Transitioning to Sippy Cup/Straw Cup

If you haven't already, you might try filling a couple of different cups with a little water and leaving them in his play area to fiddle around with and explore. I have found that mealtime is the worst time to try something new.

My mother would sometime leave a sippy cup laying on its side on a little stool in the kitchen and my daughter would sit by it and try to put her mouth on it (kind of like a little hamster!).

If you make it more like play, maybe it will be a little less frustrating for both of you.

When I transitioned my two children they were between 9 mos. to 1 year. I was afraid of the bottle transition, so at meals I would have a sippy cup that they didn't have to suck from, if you tip it it freely flows. I only did this at meal time for them to get accustomed to it. They I transitioned to sippy's they could carry around and have to suck from. They made the transition on their own time schedule, but it made it easier for the learning process.

Hi M.,

Since I am only on baby #1 so far, and she took to a sippy cup at 4 mos trying to copy my tea drinking, my suggestion may not work, but here it is.

Have you tried putting a drink in either cup of something you know he will drink in a bottle or a regular cup. Our daughter grabbed for our cup, so we would hold the cup of water for her, and still do, as she "laps" up the water with her tongue. But she realized she could control the cup if she drank from a sippy cup--so she loves the idea that she can drink from both M & D's cups but she really loves the idea that SHE is control of her own drinking. My friend's son went from breast directly to a grown up plastic cup, skipped bottle and sippy cup.

Control may be the issue--he is not sure if he is ready to be in control or he wants to participate in what you are drinking. In our household we don't drink juice and we both hate soda, so she can have breast milk, formula milk, chammomile or peppermint tea or water. Normally, she gets cold to lukewarm tea or ice water since she is a big fan of freezing her teething gums.

Not sure if this is helpful or not, but you may have to really think out of the box and see if there are other issues surrounding why he won't drink from the things you have offered him.

L.

I put a sippy cup (with some water) with my babys' toys during playtime to help them get used to it. I started when they were about 7/8 months and were pretty much sitting in one place on the floor for playtime, and they would investigate the sippy cup like the other toys. I know a 12 month old is not sitting in one place very often, so I don't know if it will work the same. Other than that, I would suggest trying a different sippy cup. I found the Nuby cups great for transitioning, but they are not very exciting. There are lots of other sippy cups that are very colorful and have characters on them that might spark his interest. I also thought I would mention another sippy cup designed to help with the transition: I believe it is made by Playtex, it has a softer spout, but shaped similar to other hard plastic spouts, and it has handles. That was the cup I gave my babies during playtime. They liked the handles. Both of my babies were pretty easy going and were not terribly picky about the type of sippy cup, but neither of them figured out the straw that young (maybe just because I did not use it that often).

Yes each child is different.

I did almost the same as Deanna Leigh.

Also, I just would leave out & put straw cups/sippy cups of water, on our coffee table, where my kids could just "self-serve" and reach for it themselves during the day at will. And in order to get them used to "seeing" it and "using it" or at least exploring with it. And, yes, they'd grab it and take a sip here and there. My kids liked it....they could then "use it" at their pace, and at will. So, I didn't only bring it out only at meal time. And it gave them "practice" without "pressure." Also, for my son, he like using it, but only if there was ice in the cup of water. For my daughter, it didn't matter. I did this from before my kids were 1 year old.

All the best,
Susan

Well, what I did was just offered the cup during meal time and allowed my son to still have his bottle for naps and bedtime. I would put milk, diluted juice or water in the cup and offer it to him and soon he began to associate it with food and nourishment...at least that's what it seemed like.

Between 13-15 months he was doing great with the cup, and was self weaning during the day at the same time. By 18 months he was off the bottle on his own completely.

So, just give it time and be patient with it. I still offered my son the straw cup and he took it pretty well but, only when he felt like it. You're right every kid is different! Good job and keep it up!

I started my son on a sippy with his juice. Also, I use the Avent system. It is a little pricier for the sippys but it was nice that I could interchange all of the lids with the bottles. They also have different types of nipples for the sippy's. It has worked well for my son. Good luck!

Don't worry, just keep offering the sippy cup of water with every meal (just to play with if anything) If he is thirsty, he will eventually give it a try.
Consistancy is the key!!!
Good luck!

M.,

Just keep trying. It took about a month before my daughter took to the Nuby sippy cup. All kids are different, like you said. Your other son was much more eager to switch with no problem and some kids are just resistant to the change. I always pretended that I was drinking from the cup, too, and that seemed to help my daughter become much more interested in trying. Hope that helps!

Good luck!

E.

Just keep trying..... He will eventually get it. Try putting a little bit of juice or something sweet on the tip, maybe this will entice him to suck from the sippy cup.

