My almost 18-month-old twins are still on the bottle. They have three per day and other than that drink water out of a sippy cup. When I offer them milk in a sippy, they shake their heads furiously and shout "Bot bot bot!" in unison and point to where I keep the bottles. I decided I wasn't going to fret and I'd try again in a month or so. Until this conversation:My mother to my sister: Are the girls still on the bottle?
My 5-year-old niece interjects: I HOPE NOT! Mom, are we going to do that to our new baby?
So, you see, when a five-year-old is horrified that her cousins are still on the bottle and worried her mother will treat their new baby as neglectfully, perhaps it's time to take a stance. We are going there to visit in a couple of weeks and I feel the need to prove to my niece that I am an adequate mother who does not keep babies on the bottle well past the pediatrician's recommended time frame. Either that or I plan on bringing a bunch of tabloid pictures of Suri Cruise and explain that it is very chic to be on the bottle at this age and she should be so lucky if her mother treats their new baby accordingly.
Suri, as evidenced in this photo, was two years old and still drinking a bottle. That gives me a good six months. And I'm assuming the Cruise's can hire an Executive Nanny Solely in Charge of Getting Suri Off the Bottle. So what are we commoners to do? (At least I don't let them go out in public with it. Sniff!)
Yes, I've tried a few different types of sippy cups. They are not fooled into thinking they are some kind of new-fangled bottle. "Bot bot bot ... WAAAAAAAAAA!!!!" (Picture LuLu and Moxley's mom cowering in a corner with hands over her ears reaching for Xanax and filling baby bottles feverishly with warm milk.) My tolerance for screaming and whining is somewhat lower than the average person. Heeeellllllppppp!
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My three and a half year old is still using a pacifier! That's right, I said it. AND she was on the "baba" till she was 2. The dentist scolds me every time (read: 2 times) we go in. But I say screw 'em all! They are only babies for a short time. Let 'em enjoy their little comforts. After all, we get comfort from a bottle too!
ReplyDeleteBTW, I fixed my comment section...thanks for the heads up. Although, I don't exactly get a lot of traffic!
my daughter was on the bottle until 18 months. It's funny looking back how important and stessed out about it I was at the time. I don't know though, I never forced the milk on her after that. She was always into yogurt and cheese so I figured she probably got enough calcium from that. Also, the pediatrician will probably give you a vitamin supplement.
ReplyDeleteShe drinks milk now out of a regular cup. Oh, and those little horizon box milks will get any kid to drink milk.
My oldest son was still using a bottle (twice, sometimes three times a day) until he was 2. I was deeply shamed that he was still using it and was sure that the entire world was talking about it. (And he used a pacifier until he was 4; my 3-year-old still has his.)
ReplyDeleteFinally, after our second child was born, I just announced one day that the "white cups" as he called them were all gone. I had tried for months to reason with my 2-year-old and finally just had to announce they were gone. Then my second one never accepted a bottle but is pathologically attached to his pacifier, and my 13-month-old thinks I am a pacifier.
Good luck!
my twin nieces just turned 3 and still have a bottle....ick
ReplyDeleteDon't worry. It's really all a plot to make kids grow up faster.
ReplyDeleteActually, according to one study* married parents have their babies on bottles longer. So if you dump your husband as revenge for poor Chuck, the problem should take care of itself.
*Study looks like it was down by a High School kid who found a calculator.
The only way I could get my little one to drink milk was in a cup with a straw. He would drink water out of a sippy cup but not milk. It's worth a shot.
ReplyDelete