Changing to Milk

Hi A.~
My guy didn't like milk at first. It took a lot of tries but now I have to limit how much he drinks or he would drink it all day. Have you tried rice milk or soy milk? They are a little sweeter and my son liked them both better than cow's milk. I finally started giving my son a supplement+calcium just to set my mind at ease. Now he is a milk-lover...it just took longer.
Good luck!
~L.

My daughter didn't really care for milk at first either. So I tried mixing formula with the milk and that didn't really make much of a difference. The key to it for us was warming up the milk. After I tried that she didn't mind it so much. My daughter stopped using a bottle in one days time. I was afraid she would cry and be upset, but she didn't even care. I tried the hard top sippy cup during the day and the soft top at night.
Things will get better- hang in there.

Hi A.,
If she doesn't like milk don't worry about it. Just make sure she is getting her calcium somewhere else. Neither one of my boys like milk. Every couple of weeks I try and give them some just so they keep tasting it. I have an 18 month old son that when he turned one we took the bottle away. We went cold turkey and he didn't even seem to care. I also have an almost 4 year old that we took his bottle away at about 18 months. It was harder at that age because he was older and he knew what was missing. At one it's seemed that he knew something was missing but he couldn't figure out what. Good luck.
chris

Hi A.,

When we weaned our daughter off of formula we mixed it in with her formula. We started with giving her 6 oz bottles (4 oz formula, 2 oz milk). And every week I would decrease the amount of formula and increase the amount of milk. I would also heat the milk/formula mix to the same temperature she was used to drinking. When she turned one we just packed the bottles away and did the sippy cup thing. We continued to heat the milk and then once she was drinking it without any formula added, we started decreasing the temperature of the milk until she would just drinking it cold. Now she loves it! (she really didn't care for it in the beginning)

Just remember, there is plenty of time and you don't have to rush her. Just take it slow and do things gradually, and she will get the hang of it.

Oh, and foods that my daughter loved at that age (and still) are toast, pasta, steamed carrots, corn, peas, bananas, peaches, pears, applesauce, grilled cheese sandwiches, pizza, cheese... I would give her pieces of chicken or whatever kind of meat we were eating, she still doesn't really eat it, but I figure one of these days she might try it and like it. LOL Basically, at meal times, whatever we are eating is the same thing she is eating.

Good Luck!

A.,

My daughter didn't like milk when I gave it to her either. She preferred her formula. I started giving it to her in a sippy cup, I bought her the formula that goes from 9 months to 24 months. She was on that until she was 14 months old and is now drinking milk all the time (at 16 months old). I think it just took her longer to get a taste for it and we wanted to make sure she got enough nutrients that's why we continued the formula. I also noticed that if I put milk in a straw sippy cup, she'd drink more of it than out of a sippy that you turn up. Not sure why that was but whatever works!

Good luck, J.

Hello, I have raised 4 so far 2 that can drink milk and two that can't my son would drink it all day if I let him. All of mine were given sippy's at 6 months about 9 months milk in the sippy cold I never warmed up milk. The best advise I can give you is what I have learned with my two oldest and applied to the two youngest and it worked. From the time they were about 10 months on bottles were only for nap or bed I never allowed them to walk around the house with them. If they were thirsty they got their cup not with formula but with juice or kool-aid yes I know bad, bad but I am an old fashioned mom and all mine have turned out ok so far lol, and they also were so much easier to bottle break my son at 13 months and my youngest around the same time. With the food I always gave mine what I ate for dinner even before they had teeth if it was soft they ate it. She will adjust it just may take time stick to your guns and she will come around good luck.

Chistina

Hello, I have a 20 month old little girl. When she turned one I took all the bottles and put them away and she hasn't had one since. She didn't fuss or cry at all. I started her on the soft top sippy cups and then switched to the hard sippys when she started chewing on the soft ones. Now she really likes the insulator sippy cups, they have pretty designs on them. As far as the not liking milk, I dont know. She's liked milk since the first time I gav it to her. I would try the rice or soy milk like the other mom suggested. I just wouldn't try any chocolate or strawberry milk because then your little one might not ever drink white milk again. Good luck. Hope this helps.

We used the supplemental (9-24month formula) as well until about 20 months. Our son was in a lower weight percentile and we wanted to make sure since he was still picky about grownup food he was getting his recommended daily nutritional needs met. The other thing we did was add a teensy bit of Strawberry Quick powder or you can use Instant breakfast powder. He loved that. It's a little bit of sugar but not enough to hurt him and it also has vitamins and calcium in it. Cheaper than Pedisure and just as good.
He has been to the dentist numerous times for cleanings and his teeth are in great shape so no problems there either.
Good luck!
C.

I would just keep offering her milk along with some other foods with calcium. None of my 4 children were on formula much past about 2 months of age. It has to high a fat content and it did not agree with nor satisfy them. I put my babies on 2% milk with a spoonful of dark Karo syrup. All of them were getting rice cereal mixed in their bedtime bottle at about 6 weeks. We all slept MUCH better! As soon as they could sit in a high chair they were offered sippy cups and a bottle only at bedtime. They ate what we ate as I made my own baby food with my blender. just don't season it to much. My boys are now 6'2 & 6'3 and NONE had any food allergies or problems that way. Some of the grandchildren that were kept on formula have had some food allergy problems. Just don't "add" too many foods at one time & keep it simple.