When to stop bottle feeding

[browneyes]

My dd was around 11 months when she stopped taking the bottle. I went back to work when she was 10 months old and up until that time, she depended on me to hold her while she took her bottle. When she went to daycare, they put her in a high chair and had her give herself the bottle. She didn't like that, so she'd throw many, many tantrums. That's not all she threw. She broke many of her bottles that way. She decided she didn't want the bottle much after that. The pacy was a different story though.

My ds stopped taking his bottle when he was almost a year old. He did not like going without it though. He didn't like pacifiers, and he would hold his platex nurser like it was a pacy sometimes (no hands). He started using sippy cups and that helped.

Neither one of my kids really went through the "withdrawal" some babies go through when they give up their bottle. With my ds, maybe 1 night of not much sleep.


Happy late birthday to your baby girl.

 

[becka]

We are going through this right now. Our pediatrician has recommended that we cut out the bottles by the time DS is 1 and he needs to be off the bottle to move to the 1 y/o room at daycare.

I have been working with DS on the sippy cup thing on and off for about two months and I am not having any luck. He is down to one full bottle when he gets up, about 3/4 bottle before he goes to bed and about 1/2 bottle in the early afternoon. He eats table food wonderfully and has been for 3 months.

Our problem has been that DS just does not want a cup. He will play with it and very, very occassionally will try to drink from it but he does not drink enough to cut out the bottles. Now everytime you give him a cup he just throws it in the floor. For a while I thought he just didn't like what I was giving him to drink so I kept trying different juices, water, milk, etc. and that did not work. Then I thought that he may think the flow is too slow so I removed the valves and that has not helped him do anything except make a bigger mess when he throws it in the floor.

I know he will eventually catch on but I would LOVE to get rid of bottles soon because it will become an issue at daycare sooner rather than later. He know what to do with the cup but he is just stubborn (I can't imagine were he got that trait... I think it was DH ).

I am also concerned about how to get rid of the bottle first thing in the morning. He gets up at 6 AM now so DH and him can be out the door by 6:30. This gives him just enough time for a bottle, get dressed and a little playtime before they have to leave. He then eats breakfast at daycare around 7:30-8:00. Once we cut out that bottle I am thinking he will probably want to eat once he gets up and before daycare. I can't see him being happy with just a cup of milk until 8 every morning. It takes at least 30 minutes minimum for him to eat so if we start feeding him breakfast when he wakes up the poor kid will have to wake up 1/2 earlier at 5:30! That just seems too early. Has anyone else had a problem like this?

 

[Minnie824]

Do it as soon as possible! I know when I have another I am starting sippy cups and replacing bottles early. My DD is 18 months and will not part with her bottle. She wants about 5 a day - small ones though and now that she knows how to say 'baba' its getting worse. She has sippy cups for water no problem, and doesn't drink juice. I've tried every type of cup and straw/cup for the milk with no success. She doesn't have pacifier or anything either. The only think left to do is to just take them away, and I hate to do that....I've even tried it briefly which ended up with her hysterical. I've tried putting milk in the cup with dinner along with her water too...even drinking out of my cup. Nope. Good luck!