets a sippy cup at bedtime and at nap and she gets one at daycare because they don't give them regular cups until they are three but it's not really a big deal. Matter of fact she hasn't had the bottle since before she was one. That is my advice to you just completely take them away and she will eventually realize how much she wants her milk and she will drink out of the sippy. Hope it works out for you.

Kim - posted on 12/06/2012

Hey lola,



long time no talk hope you keeping well, hows that beautiful daughter of yours.

Kendra - posted on 12/05/2012

Belive it or not our son's doctor told us just to cut out the bottle and give him just the sippy. We found that the sippy cups with the soft nipple worked better. We ended up just giving him the sippy cup during the day. yes we gave him the bottle at night so we could all get some sleep. I think, in my opinion that at 24 months you could just cut out the bottle and give her just the sippy or try like others have said giving her a cup with a starw or helping her to learn to drink out of an open cup without an lid on it... I know that it can be hard switching from bottle to cup... I hope you figure it out soon. also at times you have to try different kinds of cups to figure out which one your child likes better. good luck momma...

Gina - posted on 12/02/2012

My daughter is 10 now! But when she was a baby i had the same issues!

She always had to be sucking on something, so she had her pacifier. But i didn't want her teeth to be crooked so i set a time to take it away. When she was 12 months old i took her pacifier. She cried about it for about 4 days and then forgot it. Unless she saw another baby with one, then she tried to steal theirs!!

When she was 13 months old i took the bottle and switched it for a plastic nipple sippy cup. She again cried for about 4 days.

It's harder for us then it is for them! We just don't realize it, cause every time they cry we take it personally! Sometimes it's good for them to have a good cry. It teaches them to cope with their own feelings and learn how to sooth themselves without our help.

They forget a lot sooner than we think, and they enjoy the feeling of becoming more self sufficient. They all just want to be just like there parents, grown up!

Good luck, and remember no matter what, she won't be bringing the bottle with her to college! She'll figure it out, and you'll survive!

Terrie - posted on 11/28/2012

My daughter is 13months & I threw out all her sippies at 10months she protested & threw a major fit for about a week but now she's starting to use a regular cup. My 3yr old weened herself off the bottle at 6months (so she was simple) but my 13month old, like I said, protested for a week but it was worth getting rid of bottles! :)

Melissa - posted on 11/27/2012

Have you tried the sippy cups with a soft spout? Its similar to a bottle AND a sippy cup, my son is only 12 months but he does wonderfully with it!

Ashley - posted on 11/26/2012

throw it away! my son had a hard time accepting a cup but the pedi said to only give him the cup. by the end of the day of refusing it and having nothing to drink he finally accepted it, he was too thirsty to be stubborn.

Jaimarie - posted on 11/25/2012

I a going through the same issue with my daughter. She is 22 months and wants her bottle all the time. She will eat off of our plates, but won't eat a whole meal on her own or at least enough to fill her up. All she wants is her bottle. Most of her nutrition comes from her "slop bottles"(milk bottles with cereal and fruit). I never had this problem with my other2. They were both off at 1. I don't know why its so hard with her. She has sippy cups and will drink juice and water in it but never milk. I don't know what else to do. I guess we are just going to have to do it "cold turkey". I guess if she is hungry, she will eat and when she is thirsty she will drink. She never liked a pacifier so I guess this is her safety zone, but its got to go! Wish me luck!

Kristin - posted on 11/20/2012

I found the best bottle transition cup to be the sippys from Walgreens oddly enough. I did use a bottle at naptime and bedtime to help her out. We also would put her favorite drink such as her juice or pedialyte

Tine - posted on 11/19/2012

I should add that I breastfeed well into toddlerhood and allow natural weaning... I guess that bottlefed bubs would have the same timespan :)

Tine - posted on 11/19/2012

24 months is really still just a baby. If she's been bottle fed, then that bottle is her substitute for sucking for comfort at the breast. Most babies continue to have a genuine need for comfort sucking well past 24 months.

