To let her strop about it and not share

[porridge90]

Bit of a ridiculous one but I'm not sure if I'm being unnecessarily cruel. My dd is 2.3 and she LOVES juice. I know I will be flamed for it but I cannot get her to drink water so she has squash. (Yes I make sure I brush her teeth etc and she never has it in bed). The problem I have is that she guzzles it. If you give her a cup with it in she will down the whole thing in seconds and still ask for more. She would just drink all day if I let her.

I have to be strict as she can fill herself up on juice and then refuse to eat, eating is already a bit of an issue with her being really fussy.

Now, whenever I have a drink she has started throwing a massive fit that she wants it, even if she has just finished hers.

Am I being cruel to just let her cry about it? I don't want her thinking she can always just take my food and drink and I can't just time our drinks together, as she will just drink hers really fast and scream for mine. Part of the problem I guess is that I too don't really like water so I drink juice and that's why she wants it. Is it part of being a parent that I have to hide when eating/drinking? Or that I can only drink things she doesn't like so I don't have to share?

I sound like a 2 year old myself I know with this issue, but it is really starting to annoy me...

All she wants to do now is sit and cuddle on the sofa, which is great as I love a cuddle but she is definitely feeling pretty sorry for herself. Seeing her reaction at being given water instead has definitely solidified my decision to move to water. I think only giving squash every now and again would make it worse in our case, she wouldn't understand. It feels brutal but I feel like I need to take it away completely so she doesn't even think about it. Sigh. I've brought this on myself with my weak parenting. Must stay strong!

Awww it's tough but it gets easier. Remember why you're doing it (1) so she's not drinking litres of squash and (2) so she learns tantrumming doesn't work and doesn't become a brat

Good luck, it's horrid short term but the right thing long term

It seems like she simply likes juice and isn't drinking it because she is thirsty, she just loves it. I am not saying she shouldn't be checked over but I have two children who would drink all day, they have been like that since toddlers and there is nothing wrong with them. Your daughter does not sound like she has diabetes at all to me.

I am addicted to pepsi max. I drink it all the time and around my children and they know it is my drink and they can only have some every now and then for a treat. I have been drinking it since they were toddlers and if they moaned that they wanted it they were told no, they soon learnt that they can't have everything I have.

Wean her off the juice slowly if that is what you want to do, don't stop it straight away and I really wouldn't worry too much about it.

My youngest was the same OP
I swapped her to a 'big girl' cup - proper mug with a handle that she has to go and sit at the table with.

She loves it and feels very important, but can't be arsed to go and sit at the table with it much so therefore only drinks when she's really actually thirsty now as opposed to greediness or habit.

I drink copious amounts of diet soda which I wouldn't let the kids drink, same with coffee and gin The kids know that they are mummy's drinks and they don't have them.
Yes a couple of them were initially indignant, but they do have to learn that they can't sit there with a glass of wine at 3

I also drink lots of water and weak squash to counterbalance.

Oh and do not swap to fruity water whatever you do - the sugar content is hideous in them. The volvic one isn't far behind a can of fat coke!

Sorry OP, I didn't see your latest reply before I posted.

Good luck with stopping the juice cold turkey.

Do you use sugar free squash or the full sugar one? Could it be a low from having sugar and she needs topping up? If so I'd swap to sugar free.

Sorry just seen you do you sugar free. It is really odd she drinks that much. Mine only have sugar free squash too and don't drink that much. Good luck on the transfer to water. Once she gets used to it she will be fine.

After having 3 kids so close together at 2 years apart. You have to suck it up and put up with the tantrum until she realises she won't get what she wants. I never done this but it sounds like a fantastic idea put ear muffs on then you won't hear her tantrum.

With feeding time just give her what she likes and slowly introduce you're food to her. Maybe take a bit from you're plate and put it on hers she will eat like a horse soon you just need to be patient. I have had another baby who is now 18 months and this time around it is much easier because I am patient with him. With the girls I was not patient with them at one point I had 3 under 5 I was pulling my hair out.

If you have a wobble about going complete cold turkey, you could have it in just one situation. So we originally had no rules about juice or squash because we seldom had it, but then we had some in the house and found they only wanted it and not water (sound familiar) so we said they were allowed one cup at lunch, and no other time and they soon learned and stopped asking for it and now really usually forget to ask for it at lunch (I give water by default.)

I like this for us because it's stopped the nagging/whining but it's also kept juice and squash from being a forbidden fruit.

I'd cut out the squash to be honest. It's the sweet taste she's after.

Just stop giving her squash, she'll have to drink water at some point as she will actually be thirsty.

