Weaning 11 Mo Old off the Bottle

My son would drink everything out of his sippy cup except milk. I ended up getting him off of his bottle in stages. In the morning, he would wake up really hungry and thirsty, so it was easiest to give him the sippy cup with milk in the morning with his favorite breakfast. He would be more thirsty than mad about it not being in a bottle, I guess (hehe) It wasn't easy, but I was consistent in giving him the sippy of milk in the morning...After replacing his morning bottle with a sippy, I just took replaced the rest of the bottles one at a time until he was done with the bottle. I believe it took a couple of weeks. Good luck!!

Remember the intent of milk for all species is to provide sustanance until there is an ability to eat solids. Cows milk is really only for baby cows and there is great detriment in giving human babies milk intended for cows. It has alot of harmful bacteria loving mucus, is very acidic (contrary to human breast milk), and contains alot of chemicals which cause disease. You may want to check on the internet for information on calcium for your baby that is not from cows milk. It is also the most allergenic food other than peanut butter. Your child will be much healthier without it. It is so different from breast milk that many children inately shun it when it is given after weaning. They know! My children did not drink cows milk and had not one ear infection. It is amazing! They did drink almond milk at times, but mostly just water or fruit or veg juice. They are both very healthy today at ages 28 and 30. The calcium in cows milk is not well absorbed and the detriments far outweigh the benefits. There are many other forms of calcium that are healthier, such as broccoli, almonds, figs, etc.
B. S. RN CCM

J., Ruth Yaron, who wrote Super Baby Food, says that weaning should be done slowly and with lots of love.
I also am a full-time working mom. Your baby needs the breastmilk or formula until 12 months.
We started the weaning from the bottle after 12 months. I took away the mid-morning bottle first. It seemed to be the one that she wasn't taking time for. We replaced that with the Nuby soft spout cup ( as someone else meationed )
About a month later, took away the afternoon bottle and offered the cup.
My ultimate goal was 18 months, so after another couple of months, elimentated her early morning bottle and this one was the only one that she cried for but not until the fifth morning because I let her wake up on her own the other mornings because I had taken a couple days off of work to be with her and attend a library story time. I think because we get up so early and it was comfort when she was still half asleep. On the mornings that she slept late, offered a sippy of milk when she woke.
A few weeks before she hit 18 months, I just started reducing the amount that I put in her night bottle by an ounce per week. When we got down to about two ounces, she wasn't really interested anymore. Took that one away a week after the holidays, on a Friday night ( in case we didn't get any sleep) and cuddled her to sleep in the chair and put her in bed. Never had any trouble!
Maybe I drug it out too long, I'm not saying I'm right, but I didn't have a baby that screamed and got upset over not having her bottle. It worked for us.
My main point is that there is no time limit and no set date to have your baby off of the bottle. You know your baby best and you also know that the whole family needs sleep. My daughter has slept through the night in her own bed ever since the weaning.
Put the bottles away or throw them away after you take away the last one. Don't meation them or let your baby see any of them.
I wish you good luck, all told it took us six months, but all we had was time!
All we use now are the Playtex Insulator cups, but you may have to buy several kinds to see which one your baby prefers. I provide a sippy of water at all times.
T. S

I know this isn't exactly what you asked, but might help, too. If you do night bottles, she might have learned that sucking gets her to sleep. To teach her to fall asleep without the bottle, gently break the suction and hold her mouth closed at the chin when her sucking has slowed and she is drifting. She might start to move around, looking for it, but wait a second or two and see if she settles. If she doesn't, go ahead and put the bottle back into her mouth. After she has settled and is starting to drift again, start over. It might take several tries, but she will probably end up drifting off without it in her mouth. Even if she doesn't - if she starts to get upset, just give her the bottle and let her go to sleep with it - and even if this occurs, she is getting the idea that the bottle will be leaving her mouth but it's ok, she'll get it back *if she needs it*. This way, it doesn't turn into a fight and she doesn't freak out.

As you do this, introduce a lovey (or emphasize one she already uses) and/or other techniques for helping her to relax and drift. Back rubbing, music, etc.

After a few nights - maybe a week or so at the most, I imagine - she should be bottle-free at night!

(Oh, and the same goes with night wakings asking for a bottle. Let her have it, but remove when she's drifting off. Gradually remove it earlier and earlier, before she's drifting. Again, this is a gentle method for helping her learn that she can fall asleep without a bottle in her mouth.)

