It is here.
The time has come where I no longer have a baby boy. He is a little kid.
He no longer fits perfectly in the crook of my arms.
He has outgrown the beloved rocker in his room that we have used for nursing since the beginning. Daily use before naps, bed, in the middle of the night.
His head is no longer shielded from the wooden armrest by my arms because he’s too big. His feet push off of the other armrest because he thinks he’s funny.
As much as I have loved (and hated) our time nursing together, I feel the time has come to put away my nursing bras and actively start to wean.
My first thought was to switch him to whole milk. Once we do that, I figured it would be easy to cut out a feed here and there.
Before we know it, baby is off of breastmilk and mama can go shopping for some new clothes!
Unfortunately for me, he has never been big into dairy, and he’s never liked cow’s milk.
He would take a big gulp of it, then open his mouth with a smirk as it would pour out onto his shirt.
This week I thought I would try again. He took a drink and swallowed it very slowly, thoughtfully.
Score! He didn’t spit it out!
I offered it to him again and with his big old smile, he gently pushed away the sippy cup.
My husband tried again the next day, same exact thing. One drink, then pushed it away.
Time to tweak my plan. I mixed equal parts of whole milk and chocolate almond milk (about 1/4 cup of each). If this goes the way I want it to, I can give it to him everyday lessening the amount of almond milk and he would be none the wiser.
Will this work? No idea. I do know one thing though, he really, really likes that chocolate milk.
I’m also going to try warming up the milk a bit. Perhaps it’s the cold that he’s opposed to?
I will consider this first week a half step forward.
Anyway, after writing this post, turns out I’ll need the time too. I didn’t expect to be so emotional.
Hear that buddy? You take all the time you need!
Are there other types of milk I should consider giving him? Any other tips? Please share in the comments!
mamabyfire 
That’s a tough call and a hard thing to let go of… I’m in the middle of a breastfeeding post myself (it’s still mostly in my brain though haha). I have no great milk suggestions but agree that when he’s ready and you’re ready, you’ll figure it out and slowly but surely, you’ll get there together!
Yeah, its so hard! I figured if we take it slow, it will be easier on both of us! 😀
I agree for sure! You only get this time once….enjoy it while it lasts, but if its time, its time 😊
Love the pictures, btw!
Thank you!!!
Aww so sweet! Mila was pretty easy to wean, but I only breastfed her for 6 months, so that may be why. I love that picture of the two of you.. so freaking cute! Good luck! 🙂
Thank you!!! 🙂
Cute picture! My son was super hard to wean and couldn’t have a lot of dairy because of his GERD but he likes almond milk. Sometimes, making them a smoothie helps.
Thank you!! Yeah, regular almond milk is a good idea. And I’m sure he would like smoothies-as long as its kind of melty. He doesn’t like cold things very much…he just recently started appreciating ice cream, and its in very small doses. haha!
I think for one of my kids I did what you did: mixed the milk. I may have mixed it with breastmilk or formula … I can’t remember. But I gradually kept decreasing the percentage of the other stuff until it was eventually cow’s milk. I hope all goes well for you and your little guy!
Haha! This is embarrassing, but I didn’t even THINK to mix diary with breastmilk. Wow, I think I’m going to give that a try! LOL! Seriously, so embarrassing. Thank you for the genius idea!
We’re weaning too. I don’t like it but it is time. Cameron is almost 22 months and pretty much nurses before bed/nap and after waking.
Silk has yummy coconut, cashew and almond milks. Some even combine the different nuts. The chocolate almond milk is favorite here. 🙂
Man, that chocolate almond milk is so good! I couldn’t believe it the first time I tried it! I’ll have to try some coconut for him, I like that too. Thank you!
Z never liked milk (we tried all kinds) so we just switched to water and fun snacks. Each kid is different… You will get there. 🙂 good luck!
Thank you! That makes me feel better though. For some reason I have it stuck in my head that he needs some sort of milk. I guess I can lighten up a bit. Thanks!
My little guy is eighteen months and I’m about ready to be done. I think I’m going to get with the whole milk program too. You were so smart on the 1/2 and 1/2 idea. Like you, I need a gradual ween or I may cry. But at the same time, I wish it could be instantaneous….
Yes! No kidding! I really want to be done right now! But it makes me so sad!Good luck when you start!
I am going through the same thing. Trying to get him off breastfeed but he is just not ready to even take a sip of cow’s milk! I have tried everything. Mixed cardamom powder too!! But, nothing seems to work. Maybe, he is just not ready to give up on my breasts. One day, when he is done with it, I might miss it like hell. But, for now, I need to go shopping..I haven’t stepped out for weeks, months, no, wait, been nearly 11 months now!!
Yes! Shopping! I would love to go, but it would be pointless until I’m done nursing! Once I am done, it will be a nice “pick me up” because I’m sure I’ll be sad we’re not nursing anymore. Good luck! If you find something that works for you, please pass it along! I can use all the help I can get. Haha!
Sure thing!
Good luck..sounds like you are doing everything right…going slowly, trying different flavors, temperatures, etc…Hope it goes smoothly!
Thank you! We’re a work in progress for sure!
Mine never liked cow milk during weaning, either. She ate cheese and yogurt instead. She likes cow milk a little (3 years later), but she still only wants to drink it maybe once a month or so. It’s all cheese and yogurt for her dairy!
Good to know! I think I’ll just have to bite the bullet and start skipping feeds…thank you for your insight, I appreciate it!