weaning 16 mo old from bottle

[nathansmum]

Hi there!

I'm a little puzzled by my 16 mo-old's bottle situation and I don't know what is the best direction - if there is one or if anyone is as good as another... Maybe one of you girls (or guys cuz I know there are a few) can help ?

DS is 16 months old and loves (as in L-O-V-E-S) his bottle. He gets 4 bottles a day: 8oz with every meal and then 2oz after his bath. I know this might sound a lot for his age, but he still eats GREAT. It doesn't seem to cut back on is solid intake.

Now my question is: is this ok??? Should I be cutting back? When should he stop drinking from a bottle? (I've tried sippy cups, and have been for a LONG time now, yet he still prefers his bottle) What to do?

thanks for your input!

[Jaime]

hi!!

if his solids intake does not seem to be affected, i would not worry about him drinking all that milk.  it's probably a bit late for him to still have bottles, though, and i'd probably try & get rid of them.  i found the transition was much easier when i used those nuby sippy cups - they have a nice soft spout that's like the bottle nipple.

[newmaze]

Or, if he has a strong suck on his bottle, I would try a straw cup.  It make take a week or two, but Lo's seem to adjust well to them.  To start my daughter off, I would take a sip of it to get the liquid up high, and from there on it was much easier for her to sip.  That first sip can be tough at times.

[nathansmum]

Thanks for your replies! I will definitely give those 2 options a shot... He really LOVES to suck on his bottle, so we'll see how it goes.

Thanks again!