Transitioning off the bottle and the Paci

[gestures93]

When did you start to transition your baby off the bottle? I have always said DD would not have a bottle after her first birthday. I still feel that way and have already started taking steps to be rid of the bottle. Her two bottles during the day are going into her sippy cup. Maybe in a week or 2 I will start giving her that in a sippy cup as well.

OK now the second part the dang paci. I seriously dislike this thing and she loves it! THe bottle will be a breeze to get rid of its the paci that will do me in. I am starting to get hints from my Dad of all people that it is time she got rid of the nast rubber thing (his words). Any tips to make this a nice transition?

[Fourboys]

I didnt do bottles so i cant help you there- b ut one of my kids took a paci.

Somewhere around 15 months we limited it to nap and bedtime. then when he was 2 his dentist told him it was hurting his teeth so we gave it up completely. I was lucky- it wasnt an issue.

[Alli~cat]

DS1 is 18 mos and still has his paci. I'm going to start limiting to nap and bedtimes, and then from there go completely cold turkey. But it's going to be an ordeal for him, as he really, really likes it and he has a really, really defiant attitude. Bottles to cups weren't a big deal for any of my kids, I just started giving them juice and then milk in the sippy cups and cut out the bottles.

[MomMeg]

I would suggest trying it at naptime and bedtime only too. Some people have done the "let's give it to the paci fairy" blah, blah but I think she is kind of young for it. One of mine took a paci for 2 months and the other not at all so I am really no help with this.

Sounds like she is doing okay on the sippy cup if she is taking some feedings that way. Is she liking it??

Megan

[meramr]

DS15 REALLY liked his paci too. After a bit of only using it at nap and bedtime, my MIL hid it after he woke up. Then when naptime came around and he asked for it, she made this huge production of having him help her look for it. After a while, when they couldn't find it, he settled in for his nap without a problem. Maybe because he wasn't being told "No"? At any rate, after a couple days of this he quit asking for it altogether.

[Admin shilton]

Neither one of my kids liked the paci, but I took the bottle from both of them at a year and probably would have the paci also.

[meramr]

Neither one of my kids liked the paci, but I took the bottle from both of them at a year and probably would have the paci also.

Yeah, I was still giving my DS13 a bottle when he was about 15 months old and my Dr was mad. He said "He doesn't need to be having a bottle at this age" and, after patiently listening to all my excuses on why he still needed it, he said "You're bigger than him, take it from him!". It was a very rough couple of days but that's all it took.

[Admin shilton]

Both of my kids gave it up very easy. DS asked for it twice and I told him both times "you are a big boy you have a new cup now" and he was happy with that. DD never even asked lol. Of course I had started her with a cup part of the time when she was 6 months. I started her on that at meal times and gradually increased it.

[gestures93]

See we have been doing the same thing as Scarlett with the sippy cup. She doesn't actually like a traditional sippy cup. It has to be one with a straw instead of a spout. She actually drinks from our cups as well without a straw. It can be a bit messy, so we limit that. I hate having fishes in my drink!

I think I am going to start limiting the paci now. I should have done that a long time ago, but it is such a lifesaver at times.

[JMac]

I've heard cutting the tip of the paci off so its not the same feeling anymore.

[taylorcpa]

With DS, one weekend after he turned one, we went to the mountains and I forgot his usual bottles. There were some different bottles there and he refused to take it so that was pretty easy. With DD, after she turned one, I had her down to an am and pm bottle and then just quit cold turkey. That was really hard because she loved her bottle! It took about a week of her pitching a fit at bedtime before she figured out that she was NOT going to get a bottle. I had to put them up so she could not see them. About a month ago she found one and picked it up and sucked like "OMG bottle, where have you been?" Of course we took it away very quickly and put it up.

The paci was easy with DS, we just limited it to nap and bed time and then took it away. No big deal. With DD, we try to limit it to nap and bed time but it is not working. She is a pistol and pitches a fit when she does not get her way. Her "plug" helps that tremendously. I don't know what we are going to do with her but I want to get her off of it by the time she turns 18 months old. So, I will be following this thread to see what ideas I can get. I have heard that pricking a hole in it makes it loose its appeal so I might try that.

