How to Ween 14 Mo. Old from Sippy Cup

Try the straw cups that other moms suggested - the soft straws would probably be more acceptable to him - since they are a great transition to big kid drinking.
My kids had limited success with the small toddler handled flatware, but some moms swear by them. There is no rush . . . trust me that it is easier to pick up a spoon from the floor a few times than to manage a child who desperately wants to feed himself but isn't fully capable yet ;) Otherwise, keep modeling skills and table manners for him, and he'll be shoveling it into his mouth in no time . . .

My 16 month old is just now starting to use a sippy cup. He's breastfed so we just hadn't bothered giving him one. I don't think it hurts to keep giving him the sippy. My daughter is almost 4 and we still give her those playtex insulated sippy cups with the hard lid and spout on them because otherwise things would get spilled all over the house. I think it's fine to let him drink from a regular glass with your assistance but he probably isn't going to be good enough at it to really get anything. As far as the eating utensils go it takes a while for them to actually learn how to use them properly. I would give them to him and let him play with them and show him how to use them but I do think it is too early to expect him to know how to use them. I read a great book called The Happiest Toddler on the Block and he talked alot in it about a toddlers abilities to do different activities that require fine motor skills and it was really interesting.

A.

Hi, C.,
Nuk, You SUCK! I too had to finally switch to the Gerber hard top because of the ridiculous waste involved with throwing out (recycling, but still) the whole Nuk cup every time the nipple vent broke. Genius marketing ploy, NUK, but super hideous for the environment. Would it KILL YA to provide packets of the dumb nipples? We need to write to them.
Yes, he can drink from a real cup, but you still want the sippy for traveling and unsupervised drinking for as long as you need it. Just get rid of the sucky Nuk and only have the other kind. Screaming or not, he won't dehydrate himself to death and will use it eventually. It took my son two days of not drinking to give up the bottle and happily move to the sippy. It should be about the same.

Same for utensils. My 18 month old spills everything off his fork and spoon (unless it's WAY sticky). It's fun to help him and let him try, but I still stick to the finger foods and feed him if we're in a hurry.
Don't sweat the milestones-you're doing great!

If you are not doing it already I recommend eating meals (any you are home for) at the table with your son. If he sees you using a fork & a cup he will eventually want to do it too. I started giving my son a child's fork at about 11 months. He mostly held onto it with one hand & ate with the other. When ever he started playing with it I reminded him that forks are for eating, do like Mommy. And I would go through the steps of using a fork. "See Mommy hold the fork, stab her food & now put the food in her mouth". it worked for us. If he throws it, leave it where it lands, even if he throws a fit. He will quickly learn that he does not get back things he throws at the table. If you pick it up & give it back to him he will keep doing it b/c he thinks it is a game.
For the cup. I recommend starting with cups in the bath tub. Let him fill & rink from the cup in the tub where making a mess doesn't matter. (A little bath water won't hurt to drink. My son drinks a bunch.) At the table during meals, give him a small clear cup (we found ones with animals on them at walmart) and just put in enough of his fav drink to cover the bottom. This reduces mess. As he gets better, increase the amount of liquid in the cup.
Also, you don't have to switch him to a hard sippy cup. (Even though my son drinks from a cup at the table, when he is walking around he still uses a spill proof cup or bottle). Some other options...a water bottle (like a biking one that has a soft top), or a straw cup. In my experience the straw cup is not 100% leak proof, but I only have one, so maybe its the cup I bought. My son has been drinking from water bottles since he was about 8 months (he would take sips from mine).
To transition I recommend putting his favorite drink in one of the new things & his least favorite in his sippy.
Or you could throw out all his sippys, let him cry it out for a day & be done with it. He probably won't drink for the day, but as long as he is not sick & is kept out of the son for the day, that shouldn't be a problem.
I recommend only working on one thing at the table at a time.

I had the opposite problem with the sippy cup. My son (16 mos.) refused to take one. We eventually found that he would use a straw cup. The cup we use has a soft rubbery straw - you may want to try that. He still won't use any other kind of sippy, though will drink from a regular cup and a water bottle. I'm in no hurry to switch to regular cups, too many messes. My oldest (5 still uses a lid and straw, unless it is meal time. As far as the spoon and fork, my 16 month old just started "using" them. He likes to stab things with the fork, but will then take them off the end and use his fingers to get food into his mouth. Keep offering the spoon, he'll want to play with it for a while. Eventually he will try to use it. I know it's hard with your first, but try not to stress out about those milestones. Every child is different. Do what you are comfortable with.

Have you tried a straw cup? or a juice box to get him to try a straw? as for silverware, just keep offering it and he'll probably decide he wants to use it. my 20 mo old wants to use adult stuff b/c she sees us.

