What kind of cup do your kids use at night? We've used sippy cups in the past, but they are definitely too old for sippies. I tried straw cups (personally I use a straw cup at night), but that frustrates them. I don't really want to use regular cups that can be so easily spilled.
What have you found that works?
Thank you for the suggestions I'll have to take a closer look.
Canuck, I don't know what it's like to sleep the whole night without waking up. People really do that? Wow! That sounds nice. I really appreciate having my water to sip throughout the night. I don't usually drink more than a few ounces, but it is nice to have.
We don't allow eating and drinking in the bedrooms, so if she needs a sip of something she can either go to the bathroom or kitchen. She has never woken up at night and needed anything to drink that I know of.
And yes, some people do sleep through the night. I usually do.
What about a sports bottle? Something like this http://www.amazon.ca/Clean-Bottle-Cl-01-22-Ounces/dp/B003...
Do people really wake up and drink at night? We just go to sleep and sleep until we wake up in the morning. If I was drinking water at night I would have to get up and pee!
ETA: That's how we roll. Just sleep until we are done! I can't function any other way...
Regular cup. We have always used a regular cup (from 9 months or so, he learned at daycare). Skipped the sippies altogether. It's water so a spill would not be a crisis.
Just use a "travel coffee cup" or tumbler....the kind that adults would use for their coffee... but instead, you just put water in it for your kiddo. And it is often insulated.
Like even from Starbucks etc. And the opening you drink from, there is a sliding cover for the drink opening.
If your kids are able to, slide it closed and open it to drink from.
Here is an example:
http://reviews.starbucksstore.com/3514-en_us/011016379/st...
Or this:
http://www.amazon.com/Contigo-AutoSeal-Children-Proof-Tra...
For bedtime I would have no problem using a take and toss ( I washed them and re-used) type spillproof cup, if it meant I wouldn't have to get up and change sheets in the middle of the night because of a spill. In fact, that is what we did. It wasn't something the whole world saw, it was just a safe night time cup.
Our next step after that was the Klean Kanteen stainless sport-top bottle or just a plain old plastic water bottle.
None. If the kids want a sip of water at night, they go to the bathroom sink and drink directly from the faucet.
Out of habit, we keep water readily available at night. I keep a water bottle and I drink it all during the night.
When daughter ( now 19 and living on her own for college) was smaller we used the non spill sippy cup. For years, we've used a regular water bottle from the fridge. She had a set spot for it and we never had issues.
I don't know about other families but I know mine, including me, drink a lot of water during the night and it's nice to have safe access to it without having to get up out if the bed.
Best wishes
Sports water bottles of various kinds. They bring them to school too, so we have about 8 or so that we use all the time. There are a few that don't leak, which is lovely for backpacks.
When they asked (which was only sporadically) or when they were ill and I wanted to be sure they stayed hydrated, I just gave them a small plastic cup. 4 -6 oz. But I only filled it half full, or less.
I generally found that they only drank whatever they sipped before they fell asleep (when if they drank it all, they were awake and so was I, so they could ask for more). Once they fell asleep, they stayed asleep. The rest would still be there in the morning.
And as the others said, it's just water. A little spill on the sheet/blanket will dry, and a little spill on the rug will, too. I found my kids to be very careful, because they wanted the privilege of having the cup in there in the first place, and they didn't want to waste what they were allowed to have.
My son rarely asked for water. My daughter was the one who always wanted a cup on her night stand. She was between 4 and 8 when she seemed to "need" it the most (again, once she fell asleep, she never drank any more). She just liked knowing it was there.
I rarely wake up during the night. Once I'm out, I am out. Of course, I am perpetually sleep deprived, too, so that "helps". ;) About the only time I wake during the night is for noise (the dog barking at a deer in the yard, or if one of the kids gets sick and needs me), or if I am sick and my sinuses dry out, or are flowing and I need to blow my nose...which maybe happens once or twice a year.
So sorry that you do not sleep well.
They didn't. If they wanted a drink, they could get up and get one. But no one asked for a glass of water at night.
I recall once when I was little that I needed a glass of water. Once my head hits the pillow I am out until the morning. My husband wishes he could do that as it takes him a good 30 minutes or so to go to sleep.