YAY I was just about to post the exact same question and here you've beat me too it. My 12 month old is also giving me a run for my money. MY 1st baby did it so easily. She was using a sippy(the soft nuby) by the time she was 7 months and completely out of bottle by 11 months. So here I am with my son who REFUSES. He'll drink water out of the hard tip Nuby's and gerber cups, but wont take milk/ Formula. I sat today and used 6 different cups, no joke. Fisher price, Nuby, Gerber, Sassy, Mum, and Avent...and nothing. Just total frustration and a pissed off baby. I am also having an issue with the milk transition. He didnt like pure milk so we are doing 4oz milk & 4 oz formula mixed. I'm assuming we are going to hear "every child is different" and "every one goes at their own pace" but I am thinking it is going to come down to patience. In my case I have been told girls move quicker with this stuff, as did my daughter, than boys...but you have two boys so who knows. Have you tried a few different cups? I figure I'll keep giving him his water in the hard tipped nuby's and just keep switching sippy's with milk till he is ok with it. Thank you for posting though..I'll be coming back to see what tips you get. Well, good luck to you and I hoipe we both get out of bottles soon enough. :o)

Have you try to put juice in the sippy/straw cup? All kids love juice, and if their favorite drink is in the cup, they'll find way to drink it :) I start out w/ my son in that Nuby soft tip sippy cup, and I actually drink my own drink in the same kind sippy cup and show him. he copy me and after he can taste the juice in the cup, he enjoy drinking from it.

good luck w/ everything.....

If your child is resisting the straw cups, go to regular straws. Look and see if there is lip closure when you offer liquid through a straw with your finger over it. Make sure your child understands that liquid can come through there. After doing the straw occlusion, I try a juice box. You can regulate how much liquid is in the straw, and make it so when your child puts his lips on there, liquid comes out immediately. Back off on how far up you make the liquid go, and of course don't let him hold the box or he will squeeze it and all is lost. The straw cups are no spill, so the straw itself is a bit harder to get liquid from. It may take a little before your boy gets it and can understand how hard he might have to suck. Each cup is different too. Let me know if you need anything. I recently had 3 different children on my caseload transition to straws, and I had to use a bit of different strategies with all of them.

they have a nuby cup that has a sports type sipper top that is almost like a nipple. maybe try that. get a few cups he may not like the wa they feel in his mouth. i introduced my daughter to a nuby sippy cup at 6 months and by 7 months she drank from the cup and in 3 days i was done with bottles. just keep tryng.

my 15 month old did not transition well, and we are still working on it. But the Avent sippys were the easierst for her.

I have a son who did great with a straw and a daughter who didn't drink from one until she was 2 1/2. The doctor told me that the muscles used for drinking from a straw are a little bit more difficult to work for some children. I eventually went to a regular cup, and then tried the straw again later.

just add water and only water in his bottle and juice/milk/ect. in the sippy. believe me kids are smart he will take to the one with flavor real quick.

Hi! My daughter wouldn't take a bottle or almost every sippy cup. I tried EVERY cup out there. The only one that worked was in this link below by Gerber. Don't know the name exactly but it's sold at Target. http://sharedreviews.com/images/reviews/20094/200_###-###...

My older boy had a hard time with straws until he was 2. As for sippy cups, he refused all of the soft ones. He only loked the cups that had hard plastic spouts. It turns out that he had slight oral motor delays and needed to put his teeth on the spout to stabalize it in his mouth. Try a hard cup and see whta happens. If he likes it check it in a while for teeth marks.

My son loves the Tippy Sippy Cup! You can buy them online.-www.weelicious.com

Just keep at it...I started with the Born Free sippy cups but he didn't seem to like them. He only used them to dump water everywhere. So I took my son to the big wall of sippy cups at Target, picked several that were age appropriate, and held them out to him. The one he grabbed and wouldn't let go of was the one I bought. (It was the Nuby soft tip.) I just kept giving it to him with just a little bit of water. At first, he would just play with it, eventually figured it out, but when he started just dumping water everywhere then I moved him to a hard tip (Playtex). I introduced the soft tip around 9-10 months and the hard tip around 11-12 months. When I knew he was able to drink easily from the cup I began substituting the cup for a bottle. He has now transitioned off bottles, except for bedtime, and drinks all his milk, juice, and water from sippy cups. As far as the straw is concerned, he chose that one too. We were at the wall of cups at Babies R'Us and he went bonkers over this cup with a straw. Although he had never used a straw, I bought it. He loves it and drinks his water from it. It goes everywhere with us. Finally, I also give him sips from our glasses and some cute ones I bought at Target. He loves drinking like a grown-up, but we still have to control it for him. He loves having the independence of drinking himself from the "ba-ba" but every now and then we still cuddle as he takes his milk from the sippy cup. Your son will take it in his own time, just keep offering it to him everyday.Good luck and best wishes.