Indigo madam is now coming up 17 months old and we still let her have bottles :)

But and a BIG but she has now decided that it is good fun in her evening bottle in bed to push the teat into the bottle in and then tip the contents over her and all the bed clothes :rolleyes:

We have decided that the bottles need to go but we have tried a couple of times so far had such major tantrums and screaming that we have submitted !

Help as need some suggestions ! She is not at the stage of sitting down and reasoning yet and won't take a beaker to bed as it gets hurled out the cot in disgust ! :D

Lucy
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Why not give her three quarters of the bottile first, before she goes to bed - just leaving the teeniest drop for her to spill????

Of course, being a Proper Little Madam, she might twig straight away .....

Margot

Margot she is a madam and doesn't twig she branches :D

The thing is we have made the bottle the comforter for beddie bobos and so it is a comforter thing , bit like I suppose the comfort blanket or a dummy .

The thing is nursery gets her to bed without a bottle but they say it is a struggle sometimes ! :) We need to make this easy as we are so knackered that a battle at bedtime is not on our agenda ! :)

She loves to be around downstairs as there is alway so much going on with all the 4 legged girls etc wandering around that she would stay up for ever if she could but we try to get her to bed at leats by 8pm ! We need us time ! :)

Does it sound like I am moaning ?

Lucy
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with mine I started to limit the bottle during the day untill the only one was the night time one then I am afraid it was bite the bullet throw the bottle out but replace with something they like cup wise I usually gave mine a choice in the shop for the big girl/boy cup that was special  and I always threw out the bottle in frount of them so that they know its gone did mean a few tearfull nights but it worked
Good luck its gonna be tough

She doesn't have a bottle during the day and always has beakers :)

How old where they when you did the throw the bottle in the bin ?

Lucy
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Sounds like she is old enough for a little logic to me! how about a really nice sticker for every night that she dosnet make a mess with the bottle/ have the bottle and a gift if she gets say 5 in the first week. Works well with my god children well right up to potty training the youngest who is determined to do it on HER terms :O

Well my boy didn't have bottles, but I breast fed up to 14 months as he refused milk in any other receptacle :D  I just one day said that is it no more, adn that was the end of it.  he cried a bit the first night and after that no more.

Lucy,

I had a similar rod, it is such hard work at this time.  The age between your two is really like Idigo is a first baby so you will be doing all the usual let them away with everything stuff. I put my hand up as I did it two.

Not sure what to suggest but don't beat yourself up.

Does she have a dummy.. ( I can just hear the anti Dummy folks) but maybe that would be an alternative.   never harmed me or my daugther.   Lack of sleep probably does more harm :-)

Pam

about 18 months althought two of mine where totally breast fed and went straight on to beakers I always made a big thing about the swap and made sure they knew the bottles where gone it worked for me but we did have a few nights of tears and temper tanturms its just sitting them out good luck

I know this is no help, but Isabel (who has just turned 3) still has a bottle every morning! The only thing I can suggest is that you just take the bottle away and offer an alternative recepticle (beaker perhaps). Dont give in to the tantrums, because if you do then it will take even longer to resolve the problem. (Says she who's 5 year old son still has dummy in bed and wears pull-ups!!!!!). Wouldnt mind some advice on that actually. Isabel has been dry day and night since she was 2 years 2 months!!!!

I would agree that the fastest way would be to just bite the bullet and not give in to the tantrums.  However, I know that is easier said than done but looking back I wish I had been stronger.  How about watering down the milk so that it is not as nice.  I know she can still sprinkle it everywhere but after a few days maybe she would just not want it.  I remember watering it down for one of mine.

Julia, with regards to your little bo still having a dummy etc, maybe you can offer some sort of reward for being a 'big' boy each night he does not have a dummy/pull ups etc.  My sons all had the habit of coming into my bed.  I offered a reward for each night they stayed in their own bed and it did work - not immediately or every night, but we got there in the end!  Beware though they are very clever - my friend offered a pound for each night, and when her son had saved for what he wanted, he then went into her bed again.  I decided that they would have to build up a few nights to get a good reward.

Fiona

Julia,

Just to let you know that my little boy was in pull ups till he was 7! He just slept so soundly that nothing worked with him, as the doctor told me - don't worry, he will not be at university in pull ups and will grow out of it!  As far as dummies and bottles are concerned we sent our's to santa to give to others, perhaps you could try something along those lines - easter bunny perhaps?

Good luck
s

When Matthew had a dummy we gave it to Santa Claus to give to a new baby that wouldnt have one he never asked for it after that, Bronwyn had a bottle at night until she was 3  we gave her bottle to the easter bunny it wasnt much of a problem.
Good luck
Mary

Don't know about bottles as mine never had a bottle - but we did find a wall chart, with big stars and then a pressie after so many stars, worked when we were trying to get my daughter dry at night - I don't know whether Indigo is too young to understand the principle :)

Daisy

i had the same sort of problem with my twins .take her to buy a beaker let her choose it then get her to throw her bottle in a dirty dustbin it worked for my 2 as they didnt want a dirty bottle they did moan a bit but it soon passes.

Hiya

Just a thought, when my sister wanted her kids to change from bottle to cup, she put water in the bottle and milk in the cup. You could try giving her the bottle with the water and then the cup with the milk and see what she does, I'm sure my sisters wee one was about this age when she did it. He took to it quite well if I remember rightly. My youngest has a "Dandy" a blanket that she takes to bed, even now at 8 she likes to know where it is. Maybe you could tell Indigo, that one of her teddies needs a snuggle at night and see if this diverts her attention.

Alli

I don't know what to suggest Lucy because my former kipper, for all her many faults, didn't cling to her bottle and even went to bed and slept right through, including on Christmas Eves

But talking of Christmas, as a child I had a beloved toy poodle called Fifi.  Now Fifi became a rancid creature due to all the love she got, and one Christmas Santa Claus took her away to live at the North Pole and left a rag doll in her place to be my friend. I was completely traumatised and wept hysterically for a good part of Christmas day, so much so that Santa had to be contacted urgently and even made a special trip back on Christmas night to return Fifi :D  As far as I know, Fifi still lives in a cupboard at my Mum's but the rag doll didn't last long because our then dog, a Springer Spaniel, gave her a right drubbing.  Ooo, I wonder how that happened ;)

Lesley

Thank you for all your ideas :)

I think that after looking at everybodies ideas I might well do the look at the bottles going in the bin as she is everso good at putting rubbish in the bin so I will line them all up and let her do it herself so she can see closure :D

Then a few nights of screaming and hopefully we can move on ! :D

Lucy
xx

Good Luck

I think we may need it ! :D

I much prefer children at this age as they do pose a challenge more than babies who are so much more easier to please  :)

Lucy
xx

They are much more interesting at this age all they do as babies is eat, sleep and poo at this age they can answer back, throw the biggest wobbly and you cant seem to reason with them love them.
Mary

I know it is 4 months since I decided we would do it but tonight we have done it :D :D :D :D

Lucy
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LOL - well done, Mum :D How has Indigo taken it ? :)

Daisy

Well she listened to our reason and went upto bo bo's without a paddy and is quiet :D :D

Easier than I thought it would be :D :D

Lucy
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Fantastic - what a grown-up girl :D She'll be wanting out of nappies and into thongs next :D

Daisy