getting 2-1/2 y/o off bottle

Hi,

Any tips on how to wean her? I've tried before, and nothing is working.

Thanks!

Theresa

In article Hkv_c.177$9P4.126@trndny02,
"downsized diva" wrote:

Hi,

Any tips on how to wean her? I've tried before, and nothing is working.

Thanks!

Theresa


First, tell us why it is important to get her off the bottle. That
makes a difference in the approach you use.

Also, how does she take her bottles? A child who is only allowed a
bottle while they are being held is weaned differently from one who
carries one around the house, or for whom it has become a comfort item.

Can she drink out of a cup or glass comfortably?

Does she take a bottle to bed?

Does she only take milk/formula in a bottle, or does she drink all of
her liquids that way?
--
Children won't care how much you know until they know how much you care

Well, my mom and others (though she's seeing the pediatrician next week)
keep telling me it's no good for her to stay with the bottle. She loves it,
and her teeth are fine.

I am concerned though, that her teeth won't continue to grow right if she
stays on the bottle. Yes, she does take one at naps and at night. But I do
brush her teeth at least 2x daily and make sure that she rinses. Like I said
her teeth are OK.

It's more of a "it's time" thing.

Theresa

"downsized diva" wrote in message
news:GJG%c.18486$Cr5.13137@trndny08...
Well, my mom and others (though she's seeing the pediatrician next week)
keep telling me it's no good for her to stay with the bottle. She loves
it,
and her teeth are fine.

I am concerned though, that her teeth won't continue to grow right if she
stays on the bottle. Yes, she does take one at naps and at night. But I do
brush her teeth at least 2x daily and make sure that she rinses. Like I
said
her teeth are OK.

It's more of a "it's time" thing.

My kids used to have a teenaged baby-sitter who used a bottle up until aged
nine. She told us about how she used to keep a bottle in the fridge, and
used to grab it and maybe things like juice boxes for her friends. This girl
is now a young woman in college, and seems to be just fine and
well-adjusted.


--
Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky
please substitute yahoo for mousepotato to reply
Home of the meditative cyclist:
http://home.earthlink.net/~cpetersky/Welcome.htm
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"downsized diva" wrote in message
news:GJG%c.18486$Cr5.13137@trndny08...
Well, my mom and others (though she's seeing the pediatrician next week)
keep telling me it's no good for her to stay with the bottle. She loves
it,
and her teeth are fine.

I am concerned though, that her teeth won't continue to grow right if she
stays on the bottle. Yes, she does take one at naps and at night. But I do
brush her teeth at least 2x daily and make sure that she rinses. Like I
said
her teeth are OK.

Definitely ask the pediatrician about it, if that hasn't already happened.

I'm afraid I don't have much experience with this, as my younger two were
breast fed. My older one had a pacifier she didn't want to give up, and
finally, I just took it away from her when she was about two or three years
old (this was over 20 years ago, so I don't remember the date too well).
Maybe that's why she was such a challenging teen-ager :\ Anyhow, I'm sure
if I asked her about it now, she wouldn't remember a thing, but at the time
she was really upset and freaked out for about a week or so. That was a
rough week. But eventually, she figured out that I wasn't going to give it
back, and within a few weeks she had forgotten all about it.

Maybe there's no time like the present to show her that there are some
decisions she doesn't get to make. To make cold turkey quitting work, you'd
have to really stick to your guns - don't give in even once, ever. On the
other hand, maybe she'll steal your car in the middle of the night when
she's seventeen if you do it this way.

Let us know what you come up with.

Best,
Ann

On Sun, 5 Sep 2004 07:12:11 EDT, "downsized diva"
wrote:

Any tips on how to wean her? I've tried before, and nothing is working.

We always found that transitioning habits like weaning and potty
training worked best on, or immediately following, a trip or vacation.
Since they were already out of their usual environment, and regular
routines were already disrupted, it was much easier to sneak in that
we'd forgotten/lost the bottle or the diapers and they'd have to do
without, and they took it in their stride. We always let them have the
bottle/diaper on the otuward trip though - making the change nearer
the time we were headed home.

