Bottles, Babies, and Needing More Milk

Updated on April 15, 2010
F.V. asks from Columbia, SC
10 answers

So right at 12 months, we quit bottles with my twin girls. They didn't miss it at all. However, the sippy cup they are wanting to use only holds 5 ounces of milk. THey aren't getting enough milk before they go to bed which means they are waking up early (6:00) and crying because they are hungry. They aren't ready to get up but they need something to drink/eat. My mom suggested I give them 1 large botltle before bed since they are still quite young. That way they will be getting enough milk to sustain them until the morning. She said most babies don't stop the bottle completely until 15-18 months. What do you think?

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S.C.

answers from Fort Wayne on

Give them a snack before bedtime to go with their milk. Milk just gives them the illusion of being full.

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S.G.

answers from Savannah on

Don't give them the bottle back!! Give them a snack like cereal, fruit, yogurt, etc to go along with their milk. You need to look at it like an older child feeding schedule now that they are going to be off formula or already are and have to fill in the blanks with table food where they would get a bottle for 3 meals and 2/3 snacks a day.

Good luck
S.

1 mom found this helpful
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C.A.

answers from Atlanta on

My twin girls were also weaned from the bottle at 12 months and I never looked back-lol! I think that since you have already weaned them off of the bottle it doesn't make much sense to regress back? It's really up to you but I think I would try looking for a sippy cup that holds more that they will drink from. What type are you using currently-I can't imagine that they don't make one bigger or at least you being able to try some others to see if they will take them. I think I would try that first before going back to the bottle. I would use that as a last resort if at all. If they want it bad enough they will eventually take it. Another thing you could do is why not re-fill the sippy cup when they are done?? That way they are getting more before going to bed and hopefully sleep a little longer but they could also just be going through a growth spurt. My twins always slept pretty well but every once in awhile during teething and growth spurts their schedule would get whacked up a bit. Good luck!

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J.K.

answers from Atlanta on

Congratuations on an easy transition! Perhaps add a banana or cereal snack before bed with their milk, or introduce larger sippy cups with similar tops? Or perhaps this is a growth spurt but either way, that's great!

Neither of my kids slept this well or relinquished the bottle this easily:)

K.C.

answers from Barnstable on

Why not go real simple and just refill their sippy cups?

L.H.

answers from Atlanta on

I agree with your mom. You are lucky your girls took to sippy cups so easily! My son is generally very well behaved but has a total breakdown if I try to give him milk in a cup and he's almost 2!

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C.P.

answers from Albuquerque on

My girl LOVES her sippy cups and stopped using the bottle by 10 months (yes, we were putting breastmilk & water in sippy cups)! I agree with others, do not go backwards! At this age, they should be eating more solids anyways, so I'd go with the snack, or adjust dinner time. We do dinner at 6:30, followed by wash/bath, play, brush teeth, book, and bed at 8:00. She gets a sippy cup of water in bed with her (no milk, juice, or anything that could "rot" her teeth)--mostly because she sometimes wakes up with a dry cough. She sleeps until 6:30 or 7, when we get up for snack/cereal & milk (she gets full breakfast at daycare at 8:30). This works for us and the only time she wakes up hungry (I can hear tummy growling) is if she's feeling sick and doesn't eat much for dinner. Then I give her a light snack (yogurt or toast) with water and back to bed.

I couldn't imagine going through this with TWO, so cheers to you!
Good luck!

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M.C.

answers from Detroit on

Why go back to bottles if the twins have already progressed to sippy cups? I would try giving them cereal with their milk or organic yogurt before bedtime and see if that will satisfy their hunger. You could also try having them pick out their own sippy cups that will hold more than 5 oz. Kids love to pick out their own things. Or, if your twins can drink out of a straw, you could try the cups with the straw or even the Horizon Organic Milk boxes too (kids seem to love those even though they can be expensive).

I hope this helps:)

M.

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D.W.

answers from Gainesville on

Do not go backwards and give them the bottle again. You'll regret it and it's really not fair to your little ones to introduce something again that you are just going to take away.

I'm going to assume they probably go to bed anywhere from 7-8 at night and then they are sleeping till 6 when they wake because they are hungry. That's a long, long time for little tummies to go without anything to eat or drink. They must be less than 18 months based on what your mom said. They only need between 16-24 ounces of milk per day. They do make sippy cups that hold more but I'm not sure adding more is going to solve your problem. But you can always try a bedtime snack like Markasa suggested but don't be surprised if it doesn't keep them in bed. Often my daughter will wake around that time. I make her a small amount of warm milk, she sits up to drink it and then passes right back out for at least an hour sometimes 2 or more.

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M.B.

answers from Athens on

If they don't miss the bottle and go to bed easily, I wouldn't try starting them back on a bottle at this point just to get more sleep. Do you work away from home? If not, do they still take naps? This sounds like an opportunity for an early and late nap to me.
My granddaughter is 11 months old, her mama puts her to bed by 8 at night without a bottle or sippy cup. She works three days, on those days she gets her out of bed aaround 6:45 puts her in her car seat and takes her to babysitters (great-grandmother) and there is where she eats, and shortly there after takes a nap on most days. Drinking milk or anything other than water just before bedtime isn't a good practice for the health of their mouth/teeth. Make sure they have a good supper with plenty of drink/milk and then offer them a cup of water to quench any thirst they may have just before bed. Then when potty training time comes around you will want to back off of that due to bed wetting possibilities.
You are not going to always be able to fill them up in order to help them sleep longer. It could be just the routine they are use to, were they eating as soon as they were up at a later time...? Or are they just waking earlier? Just suggestions! Babies are notorious for just when you get comfortable with a schedule - they seem to change it up a bit. Atleast their new time isn't before 6 a.m.?

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