Dropping bottles

Need your feedbacks on dropping bottles and STTN:

They STTN (730pm-530 or 600am) before they were 18 months. S. extremely addicted to bottles (loves liquid can take up to 50-60 oz/day and bottle comfort), and A. normally don't drink much per day (16-20oz of liquid per day and just love to eat instead - I think her liquid intake is partly through eating lots of fruits and vegetables.) They both know how to drink via sippy cup or straw cup. They used to drink lot via straw cups, and straw cup is what I normally give (unless the cups are being washed). The Dr. didnot worry about their weight at 18 month check up.

We dropped morning and after nap bottles for the last 3 weeks since they reached 18 months - only have nap and going to bed bottles now. The 1st week (over the holidays) we tried to drop all bottles via diluting to 50% method, but they ended up drinking 3-4x more than they normally did - which made them woke up 2x for extremely wet diapers. So we switched to 100% milk again for nap and going to bed bottles. That change helped the STTN for A. again, but often she got woken up by her sister asking for bottle at night (then she asks for whatever her sister got.)

About S. with the latest bottle dropping change: before bed volume dropped to 14oz on night she has light dinner, and 8oz on night with large dinner. She now looks forward to bed time to get bottle, and donot take much fluid (OJ or milk) via cups between the bottles. S. still wake up between midnight and 3am for 2nd bottle (which I also change her very wet diaper.) When I was at home during the holidays, I hold her like to have to milk in cup as when she has the bottle to meet her comfort need.

I'm very close to revert back to after nap bottle again ... so I'm looking for feedbacks on this. If I do that, I hope to drop all at 2 yr oldusing big girl talk/speech (i.e. big girls don't need bottles, give to fairies etc...) Much thanks for the feedbacks!

 

Mine get 8oz milk bottle upon wake up and 8oz milk bottle at bedtime (before brushing) Sleep through the night and drink plenty of water throughout the day.Maybe instead of doing 2 so close together try a wake up bottle and a bedtime bottle.

My kids get up between 8 and 9 have bottle
10ish they have breakfast
11:30-nap
1:30ish up
2:00 lunch
4ish snack
6ish (sometimes more like 6:30)dinner
7:45ish bottle
brush teeth read book
8 bedtime.

They are 18months old as well.

Just a thought

 

I hope this doesnot jinx us on the STTN: we had some random STTN this weekend. So we are hoping we are on the right track. They have not asked for the afternoon bottle yet this week.

Thank you for the feedbacks IPBWGB!

 

I hope you are on the right track too with STTN.
Our pedi recommended 16-24 oz of milk a day. I was thinking maybe do the bedtime bottle earlier and change up the bedtime routine a bit. Like bottle, bath, pajamas, stories, quiet time/cuddle time, a few sips of water before bed and then bedtime. That's what we had to do when we were dropping bottles and transitioning completely to sippy cups. Good luck!

 

I agree with both those ladies, we left morning and bedtime bottles to the last and dropped the middle bottles first. I would NOT refill or add more milk to an empty bottle during the day. Now that they are over 18months old that milk is just filling their belly, and they now need actual food to give them the energy needed for a growing toddler. 1 8oz bottle would be it, and they can drink more out of a sippy if they want.

I also would not allow the overnight bottle, give them a sippy cup of water. You may have to do tough love on this, and let her cry for a night or two. It's more habit than necessity now. They older they get, the harder it is to break a bad habit, so my suggestion would be to do it sooner rather than later.

Good luck!

 

Ladies:

Thank you for the good feedbacks!

It's been so many things with us since I last posted - feeling as I've been sinking... and don't know how you all have been able to hold things together!
Anyway, we are now on our 3rd nights on straw cups before bed times, and the girls had not asked for the bottle since we switched. (I told them that from now on only drinking milk from cups and no more bottles from the 1st night we dropped the bottles and there were no resistance! Not sure because of the "no more bottle book" I got for them few months ago, or just their maturity ...) We just have the occasional night waking and asking for milk ... and we all woke up to have milk in the straw cups ... I'm glad they don't go to bed with bottle anymore...

I have mix feelings on this little change: feeling a little = ( to see them parting from the bottle - no more babies! as well as little proud that we came to this stage!

Thank you very much again for your supports!

 

The best way to do it is just throw away all bottles or pack them up put in storage. Never look back. They will struggle in the first week but i bet you they will adjust faster then u do.

Oh dont miss bottles. You wont have that time. Wait couple more months, they will keep you super occupied. You will be glad with your decision today. Plus, it will be good for their teeth. Gl!

18 months olds are cute and listen. Wait until they turn 20 months and almost hit 2 yrs. they argue with you all the time (Nolan clean up your mess. No mama clean up), they will be your bosses (make a messy house, then run around the house sing 1 word song "dirty dirty dirty....), do sneaky things like dump water/milk in the h air veins, oh and u cook their food. They will point to left over and say "its bad mama", All kindda of stuffs. You will be busy to think the best way to deal with them lol! Just enjoy their babe stage now!