Sorry I can't be much help on what kind of container or glass to use for night time drinking.
the other S.
When he was little? Sippy with a lid.
After that? Plastic cup on shelf near bed.
My kids never had a cup at night unless they were sick or something. Of course the bathroom was right there so it was easy enough for them to get up if they got thirsty for some reason.
But since yours have developed this habit I would just give them a sport top water bottle. Seems like that would be the least likely to spill.
Since it was only water, we just used a regular cup. Not big deal if it spilled a bit, our daughter knew to wipe it up. There was always a small dish cloth under it.
I like the idea of the water bottle.
We have to have cups with lids otherwise the cats drink out of them or they get knocked over. I do not want to deal with cleaning wet carpet every morning and no one wants to drink out of cups that the cats have been drinking out of.
We just recently got a bunch of Liberty Bottle Works reusable aluminum bottles. http://www.libertybottles.com/Liberty_Shop_Collections.asp We really like these a lot. You don't have to put the additional straw in it to use them if you don't want to. We have a few other style reusable water bottles that we use as well. I know we have some Britta filter water bottles, a couple styles of straw cups and we also use reusable coffee mug style cups.
Instead of looking at the kids cup section I would look at the reusable sports bottle section to see what you like there. They hold more than a sippy cup while protecting like sippy cups and are easier to use.
We use a funtainer thermos if she really needs water. Most of the time she goes to bed without a drink.
We just have a small plastic tumbler in the bathroom-- if he needs a drink, he can go in there for it. No water in the bedroom.
I guess we are in the minority... mine has a few sips before bedtime and is fine. I have a glass near my bed and will rarely drink from it at night, but it's there.
Walmart has a LOT of different styles in the areas by the curtains and housewares. I have "bottles" that screw closed and open so ice can be put in the drink and then it has a screw on lid like a pop bottle.
They also have cups with straws that don't come out easily and the lid screws in very tightly. Tumblers with straws.
http://www.walmart.com/search/search-ng.do?_rel=plastic+c...
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I have a red and a blue cup just like these and I got them at Walmart for around $6.
http://arewethereyetnogreat.blogspot.com/2011/05/my-favor...
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#4. Have one with a red lid and straw, one with a pink lid and straw too. At Walmart for about $7.
http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/product-reviews/research-...
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Have a bunch of these too. They don't drip when knocked over if they're not over filled. I think I paid $4.98 for them but they may have been on sale.
http://www.amazon.com/BPA-Free-Ounces-Acrylic-Tumbler-Dou...
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I think this type cup is the smart one. They can knock them over all they want and the cup doesn't spill much out at all. They often have grippers on the sides so they are easier to handle AND you can put some of them in the freezer and they keep the drinks even colder.
You know those plastic kid ups at restaurants with lids and a bendy straw? We kept some of those and use them at home. The cups are usually dishwasher safe and we handwash the lids. New straws, obviously.
Hi Z.,
mine is 12 and he's had a small "old fashion" glass tumbler about half full of water on his bedside table since about the age of 6. I honestly don't think he even uses it most of the time but his dad always keeps one on his bedside table and you know what they say about the proverbial apple not falling fall from that tree....I am so blessed. enjoy!! S.
My 3yo has a small regular cup of water that sits on her desk on the opposite wall from her bed.
I don't mind drinking, and sometimes need one myself... But I do try to discourage it for my Dd in hopes that she will get more in the habit of sleeping straight through the night. (Which she usually does...) BUT, I like to have water available for her in case she needs it. I put it further away so that she has to be thirsty enough to drag herself out of bed and go to her cup, and by the time she gets to it she is usually aware enough not to spill. As an added bonus, she usually takes the opportunity to go to the bathroom as well, instead of wetting the bed. :)
My kids typically don't have a cup in their rooms unless they are sick. We have a couple of different cups that have lids that seal and a straw. They aren't big--6-8 oz glasses. One of them I got for $3 in the dollar section at Target. The other came from Target too but it was about $8. They aren't spill proof, but the lid provides more protection than an open cup. You could also try travel mugs. Again, they aren't spill proof, but would be better than an open cup. Just be sure they are easy to open.
