Can't get 7 month old to drink from a cup...ARRGH!

[misspollysdolly]

Bit worried - in fact suddenly starting to panic actually! - as DS2 is due to start with his childminder in 2 weeks time in anticiaption of me returning to work and while I complete the writing job I have failed to do while on maternity leave! Exclusively breast fed and continuing with this. Have been expressing some milk and freezing it, though not too concerned about sending any to the CM - my milk tends to get a bit soapy tbh. Am thinking I'll just send a big lunch time meal to tide him over, but regardless of what I send to drink, I can't seem to get him to drink at all from a cup.

Stressing now that he will shrivel up from thirst without a boob halfway through the day!! Any ideas on how to encourage him to learn how to drink?!? Will he be OK without milk all day? This isn;t stressing me too much in itself as I will just keep up with my other feeds (he's only in childcare for 2 days per week). How about fluids in general? Should I just stop stressing and calm right down?! Sorry for the panic - you know how it is!

Won't he take a bottle?

yes, why not a bottle?

have you discussed it with the cm

how experienced is she....she may be quite confident which may help

2 weeks is a reasonable amount of time 7 months isold enough

maybe some non stressed practice

maybe with his dad or another in terested adult

can you try a straw? ds couldn't at that age but my friend's little boy has a straw and he is 8 months.

thanks for these responses. He hasn't had a bottle at all as has only been bf'd. Thought it might be better at this age to bypass bottles and god straight to a cup, but might think again on that.

Any suggestions for the best type of breastfeeding friendly bottles??

Part of my stress is that the CM is relatively inexperienced - we are her first family, she has not got her own children. However her Mum has been a CM for 20 years so I have felt reassured thatfirstly she knows what she's going into and hopefully will be well supported. We have one v experienced CM previously so the contrast is fairly big and I feel that it's me that has tgo 'lead the way' and encourage/direct her IYSWIM rather just dropping the boys off and letting her get on with. In most things I am confident to do this, but this issue of feeding is something that I don't feel she has adequate anecdotal experience in.

Bit stressed - sorry for seemingly worrying over something so small.

Have you tried a doidy cup? My DD was drinking from it at about 5 months and she loves it. A bit messy at first but it works

Oh goodness, my daughter couldn't drink from an open cup until she was nearly 3 so I'm no use there!

The soapy milk, though - that's called saponification. You can cure it by scalding the milk before cooling and refridgerating it - just quickly bring it almost to the boil, until there are bubbles at the edge of the pan.

i found the avent magic range excellent. they do one with a softish spout.

Thanks for the soapy milk tip shitehawk, will give it a go!

Might try avent if we don't have much luck with the current cups I'm trying.

Thanks guys!

Have you tried a Nuk Learner Bottle? It's sort of a cross between a bottle and a cup and my daughter (who was breastfed and would have nothing to do with a bottle) liked it. She did a lot of dribbling and spitting out at first but she got the hang of it quite quickly when I wasn't there. I went back to work three days a week when she was nearly 6 months old and she was fine (although a little thirsty when I got back). Normal sippy cups also worked pretty well.