I suggest that if you force this your daughter will probably simply replace it with another habit - thumb sucking, perhaps, if she has not yet outgrown this genuine emotional need.

My suggestion to reduce her need for comfort sucking at the bottle would be to increase the amount of other types of comfort she gets - lots of hugs, snuggles and play with you and other people to whom she is attached. If you really need to wean her from the bottle do it over a period of time, perhaps reduce the number of associations she has with it, replace milk in it with water, when she wants it try comforting her in other ways and offering healthy food and water instead (but give it to her if she becomes genuinely distressed). Suddenly removing it can create a whole lot of distress and anguish that isn't necessary, in the same way as sudden weaning from the breast can.

Katharine - posted on 11/19/2012

Give her a big girl cup and tell her that the bottle is for babies. And the little babies need the bottles it will either work or you will still have the bottle. Dont worry though my nephew is 3 and still has a baby bottle to drink from.

Megan - posted on 11/19/2012

I'm in the same boat with getting my daughter off the bottle! It's strange because she will drink water and juice out of a sippy cup or straw but refuses to take milk in her sippy cup. My doctor said by 18 months she has to be off the bottle no exceptions. So I guess I have 2 months to get rid of the "baba" as my daughter calls it. The next struggle will be the paci. On top of this I have a very very stubborn child!!! This is going to be a big challenge!

Lorna - posted on 11/19/2012

Call me cruel, but I chucked all my sons in the bin (on the day of the bin men) when he was 18 months old, 3 days it took, but after that he was fine, so the ruthless approach worked for me :)

Rhiannon - posted on 11/18/2012

I breastfed my son and the had to bottle feed as well when I went back to work. After he got off formula he stayed on his bottle for a while.... One day to break him of using his bottles I just threw them way and gave him a sippy cup with a soft spout. Needless to say he wasn't to happy, but in the end he was perfectly fine and realized he was not getting a bottle and more. Now I do have to say I had to go through a few sippy cups before I found one he really liked

Felonee - posted on 11/18/2012

All 5 of mine were off the bottle and on a cup by or before 1 yr. I just took the bottle away. I started introducing the cup around 6 months. My daughter took to the cup right away and was off the bottle at 6 months. My 4 boys were all off the bottle between 8-10 months.

Jessica - posted on 11/18/2012

Hardest thing ever beat advice just loose it, be prepared for. Few nights of tantrums!! I tried everything and this worked best!!!

Stephanie - posted on 11/18/2012

just take that thing away! its horrible that she's still on a bottle. two year olds understand. just tell her no more and when she gets thirsty.. give her the sippy cup. she will take it eventually. my two year old drinks from a cup without a straw. is able to pour liquid from container to container and is potty training successfully.

Brittanie - posted on 11/18/2012

I've been there before as well. My son was 18 months (technically 16 months because he was a preemie) when we tried weaning him off the bottle. He would through fits when we tried taking it away. Of course then he'd get sick with a cold and only want to drink from his bottle so I gave it to him to avoid him being dehydrated. But once he got better I finally washed all the bottles in our house and put them in a box. I stocked the fridge with just sippy cups of milk, water, and juice. My son never went back to the bottle and never asked for it again. It was the best option I ever made. I know children reach different milestones at different times but if you are set on wanting to get your daughter off the bottle my advice is to just do it and don't give in no matter how hard it may be. Good Luck and let us know how things go :)

Mary - posted on 11/18/2012

yes you are doing the right thing with my son if it was out of site it was out of mind try that. but just throwing them away wont hurt either. dont let her tantrums control your life.

Mary - posted on 11/18/2012

yea you are doing the right thing. with my son it was out of site out of mind if he didnt see the bottle he didnt want it. try that

Rebecca - posted on 11/18/2012

My daughter didn't want 2 come of her bottle either she refused a sipper cup she finnal had a beaker with a soft straw !!!! I told her that Santa was taking her bottles away 2 give them 2 the baby raindeers do they can be big n strong n ready in time 4 Christmas 2 bring all the Christmas prezzies !!!!!!

