Best Way to Eliminate the Bottle from 17 Mo

Try getting rid of it WHILE you are out of town. The change in routine may make it easier. I weaned two of my children this way--having different routines while not at home made them miss the usual that much less.

I just barely got my son off the bottle and he'll be 18 mo next week.It was a long, difficult process. The worst part was my son loves his morning bottle when he first wakes up (kinda like my morning coffee). Then Daddy came home from overseas and that set us waaaaaaaay back. Just be firm and consistent. It's hard... I know! I've been trying for 8 months. You'll have to do with a lot of whining and crying and it will suck. But! Eventualy it will be worth it!

i would try the the nubby sippy cups they have a soft tip like a bottle when i changed to a sippy thats all my son would use! ONly give the sippy to him it makes them mad but when they get thirsty they will drink out of it

What is his least favorite drink? For my 13 year old, it was Water. Whatever it is, put that in his bottle and not anything else. Let him have anything he wants in the sippy. It took less than 24 hours and he just totally quit asking for his bottle. When he would ask for it during that 24 hour period we would hand it to him with water in it, he would push it away or ask for milk. When he did this, we handed him his sippy cup. Therefore, it was all his "choice". It was NOT traumatic at all.

Hi, M.!

In my opinion, the best way to do this is to appeal to his pride. Start a few days out by planting the seed that bottles are for BABIES, not Big Boys. Say this a lot and make sure you point out all the Big Boys you see drinking from cups (especially Daddy). The next day, go and buy a few extra SPECIAL cups that your son gets to pick out. Make sure they are actually really cool cups...even if you have to spend a little extra, or buy one you might not have picked if you were shopping without your child.

Now, here's the real trick. When you get home, let him help you wash out the new cups and work on getting him excited about how he can use them at mealtime...YAY!

Then explain to him that the only Big Boys can drink from these cool cups, and how only babies drink from bottles. Start talking about how much those babies need bottles...and shouldn't we gather up ALL of the bottles to give to the babies...because the babies are SOOOO hungry! Oh NO! If the babies don't have any bottles, what will we do! Let's HELP the babies! :o)

So grab a box and have him help you to empty your cupboards out. Put every bottle, nipple and bottle accessory into the box. Then, either head over to the local Goodwill and actually donate them (you can have him help get the box out of the car and give it to the attendant taking donations), or you can have a friend or neighbor come and pick up the box from the house and make a big deal over how much the babies need the bottles.

Once the bottles are OUT of the house (or hidden for possible future use if you plan on having more children), you might have a few nights where he is upset and misses the bottle, but he will know that it is GONE. You won't have any fights with him because he knows that there is a bottle in the cupboard to take out...he's a Big Boy now.

Good luck, and I hope this makes sense.

I'd wait to get back and then go cold turkey. Don't give in. It'll be hard, but I think if he gets it at certain times and not others, that'll make it harder.

M., It would probably be better to wait until you get back to start your "get tough" plan. (Although, as with anything you can't just keep saying "we'll wait until after ... "..)

My suggestion is not to take the bottle completely. I would eliminate one or two times a day. Pick the one you know you'll have the most fight about to let him have and just stick with your guns the other times of day.

Good luck. M. G

When the twins turned 1, I started them on the sippy cup. Following my SIL's advice, when they learned how to use it and would, I stopped giving the bottle. My son caught on quickly, but my daughter took a bit longer. So I just waited until they were both ready. Then I just gave them their drinks in their cups after that. Only once after that did I give either of them a bottle. One night my son was crying unconsolably. I don't know why, but he wouldn't go to sleep and acted like something was terribly wrong. He might have drifted off and had a bad dream. Anyway, I gave him a little milk in a bottle, he calmed right down, and went to sleep. That was the last time he took a bottle.

Basically you'll have to outlast him. I'd suggest getting him, if you haven't already, some really cute sippy cup with some fun character on it. Something he can enjoy using.

Good luck!

Good Morning M.. I never tried to take away a bottle. Both of our boys gave them up when they were ready to let go. They used sippys also every once in a while, but liked the bottle. Our eldest now 33, with 2 of his own, at 19mo's just threw it away and wanted a big boy cup. It's the sucking action they enjoy, so when they no longer need that they both just gave it up.

So I am really no help at all, it all just came natural for both of ours. Now our youngest waited until he was a little over 2 to completely give it up. But I never took it away from them.

