2.7 Year Old Still Has a Bedtime Bottle

We still give my almost two-year-old milk at bedtime, but we recently switched to a sippy with a straw. Maybe you could try that? She still seems to get the same comfort from it (in fact, calls it her bottle). We also brush her teeth after her milk.

She won't have it in college. So let her have it. Who cares. People have so many dumb opinions on this type of stuff based on NOTHING. If she's not sucking on bottles all day long to the point of tooth rot, and she's eating well and growing well let it be. Don't force her to give it up!

In my family we tend to ditch all bottles and pacifiers definitely by 2 years old. Yes the kids do have melt downs when this transition happens but we either give them a blanket to cuddle with or a stuffed animal and help them work through their angst.

As a human being stress will happen, we all must learn how to deal with ourselves when we experience stress. It starts now with the teaching and training.

If she is falling asleep with the milk in her mouth, that is what will cause tooth decay. Bacteria eats at the left overs in her mouth.

We all had to give up the bottle and seriously very few of us if any are traumatized for a lifetime by it in my opinion. I don't even remember giving it up or how I felt about it. Can you remember when you had to give up your bottle?

I hope this helps and good luck to you because it is a process.

I think you gotta toss the bottles. Yes, your sleep will be disrupted for a few days, but she'll get over it fast. The longer you wait, the harder it's going to be. All of your concerns are good concerns... milk is acidic, and sitting on her teeth all night after she falls asleep... can erode her teeth. Also, drinking while laying down can cause ear infections, fluid in the ears, etc.

Just get rid of it, grin & bear it for a few days, and everyone will be fine!

What in the world is a 2.7 year old? I've never seen that before. I've seen 2, 2.5, and 3, but I've not seen 2.7.

I think she is WAY too old for a bottle. My youngest was on bottles and he also liked a warm bottle of milk. We took his bottles away around 14-15 months (only let it go until then because we moved when he was 13 months and didnt want to make too many changes at once). He stopped drinking milk, but he eats cheese, yogurt, and other forms of dairy...I would definitely get her off ot it.

She is 2 1/2. Get rid of the bottle starting tomorrow night. It is a weekend so it will not be as hard, if it disrupts some of the sleep..

Start talking about it today. "You are such a big girl. I like how you eat like a big girl with your fork."

"You are a big girl., I like how you sit in your car seat."

" You are a big girl, I like how you put on your own shoes.. "

"You are a big girl, I like how you are a big helper. "

"Big girls do not use bottles, they use big girl cups."

Then tomorrow THROW all bottle stuff away into the outdoor trash can so they are all gone.

If your daughter looks all through the house, there will not be any bottles.. ,

As the other moms suggested, give her a cup of milk before bed and brush her teeth.

Sure she could be a little upset, she may be a lot upset, but you can be strong.

I lead up to our daughter only using sippy cups once she turned 1. She never did bat an eye about it. I had lead up to it.. She had picked out her own cup..

My son that is about the same age as your daughter still gets a Sippy with milk about an hour before bed , also. We do brush afterwards & he had a dental appointment last week & dentist said, his "teeth look great". I was thinking about posting this same question. Interested to see the responses you get.

My daughter had her bottle until about 3 and she is just fine now (6). She decided on her own that she didn’t want it anymore (the binky was harder for us to get rid of). I also started brushing her teeth twice a day when they came in (she had them all by 7 months except the first molars at 12 months).

I don’t know why a lot of parents are in such a rush for their babies to grow up, she won’t be starting kindergarten with a bottle in her mouth so don’t worry.

Take it away now- it's beyond time. If I gave into my 2 year old's wants to avoid a hissy-fit, she would drink chocolate milk all day, run around naked, and pee on the floor. lol
If you feel like you just can't bear to take it away cold turkey, I would just give her the bottle with water instead of milk. See how she does with that. She may just give it up on her own!
Hope this helps.

I know it's easier to do what you're doing, but it's so bad for her! I took my DD's bottle away at 15 months and yes, it upset her for about 3 nights and then she was fine.
It sucked for those 3 days but then she was a new kid at bedtime and we never went back.

