Weaning toddler from the bottle = good times…good times…
Posted on 12/16/2009 08:26 am by kagranju
C has been a little under the weather the past 3-4 days. Because she was throwing up, we decided that she could not have her beloved “milk boppies.” Only “water boppies.” And since we made that tough call, we decided to run with it, meaning that we are now in the process of actively weaning 29 month old C from the many, many, many bottles of cow’s milk that she has continued to drink – day and night – up until now.
Suffice it to say that she is NOT a happy camper. Have you ever seen a crack addict in the throes of withdrawal? Yeah, imagine something like that…only imagine that the addict is a toddler who deals with her discomfort and displeasure over being denied her favorite substance by throwing herself on the floor and screaming, or by whining for hours on end….
Big sis has been very sweet about helping C feel better and also in distracting her from the now-absent milk in her boppies.
12/16/2009 at 8:41 am
Aw, poor C. I vividly recall my daughter’s ‘withdrawal’ too — oddly, she *never* drank milk again (she’s almost 7 now). Apparently, it tastes better in a bottle! Similarly, she wouldn’t drink anything else *from* a bottle — she found it highly offensive that we would try to put water in a bottle!
12/16/2009 at 9:20 am
What about vanilla flavored rice milk? My son liked bottles of that at the same age. I love that she has her big sister to hang with her right now, so sweet!
12/16/2009 at 9:28 am
What a good sis J is.
12/16/2009 at 10:18 am
Katie – your dad got so irritated with me (and a neighbor) for continuing to allow Robert to have bottles when he was 2+ that he cut the nipples off of all of them one day. I was furious, but he was right that it was time to end the habit, although that wasn’t the best way to do it. Robert was like Charlotte – he wanted a “bah bah” constantly. For a while he would sip milk from a bottle with no nipple. He used it like a cup, but finally kicked that habit too.
12/16/2009 at 10:25 am
My m-i-l would put juice in a shot glass to introduce her young children to drinking from a glass. (As per doctor’s suggestion.)She says it works. As does letting the child sit on the potty after meals, just to get used to the potty long before beginning to potty-train.
12/16/2009 at 10:44 am
Good luck! I think the water in the bottle is the way to go. I had great success getting Rainbow to quit with the nighttime feedings this way. He was really baffled and irritated with the water instead of the formula, but it only took a couple of nights to stop him from waking every three or four hours and wanting some bottle. I think it’s much gentler and more intuitive (for them – like, they just won’t want it anymore after a while) than cold turkey. Poor sweetie, though – I’m sorry she’s having to go through any withdrawal at all.
12/16/2009 at 2:20 pm
I remember reading a certain book by a certain author about weaning off the bottle. It said something about how the child becomes emotionally attached to that particular item. It also talks about how not to be an a$$hole about it. My son weaned on his own at 3 off his bottle, in his own time.
12/16/2009 at 2:56 pm
We’re not being assholes about it. I am obviously exaggerating her response for comic effect, although she would certainly prefer to keep guzzling down a half a gallon of milk every 24 hours. She’s getting plenty of cuddles, as many bottles as she wants (with water, not milk), she sleeps with us every night, and she’s just fine. I also weaned my daughter J from the breast at night when she was 18 -20 months old because all factors balanced, that was the right decision for our family. Same thing here – there are major considerations about her wellbeing that led us to the decision that the enormous consumption of cow’s milk that she was sucking down every 24 hours was not in her best health interest, and was becoming extremely burdensome. You can read more about our decision to wean her off of cow’s milk in her bottles here -> http://tinyurl.com/y9jecbg In no way, am I suggesting that other people’s choices regarding how long their kids’ enjoyed bottles are wrong. – Certain Author
12/18/2009 at 6:06 am
Hey Katie – Just wanted to say HELLO!
I was reading this entry and thought I might offer something that worked for my daughter. Who, like C, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED her “bah, bah” – Her first word at 5 months! When I first tried to wean her she just stopped drinking milk all together, which led to lots of constipation and a super grumpy baby. My mom suggested I try the Gerber, NUK Learner Cup, by then I had tried all different kinds so I was sceptical, but this little jewel did the trick instantly. It has a softer spout and handles. It is sold at Target, WalMart. YOu can see a picture of it on Gerber.com
Might be worth a try…Have a Merry Christmas!