Switching to Big Boy Nighttime Routine- Help!

Nuby has a sippy cup that has a real soft nipple. they don't ahve a plug so they are easy to clean. They can be found at Walmart and are really cheap so losing one or breaking one isn't a big deal. It believe they are still less than $2 each. I had a hard time with my youngest until I found these. the only problem I had was when I realized that he was using them like a bottle and carrying them around. I then switched him to a sippy with a harder plastic. these might make the bedtime routine a little easier and then you can slowly transition him to a different sippy cup. or just stay with these ones. They work just fine.

I would try switching from the bottle to a sippy cup. Put his milk in that and say that if he wants his milk he has to drink it out of that cup, no more bottles. My daughter hated it and that was the last of the bottle. Also, if he likes his milk warm, give it to him cold. My daughter refused to drink cold milk, and she still does to this day. Good luck.

...do you have milk or water in the bottle? I switched my son to a sippycup with warm milk for a while, then when he adjusted (about a month) I switched to room temp water. He liked, eventually got bored of the bland water and now sleeps at night with nothing but a favorite toy of the day.
We also do "wind down time" after bath time and for about 15-30 minutes before I wanted him IN bed. Only calming toys/activities. Sometimes I read while he flitsed around, he wouldn't settle for it either, until lately, he is almost 3. An very full tummy before all this helps as well. Pastas, yogurt and blueberries, bread...fillers. This is what worked for us, hope the ladies here can give you enough to juggle that something works well for you guys!
Good luck!

My older son was totally off bottles by 13 months but our younger son was on bottles for just milk til he was about your son's age. Do you want to get rid of the bottle itself or the whole routine of a drink before bed? You could try putting less milk in the bottle & offering more book time. Or, water down the milk some to make it less enticing for him. Maybe give him some of the milk in a bottle & then switch & give him some in a new sippy cup that you use just for bedtime milk & really praise once him once he's drinking out of it. You might not like the idea of him w/a bottle at his age but it's not like he'll be on it forever. By the time my son 17 months, he dropped all bottles on his own so maybe your son will do the same thing. Good luck!

As long as there is only water in that bottle you put him to sleep in, i dont think he is in any real harm, however the bedtime routine can be the tricky part because you need to find what works for him. Try singing songs to each other, or playing guessing games or imagining what you would do together if you could make up your dreams, but you cant be lazy mama! My daughter likes it when i rub her tummy with my fingernails very softly. She also likes to tell me stories that she imagines in her head and have me join in. I know you'll find something, so enjoy your little one and God Bless you both. Also im interested in hearing about Babycakes. Where is it and what do you sell??
Send me some info. Kekoa

My son never took a bottle but we went through something similar when he stopped nursing and then when we took the sippy cup of milk at bed time away. After he stopped nursing before bed, we would let him have a sippy cup of milk, but not in bed. It was in the livingroom. Then we would read a book, rock and then put him to bed. When we took away the sippy cup he would ask for it and we would just say no. He fussed about it a little but it wasn't the end of the world. Now he's almost 3 and the last thing he gets to drink is his milk with dinner. And a drink after brushing his teeth. Keep in mind the more they have to drink at night the more they will pee and when it comes time to potty train it may hinder him. Hope this helps.

I have a 16 month old daughter who does not take a bottle during the day, but eats three meals plus 2 snacks a day. She has been sleeping through the night since she was 5 months old, and will sleep 12 hours a night - at times, she wakes up for whatever reason, and cant get back to sleep with just rocking or patting, I will give her a bottle. Its a soothing thing - and it really has nothing to do with the milk itself. It is not uncommon, and perfectly normal and healthy for a child to still need the nighttime bottle until they are 18 months old.

But, as a child psychologist, this is what I tell me clients who want to get their babies off the bottle: start diluting his milk with water, increasing the amount of water over a week or two until the bottle is mostly all water, and now undesireable. He should then give up the bottle easily - does he have a "lovie" like a special blanket, stuffed animal, even a binky (also healthy for a child to use at night until about 2) to take the place of the bottle? If he does not, start introducing something like a blankie or animal for him to cuddle up with. If you want him to wean from the bottle at night, you have to replace his need for comfort with another object so that he does not feel abandoned. When you take both bottle and the smell and comfort of Mommys arms away with nothing to replace it with, a childs sleeping schedule can become extremely difficult.

Don't feel bad about not taking the bottle away yet, you haven't done anything to harm him!

Hey S.,

My daughter named Sabrina who will be two in two weeks, never once took a bottle. Never wanted it I guess. At night I give her a sippy cup. She has several that almost look like a bottle but are indeed sipppy cups. I got them at walmart for 1.47 each. She does sit still for a story and has for some time but even if he does not sit still you can still read him a story while he is drinking. Reading is the best thing for them so I've heard. Try involving him in the bed time routine. Ask him to point to things in the book (whether he understands or not) and see if he will help you turn out the light or turn on the night light. My daughter gets her warm milk after a bath and daddy dresses her. We read a story and she helps turn on her lullaby music and turn out the light. She loves to help me out. Then we used to rock in teh rocking chair but now she is content just to have me lay in her bed with her. (She just switched over to a twin bed)Hope this helps

Kimberly

Hi. I have a three year old son that I had the same problem with. He was 18 months old before I could finally get rid of his nightime bottle. The nightime bottle is the hardest. Don't worry. He'll get it. Just keep working with him and encouraging him. The fact that you got rid of the pacifier is huge. There are kids walking around at three and four that still have them hanging out of their mouths. Don't get too discouraged about the nightime bottle, he'll give it up too, you'll see.