Bottle to Sippy Cup Transition in 3 Simple Steps
How to Transition from Bottle to Sippy Cup or Training Cup
Transitioning from bottles to sippy cups can be a scary change for babies (and parents!). Somewhere towards the end of baby's first year, most parents start moving from a bottle to a sippy cup. I haven't met too many parents, however, who didn't worry about the transition; after all, babies (and children in general) thrive on routine--it's natural to wonder if throwing a new element into the mix is going to disrupt that.
Making the leap doesn't have to cause undue stress--it's just a matter of finding out what works best for both you and your little one. This three-step plan (I call it the "sippy cup secret") worked very well for me; perhaps these easy steps will get your baby drinking from a sippy cup in no time!
How Old Is Your Little One?
What is your baby's current age? Or how old were they when you transitioned?
The Big-Boy Sippy Cup: Was He Ready?
I know I wasn't ready for a sippy cup quite just yet!
The only reason I wanted to move my son from a bottle to a sippy cup when I did is because his daycare required it; I certainly was in no hurry to transition. He had just moved from the infant to the toddler class (most babies transition to this class just before or just after they turn one year old), and all children must move from a bottle to a sippy within 30 days. I won't lie--I panicked. We had tried a sippy cup here and there before to no avail--he liked them OK, but moreso for chewing than for drinking. I should've known better, since I've worried like this before.
About six months prior, I had to break him of the best newborn swaddle I'd found, simply because he got far too big for it. I wasn't ready. I assumed he wasn't ready. I took off a few days of work and prepared for the worst, sure that I wouldn't be getting any sleep for awhile. I laid him down that night, with arms free, and waited. And waited. And waited. The cries never came.
I watched him on the monitor, wonderfully stretched out and peaceful-looking, until I fell asleep that night. The next thing I knew, it was morning and I wondered why I obsessed for nothing. Often, when we as parents aren't ready for something, our not-so-little babies have different plans. The "sippy cup secret" helped me to panic less, and enjoy the transition more.
All The Sippies I Tried
It seemed like so many sippy cups at the time
From left to right, here are the sippy cups I tried as I weaned from bottles (which, by the way, were the Playtex Drop Ins Bottles. The first, the Playtex First Sipster Spill-Proof Cup, is a sippy loved by so many parents, so I felt sure it would work for me. It didn't--my son LOVED to chew on it, but didn't get that you had to tip it back to get anything out of it. We tried this one for many months, thinking he would surely get it eventually, but he never did.
I wondered if he saw the colored-container (and not the "white" of the milk) and that was throwing him off. I then tried the Tilty Sippy Cup, since it got excellent reviews and was available in a clear cup. He actually DID try to drink from this one, but this cup is a bit more advanced and doesn't have a valve, therefore, it was messy to say the least. Not only did he practically choke on the milk/water, but he was at the "throwing" stage, and this cup definitely is not a no-spill cup! He did at least try it, so I was encouraged.
At the insistence of a few parents, I next tried the Nuby No Spill Flip-it Sippy Cup. Actually, my daycare recommended it as well, explaining that soft straws were the next step for babies who didn't respond to the more elementary sippies. We struck out here, as well. The straw was completely foreign to him and using meant he had to master an entirely different skill he had not even experienced yet. The sucking concept with this type of sippy cup was completely different from a bottle, plus, he didn't understand not to tip the cup.
A-ha! It finally click to me and the "sippy cup secret" just about landed in my lap. We would be able to wean him from the bottle, after all.
“Simply change one aspect of the sippy cup at a time so you don't overwhelm your child.”