My youngest finally weaned from the bottle (she was at least a year
older than yours) because she didn't like the taste of the milk in the
country we were visiting. She then didn't have any for the duration of
the two week vacation and when she asked for her bottle after we got
home, we just said we'd forgotten to bring it home.

--Lisa bell
Mom to Gabriella (6) and Michaela (4.5)

Theresa wrote:
I am concerned though, that her teeth won't continue to grow right if
she stays on the bottle. Yes, she does take one at naps and at
night. But I do brush her teeth at least 2x daily and make sure that
she rinses. Like I said her teeth are OK.

If you're giving her a bottle of milk (or juice) at naps and bedtime,
this is a really bad idea. If her teeth are fine now, you are lucky,
but you should still stop immediately. This is really not safe. In a
relatively short period of time, if she keeps the bottle and her sucking
habits change, she can suddenly have significant decay in many of her
teeth.

On the other hand, if you're giving her a bottle of water, this is no
big deal, and I don't think there's any reason to stop if she likes it
(notwithstanding whatever your mom thinks). The risk from the bottle is
that it promotes tooth decay if substances with sugar (like milk or
juice) are allowed to stand in her mouth. Water doesn't pose a risk.

If you do want to get rid of bottles altogether, the consensus of people
I've heard about this from is to just choose a day and get rid of all of
the bottles so they aren't in the house any more (or hide them where she
can't see them). Tell her in advance that she is grown up and the day
is coming, and maybe have a little ceremony when the time comes. At
first, she'll cry for her bottle, and just remind her that they are
gone, but offer her substitutes (whatever you think is appropriate---a
sippy cup with water, or a pacifier, etc.). In a day or two, she'll
adapt to the knowledge that they are gone.

-- David desJardins

"downsized diva" wrote:

Well, my mom and others (though she's seeing the pediatrician next week)
keep telling me it's no good for her to stay with the bottle. She loves it,
and her teeth are fine.

I am concerned though, that her teeth won't continue to grow right if she
stays on the bottle. Yes, she does take one at naps and at night. But I do
brush her teeth at least 2x daily and make sure that she rinses. Like I said
her teeth are OK.

It's more of a "it's time" thing.

If she's not got milk or juice in the bottle when she naps and at
night I would not worry about tooth formation and I would just stop
telling people that she takes a bottle to bed. I see no reason
whatever for her to give it up. After all I know some kids suck their
thumbs far longer than 2.5 and I don't think that has much to do with
tooth formation either. I did not suck my thumb and have a
significant overbite.

If she does, I still wouldn't worry about tooth growing right, I'd
worry about cavities and would wean her off the milk and/or juice to
just plain water in the bottle. At that point, she may want to give
it up on her own.

There are lots of people who are offended by toddlers having baby
habits, but I wouldn't pay too much attention to them. Why make a kid
miserable just because her mother's acquaintances and her grandmother
don't like her having a bottle?

(My mom went to great lengths to keep me from sucking my thumb, but
she didn't give me any grief when dd#1 did)

grandma Rosalie

"downsized diva" wrote in message news:Hkv_c.177$9P4.126@trndny02...
Hi,

Any tips on how to wean her? I've tried before, and nothing is working.

Thanks!

Theresa

I was thinking about a suggestion I saw in a magazine for getting rid
of pacifiers. Basically, the mom threw "a goodbye party" for the
pacifiers and they threw the pacifiers in the trash together. You
could do this with the bottles. Or if you know someone expecting a
baby, you can "suggest" to her that she "give" the bottles to the new
baby. You could help her make a card and maybe put them in a basket
with a ribbon or something. You don't actually have to GIVE them to
the new baby of course.

Jessica T

"Jessica" wrote in message
om...
"downsized diva" wrote in message
news:Hkv_c.177$9P4.126@trndny02...
Or if you know someone expecting a
baby, you can "suggest" to her that she "give" the bottles to the new
baby. You could help her make a card and maybe put them in a basket
with a ribbon or something. You don't actually have to GIVE them to
the new baby of course.

We did this by giving the bottles to a thrift shop when Rose was little.


--
Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky
please substitute yahoo for mousepotato to reply
Home of the meditative cyclist:
http://home.earthlink.net/~cpetersky/Welcome.htm
Personal page: http://www.geocities.com/cpetersky/
See the books I've set free at: http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky