1 year old transition to cup and cows milk

[DisneyGirl2387]

My 1 year old DS loves his milk and is still on 3 bottles a day. Morning, afternoon and evening. He really prefers milk to food. I tried him with a bottle of cows milk and he didn't drink it so I've started mixing 5oz formula and 2oz cows milk and will build up over time. Anyway I spoke to my HV (about a different issue) and she was a bit funny with me saying now he is 1 he doesn't need milk do don't worry if he doesn't drink cows milk (just give him extra cheese yogurt) and to only give milk in a cup. Anyway it has sent me into a bit of a panic that he is having too much milk. Did you still give bottles at one? Bottles of cows milk? Did you give it an a cup? Any recommendations? He loves his tommee tippee free flow cup for water but it doesn't hold enough volume for the amount of milk he drinks! I tried a munchkin weighted straw sippy cup and even I couldn't suck any water out of the straw. DS just threw it on the floor. Any help, tips and advice would be greatly received. FTM here and feel like I'm failing!

I think the bottles of milk are bad for their teeth? My son was off bottles at 13 months but most people seemed to have a tough job getting rid of the bottle and were on them much longer. Our HV says a pint of milk a day, in food counts. Funnily enough my son still does this by choice at 2 and a half. He has milk in a cup in the morning and evening. I would try and cut the milk in the middle of the day and get all drinks out of a cup. But accept that it might take a bit of time.

I'd say you're probably very much in the same situation as most mums of babies this age. And finding the right cup is a nightmare.

And the munchkin mug with the straw is actually very good for water. They can get stuff out even though we adults can't cant. But suspect that straw is still bad for milk because of the teeth issue. We use it for water and my 9 month old loves it.

There has been a lot of talk of the munchkin cup in the baby group I’m in and a lot of mums didn’t realise there’s actually a little sticker or something over the end when you buy it - some still struggle after that’s removed and cut the straw off before the valve.

The ones without a valve are meant to be best for them though (well best after an open cup) - tumtum tots does the only weighted straw cup without a valve that I know of.

FWIW my dd drinks water out of every cup we’ve tried - pretty much every one on the market at this point - without an issue but will not accept milk from a cup. She’s 15 months. Swapped to cows milk just before 1 - straight swap with no issues. Dropped the middle bottle (she was on 3) - she missed it a bit but I replaced it with a mid afternoon snack usually natural yoghurt with berries and seeds and that did the trick.

We’re now down to just one bottle at night. She really missed the morning one and struggled without it for a while and then she was ill and not eating anything so I did bring it back for a few extra weeks. It’s gone now and she gets milk or dairy of some kind with breakfast, I also give her a cup of milk which she ignores but I live in hope one day it will take!

The one before bedtime I’m keeping for now. It’s part of her winding down for bed routine and as she’s a child that can happily go all day without a nap and then still be up till 9 some days, I need every sleep association I can get. I do also feel better that she’s drinking some milk even though I know technically she doesn’t need it as she has enough in food through the day. We also put her multivitamin drops in this last bottle, and we brush her teeth after. I’m not too concerned about one bottle a day, she seems to get a lot of comfort from it and whilst I know it’s not the ideal I’m not going to stress too much about it. I’m starting to gradually reduce it a bit at a time, I guess I’m hoping to phase it out totally by 18 months but we will see.