My son is 14 months and I am starting to wean him from the bottle at nap and bedtime. The only reason I haven't done it sooner is that it was his only signal at day care that it was nap time. He was having issues taking naps at day care and I wanted to keep something the same! He will be out of day care for the summer so am ready to drop the bottle! He drinks from a straw cup without any problems. I think he will be fine without having a bottle if he doesn't see it but I worry about him getting enough milk each day. I have a few times given him his milk at nap time in a different colored straw cup but he only drank a couple of sips. I worry about him getting enough milk. Any ideas? Will he eventually drink more than a few sips when he is used to it? Should I offer him milk instead of juice (I mean water with a tad bit of juice mixed in for flavor!) at meals?
Hi, try sugar free chocolate milk. It works great for my kids and since I was a dental asst for 8 yrs I know the importance of sugar free products. It really helps my boys (3yrs and 18 months) to get the milk they need. They have white milk at bfast and dinner but sugar free choc. milk at lunch and snack. Try it and see! Only give him water in a bottle and you'll soon find he won't take it anymore. A. M
Yes give him milk whenever he will accept it. Just keep tabs on how much throughout the day he has drank. Ask you ped. Dr. But their is a certain recommended about of ounces. My daugther did the bottle (sippy cup) at bedtime. Beware i took her to dentist and she had four cavaties. Make sure you brush, brush, brush!
You're on the right track! Go girl! Cold Turkey all the way! I would drop the straw and just do sippy cups.
Run to Wal-Mart and grab a few Nuby cups. They are without a doubt the best transition from bottle to sippy!
Good Luck!
At 14 months, he really only needs 2 cups of milk a day if he's getting calcium from other dairy sources (cheese and yogurt) as well. If he doesn't like those, 3 cups a day will still give him more than enough calcium, and anything more than that will probably just interfere with his appetite for solid food. So he's probably fine dropping a naptime drink, as long as he doesn't mind it.
I am going through the same struggle with my 19mth little girl. She would refuse to drink milk unless it was in a bottle. One thing that she will drink are smoothies. I typically buy the pre-made smoothies that are located next to the yogart in the grocery store. I mix about half smoothie and half milk. She loves them. Good Luck!
K.
Our doctor said not to juice at all - basically just sugar - not even a tiny bit in water because then the kid is just sloshing sugar water past the teeth all day long. If the kid gets used to water and milk as the only drinks it's better for the teeth. and probably the health in the long run
Wow- that sounds almost identical to my son... I started to wean him at 14 months too ( he's now 16 months old). He was/ is very difficult eater and drinker... he loves a straw in cups and never took a bottle. As far as my son... I really don't offer juices... they are really not good for the teeth and not to mention they have a ton of sugar. I would suggest Pedisure... or a generic brand (Target, Walmart and Krogers) My son drinks these during the day and we just started to give him milk mixed in with the drink. Pedisure is great for getting all the vitamins that they need... especailly when they are pickey eaters.
FYI.. he really didn't like it at first but I had my husband give it to him every morning and I slept in... in just a few days he was weaned and now that's all he wants in the morning and throughout the day.
Try the vanilla flavor. (strawberry and banana are good too.)
Also, if you ask your child's doctor they usually will have samples for you to try.
Best of Luck
Ya know I was concerned also w/ my 1 year old twins so every morning I wake up and mommy gets her coffee and I fix the boys a full "Nuby cup" of whole milk and I put 3-4 heaping regular spoons full of the carnation instant breakfast in it! They love it! And it has lots of vitiamns plus couble cal. and protien! I have actually been using the Wal-mart brand since it actually has more in it!
J., I am going through the same thing with my 13 month old. I asked the doctor today, actually, about it and he told me not to worry about the milk. He said to just keep giving him milk and water with meals and during the day. He said, 1.) He will not go thirsty b/c the natural thirst reflex will prompt him to drink when he needs to, and 2.)as long as he is eating other dairy foods like yogurt, cheese, etc. and calcium - rich vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower, he will get the calcium he needs. He said that after a while of only drinking from a sippy cup, he will start to drink more. Hope that helps!
Hi J.,
I completely understand your concerns. When my first daughter transitioned to a cup I was a nervous wreck. I was always concerend that she wasn't getting enough milk. Our ped. said that as long as I offered it to her frequently she would drink what she needed. I did hold off on juice for a few days to make sure she was getting plenty of milk. I also got the insulated straw cups and left them out on her little table for a while so it was there when she was ready. I did cut down on her juice for a few days so she wouldn't fill up on it and not want milk. In the end most of my worrying was for nothing. Her doctor was right, she took what she needed and the trasition was a lot easier on her than it was on me! Hang in there, it sounds like you have a great grasp of the situation.
Have you tried offering him a sippy cup? I have 3 children and the cups worked well with each of them. As long as they were getting what they needed it didn't matter to them the source. He will still drink from it just tell him it is time to graduate to a big boy cup. It will help his teeth also. Give him his new cup with maybe a character on it clap for him when he uses it. If they don't have the character you are looking for go to Walmart or School Box and get stickers to put on it. He will enjoy it.
