Bottle/cup Issues

Try Almond milk if he isn't allergic to it. When i was experimenting with keeping my son off of milk for a week almond milk was the only one I was able to swap out that my son didn't always notice right away. Rice milk is also available... you can get them both in the HyVee health food section.

and my son never did like drinking out of sippy cups. He drinks out of a regular cup or a juice box with a straw but hates the sippy cups, and i have a collection of about 30 different kinds, none of them worked.

Hi S., Is the milk or formula warm when you give it to him in a bottle? If it is, you might try warming the milk a little bit in the sippy cup too, that helped my daughter. Or if worse comes to worse you might try adding a little flavor to the milk, strawberry or even chocolate if it works is better than no milk at all. I wouldn't worry too much though, he's not much past the yr mark, sometimes it takes longer to totally wean from a bottle and that's ok.

I'm sure it feels like you've tried this and maybe this isn't very good advice, but if I were you I'd just put the issue to rest for a few weeks and try again later. My experience has been that they tend to come around at their own pace and maybe your son just needs a little time before he's ready to change to a sippy cup. Then I'd just offer it every few days and not "push the issue". I don't know anything about other types of milk, we go through about 5 gallons of skim cow's milk a week here! haha...

what about organic milk? my daughter has a milk and soy allergy but she can drink organic milk. just a thought.

You could try Goat's milk. Most people can tolerate that. also, have you tried teaching to drink from a straw? My kids drank from a straw before a sippy cup. Other than that the only thing I have is to keep offering it to him, even if he just plays with it. You could try to put something that you know is his favorite thing to drink in there (if he drinks other things) & if you can get him to take a sip of it, he would hopefully want more. One other thing I just thought of (it may be a dumb idea), what if you were to drink from a cup like his for a couple of days - would he maybe want what you have? or at least get the idea this is what you do with it? Sorry I don't have more!

What about a travel cup like the adults use for hot liquids? It has a hold in the top to drink out of but still has a top on it. No sucking involved, just the tipping issue. Obviously he could still spill it but it wouldn't be as devastating as a regular cup would be.

I'm assuming you've tried juices as well in the sippies? I could ALWAYS temp my kids with something other than milk. If youcan get him drinking apple or prune juice you will definintely resolve the constipation problem. Good luck!

My kid also didn't "get" the sippy cup b/c she never once drank out of a bottle since she was breastfed. I found that if I could take out the valve that regulates the flow of liquid, she would drink from it. However not all sippy cups have this valve & the Nuby's do not. Try one that has the valve & take it out & see if your baby will try it. There are some downsides to removing the valve: once she tips the cup over, whatever liquid is inside comes streaming out. That is the drawback, but now my baby knows how to adjust or regulate the amount of liquid she wants in her mouth herself, so when we give her an open cup, she doesn't soak herself with it & she's just 15 months old. Also, b/c my kid isn't a huge fan of milk, sometimes we give her a diluted cup of V8 Fushion & Vruit (no kidding, that's what it's called), basically they're fruit & veggie juices. That helped a bunch b/c they taste surprisingly good (warning: Vruit looks gross b/c there's more veggie juice).

My doctor told me soymilk, in large quantities is bad for your liver or kidneys, can't remember which & suggested rice milk. I personally haven't tried it, but most people say it doesn't taste good. Maybe almond milk is better, it sure sounds good. My baby drinks whole milk (I'm the one who can't drink milk).

Good luck. I don't know any mother that doesn't have at least 400 different sippy cups b/c you know, if it isn't one thing, it's another.

We found a NUK sippy cup that is great.

goats milk is very good for children with milk intolerance. We found goats milk a good substitute, especially after we heard about the soy things too. And, there aren't any hormones in goats milk either. As far as the cup, I had a child that needed the bottle for security reasons too. And, she is a very secure child now. We finally talked her out of it on her 3rd birthday. Her teeth are fine also. And, besides, her kindergarten friend's aren't going to ask when she went off of the bottle or potty trained. That was my theory. Just my .02

I just wanted to let you know that you definately not alone. We are having very similar issues with our son! I am againist sippy cups, as I feel that they are just an acceptable bottle. In fact, there isn't much difference between the two except for the social acceptability factor. I should let you know that they do have the self control to use regular cups. Jack will drink water from an open cup, but he will still refuse milk from it. I decided that I would be fine to give him just milk from a sippy cup because at least then he would be getting used to the idea of cup and then I could try the cup again. He is still totally refusing the sippy cup, open cup, etc. So we now offer milk in a cup with his morning snack and he doesn't take it. So I make sure that he gets 1 bottle in the afternoon and make sure that he gets enough dairy through other products. So however you've been subbing the calcium into his diet, just up it. Good luck! And know you are not alone!

