Switching to Solids

Just before my daughters first birthday I started introducing whole milk. I would split the formula and milk in a bottle. I only gave her a bottle first thing in the morning and last one at night before bed. When the formula was gone I stopped buying it. During this time, at meals she would only get milk. She had no problem at all. Within a week or so after her birthday I stopped the bottle completely. Sippy cup only and she never looked back! Good luck.

Hi T....U got a couple of responses already...What I did was started spliting formula and whole milk. I would give my boys half formula and half milk in a sippy cup and then at nap time or bedtime they would get the samething just in a bottle and then soon the bottle would go away. About a week or so later I would change to just whole milk with vitman drops for infants/toddlers in the milk just to make sure they where getting the vitmens they needed. And also a good way to get rid of the bottle is tell your daughter that other babies need them now and have her but all her bottles in a bag and really explain to her that she will no longer get her bottles at bedtime now because she will be giving them to new babies. And then when she isnt looking or is playing take them to your outside trash when daddy gets home or when someone else is there to watch her...Good Luck...

Well just because she has a birthday doesn't mean that her nutritional needs magically change overnight. Nor will her tastes! I would not cut out the formula until she is drinking some amount of whole cow milk. And I would not give her any until 12 months of age. You can start introducing it in a cup when she's at the table, and a sippy if she's walking around or you don't have time to monitor the cup. I would start phasing out the formula as you phase in the milk. If she's eating lots of table foods then just keep feeding her whatever you're eating whenever she's hungry. Ideally she will be drinking 16-20 oz of milk a day - some of that could be in the form of yogurt, cheese, etc. My daughter is 17 months now and probably gets 1-2 cups of milk per day, plus some cheese and yogurt. She has transitioned away from her bottle (just as of this week) and will take her milk in a sippy. She eats 3 meals per day plus snacks in the AM and PM. I generally offer her water to drink between meals, milk during meals and in the evening before she goes to bed. As for nutrients, yes I think for the most part eating a variety of foods will take care of her. If you are concerned ask your doctor.

At age 1 we threw out the bottles and went straight to sippy cups with milk - it was never a problem for our kid, however we had been introducing the sippy cups for a few weeks along with the bottle.

As far as 'needing' to get all the colors in the rainbow? I don't think that's absolutely necessary but it is a good idea. In doing so, depending on what you feed, your daughter does receive a wide variety of vitamins and minerals (please do not include junk food in colors...typically this refers to vegetables and fruits) not to mention you introduce her to a wide variety of food items and hopefully have someone who has an accepting, expanding palate. You don't have to do the rainbow thing on a daily basis; over the course of a week is just fine.

Right now, and this is just my opinion, make meals fun and pleasurable. Enjoy healthy eating together as opposed to pushing and forcing, begging and pleading, because the last thing you want to do is make mealtimes and eating stressful. Offer her loads of variety but don't worry if she turns her nose up at things. Keep offering and follow her lead. And, it also helps if you eat the food too - kids like to imitate and please that young, so be a good model!

You can try going straight to milk, but usually it's best to mix the formula and milk to get them used to it. Our ped. advised us to do away with the bottle at a year or it would be really difficult as the kids got older. We started putting her milk in a sippy and water in her bottle which she didn't care for (even stopped her from waking in the night for a bottle). We all need to eat in "rainbow" colors to stay healthy!

Hi T.,

I highly (highly) recommend the book Child of Mine by Ellyn Satter (http://www.amazon.com/Child-Mine-Feeding-Love-Sense/dp/09.... I consulted it almost daily when I was switching my son to solids. And, the nice thing is, it takes you through all different feeding stages, into the school years, so you can feel good about the nutritional choices you are making for your daughter.

Good luck to you!

T.