When did you trash the bottle?

teakum

Kateley still wants a bottle all the time. If I get a sippy cut out she screams "no in there" pointing to the bottle cabinet. It seems like the more I try to give her a sippy the more she wants a bottle!!! I feel so behind, I have friends who have 6 7 and 8 month olds who have already given up the bottle.

abpdjs

we gave it up when he started whole milk at one year old.  maybe you could try the "bottle fairy" like the "paci fairy" where you pack up the bottles and mail them off to the babies that need bottles (the fairy comes overnight) to get them and leaves a present behind.  i even heard of a mommy leaving behind fairy sparkle kisses on dc's face when they where sleeping to emblish the mystery behind it.  sounded like a good idea to me with anything you may want to wean your lo off of.

MamaNikki

We switched to sippies at one year old too.  He kept the just-before-bed bottle for a few weeks after that, though.  I'd say we were bottle-free by 13/14 months old.

punkfiction

this is something that really riles me up. bottles can be security items for some kids. wean her off it slowly if she really is that attached. switch from milk to water in the bottle and she will eventually lose interest. and if she doesn't - then who cares? she is not going to have a bottle forever. and water isn't going to hurt her. just get her off the bottle during the day time and then work on night time later. it kills me when people say that they let their kid cry and cry over a bottle.

LM2003

When we switched to whole milk at 1 year...When it was milk it was in a sippy.  And we never looked back.

JillAly

My ds is still drinking from a bottle at 18 1/2 months.  Everyone is telling me to go cold turkey with the bottle-  his daycare, my friends, family- everyone!  We were going to do it starting this weekend.

However, after reading punk's answer- I think I'm changing my mind.  I like the idea of switching the water and the milk.  DS drinks water from a sippy without a problem so I know it's not a sippy issue.  It's a security thing for ds.  He likes the bottle so much that it is his lovey- he even sleeps with an empty bottle sometimes!

Thanks punk!

LM2003

The water in the bottle seems like good Idea or maybe switch to a low flow nipple again so it's harder to get anything out...

Since your dd is older would she enjoy going to the store to pick out a new sippy cup?  Get her all excited about it, tell her how she's a big girl and gets to pick out a new cup to use etc...Hype it all up.

punkfiction

JillAly:

My ds is still drinking from a bottle at 18 1/2 months.  Everyone is telling me to go cold turkey with the bottle-  his daycare, my friends, family- everyone!  We were going to do it starting this weekend.

However, after reading punk's answer- I think I'm changing my mind.  I like the idea of switching the water and the milk.  DS drinks water from a sippy without a problem so I know it's not a sippy issue.  It's a security thing for ds.  He likes the bottle so much that it is his lovey- he even sleeps with an empty bottle sometimes!

Thanks punk!

see, that is aidan too. when she gets upset, she wants a bottle and her scoozie dog. just slowly make it more water until finally thats all it is. sometimes aidan wants milk so i put a TINNNNNNNY bit into the bottle so it changes the color to white LOL 

aidan drinks from open cups and sippies all day. i knew it wasn't "well i dont like to" for her. it is just something she likes and i think its mean to take that away from them when they are that type of child. aidan is a toughy, but super sensitive at the same time. its not hurting anything to let them have it.

punkfiction

LM2003:

The water in the bottle seems like good Idea or maybe switch to a low flow nipple again so it's harder to get anything out...

Since your dd is older would she enjoy going to the store to pick out a new sippy cup?  Get her all excited about it, tell her how she's a big girl and gets to pick out a new cup to use etc...Hype it all up.

yeah and that would work for daytime for some kids. routine/security doesn't change bc she likes something. for instance, aidan picks out cups all the time and LOVES them during the day. but nap/nighttime? she looks at you like you are stupid if you bring in that sippy, kwim?

Karibride

12-14 months. But she also has a cousin who is 3 months older that she sees a lot. She took an interest in her cousin's sippy cup so it was very easy. We stopped giving her a nap/night bottle at about 9 months, so that wasn't an issue either. Now if she wants something to drink before bed, she gets water.

katy75

5 days before her 1st bday.  We went cold turkey from bottle/formula to sippy/milk.  She had a bottle one night and went to bed - I washed her bottles and packed them away.  The next morning no bottles to be seen, only sippies.  It never phased her.

Sassystace

Glad to hear I'm not the only one.  DD still has a morning and evening bottle.  The switching at one year didn't work for us.  DD loves her bottle.  I keep saying that when she turns two we will throw out the bottles and force her to have the sippy cups for her milk.  (She drinks water in sippies just fine).  It's not really a big issue for me if she still wants a bottle but I feel pressure from others that say, 'she's still drinking a bottle???!!"  It's nice to hear I'm not the only one.

momofolivia

around 10 months.  she had zero attachment to the bottle. 

I'm no help

Erika6504

The daytime bottles were easy.  Those were gone right around a year.  The night time bottle was more difficult.  I refused to put milk in a bottle so she had formula for her night time bottle up until about 14 months.  I switched to the Nuby Sport Sippy which looks a lot like a bottle.  She likes it and I feel better b/c people don't harrass me about her having a bottle.  It's the best of both worlds

mom2binKC

My DD has held onto the bottle because she is very small (20 lbs at 2 years), and her pediatrician and I agreed it was a good idea to let her continue her 2 bottles a day (before nap and bedtime) because she usually takes 8 oz of Pediasure or whole milk, and she needs those calories.  The pediatrician's main concern is for her teeth, and I am concerned, too.  But I think the "baby bottle teeth" issue is mainly a problem with kids who are put to bed with a bottle.  The milk pools in their mouths when they fall asleep (sometimes with the bottle still in their mouths), and the sugar in the milk rots the teeth.  With DD, I TRY to brush her teeth after her bottles (which, admittedly, usually doesn't go over too well, since she is so sleepy at that point).  If that fails, I encourage her to at least have a drink of water to sort of rinse out her mouth.  At any rate, I never put her down with a bottle; I hold her while she takes it, so at least I don't think there's milk pooling in her mouth.

All that is to say that I think teeth are the main concern with prolonged bottle use.  Other than that, I don't worry much, because I don't think it will be an issue forever.  The pediatrician said he'd like to see her off the bottle by age two.  About a month before her birthday, she started self-weaning off the bottle--just stopped wanting it when offerred, and then I stopped offering and she stopped asking for it.  Then we took a trip, and she started asking for it at bedtime, so obviously it is a comfort thing.  But, honestly, I think these things have a way of working themselves out.  I don't think she'll still be taking bottles when she's four.

I don't love the idea of going cold turkey, because, at this age, it really is kind of a security item, and I think it's a little cruel to take it away all at once.  To be quite honest, I don't think I'd worry about it (this coming from someone who--before kids--used to frown and shake my head when I saw a toddler with a bottle).  My experience with my kiddo so far is that all things kind of work themselves out over time.  But I do like the idea of switching to water--that eliminates any teeth concerns and may make the bottle less appealing.

Pesky

At the year mark.  We just never gave DD whole milk in a bottle at all.  She could have all the formula she wanted in a bottle but whole milk came in a sippy.  But if it makes you feel better, our neighbor's 2.5 yo still gets a nightly bottle too.  Some kids are just more stubborn!!!