If you really can't stomach water just get yourself a solid colour bottle to drink out of so she can't see that you are also drinking juice.

Just read you're latest post well done porridge it just takes a little patience.

But *Rattusn" it will help OP drink water and then DD may copy. And my DD loves iced water as she is apparently elsa and so loves cold things.

We've never had squash, only water or milk and occasionally apple juice (when in a cafe). I know she is only 2 but at the preschool and now in reception they will not allow squash, only unflavoured water, so it's worth trying to transition now to save pain later.
If it's the taste she likes will she the fruit instead (orange or berries, whatever flavour squash you have?)

I am very lucky my son loves drinking water. My first baby hated water all she wanted was milk. My second and third babies liked water but not as much as my 4th baby.

Ever since I was a teen and got braces I've only allowed myself one juice or fizzy drink a day. This is because my parents were super strict about the 'rules' around food and drink whilst wearing braces.

Consequently, I subconsciously reinforced that with DS. All juice and squash as a youngster was well diluted and now he's older I limit pure juice, fizzy drinks and caffeine. He's old enough (9) to understand caffeine free coke only a few times a week or no more tea after 6pm or no more than 2 small glasses of juice in a day, after that only milk or water and he can only have water at school so he 'gets' it, but I would say that consistency is the key thing here.

Definitely dilute the squash well and stick to your guns about when it's gone, it's gone. Perhaps you could make a jug up at the beginning of the day and when it's run out that's it? 2 year olds understand the concept of "All gone" in my experience. She won't like it, but she'll get used to it.

You could try moving to a cup. You can get cheap packs of plastic cups/beakers in most supermarkets that are a LOT smaller than sippy cups, so she would potentially think she's getting more drinks but may be drinking less.

If you lessen the dilution gradually, try the food colouring idea a pp mentioned - that's really clever!

Or you could make ice cubes from pure fruit juice and drop them in a cup of water. As they melt they'll give flavour. Depending on their size and cup size you would probably only need 1-2 cubes per drink.

My dd was like this. If she is only chugging it when it's juice I think it's more that she likes the taste than is thirsty. I solved it by making the juice fairly weak. I didn't actually mind her having juice as a toddler as I had always given water from a baby and the little amount she drunk worried me. I found if I made the juice fairly weak she would drink enough but not overdo it so maybe gradually put less juice in her drinks? As for her wanting what you have I just try to eat healthily until they are in bed when the kids are around and when I have an occasional treat they do to. I would feel it was a bit unfair to say this isn't good for you so you can't have it but I can. Obv alcohol/hot drinks etc are exceptions.

It's not that I can't stomach water, I just prefer squash. I've already said I'm happy to not drink it in front of dd, I'm not a crazy person who gags at the taste of water or anything like that.

Yes I agree the food colouring idea is really clever!

sorry if other have said this, but she is excessively thirsty and weeing loads. She sounds like she is high risk for diabeties, and I would be getting her checked out by GP.

The thirst caused by diabeties is really a raging thirst and she will be despeartely thirsty.

If not diabeties, then offer one glass of squash, and then say she can have water.

I wasn't a massive fan of water and then we were given a Brita water filter jug as a gift once. Since then, I actively enjoy drinking water and often choose it over squash. I had never realised that water had quite so much flavour to it when it came out of the tap, but now, if DH has forgotten to fill up the filter and I have a glass of tap water, it's really noticeable and not as nice. I don't change the filter insert anything like as often as they recommend either so it's not too expensive.

Reading this with interest as my toddler 2 1/2 has just got massively into juice/squash having never been bothered before.

He wants it first thing in the morning which I guessed was ok if giving diluted juice rather than squash as lots of people drink juice for breakfast. Also is reducing milk intake for something with more vitamins?

Have been erring on side of s giving water for most drinks though because it's so bad for teeth. He's a right stroppy toddler too sometimes! I mostly drink water or tea myself and the rest of the family have water with meals so hopefully will be ok.

We had to get my DD from drinking Apple Juice, it became the only thing that she drank, we watered it down, then we started making it breakfast juice and now she doesn't have it at home but sometimes out as a treat.

She does have weak sugar free squash, when I had an event at the local hospital to do with bladder issues they said that watered down squash was absolutely fine and not keeping hydrated was much worse in the long term.

In your situation rather than say no use smaller cups or make a jug of squash and tell her that it has to last all day? use ice to water it down more? Also distraction is a good technique?

Yes we have a water filter too, much nice than tap water and we always have water with meals.

DrinkReprehensibly Robert Dyas do the filters really cheap.

Why not say that if she wants squash she must have a drink of water first. And if she's wanting that much fluid then I reiterate what others have said, have it investigated.