How to teach a baby to drink from a cup

Babies and cups have not always had a pleasant co-existence in my home. For one reason or another if it’s not a “sippy,” of which there are endless varieties, and many discouraged by speech pathologists, then the contents end up spilled all over my floor and someone is crying.

Recently we have hit some milestones with my youngest and we are moving into cup-drinking territory. He is no longer a solely breastfed baby, taking a bottle and drinking from a straw throughout the day.  He is very excited about all the things he is learning and loves to feed himself and drink on his own. I love watching him grow and learn about the world around him, but the cause and effect lessons are somewhat difficult to handle and hilarious at the same time. As independent thinkers, babies often enjoy seeing objects fall to the floor during playtime or food-time.

The open drinking cup can be tricky in this situation because one false move and the liquid is all over the tray and floor with the cup toppled on it side. I found the BabyBjorn baby’s first cup to be a hit at my house since it has a very solid base that is hard for your baby to knock over when they start swinging their arms wildly with excitement.

Children should never be left unattended with an open-top cup. I am cautious as to how much liquid I put in the cup, just enough for them to drink but not enough to create a lake on my floor if it happens to end up there. Helping your baby along the way by holding just the bottom of the cup when they are drinking may help to alleviate some of the frustration from your little one when they don’t understand how to lift the cup high enough to get the liquid to their mouth. It also keeps clean-up to a minimum since the cup can’t go flying near as far when you are there to catch it.

Finding a cup that is perfect for you and your baby is helpful in teaching him to drink from a cup. If your baby can’t hold the cup he may become easily frustrated and give up. The BabyBjorn baby’s first cup is very well designed for baby hands and is easy for little ones to grab and hold on their own, without becoming slippery. I had to keep an eye on my little guy to make sure he didn’t pick it up and drop it over the edge of his tray–it was that easy for him to maneuver.

This cup looks very sweet and stylish and has a sleek design, which in my book is a win. I love the way it looks when my baby is using it and I love the way it looks on my cupboard shelf when my older child isn’t trying to take it and use it as his very own snack cup.

Lindsay  
www.foundforyouandme.com 
Twitter: @LindsayBMoore

We’re hosting a Savvy Cup Contest!
Two Winners will WIN 5 cups each!    (Retail value of $75.00)
Two Easy Steps to WIN!

1. Tweet!

 “I’m following @savvysassymoms and @BabyBjornUS to win the new [pink or blue] non-skid cups! http://bit.ly/ssmcups ”

2.  Comment

Come back here and tell me if you would like Pink or Blue?

You can follow BabyBjorn on Twitter @BabyBjornUS
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These cups will be available in retail stores beginning in April, $14.95 each.

*This contest ends March 31st at 11:59 pm
*This contest is oipen rto US Residents only
Disclosure:  BabyBjorn gave me a  Baby’s First Cup to use with my children.  All savvy thoughts and sassy experiences and opinions are my own.  Lindsay

SSM Contributor Lindsay

Lindsay is a mother of two boys and works in the home designing and renovating anything in her path. She loves design of any kind, whether it is fashion, interior, graphic or otherwise. Design is her passion and she enjoys writing about what she finds at Found for you and me. She enjoys running, yoga, and dancing and improving the health of her family through food and physical activities. Lindsay and her husband love photography and spend time together as a photographic team. She also hopes to run a half-marathon and in between having children and designing she works at that goal with the help and support of her husband.

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