Coming back on..... Need Advice though

Hello and how has everyone been?
I have not had the time to come up here it feels like since I was pregnant. But I would like to tell everyone we SURVIVED the first year. OMG it was hard and we had no help but with prayer and love we made it through in many pieces but we are here.

The twins are unforunately still waking up at night for their sippy cups and they are really attached to me and it is hard for me to find time for myself. Not to mention my oldest is being homeschooled this year like before and my DD is about to turn 3 and she is having the worst jealously issues and has continued to hurt the twins.

How do I get them off of the milk at night?
Plus we go through about 8 to 10 milk cartons a week.
They only want milk and they will occasionally drink water.

How many bottles or cups of milk should they be taking?
They dont want naps either!

How can I make them to take a nap so i can have a break of quiet time?

I just need suggestions or recommendations!

I have tried the CIO method and I CANT do it. it is not for everyone.

Thanks please help

 

Congrats on surviving the first year!! :hug:

Around 12 months of age they should be getting most of their nutrition from food, they only need about 16 oz of milk a day. Cut back on their milk intake, only offering it with or after they've eaten their food. As for nighttime milk, you do need to cut that out soon, it can start rotting their teeth out if they sleep with milk in their mouth. Substitute water in their cups. You can either do it gradually, or just cut it out completely. They aren't going to be happy, but the longer you wait, the harder it's going to be. Toddler's become stubborn little creatures as they head into their second year!

At 13 months they probably still need 2 naps a day. When do they sleep at night? How long do they sleep? Typically mine would nap 11-12 hrs at night, then take a nap 3 hrs after they got up, then 3 hrs after that, and then 3 hrs later it's bedtime. They recommend 2-3-4 but 3-3-3 worked better for us. Even if they don't nap, I would consistently put them down at the same times every day, as well as the same bedtime and wake them up at the same time. Routine is very helpful, it helps them feel secure in their environment, let's them learn what's to come next, and it gives you more control over your days.

And the attachement part is completely normal and is just a stage. I try to give mine some snuggle time if they come looking for it, and then let them play on their own when they are ready for it. They'll start to outgrow that in a couple of months or so. They are just starting to realize that they are not a part of you anymore, and sometimes that scares them.

 

We only give milk with meals. We keep sippies in the playroom, in the car, etc so that they can drink whenever they want. We also leave a water sippy in their crib so if they are thirsty at night they don't have to wake me up. The waking is a habit, so I would substitute the milk with water and it will likely not be worth their while to get up any more. I would also try to give it to them without taking them out of the cribs. Maybe try rubbing their backs and calming them back to sleep.

If they are not napping you could be missing the nap window and then they are overtired. When do you try to put them down and how long do you leave them in the crib? Ours actually changed to 1 nap about that age and when it first happened, we put them down at 10 for nap and they stayed awake till about 11:30 playing, then fell asleep and slept till about 1. If we had given up and gotten them out of the crib they would have been overtired by their next naptime. Maybe you can put some toys and books in the crib to keep them entertained and even if they don't sleep they will have some quiet time (and you too!)

 

You've gotten great advice from PP's.
My pediatrician said 16-24 oz of milk per day is enough (my two were on 24 oz at 13 months because we needed to put weight on them...then we dropped it to 16oz once the pedi was okay with their weight). I would start offering more water and if they refuse it, don't give in. Eventually they will come around to the fact that if they want something to drink outside of the times when you offer milk, they will drink the water.
I also agree with leaving a water sippy in their crib for overnight (as long as you have one that doesn't spill easy, my friend still puts a little water in a bottle for overnight for her 2 year old because he likes to get up for more drinks). I also agree that you might be missing their nap window, at 13 months my two were still on two naps..I did naps by the 2-3-4 method...the first nap 2 hours after waking and the second nap 3 hours after waking from the first nap and then 4 hours after that was bedtime.

Good luck!

 

Hello and welcome back!

Milk: I think PPs have some great suggestions; either cold-turkey or gradually moving to water during the night might help the night-wakings. I also only give milk during meals and just before bed (brushing teeth afterward), and offer water or diluted juice in between. Jack especially will cry "want milk, want milk" but I just tell him I'm offering water and he can either take it or leave it. He mostly ends up taking it! At 12 months I really felt like my guys were starting to truly understand what I was saying, so I always told them what to expect, and what I was doing. It really helped, *especially* with night-waking. :good:

Naps: At 12 months my guys were pretty much on the 2-3-4 schedule, with 2 naps per day. We'd put them down even if they didn't show tired signs, and they would almost always fall asleep within 1/2 an hour. At about 15-16 months they started boycotting the first nap, so we kept them up until lunch, and put them right down afterward. I definitely notice that the worse they sleep the worse they nap, which sounds counter-intuitive, but seems to hold true. Even if your LOs don't want to go down for a nap, there is nothing wrong with putting them in their cribs with the lights off and some white noise, and letting them have a "rest period". The might not sleep, but it won't hurt them (or you) to have some time to wind down. Napping is kind of like eating; you can give your children the tools and opportunity to rest, but you can't make 'em fall asleep! :lol:

Good luck!

 

I never heard of the 2-3-4 method. But it does make sense does that hold true somewhat for 2-3 yr olds.

 

Just put water inside instead.

Not more than 16oz after 1 is what both my pediatricians said... otherwise it fills them up too much.

At 13 months they probably still should have two naps... maybe they're not sleeping well because they are overtired. I'd definitely try the 3 3 3 method mentioned above. We switched to one nap at 14 months here, but we still put them down around 10am for months.