Step One: Nuby Staged Bottle
The first step to go from bottle to sippy
Nuby Wide Neck Bottle With Handle - Colors VaryAmazon Price $5.49
Since I had a bit of success with the clear sippy cup I tried, I knew if I could give him something similar to a bottle, he'd probably at least try it out and take a drink. This sippy is great because it has a bottle top--so it's familiar to your child--but with removable handles to get him or her used to a sippy cup. Admittedly, I had to fool my baby into trying this. I started with his normal bottle, then quickly did a bait-and-switch with this one, mid-feeding. He sucked for a bit, realized what was going on and somewhat freaked out, but only for two seconds. He realized he was too hungry to fight it, and after all, it is sort of a bottle...SUCCESS! We used this one for several weeks, and mid-way through took off the removable handles so he could get used to the curved bottle that most sippies have.
Step Two: Nuby Sipper
Slowly moving towards a true sippy cup
Nuby 2-Pack 8 oz No Spill Cup with Super Spout (Color may vary)
Just like I did with the first sippy, I only wanted to change a few minor variables as I moved to the next step in bottle weaning. The Nuby No-Spill sippy has a similar shape to the last sippy cup, although it's a bit fatter. The spout is also close to the other, except it's slightly oblong. This gets your baby's mouth used to something slightly different, while still being familiar and not-so-scary. The first time he placed it in his mouth, he was confused but got over it very quickly--I was amazed!
Step Three: Nuk Learning System Sippy Cups
Leak-free sippy cups in fun colors
NUK Gerber Graduates Learning System Animal 2 Pack Spout Learning Cup, Pink/Orange, 10-Ounce
Alot of parents stop at Step Two, but I wanted to take it one step further. Since the ultimate goal is to transition from a sippy cup to a real cup, a rimmed sippy cup is the next logical choice. These have a stay-tight lid that doesn't leak. I like that the valve is easily removed, too; when the time comes, I can take that out and he'll learn to drink without a "stopper," therefore getting us very close to drinking from a real cup.
Do You Find This Article Helpful?
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Babies Trying Sippy Cups for the FIrst Time
It's a difficult concept for them
Does Your Baby Drink Water or Juice From a Sippy...
...but not milk?
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1Try a cup that's completely different from the water/juice sippy cup. If you use a rimmed-cup, for example, try a straw cup. While it's not a bottle, it can teach your child that milk IS available, just not in a bottle (and not in the typical water/juice sippy cup).
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2Let him see other children drink from non-bottles. If you baby isn't in a socialized setting (i.e. daycare, etc.) he or she may not get the opportunity to see peers drinking from sippies. Consider a playdate with a sippy-drinker so that this can be experienced.
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3Make it into a game. Chances are, you little one sees you drink from a regular cup all the time. Twist the top off a sippy cup containing milk and allow him or her to drink through it like a "big boy" or "big girl." It may be messy (tip: hold it while they drink), but if you can demonstrate what's in the cup and that it's ok to drink from it, a lightbulb may go off!
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4Consider not giving milk in anything but a sippy and going cold turkey. This is hard for parents, and many use it as a last resort. You might have to go up to two days before your child is ready to try the milk in the sippy, but oftentimes, this does work.
Remember: Dairy and Calcium Can Come From a Variety of Sources
Cheese and yogurt are great sources of calcium. If your child is revolting against sippy cups with milk, up the intake of these foods for proper nutrition.
What Sippy Cups Have You Tried to Help Transition from the Bottle?
What tips can you share?