Alicia - posted on 11/18/2012

I had the same problem. My daughter turned 2 in August and at bedtime she was completely attached to a bottle. She would throw the sippy cup at us and scream and cry until she was choing. One day I finally got down and talked to her and said "You're a big girl now and we're going to put your bottles in a bag and give them to the little babies that need them" her dad bought her a brand new special Dora sippy cup and she helped me put all the bottles in a bag to 'give to the babies' and that was the last she saw of them. It took a few nights for her to completely get used to no bottle and we made sure never to say the word bottle at first but she was fine within a week and we've never looked back. The key is to get your lil one involved in being a big kid and stick with it. Stay strong! Good luck!

Debbie - posted on 11/18/2012

We got rid of the bottle at 15months! Offered the sippy for a few days and then just out the bottles in the basement!

Brooke - posted on 11/18/2012

My son is 22 months and uses a sippy. We tried many kinds before we found on that works. Keep trying. To go to sleephe sits with me andvdrinks water from a bottle. He doesn't use a paci so that is hid comfort thing. I can't hardly ever get him to sleep without one. If I try he just screams and cries.

Jessica - posted on 11/18/2012

Have you found a sucessful way to ween your child off the bottel. I have a two year old and he won't let it go.

Melissa - posted on 11/18/2012

Have U tried taking her to the store & letting her pick out some cool big girl cups? When I was weening my daughter off the bottle I gave her the warm milk in her sippie & cold water in the bottle, that only took 2 hrs to get her to get rid of the bottle!)) Good luck!! And no it's not easy!!

Vanessa - posted on 11/18/2012

My eldest Son was the same, but he had his till he was 3 and a half. But he was only having one in the morning in one at night. I waited till his nurse came to do his three year old chevk and she talked to him and said there are lots of babies that dont have any bottles and I need to give them some. He went and got his and said she could have his one to give. After she left he asked for a bottle that night I reminded him that he gave his to the new babies He go really upset, but got over it really quickly.



Ness

Doreen - posted on 11/18/2012

Giving into her tantrums is more harmful to her than just taking the bottle and doing the tough love thing. Give her the sippy and let her go through her tantrum. Once she calms down and gets hungry/thirsty she will sooner or later pick it up. You can also try putting something extra special in the sippy so entise her to take the cup. 1 day of tough love will be worth it in the long run

Jessica - posted on 11/18/2012

My daughter who is 2 now, was the same way when we got rid of her bottles. (I have 3 children and have a strict rule of when you turn 1 the bottle goes away). We just completely took them away and gave her a tippy cup. She through tantrums and of course would refuse to drink out of them, but eventually she got to the point where she really wanted her milk (and realized the milk was in the cup) and would just start drinking from it. The older they get the harder it will be (in my opinion) and sometimes we Moms just have to give out the "tough love". It stinks to see their sad faces, I know, but in the long run, a few years from now...they will have no idea. But in all reality, you need to do what you feel is best for you and your daughter. Good luck and I hope it all works out soon for you!

Amanda - posted on 11/16/2012

You can buy sippy cups that you can put nipples in. Maybe start with on of those and slowly try putting the spout back. I know my cousin is having a hard time with it and so is my brother. My cousins kid is going to be two in feb, next baby due on his b-day, and he will only take a bottle at nap time but uses a sippy cup throughout the day. We have told her to nip it now as if he see baby with a bottle he will not want to use his sippy anymore. Its hard, but just hang in there. I have had friends who used the bottle fairy, just like the pacifier fairy. I had one friend call a hospital, and the played along, they took her down with all her bottles to give to the sick babies. And they thanked her and gave her a sippy cup, which they really brought with them. If you have a friend who is going to or has a infant see if she will play along. Tell your daughter her baby needs the bottles cause you are a big girl now and can use a sippy cup. Go out and buy the best one you can find with disney characters on it and let your friend trade her for her bottles and thank her for being such a big girl and letting the baby have her bottles. Hang in there she will stop using it soon enough.

