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Cow's milk transition - any tips?

RDK24RDK24 member
in Breastfeeding
LO wants nothing to do with cow's milk. I would like to start weaning off the pump now that she's a year old. I'll still nurse AM and PM.

She's always taken breast milk VERY warm in a bottle and we tried cow's milk for the first time today straight out of the fridge. She likes food and water cold, just not milk. We also tried half cow's milk and half breast milk, but she still only drank about an ounce total. Tried a straw cup and a sippy cup. No dice. 

Should I warm the cow's milk/cow-breast milk blend and then slowly warm it less and less to get her used to the temperature? She would NEVER drink a bottle of breast milk less than her desired temperature so I'm not hopeful about this approach but need to figure something out so it's not hot milk forever …

TIA. 
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Re: Cow's milk transition - any tips?

  • vvvvvfeevvvvvfee member
    i wouldn't sweat it too much. if you're still BFing, WCM is totally optional if your LO is eating a balanced diet. you could offer her another source of dairy, like cheese, yogurt, or kefir. or you could try alternatives like goat's milk or coconut milk.

    first i'd try offering WCM cold for a while just to see if she warms up to it. otherwise, i'd try to make sure she gets another source of dairy and just offer her water to drink.

    here's a good article on the BM > WCM transition: https://alphamom.com/parenting/baby/switching-from-breastmilk-to-milk/

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  • RDK24RDK24 member
    vvvvvfee said:
    i wouldn't sweat it too much. if you're still BFing, WCM is totally optional if your LO is eating a balanced diet. you could offer her another source of dairy, like cheese, yogurt, or kefir. or you could try alternatives like goat's milk or coconut milk.

    first i'd try offering WCM cold for a while just to see if she warms up to it. otherwise, i'd try to make sure she gets another source of dairy and just offer her water to drink.

    here's a good article on the BM > WCM transition: https://alphamom.com/parenting/baby/switching-from-breastmilk-to-milk/

    Thanks so much. Am feeling so emotional about her getting anything but breastmilk … but I would like to be done pumping so I think it's time to transition. Still, it's so (irrationally) hard!
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  • RDK24RDK24 member
    vvvvvfee that article SPOKE to me, thank you! There's a real mental transition here -- breastmilk was literally keeping LO alive in the early days. Now milk (breast, cow or otherwise) is going to be a part of her diet. It was a great reminder, appreciate the link.

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  • vvvvvfeevvvvvfee member
    @RDK24 i promise, you will be soooo relieved when you stop pumping! it was such a mental and emotional drain for me, not to mention a huge time-suck. the 2nd year of BFing has been so much easier and more rewarding. you still get to keep all the great, happy, snuggly parts of BFing once you are done pumping! :)
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  • RDK24RDK24 member
    vvvvvfee said:
    @RDK24 i promise, you will be soooo relieved when you stop pumping! it was such a mental and emotional drain for me, not to mention a huge time-suck. the 2nd year of BFing has been so much easier and more rewarding. you still get to keep all the great, happy, snuggly parts of BFing once you are done pumping! :)
    Thanks -- I needed to hear that. I never thought I'd be emotional about ending PUMPING. I think the emotion is probably just that she's getting older. Am trying to focus on how much more freedom I'll have, not needing to pump or nurse during the day. 
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  • RDK24RDK24 member
    theresat858 said:
    vvvvvfee said:
    i wouldn't sweat it too much. if you're still BFing, WCM is totally optional if your LO is eating a balanced diet. you could offer her another source of dairy, like cheese, yogurt, or kefir. or you could try alternatives like goat's milk or coconut milk.

    first i'd try offering WCM cold for a while just to see if she warms up to it. otherwise, i'd try to make sure she gets another source of dairy and just offer her water to drink.

    here's a good article on the BM > WCM transition: https://alphamom.com/parenting/baby/switching-from-breastmilk-to-milk/

    This.

    Does she drink water?  If so, it is perfectly acceptable to just send water and solid foods to daycare, and nurse a few times a day when you are together.

    My LO took a really long time to decide to drink WCM.  She did ok with mixed bottles (1 oz WCM, 4 oz BM, then 2 oz + 3 oz), but refused any milk from a sippy cup. At 13 months we stopped the bottles (my freezer stash was gone; I stopped pumping at 12mo) and went to straight WCM in a cup, cutting one bottle one week and the other the next. Her intake of milk went way down - maybe 4 ounces in a day? 
    Honestly, she didn't really start drinking WCM much at all until my supply dropped due to pregnancy, around closer to 20-21 months for her. 
    Thanks, good to know. My LO is not really into water. Will take sips every now and again but that's it. I think I was under the impression that I had to replace the daytime breastmilk OZ with cow's milk OZ but that might have been my own goof! 
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