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Very cool lens! Thanks! -
Great advice here. My daughter used sippy cups for water and juice but went straight from the bottle to a glass at 1 year! It took her ages to finish her milk while someone fed it to her, but it was worth it in the end. -
I found it really useful. Very helpful especially to new moms. -
My babies are both past 30, but we used sippy cups. At the time, there wasn't such a huge variety to chose from. We had Tupperwear cups that a sippy lid fit, and since this also predated the many varieties of travel mugs, I used the same sippy lid for my car cup, so it was just natural that the kids wanted to be like Mommy and drink from a sippy cup. I don't recall any issues, but it was a LONG time ago. I wish I'd had the benefit of great places like Squidoo when I was a young parent. It would have made my life so much easier. -
Wow, my youngest is 34 yrs old but I do remember his Sippy Cups but can't remember it being a big transition. Great page for young parents. -
This is such a helpful lens. Know some friends that would have found this info really helpful when they were at this stage. -
Great info for parents. -
jenn g. Nov 26, 2012 @ 12:53 pm | deleteMy son is 1 yr and 5 months and ive been trying to switch him from bottle to sippy cup since he was 9 months. No success. Every time I go to the dr or wic I get told time and time again you NEED NEED NEED to get him off that bottle. I have told my family to help me but like the whole world things he's still too little that he's just a baby. He has like all his teeth and 2 days ago I finally decided to go cold turkey with him. He cries for about an hour before giving in or just falling asleep. Its so stressful and I dont know what else to do. Another problem which is why its so hard to wean him is because he developed the habit of waking up about 2-5 times a night for a bottle. This is mainly the reason im stressing about taking his bottle away. I wonder what other parents have gone through this. -
I think lots of parents have gone through the night weanings. I'm sure you know that by this age, he wakes (as you say) out of habit and not out of hunger. What I would do at night, is when he cries out, go into his room and give him a bottle of WATER. Gently pat him on the back, then leave. This way he'll learn that he's only getting water and not milk. Most kids will not want this and will drop the water fairly quickly. Once he nighttime is under control, then I would worry about the daytime switch--you don't want to do too much because it will stress both him and you out to no end. So once he is sleeping through the night with no wakings, then consider trying out the cup I mention above--the spout is VERY similar to a regular bottle. No matter what you decide to do (switch to my recommendation or go cold turkey) you absolutely must persuade your family to get on board with you. If he gets mixed signals, it's game over. -
jenn g. Nov 30, 2012 @ 3:54 pm | deleteThanks soo much for the advice. I did more research and found out that it will be hard for the first 2-3 days and then they start getting use to it. It has been a week and he is completely and officially off his bottle and uses his sippy cups regularly. He is also sleeping all night. I can honestly say because of his age, cold turkey and crying it out worked for me in a week. I have a sleeping schedule now and I am spending way more time with my baby now during the day instead of feeling tired sleepy and grumpy. Advice gor anyone out there with the same problem. If you decide to go cold turkey just make sure to not do it through a stressful time and that you have support and help from family and/or your spouse. Thanks again. =] -
I am SO happy to hear this! And with a normal sleep pattern, you, my friend, must feel like a brand new woman! -
great lens :) -
Great Info and Great Lens ! I like it!
Please see my lens http://www.squidoo.com/fisher-price-baby-monitor -
Great info! Thanks so much. These are helpful. -
My daughter would onlydrink from Nuby cups- the soft spout was great, and this was transitioning from breast to cup! -
Keep the tips coming. I enjoyed it!
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Anna Oct 11, 2012 @ 9:58 am | deleteThat's cool to hear about how your oldest id with her transition. My mom had mentioned about using a straw as well and I have even had friends metion it as well. My daughter just turned 1 last month and she is getting better. The WIC program gives me vouchers for juice now and she loves grape juice. The good thing is that she will drink an ounce or so from her sippy with the grape juice but not her milk or even apple juice. Right now I am glad that she does drink something from it.
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Isn't it strange how they pick and choose?
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Anna Oct 11, 2012 @ 2:41 pm | deleteSo true!
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o yeah ! haha my first baby had no problem whatsoever, I even gave her a glass with a straw at maybe 9 months. She got that right away and there is no mess. However... my new little one, just can't do it. He does not get it at all. He just thinks those sippy cups are for his teeth to chew one. He is gonna be one and he is still surprised when liquid come out of there. So funny. -
No tips yet, but a big thanks for the information. Our pediatrician prints out a "what to expect" sheet at each check-up, and when we saw sippie cups for our 7-month-old, we nearly fell out of our chairs. A little intimidated but excited for this next stage in his development. -
To make the baby used to with glasses
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To make the baby used to with glasses
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Melinda Jun 7, 2012 @ 11:21 pm | deleteThank you for this. I have 11 month old twins and I have been totally stressing out about moving them from bottles to sippy cups. I introduced sippy cups around 7 months and we have tried about 3 kinds but only for water and with very little success. They love their bottles and still get about 5 per day and before coming across this article I had no idea how I was going to approach the switch. I am buying those Nuby 3 stage bottles right now and we are going to start this plan immediately! Thank you!
