(Not) Giving Up Bottle Feeding
Submitted by craftymama
My 11-year-old nephew Scotty is the greatest kid on the planet! He's smart and he's funny and he's charismatic and he's so awesome to hang out with! He's polite to adults, he's good to his younger brother, he's a great eater and an all around amazing kid. Oh wait, I forgot to tell you one thing about him ... he used a bottle until he was 6½ years old! No joke!
He doesn't lisp. He does well in school! He's got tons of friends (and girlfriends—ACK!), and he is really one of the most hysterical and unique kids that I know. Please. I hope that my kids grow up to be like him ... 'cause he really ROCKS!
But with all that said, with everything I know about this "bottle-till-he-was-6" kid who is so well-adjusted, so fabulous, so funny and so amazing ... WHY am I freaking out that my 14-month-old still uses the bottle!?
I want to be all chill about it! I want to pass it off as not a big deal! 'Cause it's really not a big deal. It's a freaking bottle for goodness sake! How bad can that be?
But all of the other moms in my playgroup make me think it's pretty freaking bad! Ever since our kids were 8 months old (and some of them at 6 months) all of the moms have been saying, "No more bottle by the time he's 1! NO MORE!" They all bought tons of different sippy cups and tried all sorts of book-related methods to make the transition easy. They all compare results and progress and tricks of the trade. And me, I just sit there and keep my mouth shut!
At first I figured I'd just start it all when Sasha turns 1. Then that day approached. And she loved her bottled. So I kept it! Why would I take away something that makes her SO HAPPY!? She's a really good baby who has shown NO interest in sippy cups (and yes, I bought seven different kinds, too) and I just didn't want to deal. I'm not even that "don't let your kid cry" kinda mom, but every time I see her sucking away at her cute little baba, I can't help but think that maybe, just maybe, Scotty turned out sooo great BECAUSE his mom let him keep his bottle!
Maybe our kids all start to have problems because we take so many comforting things away from them—boobies, bottles, pacis (oh forget about that ... I'm not even thinking about taking the paci away—NO WAY—she can suck it until she's in college for all I care)—maybe kids need these things to feel good and happy and safe. Maybe I am really the GREATEST mom on the planet because I'm letting her keep her bottle ... and not the worst like I feel when I'm in playgroup now and Sasha's the ONLY one sucking her milk down. (Honestly, I think the other babies are JEALOUS of my little nipple-sucking babe! Hehe!)
Yes, I am the BEST mom because I let my kid drink from her bottle. Right? Right! Right. ... Until I meet up with some mom whose kid is sucking from a sippy cup and talking about going to the dentist and I feel bad all over again.
But with all that said, with everything I know about this "bottle-till-he-was-6" kid who is so well-adjusted, so fabulous, so funny and so amazing ... WHY am I freaking out that my 14-month-old still uses the bottle!?
I want to be all chill about it! I want to pass it off as not a big deal! 'Cause it's really not a big deal. It's a freaking bottle for goodness sake! How bad can that be?
But all of the other moms in my playgroup make me think it's pretty freaking bad! Ever since our kids were 8 months old (and some of them at 6 months) all of the moms have been saying, "No more bottle by the time he's 1! NO MORE!" They all bought tons of different sippy cups and tried all sorts of book-related methods to make the transition easy. They all compare results and progress and tricks of the trade. And me, I just sit there and keep my mouth shut!
At first I figured I'd just start it all when Sasha turns 1. Then that day approached. And she loved her bottled. So I kept it! Why would I take away something that makes her SO HAPPY!? She's a really good baby who has shown NO interest in sippy cups (and yes, I bought seven different kinds, too) and I just didn't want to deal. I'm not even that "don't let your kid cry" kinda mom, but every time I see her sucking away at her cute little baba, I can't help but think that maybe, just maybe, Scotty turned out sooo great BECAUSE his mom let him keep his bottle!
Maybe our kids all start to have problems because we take so many comforting things away from them—boobies, bottles, pacis (oh forget about that ... I'm not even thinking about taking the paci away—NO WAY—she can suck it until she's in college for all I care)—maybe kids need these things to feel good and happy and safe. Maybe I am really the GREATEST mom on the planet because I'm letting her keep her bottle ... and not the worst like I feel when I'm in playgroup now and Sasha's the ONLY one sucking her milk down. (Honestly, I think the other babies are JEALOUS of my little nipple-sucking babe! Hehe!)
Yes, I am the BEST mom because I let my kid drink from her bottle. Right? Right! Right. ... Until I meet up with some mom whose kid is sucking from a sippy cup and talking about going to the dentist and I feel bad all over again.
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