So I have a question, in the fascinating vein of similar questions such as "How do I trim Adelay's toenails without injury to her or myself?" If you don't have kids or came here to read something funny, you should probably move along for today. Because today's topic is, "Is there a certain point at which a toddler should be completely weened from bottle to sippy cup, and if so when is it?"
I've already mentioned my rebellious reluctance to ween her from the comfort of milk in bed, despite my pediatrician's dire warnings of cavities. So I am just being stubborn again here about the bottle thing in general? She does use sippy cups, and in fact exclusively sippy cups, during the day. Really, the only time the bottles get broken out is at nap and bedtime... Or if all the sippy cups are dirty at meal or snack time.
We've tried giving her cups in bed, too, but she really gets upset, and the very mention of a "ba-ba" settles her down so well that it seems pointless to force the issue. So I guess it's a comfort thing at nighttime, for both her and us. I've just kind of figured, "If it's working, why mess with it?" Am I being lazy, or does it not really matter? If it does matter, how should I go about the removal of the bottles?
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I've found that stuff like that is usually because I'm lazy and I don't want to listen to her scream while I try to change it. Not saying that you're lazy, but I do find that's generally my problem.
honestly, it's just going to be one of those things that you'll have to decide when it's worth it to you.
Your ped is right though. We have friends who had to have a thousand dollars worth of work done on their kids' teeth because of it. Maybe you could start small by switching her from milk to water in the bottle?
She's going to be mad about it either way though, so if it was me I would buckle down and go cold turkey. We did it with Gillian's pacifier and it sucked but it's better than dragging it out.
As far as when it's "supposed" to be done, I've heard off the bottle by a year, off sippy cups and drinking out of regular cups by two. HAHAHA. Gilly is 3 1/2 and still uses at least a closed cup with a straw. I'm too lazy to clean up that many spills.
Sorry I wrote a novel.
No, thanks for the novel. I kind of figured if we were going to cut out the bottle, cold turkey would be the way to do it. The only thing I'm concerned about, besides the general screaming and misery, is whether or not she'll be getting enough milk without the bedtime bottles? Because she gets really distracted during the day when she's drinking or eating, and will usually only drink about an ounce or two at meals. Even when I'm holding her and she's sleepy, she'll start squirming around and get down long before she's drunk eight ounces.
I guess this is another question. Help!
You're not alone. We're "lazy" too. Jo Jo is 18 mos and still gets 2 bottles a day. We don't give her a bottle in bed but we do give her a one right beforehand. She can't seem to fall asleep at night unless she has a belly full of warm milk. I know what the pediatricians say, but I feel like I have enough battles as it is with her right now. Plus, she only has a few things that are comforting to her (bottle being one of them), so I'm reluctant to take it away from her. About a month ago she dropped her afternoon bottle on her own, so I know she has the ability to self-wean. If we get to the 2 year mark, I may start to get more aggressive with it, but until then we'll play it by ear.
I transitioned Zachariah from bottle to sippy cup at 9 months. By 10 months, we didn't use a bottle at all. He adjusts to things like that pretty easily though. He gets his milk with meals and snacks most of the time now (12 months). We do put warm milk in the sippy cup before bedtime still. It's just part of the bedtime routine. He gets a bath, puts on pj's, drinks his milk, reads a book, says good night, brushes his teether, then off to bed. (By "he" I do mean we help of course.)
I don't know if there is a good time to cut off the bottle completely. I just figured sooner than later was better. Just cut back slowly and it will work out. If it's not happening, don't fret. She won't drink from a bottle all her life, and sometimes it's not worth the battle.
As far as if she's getting enough milk, my pediatrician says 16 oz. of whole milk per day is good. We probably hit right around that (maybe less). Good luck.
Cheese and yogurt count in your totals too. Does she like those?
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