From Breast, to Bottle, to Sippy Cup | Making the Transition Easy #forbetterbeginnings

This post is sponsored by Playtex Baby™. You can read more about my journey as a #playtexmom here. As always, all of the thoughts and opinions expressed are 100% my own.

As my youngest baby inches closer and closer to his first birthday, I know that our nursing journey will likely soon be coming to an end. I can’t even begin to tell you how thankful I am, that I have been able to successfully breastfeed all three of my kids. I know full well that this isn’t something that comes easy to all moms, and that nursing can be a real struggle for some. I’m a firm believer in the Fed is Best movement, and I think that, as moms, we all strive do what is best for our families.  Our feeding journey has had its own (non-nursing related) set of struggles. I was really fortunate to never have supply or latch issues, I never had to pump out of necessity, and I never had to supplement so that my babies had enough to eat. I have so many friends who have dealt with one, or more, of these issues, and I can only imagine how frustrating it would be. I know that I was blessed when it comes to nursing, but I certainly had my own set of frustrations… my first two kids sadly never took a bottle, and trust me when I say that it wasn’t for lack of effort. We tried many different brands back then. I tried having someone else offer it to them. I left the house. We put sugar water on the bottle nipples. You name it, we tried it, but neither Max or Ella would budge. What can I say, I make stubborn babies. Maybe we didn’t introduce the bottle early enough, maybe we didn’t try the right brands, maybe we could have pushed harder, but if you want to talk about a frustrating situation to be in, just think about not being able to leave your baby for more than an hour or two, and then multiply that frustration by two back-to-back kids, with the same anti-bottle mentality. I can’t tell you how thankful I was when our current youngest actually took a bottle for the first time. It was the biggest relief to know that I might be able to leave him in the care of someone else every once and awhile, and not have to worry the whole time that he would be starving if I wasn’t there. Mamas need a break sometimes, and I know that I did.

Although Theo is exclusively breastfed and only occasionally takes a bottle, Playtex Baby™ Nurser® with Drop-Ins® Liners helped to make it possible for me to sneak away for a bit, from time to time, during his earlier months. Nurser® bottles have a wide NaturaLatch® nipple technology that helps your baby to latch on easily, and their Drop-Ins® Liners collapse just like your breast would as your baby feeds. These features make them a great option for moms who want to switch back and forth between the breast and a bottle.

Now that Theo is a few weeks shy of one, we have been offering him a sippy cup during the day. I learned with Max and Ella, that #forbetterbeginnings, the earlier you introduce your baby to a cup, the easier it will be to make the switch… even if this means just giving it to them with a little bit of water so that they can explore. Ironically even though not all of my kids were big bottle fans, the transition to a sippy cup has always gone fairly smoothly for us and I like to think that it’s because of the cups that we use. We started offering Theo Playtex® Sipsters® Stage 1 sippy cups when he was around 5 months old and he took to them right away. The Stage 1 Sipsters® are for babies ages 4 months and older, and they’re perfect for transitioning from a bottle (or the breast) to a cup. They offer both a soft spout and a straw option, and come in bright fun colors with removable handles. For us the handles and the soft spout have always been key in the beginning. The handles make the cups much easier for those chubby little hands to hold and the soft spout allows your babe to explore and figure out how to get the liquid out. Playtex® Sipsters® are BPA free, and my favorite feature of all, is that they are leak proof. If you’re a mom with young kids, you know that this is HUGE! My kids aren’t exactly gentle when it comes to cups, and the Playtex® Sipsters® have handled the repeat tosses from the high chair or table to our hardwood floors without incident!

It’s actually kind of funny, as Theo has gotten older, he has started reaching for Max and Ella’s Sipsters®. This is probably a good indication that he is ready to move on to the next stage… or that he is trying to keep up with his older siblings. Playtex® Sipsters® are available in Stages 1 through 4, so they grow along with your kids. M&E use the Stage 3 cups, which feature a hard spout and that same awesome leak-free guarantee that I have come to love. My kids love the fact that they come in lots of fun designs to suit their tastes. Max is currently obsessed with his Batman and Superman cups, and Ella loves anything and everything pink or purple!

You can find Playtex® Nurser® bottles at Target, Walmart, Toys R Us, on Amazon, and on the Playtex Baby™ website.

Sipster® cups are also available on Amazon, at Target, Walmart, Toys R Us, and on the Playtex Baby™ website.