Help Weaning from Morning Bottle

Updated on September 24, 2008
K.R. asks from El Cajon, CA
10 answers

I need help with a strategy to wean off the bottles. My daughter takes 2 bottles a day, 1 upon waking up and the other at night after dinner/before bedtime. We already switched lunchtime to a sippy cup of milk, and she loves milk so that was an easy transition. And she drinks water throughout the day.

When I take away the morning bottle, what do I replace it with? Right now, we have a 6oz bottle, then breakfast an hour later. Do I start with the breakfast (cereal/fruit/yogurt)? or do I do a cup of milk or water?

I'd appreciate hearing what worked for you.

3 moms found this helpful

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J.B.

answers from San Luis Obispo on

Give her a bottle of water and then get her breckfast ready.

I think soon she'll just want up for breckfast.

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A.J.

answers from Los Angeles on

I work in the mornings, so I give my 16-month old 4oz of milk in a cup when he first wakes up, and then a small snack (Cheerios, slice of toast, or a banana, with water) right before we leave (~7am). He gets another snack around 8:30 at daycare (with water to drink), so between the two small snacks it equals breakfast. On days when he sleeps in, he drinks his milk with his snack, but on early mornings it holds him over until 7am. Just do what works for your schedule and what your daughter needs. It will change before you figure it out anyways!

1 mom found this helpful
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J.D.

answers from Los Angeles on

Hi K.....I had this problem with my now 2 year old twins. When they were about 13 months old, I wanted to get them off of the morning bottle. I always felt bad because I didn't feed them breakfast until about 8 and the woke up at 6!! I started giving them a small bowl of cheerios and a sippy of water. My pediatrician also told me that after a year of age, they don't need as much milk as us mommies think they do...I only give them milk now with their meals and do water or half water/half juice in their sippy's throughout the day. As for the morning bottle, it only took one day for them to forget about it! Good luck!

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K.D.

answers from Los Angeles on

Well my daughter is just a month older and what I've done is just give her breakfast when she wakes up. Just act as if it's completely normal and start feeding her breakfast first with a sippy cup of Milk. I just started using the Nuby Sippy cups with no handles..there the tall ones. Anyways it kinda replecates a bottle if your not using those yet, I would highly recommend. :-) Just make the switch and if it's hard for her she'll get used to it but I doubt there should be a big problem. It's almost as if her breakfast is her snack since you've been giving her a bottle before hand. So just be aware of the whole snack thing...there always hungry! Ha Ha. Anyways good luck, I'm sure it will be fine. :-)

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J.D.

answers from Reno on

I would give her a sippy cup of milk when she wakes up. Move it a little closer to breakfast until she's eventually drinking it with breakfast.

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J.S.

answers from Los Angeles on

For me, weaning the morning feeding was a lot easier than the one right before bed! What I did was offer the sippy with milk and serve breakfast alongside it. Having breakfast first thing with milk was such an easy transition. When you're done with that, then do the night feeding. I don't recommend doing it at the same time.

Weaning the breast before bed was another story! The most important thing to do (IMO) in eliminating the night time bottle/breast is to stop the association of bottle/breast and sleep. I noticed for my son that as soon as he saw the light turn off and the boob come out, he'd start yawning. So continue your night time routine as you normally would but exchange the bottle for the sippy with water. Make sure baby is good and full from dinner so she really doesn't need the sippy. Chances are she will not like it, get upset and fuss. Just continue the night routine as normal and put her to bed. Do the 'attachment parenting' thing or cry it out or something in between, whatever...just don't give her the bottle. Only offer the sippy with water.

It took about 2 weeks for this transition for both my sons. It wasn't easy, but it was effective. Good luck!

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M.B.

answers from Los Angeles on

She's still just a baby! Let her at least keep the night time feeding. I just took my 16 month old off her night time feeding. We both enjoyed the one on one time.
I give her a sippy cup of warm milk when she wakes up in the morning, and then about and hour 1/2 later I give her breaskfast. No need to take away the milk completly.
Good luck!

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M.C.

answers from Honolulu on

I did not have a successful time getting my kids to drink the same quantities of milk out of a sippy cup, esp at the young age of 12 months. My kids would both just sip out of a sippy cup, but they would chug out of a bottle. I let them have the bottle until they were over 2, and they had no lingering teeth problems or issues when we got rid of the bottles. We made a sort of "big girl" thing out of getting rid of the bottles and they were both ready. But I got an extra year of really good milk consumption.

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W.L.

answers from Los Angeles on

Hi K.. When I was trying to break my kids from the bottle, I started by using a sippy cup with a seal and juice, milk, or water (whichever my child preferred). They have these at pretty much any grocery store and you will see that some of the cups have a top that has a plastic removable seal in the top. When they first start using them, they have to suck on it like it was a bottle. After they got the hang of tipping it like they would a cup, I removed the plastic seal from the top and they had to learn to drink from it normally.

One reason this worked so well for me was that when it was time to make this switch, I would stop at the grocery store or any other store that had them and "peruse" the neat cups available. My interest sparked their interest and they wanted to take one home and try it. After that, it was easy.

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J.G.

answers from San Diego on

Hi, I have a 15 month old son who is successfully weaned for the last three months. I weaned him after I found out I was pregnant again! (Almost seven months along now.) I switched my son to a sippy cup of whole milk with a few cheerios to pick up and/or eat. He likes that enough to be distracted and allow me to make a proper breakfast for him. We use a sippy cup that is about 5-6oz size, so it is easy for him to pick up. I try to have breakfast be a protien and carb. I cannot say specifically what because somedays he does not want what I made so I try to rotate. Don't be shocked when your daughter no longer wants something she previously loved. All kids seem to go through some funny stages.

The hardest weaning was that nighttime bed one. Bedtime has not been easy since. Take your time with that one if you can. I had to rush because the doctor wanted me done nursing by month four's end, due to contractions. Start working a bedtime ritual now, tub, books, wind down time so all will be in place when you finally wean. Good luck! We are certainly lucky to be Mommies!

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