As for day-time, well, if you know anything about the advice I give, you already expect me to ask that you reconsider giving your daughter cow's milk. It's made for extremely fast-growing cows (yes, human babies grow quickly, too, but not *that* quickly), has too much "stuff" in it, as a result, causes congestion, and has been strongly linked to juvenile diabetes (the animal protein resembles human protein too much and the human immune system develops a response to both the cow milk proteins and the baby's own proteins in the digestive system - thus, juvenile diabetes). Also links to cancer.

Try a variety of milks: soy, rice, hemp, etc. Try them at room temp or slightly warm, like her formula. The shock of something cold in her bottle - especially in the wintertime! - is, itself, enough to make her want to reject it.

L.

We never used sippy cups, as they are linked to cavities in baby teeth where the liquid hits the back of the teeth. Also, they tend to keep the child sucking, instead of learning how to drink from a cup. (That being said, I do understand why parents use sippy cups, as we've had our share of spills!)

We waited to introduce a cup until our son was 12 months, and didn't introduce milk or juice until then, as breast milk or formula is best until then. After his 1st birthday, we gradually added cow milk to his formula until he was mostly drinking milk, and then started giving him a cup and no bottles at all, and he got the hang of it pretty quickly. We still hold handle-less cups to his mouth at the table, but he's now learned to use a two-handled cup (I really like the First Years disposable plastic cups, which are dishwasher safe).

Don't know if this helps you any, but it worked for us. :)

how funny I was expecting to see my name as the signature. My 14 month old does the same thing. Keep introducing her
Milk in the zippy and sooner or later shell be thirsty enough to drink it.

Like anything else new, it just takes time. Are you putting cow's milk or breastmilk/formula? If so, she might not like the new taste. Also, at 11 months old she should still be getting the breastmilk or formula. Give her a tiny bit of breastmilk/formula in her cup at every meal and try to have her take sips between spoonfuls. Then when she is done eating, try to get her to drink more. Also reduce juice to once a day and make sure you are diluting it with water.

Make sure she is still getting some breastmilk/formula in a bottle until she gets the hang of the cup. Breastmilk/formula still provides the majority of nutrition until a baby turns a year old.

Just be patient and she will get it. Good luck.

At about 9 months, we began to change from bottles at mealtimes to sippy cups. All of my kids resisted drinking milk or formula from them for awhile. But, eventually, they made the switch. Once they don't have an option for a bottle during the day, they will start taking it from the cup. For a little while, you might want to cut back on the juice so that she will be thirsty enough that she wants to drink the milk. And don't worry about how much she is getting - if she is eating well, she is likely getting all the nutrients she needs from her food. Just make sure she gets yogurt or cheese to fulfill her calcium requirement - at least until she makes the switch.

I had the exact same problem with my little guy. I found a Nuby Sipster that has a soft spout that resembles a cross between the spout on a sport water bottle and a nipple. He even resisted that the first couple of times, but like everything else, got the hang of it. I was relieved because I'd been trying to get him to drink milk from a cup for about a month. I have since gotten him switched over to regular sippy cups for all drinks. I would say that this is an excellent transition cup but probably not something to use for a very long time due to its resemblence of a bottle. Good luck--your diligence and patience will soon pay off!

My son did the same thing. He was about 8 and a half months when I decided he could handle the sippy cup full-time. You just have to be strong and stick by your decision. If she's able to drink the juice from the sippy cup, then she will drink the milk from it. You can't give in to the fit she will throw. Tell her she can have her sippy cup or she can't have anything to drink. It's been about 7 or 8 months since I took my son off the sippy cup and he doesn't even think about a bottle now. Just stick by your decisions. It's got to be black and white you know? The gray areas confuse them. You'll be able to handle it I'm sure. You are mommy!

J.,

My children may be different because they are boys. I had to just take away all the bottles and hide them. I had to do the same with a pacifier. They both had fit for a few days, but after that they were fine. You just have to make sure you get them all hidden. You could also try a cup with handles that has a nipple. That will give her time to adjust to the cup. Then simply get the same cup but with a soft sippy tip. It will be hard, but you little girl will be ok.

Good Luck,
M. H.

