Dropping the bottle/switching to milk

[Texomamama]

DD2 just turned 1 year old on Monday, and is still taking three 6-7 oz bottles of formula per day.  I am about ready to make the transition to milk in the bottle (first) and then transition to sippy cup (second).  I hope to have this entire transition made within a month or so.

With DD1, this was really easy, but DD2 takes great comfort in her bottle and I think really identifies it as part of her routine, esp before her pm nap and bedtime.

I am trying to decide what would be better to tackle first-should I:

1). try to get rid of that midday bottle and replace it with a sippy of milk and a small snack?
2). just leave it at 3 bottles, but get all those bottles transitioned from formula to milk and then drop the midday one?

I am thinking doing both simultaneously may be too much of a change for her, but maybe I should consider that.  Thoughts?

[~Sara~]

Hello fellow Texan...hope you're safe from any of the wildfires!

Will she drink out of a sippy cup at all, like with her meals?  Or does she have a bottle with her meals?

[Texomamama]

Hi Sara,

She will drink out of a sippy.  She loves water.  I have started giving her milk as well.  She's not as fond of it, but will drink a bit.  She does not get bottles anywhere but in her bedroom, and I hold/control it at all times.  I probably have that working in my favor.

I am actually from Houston, but now live in Wichita Falls.  So far, in town, we have been spared any fires, though there has been lots of damage within an hour of us in any direction.  I am soooo over this summer.  Prior to this weekend, we had I think 94 days in a row of 100+ temps.

[~Sara~]

If she already drinks out of a sippy cup, I would just make sure that's what she gets for all meals.  Really, I don't think there's a right way or a wrong way to do this, but I think making the switch away from formula to milk is probably the first thing I would tackle.  Then, drop the bottles.

For us, we kept an AM and bedtime bottle for DS until he was about 18 months, just because he wouldn't drink milk out of a sippy cup.  He still doesn't drink plain milk and has only just now started drinking chocolate milk in the past month or so.  So, I say that just in case you find you LO doesn't like plain milk either: I'd go for her getting milk in a bottle vs. no milk at all, ya know?

And I agree, this summer can just go away.  Glad you're safe!

[Lemonthyme]

I transferred from breast milk to cow's milk in a sippy cup so you could argue it's no different to go from formula in a bottle to a sippy cup too; you could just go the whole hog in one go?  Personally I'd start with the lunchtime, then the morning then the bedtime last.  I was convinced it would be more effort than it was.  Don't get me wrong, it took longer for him to settle at bedtime but it didn't last.