Good luck to you!!

[Sinclair]

I have always heard the nap and bedtime thing that others have mentioned. I really like the idea Meramr said of hiding it and having them help look for it. So far Keaton only wants a paci once or twice a day to help him fall asleep, so Im hoping it stays the same!

[katieboosmama]

I am no help, as I let Katie give them up when she was ready for them to go. We went to sippy cups in the day from the time she could hold one, but she got a bottle at night for the LOOOONgest time. (I think that was gone at about 18-19 months) Paci we limited at 2 to when she was in the bed, and took it for good the day she turned 3. I just told her that when you turn 3 you are a big girl and don't need it any more. I would have taken it earlier, but she had had several big changes at once and I didn't want any further stress on her. On her 3rd birthday, we did a paci scavenger hunt found them and sterilized them put them in a gift bag for her to give to her baby cousin as he is still a baby. She never asked for it or fussed at all. The other day we found one hidden and she said "Mommy we need to take this to Colin..We forgot one!"

[justmama]

DS11 was off bottle at 10 months, ds8 never used a bottle. THey both had paci's, we did nap and bed times around 10-11 months. DH kept giving it back, he was like, they won't take it to school, they are babies, chill...right around 2 we started taking it from ds11 sometimes he'd find it sometimes not. When we moved from my parents home about 2 or 3weeks after we started hiding it some nights. there were a couple way under the bed near the wall, he was grabbing them and sucking them so fast and hard lol. He was like look at all of them. In the end they were both off by 2. I would not let them bring them out of the their rooms. They would sit in the bed all day if they wanted, but the paci's had to stay there. Eventually, they wanted to be out and play.

[girlysoxfan]

That's what we did w/ ds12. He LOVED his paci! We just cut a tiny slit in the tip at first...then the next day a little bit more...finally he got mad & threw it away. Very easy - we thought it would be horrible, but he didn't like it any more once he was sucking air through it.

I've heard cutting the tip of the paci off so its not the same feeling anymore.

[gab1971]

Wait for this ............. DS11 had his till he was FIVE:eek:

I really did not care -he was breastfed for over a year and the paci (dummy ) just stayed .

We used to keep it under his pillow for night times ,I didn't have any problems with his speech (he was not allowed to talk with it lol)

I am the extreme I know ;)

DS6 spat his out at 9months -never wanted it back :mad:

Baby L has never really used one .

All so different .

It is always a personal choice -even the bottle at over 1 year thing ,
parents have so many 'rules' thrown at them these days IMO .

I am sorry I do not have advice ,as you can see I have been all over the place !

[Alli~cat]

If it makes anyone feel better, my 2 yo neice still has a bottle at night. Drinks out of cups during the day, even regular cups, but must have that bottle at night. Not sure of the reasoning, althought it's probably that my sister doesn't want to fight that battle.

[quiltingbren]

We just got rid of the bottle for my 16 mo DD at Christmas. I was scolded by her doc several times. I don't see as much of a problem as the doc did but it sure is easier to travel without the bottles. It was a rough week for us because she kept asking for her bottle and I had the hardest time saying no.

[gestures93]

THe night bottle wont be a big deal. I think the first bottle of the day will be since she is still half asleep when she takes it. But it won't be a huge deal.

At this point I am refusing to buy them. They all disappear for one reason or another. And to the fact that my little dog LOVES to take them and tear them apart. She is the main culprit for the missing paci. SHe will hide them under the bed since DD can't get under there.

[Admin Jorelanu]

I wouldn't try and do away with both at the same time!

Bottles went away at 1yr for my older kid, she couldn't have cared less. Paci was 3yrs old and a slight nightmare (kept in her bed and used for sleeping only past 1 1/2).

Lil one kept her bottle until 1 1/2 years old (or was it 2?). She LOVED her bottle, didn't carry it around, would just drink what was in it and then hand it back. We were in the midst of a million specialist appointments regarding her twisted leg bones and general inability to walk (which was causing her major frustration as it was) so I didn't feel the need to push the removal of them. Dr. said it was fine, she was obviously progressing and not using it as a method to regress or stay still. Paci was about 3 as well.... that was a horrid nightmare but we got through it!

