I need help, how do I get my almost 1yo off formula and bottles??

[NoHeavenNoMore]

Pulling my hair out.

Title says it all really... our daughter is coming up to 1 and I keep reading/hearing that she should be on cows milk from one and not to drink from bottles anymore.

I just need help 😞 I've been trying her with cows milk during the day, and giving formula morning and before bed. The other night, we ran out of formula (for the first time ever) and I thought "she'll be okay, she can have cows milk instead"... how wrong I was, she cried ALL night for her bottle and I just felt absolutely awful and I haven't really recovered from it since. Just feel like a failure. I feel like there's no way she's going to transition over?

Also I don't know what to do about bottles.. I've read she shouldn't be using bottles from the age of one. She will drink water through a sippy cup absolutely no problem, but if I put milk in it it gets flung across the room. I've got several types of straw bottles, silicone ones etc, and she just chews the straw and won't drink from it.

What do I do 😞please can you give me some tips or advice on what worked for you and your little ones?

Thank you!

We did the milk transition gradually - 7oz of formula + 1 oz of cows milk to start with and then just upping the proportion of cows milk gradually over the course of a couple of weeks. We stayed with a bottle for a few months after DS turned 1; so long as you brush teeth after, it's not a big deal.

Don’t worry too much if it takes a bit longer to stop giving bottles. Just make sure you’re brushing her teeth morning and night.

Just because they can have cows milk at 1 doesn’t meant that there’s anything wrong with giving formula if they prefer.

My DS (now 15 months) isn’t interested at all in drinking cows milk, so we just make sure he has plenty in his diet - ready brek made with milk and rice pudding at night with milk.

One of mine loved her bottle so much. When her sibling was 12 months old and she was just over 2 I told her they'd gone. Her face was a very sad and grumpy face

She accepted it in anyway up cup.

My eldest and youngest just ditched milk altogether at 11 months old

@mynameiscalypso oh my goodness, thank you so much for the reassurance. I've been beating myself up over this all day. Sounds like a really good idea to do that with the milk. I think I've scared her off cows milk now as she won't touch it during the day anymore. So might just do this with each bottle.

Did your son move on to a different type of bottle eventually? How long did he drink milk for past the age of one?

With DC1 we also did a gradual transition from formula to milk by using 7oz formula to 1oz milk and gradually changing the ratio. Also, we used bottles until about 18 months at bedtime and just persevered with sippy cups during the day.

Did they even ditch in the morning and before bed? I think my daughter could go without if she still had those two. I'm going to try mixing cows milk with formula and see how that goes over the next couple of weeks
Thank you

He stuck with his normal bottles until he was about 18 months then decided he didn't want to drink milk before bed anymore (he'd already stopped the morning milk). He drinks milk from a cup at nursery sometimes these days but we don't give it to him anymore as standard (he's nearly 3).

Thank you. Yes, we do brush her teeth, morning and night, but that's another story, she absolutely hates it 😬
Maybe I'm just putting too much pressure on myself because of her birthday coming up!

Moving to milk - we actually ran out 3 days before his first birthday and we were on holiday so just switched it then. He stills loves milk now and is 6.

Moving to sippy cup - my son used both for a while then we just took the bottles away. He didn't quite like it but went with the flow.

@bcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyza that sounds like a dream transition!! I'll try offering milk in sippy cup before bed and see how that goes.

(It doesn't seem quite as relaxing or soothing as a bottle though to me)

Thank you!

Have you tried the brush baby silicone toothbrush? We give DS his when he’s sitting in the bath and he happily chews on it (and cries when I try to take it away)

@mynameiscalypso okay, I'm definitely worrying too much over it then. She won't want to drink from a bottle forever so if it takes a little time it's not the end of the world

@SalviaOfficinalis NO i have not seen these!! But I'm going to order some now. Thank you

You are definitely panicking too much, just gradually shift onto cows milk and then work on ditching the bottles. She gave up morning one before the bedtime one.

@RandomMess Thank you. You are right. One thing at a time. I'll start on the milk mixture from tomorrow 😊

Mine was about 15 months when he came off his bottles. He has a cows milk protein allergy and their formula is recommended up to 2 to help them transition.

I would keep giving the formula at night and focus on introduction of the cows milk in the day. It took my guy about 2-3 months the before he started drinking Oat milk (advised due to allergies) but he got there.

The milk miking is also a good idea to help them transition. Don't put too much pressure on yourself they will get there

Honestly, please don't stress about it.
Our last one had a nighttime bottle until she was 2 and a bit. Because she loved it. She stopped when she was ready.

Stop panicking so much. That’s not a law that you have to give them cows milk straight as the clock turns midnight.

@Coffeaddict that's great advice, thank you. She loves weetabix which she usually has a couple of hours after her first bottle. I think I could bring that breakfast forwards. Breaking it down like this is making it seem so much more achievable 🥹

Same as @SpiderinaWingMirror - DS had a bottle to fall asleep on until just gone 2.

One night I explained he’s no longer having a bottle at night and this is the last one. Following night I gave him a cup but he didn’t really bother.

Regarding the switch to cows milk - never bothered DS, I just put it in the bottle one day. Can you not just give your little one growing up milk instead?

My daughter is 13 months and still seems to prefer her formula milk to cows milk. I would like to transition her over to cows milk mostly because of the cost of formula but it's fine for now. She had a uti a few weeks ago and then because of the hot weather, I'm more concerned that she just drinks whatever milk it is.

@ThinkingFace Yes, cost is a factor here too at £11 a tub, I think we'd save a small fortune on milk! But you're right, I'd rather her drink formula than go without. She's not a big fan of anything other than formula or water so we've struggled through the heat!

@RockAndRollerskate We could give her follow on milk, I have bought a stage 3 Kendamil preempting that this might be the case.. however I'd like to get her onto cows milk for ease. Not having to faff with kettle anymore etc

Can't help with formula as I BF, but I weaned mine off BF using a bottle of cows milk at night and in the morning. My dentist said it's fine so long as teeth are cleaned x 2 a day, and that using a bottle 2 x a day is not going to give bad teeth formation / create a need for braces later or anything. Mine is over 2 and still on a small bottle morning and night as they find it a great comfort - there's no rush so don't beat yourself up.

My DD didn’t fully transition to cows milk until she was 19 months. I tried a few times but it gave her a tummy ache so done it gradually, 5oz formula with 1oz cows milk and so on until it was fully cows milk.

Shes 2.3 years and still has cows milk in a bottle in the morning and before bed, I just brush her teeth afterwards.