Keri - posted on 11/16/2012

Once children begin teething you should get rid of the bottle because it can disrupt the way their mouth and teeth grow. You could lessen the shock by making the transition over a couple weeks though, maybe giving her sippy cups when she eats a meal (like gradually lessening the dosage of a medication).

Nicola - posted on 11/16/2012

Hi I would put all the bottles in a bag tell her a fairy is taking them away for the other babies then when she gets up in the morning have a present waiting for her. She may have a tantrum but you have to be strong as you are doing the right thing for your daughter!

Stacy - posted on 11/14/2012

At some point your just going to have to say no and stay firm with it. It is really hard to transition to something when the child acts out badly, but shes gonna have to switch over. I agree thatyou should ween her from it, but not cold turkey, Id prob want to do the same, but since shes had it for 2 yrs shes prob. gonna have a hard time giving it up. I wouldnt give in and you have to stay consistent to keep moving forward. It might be hard at first but if you show her that youll give in once she will think youll give in everytime if she acts out enough. I would start once a day and when she gets used to using a different cup that one time a day, give her the sippy cup 2x a day. She should really respond well if you praise her everytime she does anything with the sippy cup, just staying really positive about this will help her so much. She want to do it more to keep getting the positive attention

Lola - posted on 11/14/2012

Are both your kids yours and your husbands if you don't mind me asking?

Lola - posted on 11/14/2012

Sorry about all the spelling mistakes and the fact that auto correct keeps changing Audrina into Audrinna you must think I can't spell my own childs name lol it's my I pad it's being a bit weird lately haha.

Lola - posted on 11/14/2012

Yes I hate it when you see two parents fighting in front of there parents if we have a differ in opinion it's never a creaming match like you see and it's never I front of Audrina! We take her to the park and stuff we do something together atleast once a week and she has the biggest smile on her face it's great!!



I am a stay at home mommy but me and my sister own a cupcake shop in our local area we have people who do the books and such but once a week I'll go down and check it all out to make sure everything is running smoothly usually on a Wednesday when Audriannas with her dad but if they ergently need me Audrinnas uncle (my brother) always steps in hes great with her!



And good luck sound like your a very busy mommy and yes that is true lol



Well me and her dad yous to be best friends for many years throughout my child hood and into teen years then 2 years before Audrinna came along we started dating things were great without Audrina but when she came along with all the stresses and duties we didn't get along being together 24/7 with little money at the time and being sleep deprived when we had a big fight in front of her once (she was about 2 months and she was asleep at the time and didn't even wake up) but still then we both decided it wasnt good to do that so we sat down worked out a custody arrangement and what we should do on Christmas and etc and worked out a child support arrangement and we stayed friends throughout that we share responsibility and we recently decided to get together about once a week and hang out together for a bit just to have fun and make memories with her we've been doing that for about 3 months and it's been excellent that way she will see we both get along and are there for her!

Kim - posted on 11/14/2012

if you don't mind me asking why did you & Audrina's dad split?

Kim - posted on 11/14/2012

That's very good, not a lot of split parents get along, they normally tend to fight in front of the child also, I'm glad your'll still showing her that you and her daddy are friends,



It really messes a child up when they see parents fight & not get along, so are you a stay at home mom or do you work, i work Mon-Fri and have a nanny at home with Kaylyn cos dad works as well, and we both get home by 5:00 and then its still time to cook supper and bath Kaylyn and soon on.



shew a mothers work never comes to an end hey lol

Lola - posted on 11/14/2012

It sounds like a lovely place and I'd love to go there one day I bet your lil ones love the zoo! Speaking of sleeping through the night its taken me a while to get to this becaus Audrina just woke up she usually does there is the occasions where she will wake up once or twice for about 30mins to a hour at a time.Shes usually a little angel tho



That's really great I Would really struggle if I was to have another one now as me and Audrinas dad are split up I don't have a whole lot of income but I have enough.