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No Problem. Right now my daughter just wants to play with hers, but it does look like she drinks a little bit of it. She just sprouted 2 upper teeth so I am sure the nipple and cold water makes it feel better. Good luck on your Nuby. I have been using Nuk Trendline Learner Cup which seems to be doing well. The nipple is soft and flexible like a bottle nipple only flat. Good Luck!! -
Good luck!
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Anna Jun 5, 2012 @ 12:40 pm | deleteI am in the process of trying to get my almost 9 month old daghter to drink from a sippy as well. I have been trying for at least a moth or so and no progress. I have had sveral people tell me that the best way to get her to drink was to completly eliminate the bottle. The only thing is that I am afraid that she will not drink at all due to her fear of the sippy. Others have told me to take it when they are the hungriest the most. I have looked up some videos on You Tube that shows babies drinking from sippy cups and she loves to watch them. When I try to get her to do the same, she still just refuses it, in fact, almost scared. I recently started to get her to eat finger food and she is doing pretty well. Since I have started that she will not finish her bottle. Sometimes she will eat all of her finger foods or solids as well, depending on what seems to be what she wants the most at the time. The biggest problem that is happening is getting her to gain weight. She was 6lbs. 9oz. at birth and as of last week she weighed in at 14lbs. 1oz. when I had to take her to take her to the pediatric pulmonary about testing how she eats. They sent in a nutritonist who had me thiken her formula ( 3 scoops of formula 5oz. water), plus adding a little bit of rice after it has been mixed. I am afraid this will make her so full that she won't eat anymore She has a check up with her pediatrican on the 14th and I am afraid to see what her weight will be.
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I think if you are concerned with her weight you might need to keep her on the bottle and just focus on getting her weight up, first. Give her one and allow her to play with it, but don't be too concerned with her actually getting nutrition from a sippy quite just yet. If she is doing well with finger foods, that's great! High-fat (yet healthy) options may be just what she needs (for example, my little guy LOVES avocado!). You are right, though, sometimes the food intake decreases the bottle intake...but that's ok! As long as she is getting adequate calories overall! Keep thickening her formula and adding in healthy finger foods--work on getting her weight up and transitioning to the sippy cup will come naturally, later. Good luck momma! -
a.thorne09@hotmail.com Jun 5, 2012 @ 2:42 pm | deleteThank you so much! I do agree with you and the pulmonary. I am hopiing that all it is is just where her body is getting used to such a change in her formula. She was taking 6 onces at a time. The directions on the can gives the number of scoops for 4 ounces or 8 oz which is 4 scoops for 8oz. Which she was doing fine with just no weight. I was having trouble getting her to finish her bottle in the recommened time frame when she was born so the doctors had her go through all kinds of tests such as a Modified Bolvarian swallow. I do hope things work out soon. Her formula is prety thick now, in fact, I had to give her a wider nipple. Once again thanks for the response!
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Oh yes, I remember all too well widening the nipples--my husband and I would try to time it perfectly where we'd try a nipple we had cut and if he started screaming while feeding my husband would be with a knife to quickly widen it before he had a big breakdown. :) Ah, those were the days (he was probably around 5 months). Also, most babies dramatically slow down in the weight gain department once they start becoming active. For example, my son was 23 lbs at 6 months, but at his 15-month appt. was only 28 pounds. Due to the crawling and then cruising he starting burning a lot of calories. See what the doc says later this month--and do provide an update if you remember. :)
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What a sweet lens. It reminds me of my little ones. I have absolutely no idea how we made this transition, like most of childhood that seemed difficult it now is a no brainer with my grown up boys. -
Very helpful information for parents. I didn't know there were so many types of sippy cups available.
