Daughter Won't Keep the Lid on Her Cup

I hate to sound obvious, but, quit stopping for a drink! The short time you are running errands, she can do without, until she is older. If she fusses, explain to her that you are tired of her messes, and until she can drink without making a mess, there will be no more drink stops! Period! (Or, if you just don't want to deprive her of the drink, get her a spill-proof cup for toddlers to take along with you.)

This is pretty straigt forward to me. Cease to get her the drinks and tell her when she can leave the lid on than you will start going again. Give it a few days to set the point across than take her again, reminding her that if the lid comes off, than you will stop going again.

T., you probably have a little scientist budding. She wants to see how things work. You might get a child proof cup and/or tape it down then give her something else to take apart so she will leave the cup alone. It is a stage- a wet one- and it won't last forever. One of my sons did this to everything. It was awful but he still wants to see how things are put together at 13.
Good Luck.

This is a hard one to train with since you are in the front and she is in the back and you can't watch her constantly. Two year olds are smart-next time you stop for a drink tell her if she takes the lid off she won't get a drink next time. Then the hard part is following through when she wants a drink and you don't get her one. Or you could always bring a cup with a lid that she can't get off and pour her Sonic drink into that.

2 is really young to understand the concept of those ridiculous plastic lids on cups. Try carrying her sippy cup when you go out like that. It will be so much easier for her, and relieve some of your stress over this issue. This should help. Good luck dear.

It is very simple, someothing I have employeed with my children and now the grandchildren.

She has made the decision to not listen to you because there have been no concsequences when she does not listend. Next time you take her to Sonic (or anywhere) and get her a drink, you tell her that she is to keep the lid on and if she chooses not to, that you will take the drink away from her. When she disobeys, you have to follow through with what you said you would do, take the drink away and do not give it back.

After a few times of this, they will listen because they know that you mean business.

A two year old is much too young to be given a cup of anything away from home unless they are in an eating situation where you can give them your full attention.
This is a problem of your own making T. in that you are expecting behavior more mature than she is actually capable of producing.

An easy solution would be to pour her drinks into a sippy cup. To help her learn not to take the lid off is a little more diffiult. When you get her a drink, tell her not to take the lid off or you will take it away. She is plenty old enough to understand. If she takes the lid off, you MUST take her drink away, and not give it back just because she cries. If after a few times this doesn't work, I would suggest only getting yourself a drink and having her see that you are serious about what you say. She will eventually stop. Good luck!

Stop buying her drinks! Bring a sippie cup with instead. Simply explain that she is not big enough yet because she keeps spilling and that you can try again in a few months. She won't like it, but she'll learn.

Meanwhile, am I to assume these drinks are at least caffeine free? Or better yet, not soda pop at all?

Allow yourself to HOLD the CUP for her...until she learns to STOP taking it off----giving her one sip at a time..... She will probably get mad at first BUT she'll learn. At 2 years old---you'd be shocked HOW MUCH THEY UNDERSTAND........... I like the idea about buying a cup that she can't unscrew!!!!
SAY WHAT YOU MEAN----MEAN WHAT YOU SAY.........

I have the same problem with my son so I always keep a clean sippy cup in my car so if we happen to grab food etc. while we are out I can pour his drink into the sippy cup to prevent having to clean up a not so fun for mommy mess.

I also keep wipes etc. in the console of my car too so I don't have to carry a diaper bag. I hate purses as it is so a diaper bag annoys me too :)

C.

I think there may be several things contributing to the problem here. First, does she use cups with lids at home? If not, she probably wants her McDonald's cups and Sonic cups to be JUST like the ones at hoe, i.e. lidless. Second, I think she's probably a little young to be using regular cups away from home. While things have a regular routine at home, there are so many distractions at other places. It's almost impossible for a child that young to focus on keeping a cup upright when there are so many shiny, colorful, noisy things and poeple to watch. Especially if your daughter is a hands-on learner and wants to be part of everything she sees.

I'm sure there are a lot of solutions to your problem, but here are a few things I thought of.

1. Let her drink from lidded cups with straws at home. You can find them in the baby or kid section with the sippy cups at most stores like Walmart, Target, or Kmart. If she gets used to keeping the lid on at home, she'll be more likely to keep it on away from home.

2. Let her use sippy cups away from home and regular cups at home.

3. Find a plastic lidded straw cup with a screw on top that she can't remove by herself, and make it her special outing cup.

I'm sure you'll find a solution!

T.

Get a couple of large sippy cups with no valve. Keep them in the car. Pour her drink into one of these. It may spill a few drops but that is better than what you are dealing with.