Hi C.,

I just moved my 16 month old from a sippy (the same Nuk kind) to a straw cup, and wished I'd done it sooner. He loves it. He'd been watching me drink from straws and "practiced" when we were out with water in a cup with a lid and straw, and I got him a child's straw cup this week. It leaks a tad, but certainly not like the mess of spilling an unclosed real cup.

As far as utensils, my son likes to have them around, but he half uses them and half plays with them, and it did take a couple of months of playing with them before he really started to get what they were for/have the patience to practice with them. He especially likes the spoon and will "feed" himself oatmeal and applesauce (the oatmeal is sticky enough to make him feel successful). Of course, at some meals, he likes to just chew on his spoon or use it to fling food even farther than he can with his hands. So I don't think kids should be adept at using utensils at this stage. And if his fork and spoon hit the floor, they don't come back!

Hi C.!! I'm a first time mom as well and i know these things can be confusing. My son is 3 and still uses his sippy cups, so unless u have a specific reason u want him off the sippy cup, i see no hurry. I have about 8 cups we rotate between, but i have had to replace a few here or there. I tried a real cup with him about a year ago and the same thing happened, everything just rolled right down the front of him. The only way I can get him to drink any water is out of a water bottle!! As far as the spoons and forks, same thing happened here... so i just let him play with the spoons to get it out of his system - so to speak - and eventually he started eating with them. I don't remember the name brand of the forks and spoons i got him, but they are small and plastic, and the forks aren't real pointy or sharp. (I got them at Walmart) Well i hope this helps and good luck!!!!!

i had the same problem with those cups, and switched my daughter to the playtex cups with the handles, i just didnt give her a choice i got rid of her old cups and only offered the new ones, it took about half a day till she figured out how to drink from the new one. she can drink form a real cup but id say its too early to expect that from him all the time. and using s spoon and fork too, id definetly give him them to let him experiment but wouldnt expect him to be able to use them completely ccorrectly just yet. IF youre curious about these milestones i love the what to expect books, they make one for just about every phase of life and they help key you in to what the norms are.

I would just keep buying more of the kind of cup he likes as you need new ones, and keep helping him practice with real cups. Why take away something he likes that works?
About the silverware, let him play with it, but don't worry about it. Just have fun. Nothing "has to happen" at any particular time. Good luck!

The spoon: he's young enough to eat with his fingers. He's also old enough that when you feed him with a spoon, he will probably grab at it. I would have a spoon ready for him, but let him eat finger foods. Also, let him watch you guys eat, with utensils. When he wants to use one, he'll reach for one. Then you can let him experiment -- who cares if he bites it or chews on it? It won't break. And if he throws it ? I'd leave it on the floor. That way he'll figure it out -- if he really wants to have it, he won't toss it away. :-)

The sippy cup? I am pragmatic. Although you get stuck buying new cups, you are building a supply of cups without covers that can be used later for snacks and at mealtimes. I am also kind of a "do it the easy way" kind of mom. If he really likes his sippy cup, I would let him use it. It's not hurting anyone (depending on the price), and it's not something he'll still be doing at age 10. My oldest went directly from a bottle to a glass cup. As did #2. #3 LOVED her bottle, so whenever she had a drink in the afternoon, she got it in a bottle, something my mother HATED, but I was pregnant, and I didn't want to take it away, then have her jealous because the BABY got a bottle and she couldn't have one. She gave up the bottle when she wanted to. And it didn't cause any stress on her part or ours. None of my kids have really used sippy cups much. although I still have some old tupperware ones, and as early teens, they got them out and used them once ! What a laugh. But they DO minimize spills !! :-)

He can absolutely go to an open cup right now. The older they are the harder it is to convince them to change a habit. The soft nipple is more like a bottle nipple. Your best bet is to go cold turkey and offer the open cup first thing in the morning. If the child can hold the cup on his own and knows how to tip back then he's ready for an open cup, which would have been months ago. Sippies are best for when you're going out of the house, which you could use any water bottle or the like. But drinks at home should be at the table with an open cup. No roaming around, except maybe at morning and afternoon snack time with a cracker and juice. Milk at each 3 meals should be at the table with an open cup for sure. You may have some accidents at first but it won't last long. If he's thirsty, he'll eventually drink. Let him pick out his own cups with designs so he'll be more apt to use it. Remind him he's being a big boy and drinking out of a cup like Mommy and Daddy.

When it comes to forks and spoons, some take to them faster than others. If he's not using them yet, that's ok, but offer one at every meal and model how to use them at each meal time. If he throws it, give it back so he understands that throwing forks/spoons is a no no. Throwing food is different. Once the food is being thrown they are pulled from the table and are done. They'll soon know if they're hungry enough not to throw food. It's rude and impolite.

K. B
mom to 5 including triplets

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