So we have a bit of a problem…sippy cups. Actually it’s not just sippy cups, it’s any type of drinking apparatus that is not a bottle. I have been trying to get Dylan off the bottle for 8 months and it is not going well. I have to admit I’m not always the most consistent, and I usually cave and give him the bottle eventually (I can’t let my little angel get dehydrated).
All the parenting advice I hear or read (which I often take with a grain of salt) say babies should be off the bottle at 12 months. The reasons are that it can be bad for their teeth and that they are drinking too many calories. I’ve limited Dylan’s milk intake to 15 ounces or less a day and he never gets milk before bed but he drinks water from the bottle as well. He won’t drink anything from any other cup and he needs water to survive!
This has really been stressing me out. I’ve literally lost sleep over it. I guess life is pretty good when one of your biggest problems is cups, but I still feel mom guilt and some embarrassment every time we’re out in public and Dylan is still sipping on his bottle.
I decided that this week I was going to amp up my efforts. After talking with my pediatrician, I decided that Dylan will no longer get milk in a bottle (since he is a good eater he actually doesn’t need milk for nutrition). He will still get water in a bottle at different times throughout the day just to make sure he’s staying hydrated. The idea is that if he wants that milk bad enough he’ll figure out how to use the cup (fyi he has not drank any milk in the past couple days and does not seem bothered by it). In addition I have three different types of cups available to him all day; this sippy cup that he seems to like the best, a straw cup, and the 360 trainer cup. I also offer him a regular cup throughout the day (which always causes a huge mess and he drinks very little from).
I’ll put milk, water, and even watered down juice (which he would never get in a bottle) in the different cups but I haven’t seen any improvement. We’ll see how this week goes with the milk but I’m not feeling optimistic. Any advice is much appreciated!
The Mama South 
Hi Rachel,
This is Char here. I live next door to Sandy and Stan. I met Dylan last year and fell in love with his infectious smile!
I want to tell you an experience I had as a mother. When my daughter Chris was a baby I went to put her to bed one night.
I discovered I had left her last pair of rubber pants (this was in the age of cloth diapers and rubber pantsâ¦I know itâs unbelievable)
At my motherâs house that day. I said to her âOh no! we left your rubber pants at Grandmaâs house so you will just have your diaper on
Tonightâ¦so donât wet the bed. She was dry in the morning and from then on. I thought to myself âwhy didnât I ask her this earlier!â
My advice to you is gather up ALL the bottles. Put them in a bag and put it in the pantry. Then tell Dylan âOh noâ¦mommy left all the
Bottles at Aunt Whoeverâs house!! We will just have to drink out of the sippy cups. When he is thirsty sit down with him and pour
The liquid into a cup for him and a cup for yourself and say âWe donât have any more bottles they are all gone!â
You might be surprised.
Char
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Hi Char, Thanks so much for the advice! Hope all is well xoxo
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so, did you ever solve your sippy cup problem??
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He’s a little better with the sippy cup but still gets a few bottles during the day. I decided not to stress too much about it!
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