We had a heart to heart talk with our son... in as much as we wanted him to continue drinking his milk, he must do it without his bottle, as he already started going to school.
Yes, I'm proud to say, my son already started going to school. And unlike other nursery pupils, he doesn't need to be accompanied in the classroom or in school by a guardian. We just have him carpooled from house to school and vice versa. Very independent indeed. There was even this one time, that he was asking for milk and we were all asleep. He went out of the room, cleaned his bottle and filled it up with water, and made milk for himself. Though we asked him, that the cleaning part would be for mommy and daddy, so it would be thorough and safe for him.
Change wasn't easy for him. We decided that he finally said goodbye to his bottle after 4 long years. It's heartbreaking that he wakes up at night, sobbing, asking for his "dede" (bottled milk). Understandably, it had been his comfort and sleeping companion for a long time. So, we comforted while reminding him of what we talked about, that since he is soon to be "kuya" or elder brother (as we are expecting our baby this year), he must already be drinking milk in a cup or a glass. And for the same reason that he already started to go to class. He simply replied, "Okay, po." We now make him a glass of milk, which he gets to finish drinking using a little compromise... a straw.
From time to time he receives a couple of stars from school and he proudly shows them to us. He loves to draw and color things, promising artist or architect, maybe (hahaha). He can easily figure out his lessons. And when asked what he did in school, he always answers, "We play... we color... we watch TV... we draw...". Maybe that's why he is always excited to go to school.
Looking at how he adapts to all the changes that come to his life, we think he will be just fine. To Yahweh be all the glory, as always.
i remember that i was 5 years old when I was weaned from my baby bottle. yep, it is hard to part with it considering that it was one of my ways to get me to sleep. :)
ReplyDeleteMy mother told me that she hadn't got any problem on me to stop using "dede". I remember myself on your son, I am independent when I was so young.
ReplyDeleteVery good parent. Others still let their children do this, even though they're old enough. This way, they might be over-fixated with their oral stage, which is not that favorable when the child goes old.
ReplyDeleteThis is a good step towards getting old, keep doing it, but keep it slow though. Step-by-step. :)
It's not easy to let go especially for a child but that is true to adults too. Guess, the right training should really start during childhood!! Keep it up!
ReplyDeletethey grow up so fast don't they? :)
ReplyDeleteYou and your wife have prepared him well, your son. I'm actually amazed that you already got him to give up his bottle at age 4. Believe it or not, my brat of a niece is nearing her 6th birthday, already goes to school, yet doesn't want to give up her bottle just yet!
ReplyDeleteIt's nice to know that your kid is so independent minded and can easily adopt to changes. That will go a long way when he grows up.
ReplyDeleteYou gotta' love kids. They inspire us so much.
ReplyDeleteMy eldest stopped from the bottle at age 3. He even resisted wearing diapers at an early age of 2. By that time, he knows how to alert us every time he wants to go to the bathroom.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if my observation is valid as I have observed that girls are easier to wean from bottles than boys (at least in my case). Anyway, this is just time telling us that children are growing up.
ReplyDeleteHow cute! Im glad you didn't have a hard time convincing him, you have such an obedient kid! :)
ReplyDeleteI remember drinking my Sustagen in a bottle first before going to school. Thumbs up for successfully weaning your son.
ReplyDeletemy daughter stops drinking dede since it was actually very hard to travel when someone actually asked you for it. specially in the airplane though i thought if she did something wrong her punishment will be no dede and she will be drinking from a glass of milk as the story goes she start drinking with the glass and not in dede anymore so relief! xx
ReplyDeleteI was already in kinder when I was weaned from the bottle. haha. Well, weaning should be gradual. And we should wait for the child to show "readiness" before doing so. :)
ReplyDeletemy son was also 4 when he gave up his bottle. sad to say he didn't like to drink milk anymore that time. he settled for flavored yogurt drinks (Nestle yogurt milk ata un). although his pedia said it was better than milk. until now he drinks yogurt milks. he didn't like the smell and taste of milk when he drinks from a glass
ReplyDeleteHe is really similar to my niece. My niece found it also hard to let go of the bottle pero she also wants to use a straw! :)
ReplyDeleteSchool is really enjoyable for the little ones especially if there's a lot of arts and crafts involved.
I can't remember when I stopped drinking milk but for my little boy he still drink because he's still a baby haha and I don't know yet when will he let go of it :)
ReplyDeleteGood thing we didn't have a problem with my baby sister. :) My baby sister actually prefers preparing her own milk before she goes to sleep.
ReplyDeletethis reminded me of the time when we had to wean my 23 months old daughter from breastfeeding. she would wake up in the middle of the night asking for "dede"... it took about a week for her to finally realize that she can't have it anymore and learned to adjust to it.
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