Stopping bottles almost 3 year old

[Isitjustus]

Hiya,
I know I am going to get negatives comments and I know it’s completely our fault.
My little one is 3 in the new year and she still has regular bottles.
They are still a huge comfort to our little one and they are half water and half soy milk. Our little one has up to 4/5 a day when she is with us but none at the childminders.
We have told our little one that the elves will be taking her bottles so that Father Christmas can bring her big girls toys.
Does anyone have tips/tricks to help wein her off? She’s never had a dummy so we haven’t had to do this before.

Thank you in advance <3

I think you just have to be firm and weather the storm. You can be sympathetic and understanding but just repeat ‘I’m sorry, no more bottles’. If it’s bad for her teeth like cow’s milk is, I would also explain this. Has she been to a dentist? I got a minor telling off for giving a 15m old a bottle so you could always arrange a visit in advance, the you’re just doing what the teeth doctor says.

I had similar but they were a little younger. You just have to go cold turkey with it.

Tell them the bottle fairy is coming to take their bottles away for a newborn baby in exchange for a special present. Worked with both of mine who loved their bottles. With the 2nd kid it was difficult for maybe one night, then she forgot about it.

Thank you so much. Did you let them have milk in a different cup/bottle instead or do we just stop all together :) x

We offered it in a cup but they didn’t want it. Turns out they never actually liked milk, they just liked sucking their bottles.

Alternative is to go away for the night so they’re distracted. Then tell them (only if they ask) there are no bottles wherever you’re staying. They usually just accept it. We did this to wean the kids off dummies. With the first one we went camping and “forgot” the dummy, with the second one we were on holiday.

Agree with others, cold turkey worked for us. I hid the bottles in the loft so I wouldn’t be tempted and offered milk in a cup. Two sips and that was all she wanted without a nice nipple to suck! Now she has a cup of milk with two of her meals each day and that’s it.

Is it damaging her teeth, if not and it's a good comfort to her you could always compromise and go to night time only? My 3yo DD has them at night, they help her sleep well and they aren't damaging her from a dental point of view?

My DD is 2yrs 6mths and finally gave up bottles a few weeks ago. It was part cold turkey and part luck that she was feeling under the weather.

We'd got her down to 1 with afternoon nap and 1 with bed a while before we took them away completely. She'd got used to using them to get her to sleep so we also needed to solve the going to sleep on her own issue.

She'd been feeling iffy for a couple of days and hadn't drunk her milk so we just took them off her. We had 2 or 3 nights of her crying herself to sleep or screaming, but after that she was fine and now just goes to sleep with no issues.

Ds was the same age we just offered water in a soft teat sippy cup but that's want as appealing so didn't last long.

Just take them! And stop the milk too. Get her used to drinking water from a big girl cup when she is thirsty.

Why does everyone want to stop their kids having milk? It's good for you!

Ds was almost 3 when we took away his bedtime and morning milks.
We swapped the bottles out for a sippy cup at bedtime and a proper cup in the mornings, telling him that my sisters new baby needed the bottles for when were born. He was actually really proud of being a big boy and gave the bottles to my sister himself.
Since July, both bedtime and morning milks have slowly gone, sometimes he'll ask for them, but most nights he's happy to just go to bed.

Don't worry, you'll get there.