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Kids drink both water and juice from Sippy cups
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Great lens! I recently made the transition from bottle to sippy cup with my little'uns. Its a real struggle, but the best advice is to stay strong. They'll work everything out in the end (much like babies and toddlers work out crawling and sitting up!)
Alex
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I utilized their natural inclination for sucking to introduce the straw. Then we eliminated the whole accidental upside-down cup thing. -
nice lens, which i would of read this before my kids out grew these sippy cups -
Good Tips! Thanks for sharing them with us . -
great tips! i am going through this transition with my little one now -
Great tips! I was just sitting here thinking that I don't remember the move from bottles to sippy cups being nearly as difficult as sippy cups to regular cups. It has been a while though. -
My kids never drank bottles (I nursed) and as they had older siblings, they didn't even want sippies. They wanted real cups. Messy, but they all figured it out. -
my "little one" is 45 yrs old but I remember..don't remember any problem..when I think back that far I still laugh at the vision of him in the high chair covered in spaghetti -
I have used sippy cups but its never works. My son still insist to have his bottle when it is time to drink. -
Nice lens... My baby girl is 19 months old and has been using a sippy cup since she was about 11 months with everything EXCEPT MILK. She still refuses to drink milk out of a sippy and as sad as it is to admit, she still has a bottle for her milk . I have tried everything...we are just now getting her fully of off formula. She wasn't feeling the moo cow too well. We have had to had 1 scoop of formula to 8 oz of milk just to get her to consider it. Now that we have her on milk we have got to get her off the bottle. Weird though, juices, water or any other drink she will do just fine with a sippy. Any suggestions? -
It does get harder the older they get, doesn't it? From speaking with my friends (and I have a very large network of mommy-friends!), your problem isn't uncommon. So many children will drink anything BUT milk from a sippy cup. What does she do if you try to give her milk in the sippy cup? Throw a fit? Flat-out refuse? You might try going cold turkey (commit to a small period of time, say 2 days) to see how she does. Since she's an older baby, she can certainly get the nutrition from other means during the experiment.
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Bottle to sippy was not such a tough transition for me. Buy Sippy to cup..that was quite a challenge. I hope new moms get great tips from here -
Great lens. We're slowly working at transitioning from bottle to sippy cup! Thanks! -
When my babies were just turning 8 mos, my mother-in-law decided she was going to start them on sippy cups. (She's our sitter). I, of course, was irritated at first, and a bit panicky. But they didn't seem to mind it, they just liked to chew on it. I am sure I could take away the bottles completely now I just refuse to, (they're now 10 mos). We put no pressure on them to get off the bottle........... Great lens!!!
Bottle to Sippy Cup Transition
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If you haven't tried it already, have her watch you pour the milk from her bottle to whichever cup you are trying to get her to take. Also, if she's old enough to understand, offer up milk in two different sippy cups (not her bottle) and ask her to choose which ones she wants; this best works with older babies 18 months+. Sometimes, if they have a hand in the decision-making they are more apt to comply.
Once you can get her to switch to ANYTHING that's not the bottle, it should be pretty easy to transition to other cups; it's breaking that first habit that is always hardest.
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Stay strong with it. Three days seems like an eternity but he won't go hungry or thirsty. Offer plenty of other nutritious other foods during this rough time and he'll get all he needs. Several parents in the comment section at the bottom of this page say it can take up to a week for them to fully adjust.
Good luck -- let me know how it goes!
Back to the poll, I have twins, and managed to convert them to a sippy cup around 11-12 months old. I also cut out the last bottle before bedtime too. They really missed it, and it was hard to stay strong, but they went over to drinking to sippy-cups in just a few days!
Great poll!
Alex
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