Weaning from bottle and formula to cup with milk

[Chloevalentine]

I forget how I did this with my oldest lol. Is it better to mix 1/2 formula 1/2 milk in the beginning? I plan on offering half and half tomorrow morning in a sippy cup while sitting with me and before bed same thing. As of now I still hold him like a baby in the rocker before bed with his bottle. I'm feeling kind of melencholy to give up the bottles

[creations]

Just from my own experience I found it better to switch one milk and leave the other alone for a while because otherwise my DS's milk intake would have dropped too much and also he would have screamed his head off in the morning.
BT milk was an easy switch at 12 months, I did small solids supper with cup of cows milk before bath time then over a period of about a week offered less and less for the BT bottle and took a bottle of water up to bed instead in case he needed a sip.  His milk intake dropped a lot as he'd take a much smaller amount with the sippy cup.  We still had lovely BT cuddles just without the bottle there.
Morning milk was a different matter. He would have thrown a fit without the large amount of milk and easy to drink.  I did this one more gradually over a month and the bottle was gone at 13 months. Began by sitting upright on me for bottle, and I opened up the teat so it was more drinking than sucking.  Tried many times to switch to a straw (in a bottle/cup) instead of bottle with teat, took several tries before he agreed.  We continued with a large morning milk on my knee, sat up, using straw for a long time.

I did not mix formula and cows milk because my DS just took the cows milk, he wasn't bothered at all by the switch.

[Chloevalentine]

 I did half formula half milk in his bottle last night and this morning he seems to be OK with the milk is he drank it all now I guess I just need to switch to the cup which I think might be more of a struggle than the actual milk. The morning might be easier to switch to the cup as he really doesn't want to lay in my lap he's ready to go but nighttime he likes to lay in my lap on the rocker so not sure if the idea of the cup with be as "relaxing" if you know what I mean.

[Lindsay27]

I'm feeling kind of melencholy to give up the bottles

Just wanted to mention that my DD still has a morning bottle and before bed bottle of formula, and she drinks whole milk during the day/with meals from a cup - she's 19 months.  There is really no need to rush it if you don't feel ready, if I remember correctly he is just 1yr or not even?  My doctor just said to wean the bottle by 2yrs.  My DS weaned himself off the bottle at 15ish months.

[Chloevalentine]

My dr said start now and to be done by 15 months! I'm going to try the morning bottle switching to cup first and give some time for night bottle switching. I'm still doing half formula half milk and he really likes it and I'm almost out of formula so I'll probably switch to milk soon.

[Chloevalentine]

He's enjoying the milk no more formula which is good.  When I try to give him the milk in a sippy  cup in the morning He got very angry and threw it and cried lol.  I thought he would be OK with it I was wrong!ha  so we are back to the bottles.  I guess I'll try again in another few weeks.  It's funny because he takes the sippy cup all day no problem

[Chloevalentine]

So here we are a little over 13 months and the past few days I tried the sippy cup in morning. Yesterday he didn't want it at all but his brother was up and was a distraction. Today he cried and screamed and was just agitated when I tried to give him the cup. My older lo never did this. I'm so surprised and shocked that he was so vocal about wanting the bottle. What am I to do?

[Lindsay27]

I honestly don't think you need to get rid of the bottle yet if he's not ready to.  It is a gradual weaning process for a lot of LOs, some can do it cold turkey but many can't.  My DD still takes a night time bottle and she's 20-months, we give it to her while we do stories and then brush teeth.  I think doctors mostly just don't want them to fall asleep with it, and don't want them sucking on it all day.  But if he just takes a bottle and then he's done I really don't see the rush.

[Lolly]

You have 2 options I think,  keep the bottle for a while or just ride out the protest and he will adapt in a couple of days.  There's no other way really!

Make a decision and stick to it though, there is no point in putting him through upset and then caving and giving the bottle back.

Good luck!

Laura

[Chloevalentine]

You are right! My older lo was so easy I guess. He would happily drink his milk out of a sippy in my lap Morning and at night. I was just so suprised how upset and angry this lo was! I've read that past 15 months that's when it really gets hard to take bottles away. I guess it's harder to break the habit. I guess I'll just ride it out give him some more time.

[Chloevalentine]

He's only 13.5 months but I feel like the dr is really pushing for no bottles by 15 months and I've read that by 15 months + it gets harder to wean them. My first lo gave them up no problem. He would just sit with me and drink his milk from his sippy cup. Not this guy he freaks out if I try that. Im wondering if instead of trying to offer it to him in a cup while sitting with me being that it's an obvious replacement if I try to just feed him breakfast when he wakes instead. Getting him into the highchair with his cup of milk and food. Although not sure having breakfast as soon as he wakes is a great idea for him or me. But the distraction might work well. I've also been making the bottles smaller. From 9 oz now I just offer 5-6. Any other tips?

[Chloevalentine]

Any other weaning tips? He currently has about 5 oz in bottle when he wakes around 7 then breakfast about 30 mins after then a snack around 10 then lunch at 1130 nap from 12-2 snack around 230 dinner he's always hungry early around 4/430 even though I try to push it later to eat with the rest of the family but no luck then he was having 9 oz at night before bed I've reduced it to about 6-7 oz. he drinks fine out of sippy cup but has no interest in having his milk in it in the morning lol. Will he just wean himself meaning will he stop "demanding" the bottle and maybe just have his breakfast instead? I'm really trying to drop that morning bottled first and then work on the night one. I'm afraid he will get worked up and upset if I try to offer it in a cup at bedtime like he did with the Morning bottle.

[creations]

My DS didn't bat an eye when I dropped the BT bottle but kicked up a huge fuss when I tried to change the WU bottle.
If it was me I'd just try it that way instead.  I did a snack/supper (so another snack later than dinner) of solids with a sippy of milk before bath time and then offered water instead of milk at BT.  For the first few days I gave the supper and then after bath and just before BT I offered a smaller amount of milk in bottle, reducing each night. It was only about a week.  He was very happy.

The morning bottle though I continued another month and kept trying. He wouldn't take milk in a sippy cup in the morning but did switch to a bottle/cup with a straw in it instead of sucking from the teat.

[Chloevalentine]

Ok so keep reducing the night milk in bottle for how long ? And then one night when you are down to just a few oz make the switch to sippy cup with milk? I don't think he'll want to sit in rocker with a cup of milk  lol. Trying to think of how else to change the routine. Since we do bath then pjs then sit in the rocker together with bottle then into crib. Just trying to picture what a new routine might look like if he doesn't want that sippy of milk and starts to get upset. Then I'll have to try to calm him before putting him into crib. As of now he finishes bottle goes right into crib and falls asleep quickly. My older one would just sit in rocker with his cup of milk instead and we would read a book and into crib but this lo has no interest in books so I don't have that to use for distraction.
As far as Morning. We tried again this morning to come downstairs and just sit with a show with his brother but he was so upset looking for that bottle. I only put 5 oz in it and he didn't even finish it but I guess it's just the idea of it yk. He also wasn't interested in the cup or going right to his highchair for solids. Do I just keep at it and try with the cup in the morning too? We only use the ones with the straw.

[Chloevalentine]

So is it typical for baby to just lose interest in the bottle or do I have to just one day not offer it anymore ? We are down to two bottles Morning and night only about 5 oz each but he still looks for them and cries if I i try to not offer it. He's just 14 months