Milk

Hey Girls!

Had a question about how much milk my 1 year olds should be getting? They get three bottles a day just don't know how much each bottle should be at this point.

 

At about a year we just started offering milk with meals, so 3 times a day and then water in between if they were thirsty. I think that milk was in a 8-10 oz sippy and sometimes they drink it all, sometimes they don't. After a year, milk is just a calcium supplement, and they get lots from cheese, yogurt and other sources.

Also FWIW, we switched over to sippies and quit bottles cold turkey sometime just after 12 months; I think the earlier you make the transition the easier it is.

 

At 1 yr I still did 3 8oz bottles but started the weaning process. I took away their afternoon bottle first, replaced it with a sippy cup. They'd still drink 3-4 oz before nap but not a full 8 oz anymore. Then we did the morning bottle, replacing it with a sippy cup and moving it to with breakfast. And lastly, the bedtime bottle. They would drink just a few oz before bedtime.

When they make the switch, they only need 12-16 oz of milk a day, as Jen said, food will become their primary source of nutrition and milk just becomes their calcium intake We switched to bottles at 13/14 months. It took about 2 weeks for their milk intake to get back to the new "normal" of 16 oz, but a slight decrease when you transition is normal.

 

Our pedi said once they hit a year old, they should get approximately 16-20 oz. of milk a day, but some kids want a bit less (like 12 oz.), and they said that is okay, too.

 

My pedi says 16-24 oz is good. My girls get 18, but they would take as much as I give them because they love milk! They get two 9 ounce sippy cups a day.

 

Our pedi said no more than 24 oz, no less than 8 oz, and 16 oz is ideal.

 

I honestly stopped measuring once I started giving them cow's milk. ardon: I found that as they made their way through the second year, they started drinking less and really ramping up on the solids. We just decided to give them sippies of milk at meals and snacks, and let them drink (and eat) as much as they wanted. :good:

 

My ped said no more than 15 oz per day, but that does seem a little low compared to others posting.

 

Thanks girls!

I appreciate all of your imput! Right now they are getting 3 9oz bottles, so maybe just a little more than what is needed at this point. They don't like milk in their sippy cups right now. I know that every day is different, what they don't like today, they may like tomorrow. I continue to try to give them their milk in sippys, but they just love water! So, they get their bottles right before morning & afternoon naps and bedtime. Not sure how to break the habit of them needing milk before bed/nap, but with my oldest, he just stopped, so i'm hoping it will be the same with the twins.