Good Luck to you
K. Nana of 5

Hi M.,

We took my son off the bottle when he was 12 months. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. The best way to do it, is to take them ALL out of the house, so there is no way you are even thinking about getting him one. Out of sight, out of mind. My son threw some fits, but, it only last about a week. I know that sounds like a long time, but it's so worth it. I put a sippy cup with water in his crib w/ him at night, so if he wakes up in the morning and he is thirsty he can have a drink. Then with breakfast, dinner, lunch, I put milk in his sippy cup. He's doing great now. Good luck! If he can do it at daycare, he can do it at home, sounds like he's a smart little boy and is working the family because he's knows you'll give it to him. :-)

You are the boss and you need to just take it away. If he doesn't use it at daycare and only with you, he's the one in control!! You might have some crying episodes but hang tuff and it will be over quickly.

Jen

If this is his first trip away from his familiar surroundings I would say wait on taking the bottle away. You can always keep on giving him the sippy at the times you normally give the bottle until you leave for your trip, see how it goes. What kind of sippy cups are you using. I always gave the Nuby ones to my son when he was little, (its more like a bottle nipple) he was strictly breastfed he didnt have a problem going from breast to bottle to sippy. He has been drinking from a sippy cup since he was 5-6mths only with water in it.

I know with my daughter and getting rid of her binkie, I did it cold turkey. She only had it at night, and I knew that she would give up at some point and go to sleep. I just kept telling her that she was a big girl now and doesnt need it. It took three days and forgot about it. I would just put juice in a sippy cup and leave it out for him to drink when he gets thirsty. Have you tried different cups, or different fluids in the cup, or make it a game-leave them out for him to play with-be silly with the sippy cup until he thinks its fun. Good-luck and hang in there
T.

Hi M.,

Sorry this is so late. I was out of town but felt the need to respond. I tried taking my son off of the bottle at 13 months. It was horrible. Everyone told me that it would only take a few days for him to forget about it and it will be over. Not so much. My son refused to drink for 4 days straight. Quit taking his naps and was cranky all of the time. I called my pediatrition and he told me that I was doing great and not to give in. He finally drank gatorade for me on the fith day. He wouldn't take milk from a sippy cup either so he wasn't getting all of the milk he was supposed to. Our home and routine were a mess for 3 weeks. That's how long I didn't give in. Three weeks of no naps, not drinking off and on, so cranky because he wouldn't take his naps and he would hang on me all the time. My husband couldn't get near him to feed him, change him of put him to bed. I couldn't even go to the bathroom without him throwing a fit. I couldn't take it anymore. I spoke with a friend about this and she explained to me that kids let g of their bottles when they are ready and it only takes a few days when they are ready. My son has two securities in life, me and the bottle. When I took the bottle away, I was the one left. So I decided enough was enough and gave a bottle to my son for naps and that very day he took his nap. All that stress and chaos just went away. I couldn't believe the difference in my son's behavior. It was like night and day. So my advice to you is wait until you get back from your trip and try the method you think would work for your child. I tried the cold turkey method and it was a disaster. My son is down to two bottles. One for naptime and one for bedtime. He has been the happy little guy ever since. I only gave him one bottle back and it was enough to make him happy. Until he latches on to something else, he will have the two bottles. I learned my lesson the hard way. Don't go through weeks of stress if you don't have to. Your child may react differently. Every child does. You will just have to experiement to see what will work for your son. If it doesn't work out, it's ok. He will let go of it when he is ready. For me, it's not hurting anyone for my son to have the bottle when he sleeps. No one sees it. My son is 16 m onths now and it's not like he's carrying it around in public. It's security for him and if it makes him happy and all of us are getting a great nights sleep, who cares what others think. He went from 8 bottles down to 2. So the slow weaning process is working for us. I wish you lots of luck and hope it goes so much smoother than it went for us. Sometimes we have to compromise with our kids. I felt like I was giving in at first, but then I realised I was compromizing with him. He didn't get all the bottles back, just one and that was all it took for things to go back to normal. He was still getting the nighttime bottle before bed because he still needs that meal to get him through the night. So he still had that bottle. I just gave him the naptime bottle back and kept all the others from him and it worked. You are in my thoughts and prayers. Good Luck and have a safe trip.

