Weaning from bottles

persnickity · August 2018

My daughter turns 1 in a week. We were told to start weaning from bottles to sippy cups and to try and completely transition by 18 months. How do you ensure they're still getting enough milk if they aren't taking much from the sippy? Like only taking an ounce or two compared to 4-6 oz from the bottle. I still nurse when we're together.

meggyme · August 2018

If you're still nursing (and planning to for a little while) I wouldn't worry too much. We use munchkin 360 cups and I figure a full cup is about 3-4oz. If I give her 4 of those per day and call it good. We also taught her to use a straw and used the flip lid straw cups (also from munchkin). They don't tend to suck down liquids from sippy cups quite as fast, so it'll generally take them longer than with a bottle so expect it to take longer to finish. Give it a try and hopefully it won't be a difficult process.

lindsye · August 2018

My kids never took to sippy cups and went straight to straw cups. They were able to use them before they were a year old and seemed to prefer them, so I’d vote to give those a try as well. I agree that sippy cups just are not as efficient, and my kids seemed to get frustrated with them. Good luck!

lillywonderland · August 2018

I worried about this also but I think you just have to remember that the consumption of liquids will fluctuate day to day - keep an eye out for a good number of wet diapers. I think the recommendation is no more than 24 oz of milk a day. My Dr. said you can start transitioning from the bottle by offering 75% of the milk in a bottle and the 25% in the sippy cup, and then gradually increasing it - that way you can ensure she will still get most of the milk she needs at first until she gets the hang of it. Eventually you can just do milk at meal/snack times and water as needed throughout the day (his water bottle is kept low enough so my son can see it and point to it when he wants it).

We used the Munchkin 360 cups and the Camelbak Eddy straw bottle. Offering it at mealtimes when your child is seated will help establish good habits. They'll get the hang of it quickly, especially if you let her eat the pouches all by herself already (it is basically exactly like a straw).

persnickity · August 2018

Thanks! We've got the same 360 cup and that's used by daycare. We send 2, 6oz bottles and they pour into the 360 cup. But no matter the liquid and no matter cup or bother, she doesn't seem to drink a lot.

We do offer water at snack and meal times plus have it at her level on the weekends. We're just still nursing at 10 times a day at her request. I wait for her to ask and don't just offer.

lillywonderland · August 2018

Remember that transitioning off the bottle by 18 months is just a suggestion (and part of the reason it is suggested is that it is harder to wean them from the bottle after 18 months - apparently there is a lot of resistance!). It sounds like she is not ready to give up nursing, so I would just try to wait for her to wean herself in your case.

If she's not drinking much from a bottle or a cup, you can prolly stop offering the bottle and just offer the cup. I have a special cup/straw bottle for milk and a totally different one for water (same style, but different color). I read that that helps them to distinguish what it is and what they want.

persnickity · August 2018

@lillywonderland that might be the best way to do it. Just go straight to cup and not worry about it. Daycare has replaced the first bottle with giving in a cup with her snack and lunch this past week. They offer 3oz each time and she's taking about 1oz. I'm hoping she starts taking more as she's had a dry diaper a few times last week when she used to have a wet every time they changed her.

lillywonderland · August 2018

My son doesn't always drink his milk at meal times by himself, so I find myself constantly telling him "Can you take a drink of your milk" or "Drink some milk" during the time he's seated, and it helps him to drink more. His teachers do that for him also. Maybe you can have them try that?

persnickity · August 2018

That's a great idea! I'll definitely ask. Really appreciate all of your help.

Weaning from bottles

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