Turkey isn't just for the holidays

We went cold turkey this weekend on the bottle weaning.

I've hinted at our challenge getting Girly to drink milk from a sippy cup. From a bottle? No problem! The white stuff in the cup, though, throws a wrench into the works.

Our pediatrician suggested that 16-24oz of milk/dairy per day was the goal. When she was taking all bottles, it was 4 bottles per day, about 5oz. each.

After we made the full switch from formula to cow's milk, I started to drop bottle feedings and replace them with sippy cup feedings. About a month ago I gave a sippy cup for her 3rd feeding of the day (afternoon). She wanted nothing to do with it. About a week later, she took 2-3oz. of milk at that time of day with her snack. I replaced the late morning bottle about 2 weeks after our first dropped feeding, so she was left with only a bottle first thing in the morning and before bed. She still generally refused milk during the day, and really only drank very little water (which was always her pattern). So, after a month, we had only worked up to about 4oz. of milk total during the day from a sippy cup. PLUS, I noticed she was really sucking down the first and last bottles, so we gave her a little more at that time. She was just shifting the fluids around during the day.

We clearly weren't making progress toward getting rid of those bottles. I had several friends tell me, and I read several places, that cold turkey was the most efficient way of doing things.

(*As an aside, I already kind of mentioned that we have tried several different types of sippy cups in an attempt to woo her. Nothing with a valve works, and for the longest time I couldn't get her to drink from a straw, even with all kinds of enticement. Finally, she was playing with the straw from my Sonic diet cherry limeade and took a sip. She spit it right out, but that was enough for her to learn! Not ever what I would have planned, but such is life.)

Our first day was so-so .... she drank a total of 5oz of milk throughout the day. I offered it in both the straw cup and the Tilty cup, and she still appears to prefer the Tilty cup (the first cup we ever introduced). I offered her milk at all her 'normal' feeding times, as well as other times during the day. I also offered water. I bet she drank no more than 9oz. of fluid all day long. I did give her a few ounces of juice/water at dinner, to 1) try to get some fluids in, and 2) try to avert the anticipated constipation from lack of fluids. She sucked it right down from the sippy cup. Surprise, surprise.

I made sure to offer her bigger meals and snacks than usual, which she ate most of, along with dairy at most meals (especially 4oz of yogurt for breakfast). I usually try to limit her fruit (to make sure she gets the veggies in), but gave fruit at all meals, again to help with some anticipated constipation.

By the second day, she had a new tooth and a terrible cold. So, about the worst timing ever for our project, but again, such is life. Plus, if she was going to be crabby, I guess we got it all over with at the same time! She took 6 oz. of milk total on the second day, and a little bit of other liquids. She never seemed to whine for the bottle and didn't act like she missed it, but just refused the milk.

By the 3rd day, she drank 12-13oz. of milk throughout the day. So, in addition to yogurt for breakfast, we were back to the minimum on milk/dairy for the day.

A pretty painless transition, all in all, and I'm SO happy to be done chasing all those little bottle parts all over the dishwasher!