I would go to Walmart and buy her or let her pick out a cute cup that has one of those screw on lids with a flip top straw and when you are out get her a drink and put it in that cup. she still has the straw and its still a treat. Mine are 5 and they still do that once in a while so i have to take drinks away in the car to stop that behavior of taking the lid off. After we do that a couple of times then I let them have drinks back and they are good for a while but then they will have that day and i take drinks away again.

I always had our "little one" a special spill proof cup & either took juice from home & kept it in an insulated carrier w/a small frozen pack that you put in lunch boxes,etc. & it worked great. Our "little one" is 6 now but we still use the "grown up" cups w/lids to prevent spills...problem solved. I always packed a snack lunch in an insulated child's lunch box if we were going to be gone a long time..worked great...still do!!

Hi Tammy,

I just put water in a sippy cup for my 2 year-old before we leave. It's always a routine and I make a big deal about making him "fresh" cold water before we leave the house. That way you don't get your daughter hooked on drinking the bad stuff and they learn to love water. Occasionally now that he's nearly 3, I'll give him a juice/water mixture with about 60% water and 40% juice. He has never had straight juice so he has no idea that he's missing out on anything. If she's already had traight juice, you could start out small with mixing it 80% juice, 20% water until you get more water than juice.

T.,
Maybe you could still get your daughter a drink from Sonic or Mcdonalds but bring a sippy cup to put it in so she doesn't end up with it all over her clothes. If she doesn't like drinking out of a sippy cup them maybe you could take her to pick out a special cup just for that. Hope this helps.

Hi T., i'm also a SHAM with a two year old son. And I always pack a Sippy cup (one with a secure lid) when we go on our outtings. When I stop to get him a drink I transfer it to his own cup. This way helps and prevents him from getting a change of cloths.
A. B.

Hi - just want to say that in general that a straw is not safe in the car with young kids. If you have to come to a sudden stop it could jab - I had a rule of only getting a drink from the straw when I was at a complete stop - but I have a small car and could pass it back and forth. =) Best Wishes to you! S

You can take a sippy cup with you and immediately pour the drink in the sippy cup or you can let her stay in the wet clothes a few times and let her learn the natural consequences of not keeping the lid on her cup. I wouldn't keep her in wet clothes during cool weather, though. I suggest you NOT buy her another drink immediately after she spills one, though (I don't know if you do this or not). That is another natural consequence that is not harmful.
Natural consequences (as long as they do not cause harm)tend to be more powerful than anything we could think up.

Why not just take along a sippy cup from home? If she wants to go to Sonic or McDonalds, just say, "We can't, because you won't leave the lid on and always pour out your drink. We'll just use your sippy cup, because our drinks from home are better, anyway." She may not be happy, but you are the Mommy. It's your call to do what is best for her, and no doubt a drink from home IS better than something from Sonic. You can bring your own drink, too, showing her that you do beleive the drinks from home are better. No more changing clothes hassle and better for everybody!
S. B.

T., take a cup of water from home, saves money and no stains if spilled. Bette D.

hello T.. For starters I have no clue what is a SAHM which is how you've described yourself. As for your 2 yr old, it sounds to me that she is a very normal baby girl trying to be a "big girl!" I'd still be carrying a diaper anyway if i were in your shoes because you have a 3 mth old. With those ages you must be prepared for anything and everything that could possibly come up! If you want to lighten your load just place your personal essentials into the diaper bag and omit your purse. AS for the 2 yr old spilling her drinks, those paper cups are not sturdy enough for a baby of this age. CARRY HER SIPPER CUP! Explain to her that this is her special cup to be used in restaurants. 2 yr olds are very smart and if spoken to correctly on her level, she will understand and go with the flow of the program. Patience, momma...

You may want to keep those sippy cups or those that come with straws in the car. Just pour the drink in those that way even if she drops them they don't spill.

My 2 yr old's issue is taking the straw out and spattering drink everywhere. "Leave the straw in or I take it away!" She gets one second chance to put it back in and leave it, otherwise, no Coke. We do not drink Coke at home, so this is her big "bye bye" treat. It seems worth obeying in order to keep her drink. But you have to take it away and MEAN IT. I only had to throw it away once, now she pushes for that one warning but then concedes.

Good luck!

After reading some of the other responses (ouch) I think I should add that she gets half coke and half water, and I'm considered the healthy mom because we usually use organic products...good lord, a kid has to have SOME fun and you have to teach them that they're worth a treat every now and then...a weekly treat is NOT an eating habit.

Buy her a couple cute toddler cups. Not necessarily a sippy cup, but like a Dora cup with a screw on lid and a straw. I use these in the car, at restaurants, on the go at the zoo, etc... You can pour her drink in there - plus I don't always by my toddler her own drink, I can dump some of my large drink into her cup!