I never had a set timeframe, I just tried for gradual. So instead of a bottle, I'd give a sippy and see how that went over. If the bottle got demanded I'd give in. There was a kid at my DD's preschool who brought his bottle, blanky AND pacifier to school at the age of 4! Teacher was pretty horrified since he had no developmental issues, just horribly, horribly spoiled and all around very uncooperative and difficult.

Jore

[Alli~cat]

There was a kid at my DD's preschool who brought his bottle, blanky AND pacifier to school at the age of 4! Teacher was pretty horrified since he had no developmental issues, just horribly, horribly spoiled and all around very uncooperative and difficult.

Oh My! DS1 may still be carrying that paci around at that age, but at least he'll be off the bottle and sippy cups, too :D.

[Admin Randy's Wife]

DD12 - she went to sippy cups EARLY so she was off the bottle by a year. At 6 months I took her out of daycare and with a home babysitter, she would not take bottles for the babysitter. So, the babysitter tried a sippy cup one day and she took it immediately and did well with it. We did sippy cup at her house, bottles at our till 9 months - then 100% sippy cup. Pacifiers are evil IMO, lol - that was hard! At 1 1/2 I let her have it for naps/nightime only....at 2 we went cold turkey...it was hell for about a week.:eek:

When DD8 was born, I never even offered a pacifier, didn't even want to mess with it. Luckily, she liked her fingers so she just used those. She went to a sippy cup right after her first birthday.

[2boys]

I would do one at a time. Once she's kicked the bottle for good. I'd give her a little time then start w/ the paci.

Both of mine were off the bottle at 11mos....the day I gave them real milk they never saw a bottle again.

Paci's DS11 was told they were for babies and he got rid of them and we bought new ones for his baby brother that was due any day. He was 15mos He really seemed fine w/ it since I explained he was no longer the baby.

DS9 he was a screamer so the paci was a lifesaver. He was closer to 2 by the time he completely kicked it. At about 16mos we went to just sleeping time.

[Fourboys]

you know dont do it just because someone else is telling you too..... you can make the decision when it feels right for you as well. and that often changes with different kids!

[gestures93]

Well I guess I kinda am feeling pressured (from family), but at the same time I think she is definitely ready for the bottle to slowly be taken away from her. She doesn't cling to it and will gladly take her milk from the sippy cup.

The paci on the other hand I have found out today will definitely be staying around a few more months. THere is no questioning this one especially for bed time.

What was I even thinking about doing both these things at the same time. We need a silly mommy smiley face lol.

[gab1971]

you know dont do it just because someone else is telling you too..... you can make the decision when it feels right for you as well. and that often changes with different kids!

I agree.

see my post -all 3 kids were/are different :D

[joxcermom]

I nursed 3 of my 4 but the last one I bottle fed after 2 frustrating weeks- h was over 10 pounds-LOL, anyway all the kids were different ages when weaned - I believe Andrew was about 14 months and kept losing his bottles under the couch so I just offered sippy cup and didn't dig them out till a week later and he never was on a pacifier or cheater as we called them- he's always been a mild child-LOL
try not to let family pressure you-pick the time when it feels right for you and the child. 1yr or 4 it's not a big deal.

[gestures93]

Well just an update...We are officially off the bottle. HEr old bottles have been washed and bagged up. We are in the land of sippy cups.

[JMac]

Woohoo! I bet you are happy!

[Admin frugalmama]

Well just an update...We are officially off the bottle. HEr old bottles have been washed and bagged up. We are in the land of sippy cups.

Awesome Raquel!

[EmmaLu]

Aw, big girl milestone!

[Tanikova]

sorry I am chiming in late but with my eldest we transitioned him off at 17 and 19 months... don't remember which one was first but thought that a couple months inbetween would not be as stressfull as trying to do both at once

[Sinclair]

How exciting!!!

[ShrinkinSara]

Yay Good for her!