Here's my two cents, water down the milk in her bottle and she will learn the milk thats not water down is in the sippy cup. Both my kids pretty much gave up thier bottles at 11 months on thier own.

Just keep trying,she will do it on her own. Yes, she will with time and keep repeating. Make sure your day-care is using the sippy cup also, and holding off on the bottle.
Good Luck !

Hi J.,
Are you feeding her breastmilk or formula out of a cup or have you already switched her to whole milk? She needs to have formula or breastmilk until she is 12 mon. I know its only a month away but she needs all the nutrients from it. This is what I did with my 2 babies.. I breastfed for the first 6mon (I was working full time and had to stop breastfeeding b/c I wasn't producing enough milk). I weaned her to a bottle and mixed it with 3/4 of breastmilk and the rest with formula. Every week I would decrease my milk and increase the formula until she was strictly on formula. At 12 mon, I changed her formula to the toddler formula (its pretty new, I think it was for ages 12-24mon). I had her on that for 1 mon. then I slowely started weaning her off that onto whole milk in a sippy cup.. After she was drinking pure whole milk, I weaned her off the bottle and well... She is still not wanting to drink the milk from her cup, so I am still working on this issue myself. My pediatrician said to just keep trying to give her milk, I had asked if she needed some kind of supplement and he suggested a childrens multivitamin and give them lots of yogurt,cheese, cottage cheese, etc so that they will get some of the vitamins/nutrients they need..in place of milk. My daughter is almost 2 now, so your daughter is probably too young for vitamins. Good luck!!

I just weaned my 12 1/2 month old off the bottle and formula at the same time, cold turkey. She had been drinking water and diluted juice from a straw cup with a lid (Munchkin straw cups are awesome) already, so I just put away the bottles when I ran out of formula and offered her milk in the straw cup and she has had no problems! I've heard several people say how hard it is for theirs to drink milk from a sippy cup. Maybe it's the sippy cup? Maybe you should try a straw cup instead, that is what worked for me (mine would never take to a sippy cup so I went straight to the straw cup). Plus then you don't have to worry about trying to wean her from a sippy cup later on when she is older. Anyway, that's what worked for me. One more tip - I think since I waited til she seemed ready (not seeming to be as interested in the bottle) and also switching from formula at the same time so it was a little different-tasting beverage so she maybe wouldn't associate the milk taste with the bottle which I've heard can be a problem, it was more successful. Or maybe I just got lucky. But I don't think there is a huge hurry. I think the ideal time is anywhere between 12 months and 18 months, although some sites say around 2. So maybe it would be more successful if you waited a month or two? If she doesn't yet know how to drink from a straw cup, just take a straw, put it in a glass of juice or something she likes, put your finger over the top to hold the juice in, then lift out the straw and put it in her mouth and slowly let up on the pressure so she gets some of it. Then just put the straw in the cup and she should be able to do it right away. I started with a regular cup and bendy straw, then I bought the take & toss straw cups with lids, then I switched to Munchkin little grippers straw cups so she could hold them without leaking all over the place. I will also add that mine is drinking soy milk, not cow's milk (many people's systems reject cow's milk for a reason, see previous post from another mom), so maybe it is the taste of the soymilk she likes? I wouldn't know since I never tried cow's milk with her. Good luck.

let me know if something works! my son is now 2 and will only drink milk out of a "ba-ba". I've tried over and over to give it to him, warm, cold, chocolate, strawberry, soft sippy, hard sippy, and he just associates milk with a bottle. my daughter did the same thing but fortunately loved strawberry milk so drank it out of cup and never again drank white milk. but, my 2 yr old son refuses. So, I'm guessing, this is totally normal. I didn't start trying though, until about 18 months, since he is my 3rd and I'm not that worried about it this time. So, hopefully, since you're starting early, yours will get used to it faster. Good luck and let me know if anything works, because I think I'll be making warm white milk in a bottle the rest of my life! LOL!

I ran into the exact same problem! What I did was offer her sippy cup with milk when she'd usually get a bottle. She wouldn't drink much for several days, but she slowly started taking more and more. All in all I don't think she's a big milk drinker so I just make sure she gets plenty of high calcium foods and offer her 2 cups of milk per day. Sometimes she drinks it all and sometimes she doesn't. I think that once you take away the bottle they resist it at first but eventually give into their thirst and take the fluids where ever they can get it!! Good luck