We try to keep her involved in a lot of activitys swimming and the park are the two most favourite at the minute.



I live by myself well there's just me and Audrina her dad has her every other wednesday and Sunday so thats a nice break for Me and a chance for her to bond with daddy.We get along really well tho we take Audrina places together share holidays as we will be doing on Christmas and her birthday we plan to spend the day together so it works out well as we have stayed good friends and never fight for her sake which I'm rather proud of lol :)

Kim - posted on 11/14/2012

South Africa is a wonderful place very colorful & lots of animals (but in the zoo, no monkeys running around like everyone says lol) it is summer here also but its starts to rain int he night, does Audrina sleep threw the night or does she still get up, my luittle ones name is Kaylyn.



She was a unplanned pregnancy, but we decided to keep her, even though we both were out of jobs, but now we both have job and can provide for her, i stay with my husband and Kaylyn.



That's great that shes doing swimming from a small age, its good for them to learn.



Who do you live with?

Lola - posted on 11/14/2012

It is 9:45pm here so the little one is fast asleep and whoops my bad she is 6 months old :) It is nice to have another friend in a different country isn't it :)



It is lovely hear but very hot now were in summer! Just as well Audrina loves her baby swimming lessons lol! I haven't always been here I moved to England when I was 13 with my family we lived there for about 3 years as my dad worked up there I liked it there I love to travel because of moving to England :) what's it like in South Africa?



And yes the doctors are great with medical advice but they don't seem to see how hard it can be to take things off them like bottles Pacis and such my nephew had a paci until he was almost three the doctor and dentist said he needed to lose it but my sister never could take it off him until he spent a weekend at my house and I weened him off it she was so surprised lol maybe it's just easier o do into someone else's kid other than yours haha

Kim - posted on 11/14/2012

Thanks Amy :)

Amy - posted on 11/14/2012

Try a regular cup with a straw. My daughter was getting a bottle once a day at two, we lost a piece of it and tossed the whole thing. She still asked for it for a couple weeks but we reminded her it was all gone.

Kim - posted on 11/14/2012

I'm well thank you, its so nice to have a friend in another country, whats the time there it is 03:40 in the afternoon, so you have a 6 month or 6 year old daughter?



Have you always stayed in Australia i believe its a beautiful place, have you ever been to South Africa?



My daughter is not speaking as yet also, and the doctor says we must throw the bottle away, but they don't realize the stress & drama that comes with it, i tried one day not giving it to her and she just screamed & cried non stop.

Lola - posted on 11/14/2012

I live in Western Australia so sorry there is a time difference between us I didn't realize you would be at work lol! I am 20 my name is Lola and I have a 6mo Audrina :) and its no problem I can tell that Audrina is going to have a lot of trouble when time comes to take away the Paci! How are you?

Kim - posted on 11/14/2012

Thanks for the advce, will try and use it :)

Kim - posted on 11/14/2012

Sure, not so busy at work anyway, My name is Kim i have a 2 Year daughter and im reali battling to wee her off the bottle, where about do you live, im in South Africa-johannesburg.

Lola - posted on 11/14/2012

I'd try to ween her off it like give her it for all of tomorrow and then say we're only going to have the bottle twice tomorrow to her throughout the day then do that the cut it down to once and keep telling her and then take it away altogether that way she knows when it's going to be gone and she has time to get use to the sippy cup while still having one bottle a day.....worked for my nephew anyway hope it works for you :)



Was just wondering if you'd be up for a chat? I'm going stur crazy and would like another mum to have a chat with for 5 minutes lol I haven't talked to another adult for close to a month?