A. H.

WHO IS THE BOSS HERE ??, take it away NOW> do not wait any longer. You want him still sucking on a bottle when he goes to school. Unless there is a special need for it. YOU should have taken him off it at age 1.
He will fuss only so long and then take the sippee cup. You just have to make up your mind you will have to listen to him fuss for awhile and not let it upset you.
You give in on this, you will have to give in on other stuff.

Here is what worked best with my 2 boys. Narrow it down to only a bottle at nighttime. Then after that's been done for a week or two, pack them all away out of sight, and let him pick out a sippy cup to go to bed with. It'll take awhile, and lots of crying though! My oldest was off a lil after 1yr. My youngest though, we just quit the bottle earlier this week, and he's 27mo old. I just gave most of them away after he turned 1, only left enough for each week night, then this week, I told him his friend's needed more bottles since they were babies and packed them up! He was ok with that, then I let him pick out a sippy cup, even bought him a couple new ones, and it takes longer for him to go to bed at night (plus he's climbing out of the crib) but he's making it! Good Luck, I know this can be a bad situation for both of you!!

My mom did the funniest thing with me when I needed to get rid of my bottle - she made a bottle pie! She told me what we were doing, put all my bottles on a cookie sheet and melted them in the oven. Probably completely toxic, in retrospect! But it worked, and the couple of times I asked about my bottle over the next few days she just reminded me that we had made the pie. While you might not want to melt plastic in your home :-) you could make up some kind of 'ceremony' that your son could participate in. I think that's really the part of it that worked for me. Good luck!

Personally, I'd fade it out gradually. Start with the one with dinner. Explain that he's a big boy now and big boys have cups with dinner, not bottles. Maybe offer him a little treat if he doesn't throw a fit about it. Next, I'd eliminate the morning one and leave the one before bed for last, since he probably relies on that one the most for comfort during his nighttime routine. Good luck!

I agree with getting rid of all the bottles in the house. This is what I did when my daughter turned 1 because she was using a sippy cup at daycare and had a considerable amount of teeth and I was worried about her teeth being ruined. HOWEVER I think if you throw them away with your child, that may create a bigger mess than you want (depending on how your child reacts). He may try to get them out of the trash because he knows where they are, etc. I just told my daughter they were "all gone." I would open the cabinet and show her sippy cups and just explain to her that's all we had for her to use. It took only 1 day of this!

It will be tough at first but just dont give it to him. Just give him the sippy cup at home also. Remember each time you give in you take a step backwards and have to put both of you through it all over again. Out of sight out of mind. I promise it will settle down in a few days.

Hi!
I see you've got lots of different responses, you'll have to choose which one is best for you and your child. I'm with one of the ladies who said to do it while on vacation. Having a total change in routine may be a great way to just start using a sippy cup only. With my 16mo old, one night I just packed up all the bottle stuff and put it in a closet (for our next baby) and I never gave him another one. I then had a special insulated sippy cup that I used only for milk. He was great about transitioning. (I was lucky and blessed!). I also like the advice of really emphasizing the "big boy" angle. Just stand your ground! You can do it! Enjoy your trip!

Just a quick -- I'm a mother of 5 kids and so my advice would be to wait until you get back from being out of town -whether it's vacation or not - I would wait until you get home and into a routine. Actually on your way home - you could talk to him about giving his bottle to other kids that need them. My oldest daughter loved her bottle, but around 20 months - I decided it was time to give it to the babies that needed them. So we bagged them up and she put them in there and we took them to a friends house who had a baby. (not that she needed them - I think she actually gave them back to me - but it worked) Kayla would say she wanted her bottle and then I would remind her that she was a big girl and that the baby needed it. It worked great for me!! But definitely don't lose your mind and take it away while you are on a trip trying to have fun!! Trust me - he won't have it when he's 16.

M.,
I gave all the bottles to a friend who was having a baby. My son thought it was okay to pass his bottles to a new baby. All the bottles left and he was fine.
My son found a bottle a few days later and we had to wash it and give it away too.
Good luck and enjoy your boy they grow really fast.

Once you decide to start (I'd say after your trip) you can't give in. I repeat--do not give in.

Bottle for bedtime routine, and bottle 1st thing in morning.

Sippie cup all other times. Crying and tantrum is his job--don't give in, let him cry and tantrum it out--he's allowed and it's very healthy and normal.

Once he knows mommy means business and he goes along with his new lifestyle, wean the morning bottle. Then finally, the nighttime.