S.,

First, relax about the bottle. Your son is not going to go
to Kindergarten with a bottle. If nothing else, peer pressure will eventually get to him. I would just not even
offer him a sippy cup for a while. After a bit, maybe have
one around for him to "play" with to see if he has gained any interest. No pressure.
Regarding milk, I went from breast milk to goat's milk with all my kids. It is easier for them to digest, however you need to dilute it...about 1/3 milk to 2/3 water to begin with then 1/2 and 1/2 later. It is thinker than regular milk. This worked like a charm for us. No ouchy tummys and they drank it with no problems. (I personally wouldn't drink it but they didn't mind a bit.)
Good Luck!

My thoughts are similar to those shared by some of the others... At this age, kids can be pretty stubborn (they are used to what they are used to - routine, routine, routine!), and so put up a fight to any thing that changes that. The harder you work on changing, the harder he digs in his heels. Plus, he realizes this is something he seems to have control over. It might be good to just let it go - let him know it's no big deal. Stop bugging him about it and letting him see you fret over it for a while. Then, after a few weeks, ask him if he wants to choose a special cup to drink out of. You could use it just for water or juice at first - offer a couple of acceptable choices, and let him choose - make a big deal about what a big boy he is and what a good choice he made. "it's so much fun to drink out of a Cars cup! Great choice!"... Maybe try one with a straw. Make it fun - do an experiment with him and see if milk or water or whatever tastes better out of a regular cup, cup with a straw, or a sippy cup (leaving the bottle completely out!). BTW, he does have the control to drink out of an open cup. Start with very small amounts of water - he may spill a bit at first, but it doesn't take long at all to get the hang of it.
With regards to the lactaid, keep in mind that if you remain positive that he'll like it, he's more likely to. And he doesn't have to just DRINK milk to to get it in his diet - use it in his cereal, in mac and cheese, potatoes, etc. He can get it in cheese, yogurt, etc as well.
Good luck!
D.

Our son took the bottle until he was a little over 2. We knew he would eventually quit taking the bottle so I did not worry about "transitioning" him to the sippy cup. One day he just stopped like we knew he would. He drinks from regular cups w/o the lids now(he's 2 1/2). I would suggest letting him give it up naturally. It sure will make it easier for all of you.

I had the same thing with my little one. He is 3 now but he didn't get off the bottle until almost 2. Whatever is what I said. He is ready to get rid of it then he will. It's their security and that's hard to take that awasy from them I think. Who cares. When he is ready he will be ready.
I thought that the milk was too strong for him and he would have stomach problems so I took milk and crushed the lactose pills in that and it did the trick and then I was ready to wean him off that to just milk. It worked just fine. You might want to experiment with that too. Chepaer and he might not relaly be lactose intollerant. He just might not be able to handle the thickness of milk.
Just a suggestion!
A.

Have tried drinks with straws in them? Just squeeze the containers enough for the liquid to go thre the straw and into his mouth, a malt or shake moght even get him interested in drinking with a straw :). Good luck

Good Morning S.! Oh Happy Valentines Day to you and your Silly little guy. OK First question, Where is it written in stone a child has to be using a sippy cup by age 1? Probably in a Dr.'s dusty How to book? :)) No seriously S. there isn't any reason at all ( except the EXPERTS) say this is the Thing to do.
I let our Boys have their bottles Until They gave them up themselves. First one threw it away at 19 mon. Our Second had his until he was a little over 2, then he did the same.

With our gr son's Corbin liked to drink from my glass sometimes, had a bottle most of the time until after age 2. He still likes warm milk in the morning with his breakfast with a covered sippy. Zane doesn't care what he uses...lol He might use a sippy of some kind during the day, nap time and bed time he has his bottle he is 16 mon.

There is no reason what so ever to take a bottle away from a baby at age One. It helps them self soothe, its a comfort thing. So why don't ya follow your heart, you know him better then any of us here and better then your Dr. also.

Now if he wants to take it for Show N Tell in Preschool, ya might need to talk that over. :))

God Bless, As for the different types of formula's or milk products, I have no idea. My brother was on Soybean milk for a very long time. He is 54...lol

K. Nana of 5

S.,
I actually just wrote in on this same issue about a week ago. My son is the opposite, he is lactose intollerant but we are on Soy milk and are actually switching to Lactaid because I want the thicker whole milk. He loves his soy milk and it is actually better for him. I am totally hesitant about switching to Lactaid as it is milk and milk can carry all kinds of things that soy milk does not. I highly encourage you to go with plain soy milk. It is vitamin fortified and is much lower in sugar than lactaid!!
Also, I got my son the nuby sippy bottle. It is a bottle with handles that has a nipple that works like a sippy top.

Are you sure he is lactose intolerant? How was this diagnosed? I ask because often people are wrong about that. Did you try soy milk? Also, why don't you just let him drink out of a regular cup with you holding it between bottles? Better than nothing, and soon he'll be a champ!

Try cups with straws. Rice milk or almond milk is good for them too. Although they are lower in fat.