Having trouble taking my son off bottles. He will drink from a sippy if its lying around and he happens to want a quick drink but otherwise he will pull a nutty if i give him only a sippy. I poured his milk into a sippy yesterday and said ok, i'm not goign to put it in a bottle, but after an hour of him freaking out I couldnt take it any more. I poured it into a bottle, he took it and was fine...totally relaxed and drank the whole thing.
So tired of the bottles, does any one have any advice?
Yes I give him a bottle when he gets up in the morning, one at lunch then before dinner then before bed. I think for him its a soothing thing, otherwise he's not one to sit and relax.
I am going to try what every one said and see what happens.
Very nervous as I have pretty bad anxiety as it is when he freaks out. But know its for the better that I do this.
Just get rid of them that way you cant give in. It will be hard for a few days but it will work. He will drink when he is thirsty.
Maybe try taking them away in a few months when he can understand when you tell him that they're going away. He's only 15 months, still a baby. My nephew used a bottle until he was 4 and guess what?! He has beautiful teeth and is one of the smartest and sweetest kids i've ever met. My kids would never take a bottle, but i did get plenty of slack for not weaning at 1 year from the breast. What's with all these "deadlines" moms are given anyways? I would suggest just letting him keep his bottles and slowly phase them out. I doubt he will go to kindergarten with a bottle of milk in his lunch box.
Unless it truly is something you are starting to resent (cleaning them must be a pain in the butt), then you probably should just do cold turkey. Kids catch on too fast and it will be a dangerous snowball effect in his behavior if you cave in to a tantrum. My 25 month old started pitching a fit at nap time, so I let him skip a nap and for a whole week he tried to control every little thing in the house by throwing a tantrum. Just be firm and stand your ground
You need to stick to it! Seriously... he screamed and you caved. As a result he learned that if he throws a fit you will do what he wants- thus starting a cycle.
I would suggest putting the bottles away- really pack them up and put them in the attic. If he's thirsty, he needs to drink from a sippy. Have a couple of them around the house so he has access to them. My son didn't like the sippy cups that you had to tilt back b/c he would topple over (younger than your son when he transitioned), so we found some that had a straw and a leak-proof top. These were a huge hit!
I just went through this with my 14 month daughter. I CAN RELATE! What worked for us was cutting out the daytime bottles first. We did that for a couple weeks. I gave her the same amount of milk warmed up (slightly less and less until it was right out of the fridge) in a sippy at meals during the day.
Then we worked on the morning bottle. Then the night time one. For the morning and night ones I did the same with less and less warming while also decreasing the amount in the bottle until we were at 3 oz. Then I just switched her over to a sippy at those times. She ended up refusing the sippys unless it was at a meal so we are off milk feedings completely. Once she was off the morning feedings I have noticed she is famished when she wakes up so she gets a sippy of cold milk and food in her highchair immediately.
It took a couple weeks and steadfast commitment. I actually took over all feedings during this time b/c my husband was not as patient with the fussing as I was during that time.
Good luck!
Best way is to do what you did....its going to be worse now since you gave in, but its really the best way to do it.
My son was on bottles until 2 years (later due to medical issues). We started giving him sippy cups for any drinks that were not milk. He still got his bottle of milk in the morning and before bed. We also had to play with many different sippy cups. After 5 or 6 different ones he took right away to the old Playtex ones. Once he was on that schedule for a few weeks we started putting his morning milk into a sippy, no problems. Then we moved his bed time milk to a sippy. He did ask for a bottle once and I gave it to him and watched, he didn't even suck on it right and was chewing on it. So I gave him back the sippy and no balking and the bottles went away.
I know people are usually in this big hurry to get kids off a bottle, maybe for the ease of it I guess (not that sippys are easier) but I believe it is a comfort to them as the suckling action is meant to be and sometimes I think we take that away from them to early. My older son weaned himself at 14 mo, my little guy just wasn't ready yet and needed that comfort & security a little longer. Nothing wrong with it IMHO.
I was warming the milk up for my son in bottles. Once I started giving it to him cold, he stopped drinking it. He eats yogurt and tons of cheese, so I'm not worried about him missing anything. But that got him off of bottles immediately. That was 3 years ago (WOW!!)
Throw the bottles away and only offer the sippy cup. If he gets thirsty, he'll drink. He won't starve to death. Will he freak out? Yes. But if you remain consistent he'll be fine fairly soon.
The last thing you want to do is teach him that when he throws a tantrum you're going to give in and give him what he wants.
Question?? does your son run around with a bottle all day or is he getting it at certain times...Like mid morning, nap, mid afternoon , supper , bed.I have 5 kids and been a daycare provider for 18 years....I am big on schedules for kids......Try this......I would take away all bottles and substitute with a sippy except for before bedtime...(Nap, bed) when that works then take away nap, and last bedtime....I have found that the longer you wait the harder it is...My kids were all off of the bottle around 11 months...they make sippys with the soft spout similar to a bottle...Try a little snuggle time when you give them the sippy....It is hard not to give in especially when they are crying continuely, but the more you give in the harder it will get and the longer the fits will be...Stick to your guns...it is one of the hardest things to do with your child...but will be the most beneficial in the long run for you both! This is only the first of many battles! Good luck! I Remember when our mothers said "it is harder on me than you" boy that is the truth!
All the anxiety that you and your son are going through because of a bottle seems a little out of hand.
Why make your day and his any harder than it already is? Let him have the bottle....trust me...he will take himself off of it when he is ready.
Just because a pediatrician states a certain age is appropriate to take a bottle away doesn't mean the advice is gold - every child is different and every parent is different.
What's the harm with your son having his bottle? He enjoys it, it soothes him, and he is getting his nutrients by drinking his milk from a bottle.
Always offer a sippy cup - but if your child prefers a bottle....is it REALLY that big of a deal if he's on it for a few more months?
My son took himself off of his bottle. I didn't force him or fight with him. I just kept bringing out a bottle of milk along with a sippy cup of milk and eventually my kiddo transitioned over.
I say - avoid any more drama and give your kid his bottle and a sippy cup. You both will have a much easier day. Being a mom is hard enough without any added anxiety.
Also, check out the book "The Vital Touch" by Sharon Heller. Your local library should have a copy or you can grab one off of Amazon.com.
Best wishes.
Give him bottles of water, lots. It won't hurt him to drink a lot of water for a week. After 1 or 2 days without milk, put a sippy cup out with milk in it but dont encourage him to drink it just have it available, keep offering the bottles (with water) so he doesnt feel deprived of his bottles. If you give juice it should be in sippy cup. He'll get used to drinking milk from sippy cup and THEN you can take away bottles. No hurry.