Whining and tears and shrieks are expected. You know best, not baby...don't give in. You can do it! (So will he!)
Good luck,
Angie

Have you considered showing him a "broken" bottle? This is how I broke m son of his pacifier. Someone gave me that advice. He chewed through his, and I never thought it would work, but once he saw the nipple with bite marks all the way through, he sucked on it, and the nipple collapsed. He wasn't interested, and I never gave him another one!!

I do think today i the best day, but you might want to wait until after your trip. Good luck!

We transitioned to the Nuby Sippys with the soft spouts and he NEVER knew a difference. Then we took him off those about 1.5 years and put him on reg. sippys with the hard spout. Just do it now, it only gets harder. I don't think you need to wait, the transition will only be a few days, and you will be glad you did it before your vacation! PROMISE! :))

he's old enough to know what all gone means... take him and the bottle to the trash can, throw bottle away... tell him its all gone because he's a big boy... if u have more than one bottle throw them all away ada

My daughter is great at drinking from a regular cup, but loves sippy cups. Her set is missing some of the lids and does really well with being told that I can't find the lid or that all the lids are dirty. I have to make sure that she can't see the lids though, even if they actually are dirty. Maybe something like that would work for your son. Also I think the change in routine that will naturally come with being out of town is a great chance to remove the bottle. Either when you leave or when you get back. You could always say that you're sorry, but you forgot to pack the bottle, or you accidentally left it where ever you went. Don't ignore him if he gets upset. Change can be very h*** o* our little ones. Maybe it would help to let him pick out his own cup, or if you help him hold it the first few times, or if you hold him. What is he getting in the sippy cup? If it's something like water, my daughter has always loved having me put a tiny splash (just barely enough to color the water) of juice in it. She also loves to see me pour some of my drink into her cup, so she knows she's a big and drinking the same water that I am. I hope that some of this helps. Good luck.

We "lost" our son's only remaining bottle at the beach. My sister tucked it into her bag and got rid of it for me. He was almost 2, had been breast fed, but I made the mistake of going to a bottle rather than a sippy cup when I weaned him at 9 mos. So, might I suggest that when you go out of town, you "conveniently" leave the bottles at home and make sure that they are "gone" when you return home. Good luck!

I'm not sure what the best way is, but for me, when I got rid of the bottles, we had a ceremony. I gathered all the bottles in front of my son and let him throw them into the bag (trash) and told him now that he was a big boy he wouldn't need them any longer. I had also bought several new sippy cups in different colors, sizes, and shapes and gave them to him. I took out the trash and did not leave any of them in the house. I had no choice. We had a couple of rough nights in the beginning, but after that he was fine. Never asked for the bottle again. Good luck!

Hi M., my idea would be to wait until after you get back from your trip. You know how our kids love their routines. Then I would tell him that the babies in heaven need the bottles back to give to all the little babies that are about to be born. Since he's a big boy now, he no longer needs that. Usually that seems to work really well! Then give him a sippy cup at night and when ever he would usually get a bottle. You could make a little game out of it and go sippy cup shopping and buy a new cup! Any one that he wants. Good luck! I was in your situation one day and that seemed to really work in my house!

Tell him that you are going to give the bottles to a friend that is going to have a baby. Let him know that the baby will need the bottles because babies drink from bottles and big boys drink from sippies. Maybe take him to buy some new sippy cups (but stay away from the bottle aisle). Then don't take any on your trip either.

We have always quit the bottle at 12 months and do it along with the switch to whole milk. I just have always tell them you drink milk out of a sippy and formula out of a bottle. Though as I have learned what works for one doesn't work for another.

Good Luck!
M.

STOP IT COMPLETELY!!! and do not wait until you get back. Now is as good a time as any. Yes, he will cry and scream and throw a fit, but stand your ground. Please stand your ground. Be consistant. Everytime he asks for a bottle, say, "I'm sorry, you are getting too big for a bottle, but here is a big boy cup." or something along those lines, and stick with it. The hard part will be tomorrow and that's it. If he takes a cup at the daycare but not at home, it's because he KNOWS you will give it to him!!! Once he realizes he is not going to get a bottle it will be smooth sailing!
Stay strong, the hard part is the first day!

Not having one on a trip may be a good way to go cold turkey. I'd just tell him there are none where you are.
Cold turkey worked for both my girls. After a couple of days of resistance, they didn't ask for it anymore. You just have a little tough lOve!