Stop worrying. Sounds like a nice bedtime ritual. It will be over before you know it.

Do you brush her teeth afterwards? That would be the only concern I have, to avoid rotten teeth and cavities.

I completely understand doing some things for our sanity. There are many "rules" about child rearing and I will be the first to admit that we don't follow all the rules and guidelines out there. Sometimes you do what you gotta do.

The issue with a bottle or sippy cup of milk at night it the damage it does to the teeth. The milk pools in the mouth. A nighttime bottle can cause bottle rot. Bottle Rot is damage caused by milk laying on children's teeth at night. The milk itself becomes an acid-like film that works on breaking down the enamel on the teeth. Stage one of bottle rot can be undetectible. Stage 2 the teeth start to appear discolored. Stage 3, the teeth start to break because of being brittle. It also causes painful tooth aches. My BIL is a dentist and his always heart broken when these cases come in. Often it causes sensitivity and pain for the children. Root canals and surgeries are often needed. Kids leave with a mouth full of silver fillings (often the enamel colored ones are just too expensive or not covered by insurance). It is stressful and heartbreaking for everyone and it is completely preventable.

So I suggest you change the routine. Milk before bedtime is fine as long as her teeth get brushed afterwards. How you give her the milk is your choice. Another option if you are not ready to ditch the bottle is to give her water in bed instead.

Simple answer: take it away. She'll get over it.

My almost 3 year old still has one at night and access to a water filled one during the day. A sippy cup is a glorified bottle, it can and does cause the same damage that a bottle does. If we are talking one bottle to go to sleep at night with, the world will not end. Same for nap time.

The problem occurs when the milk sits in the mouth and pools around the teeth. If the bottle is pretty much being finished this is a non-issue. We do have teeth issue's, it's genetic, and even my dentist agree's. Brush the teeth, but make sure to wait 30 minutes before giving the bottle.

Toss the bottles and give her a sippy cup. She will be upset but guess what? She will get over it.

If you decide to wean her away from the bottle I probably wouldn't go "cold turkey". I would start by putting less in the bottle each time. I would also eliminate the one before nap first. Once she is used to not having that bottle before nap, then you can move on and get rid of the night time bottle. Do you cuddle her and feed her the bottle? If so, perhaps she would be happy with just the cuddle time, or maybe cuddle and sippy cup.

Good Luck,

M

Tell your daughter that she is a big girl now and before nap or bedtime offer her the milk in a sippy cup. They have cups with all sorts of lids and some are similar to the bottle but not and she can pick out a cup and drink it at the table or wherever but not in the bed. She won't like it but like someone already said there are many things children don't like and most of those things are good for them. She may disrupt your sleep for a few nights until she realizes you mean business and then she will be fine. You just need to stick with it and I would start cutting down the amount you offer at bedtime if you plan to potty train anytime in the near future. Drinks at bedtime are bad for potty training. Maybe give it to her earlier as she gets used to the cup.

Pitch the bottles!
Start a before bedtime snack (food) with a cup of warm milk (less) as a new routine.
Let her take a sippy cup of water to bed.
If you get rid of the bottles, you can't cave and she will adapt.
(I speak from experience, although we were rid of the bottles before bed by 14-15 months and he brushed after.)

My son is 42 months and still has a bottle at night...just wishing/hoping/praying his teeth do not rot. You've got me. I think us as parents are the issue with the bottle giving. I think the child would recover faster than the parents. I am working on it, I'll keep you posted as I continue on this journey.

What does your dentist say? If you haven't had this talk, I think you should.

And if you do decide to stop the milk at bedtime, let her know you have tossed the bottles, provide her with her regular lovies, and expect some distress as appropriate.

Please do not tell her she is a big girl, but rather she is a two year old and it's time, and you know she can do it. The expressions "big girl" or "big boy" were great when I was a little kid, when I looked up to all grown-ups. But with children's exposure to tv and negavitve messages about adult as fools (comedies?) or people who hurt you (news?), I've found some little ones are afraid of being urged to become "big kids" and acutally regress with that term.

All my best.