My 21 Month Old Daughter Is Drinking Wayyyy to Much Milk...

Any suggestions? Stop giving in to her tantrums! She is 21 months old, it is not like she is getting the milk herself. If you say no and she starts throwing a fit, ignore it. She will try harder at first, because she has learned that having a tantrum is an effective way of getting what she wants. Once she realizes it no longer works, the behavior will stop.

Let her have a tantrum and ignore it - she is learning that if she throws a fit, she will get her way! She shouldn't be having more than probably 16 oz of milk a day. I know it's healthy, but like you said, if she fills up on milk, she won't eat anything else, and one of the healthiest things you can do for kids is get them used to drinking water. Time to learn to set some limits and just start saying NO, end of story. She needs to learn to live with no, because you are going to have to say no to many, many more things, all the time, as she gets older!

the word is "no". here are some more that might help..."if you want to act like that, go to your room. i don't have to listen to it. you can come out when you are ready to act like a good big girl." and follow through, mama! you are in charge...if you choose to be!

the alternative is keep giving in. she already sounds like a handful. it will only get worse!

WATER is best. plain, regular water. there's not a thing wrong with it. except we are all spoiled...so we raise our kids that way. human bodies are meant to drink water. plain and simple. there is zero reason or justification to "refuse" to drink water (especially us adults who know better!) raise her to treat herself better than that.

Just tell her "sorry, we're out" ... open the fridge, and show her there isn't any milk. (Hide it behind something for a while.)

She may throw a fit, but she needs to be drinking other things.... as you are already seeing, she is filling up on milk, and not eating the variety of food she needs.

You're the mommy, you need to set the rules.. not her.

Who controls the milk source?

She will drink water, eventually. She knows if she pitches a fit, that she gets milk. It's actually NOT healthy to drink that much milk, no water, juice, and not eat much. Milk can never make up for nutrition from food. Drinking that much milk can lead to other problems. Severe anemia and constipation, to name a few. Just because it's "healthy," does not mean it's good to get too much.

Take the milk away and don't give it back. You're the mother, stop giving in to tantrums.

My little one would drink a gallon of milk a day if she could. Rules are:milk for breakfast and milk before bed. She gets one juice a day and anything other than that is water. She doesn't like it but if she's thirsty, she'll drink water. Also, she will still ask for milk, just to see if I'll say yes! I say no and she grins and gets a water!

Just say no ;) I give my 19 month old a nice glass when he wakes up in the morning and after his nap, and that's it. The rest of the day it is watered down juice or water. I make decaf tea, which he also loves and he does get lemonade etc sometimes. But for the most part it is two glasses of milk then juice or water the rest of the day. Like sometimes he will ask for juice, but he already had some so I say, no, but you can have some ice water. I will make it and give it to him, if he throws it or whatever I just don't care. He will drink when he gets thirsty ;) I think if she realizes she can control the situation with a tantrum she will continue to do so. Now granted my second, is a pretty easy child. My first was a lot more like your daughter with the willfulness. He always wanted to fill up on any kind of drink and not eat. I began serving him food with no drink and I didn't offer him anything but water when he woke up in the morning bc he would do the same and not eat much at all and just suck down the milk, etc. He fussed a lot at first, made his stand, then started eating to get his milk! With him also I gave him half sippys of milk so that I could give it to him throughout the day. You can also add some water to the milk so she thinks she is getting more milk, she is actually getting some water in her life and you can give her milk like four times per day. I used to do that too, mine never noticed and got more hydration ;) Good luck, it will pass, you just have to out strategize her!!

You just have to steel yourself for the tantrum. Tell her the new rule - only milk at lunchtime and at bedtime (or whatever you want your rule to be). Then let her tantrum away. Don't give in! Keep reminding her and she will soon get it and will stop with the tantrums. Go mama! You can do it!!!!!!!!!

have her a cup ready with half milk/water. also have you tried the propel flavor packets? I get them up at Sams. They have no sugar or atificial sweetner. I use two packets to 2qts of water so it is super water down. My dd loves the taste and I do too. Hubby uses one packet to 20oz water that is way to sweet for me.

If you make the watered down milk tell her thats all there is and maybe more will show up later.gl

That does sound like a lot of milk but I don't have the best memory. After you check with your pediatrician or consult someone like Dr. Sears books and determine the maximum she should have cut back to that amount. If she has a tantrum, she has a tantrum. Good for her to start learning now that a tantrum won't ensure she gets her way. If you have a playpen she can't get out of you could put her in the playpen and tell her you'll take her out when she's done having a tantrum. Also, I'd do that if she threw it it too. Only for two minutes though. I wouldn't expect her to catch on right away, she's still little but if you're calm and unemotional about it, realizing your job is to help her find better ways to deal with frustration, it makes it a little easier.

I like Malia B's idea. She will throw a fit at first but then she'll finally give up. Only offer water. She will eventually get thirsty & drink it. It's not cruel :) Then once she starts drinking the water, give her some milk and tell her that's all the milk, and then it's all gone. And don't give in. You can do it! :)

Its a phase.

My son was like that.
He grows like a weed.
He is very healthy.

I was a milk drinker as a child too.
I just loved milk.

your daughter is asking 'nicely' for it.
Gosh, hard to deny a face like that, huh?

I don't know.
I gave my son milk.
The Pediatrician said it was fine.
No harm was done to him and again, he is very healthy, grows like a weed, is very lean and solid.

But in your case, you said your child is not eating anything.
What does she like to eat?
Try those things.
Or tell her, only after she eats, she can drink milk.
I would do that sometimes.

My kids both really like milk and when I feel like they've had their fill I tell them they can have more after they eat something. My daughter will sometimes throw a fit about it but I don't give in. I just shrug my sholders at her and tell her that's the way it is. I also leave cut up apples, cut up grapes, carrots, cheese, what ever and tell them its snack time. Then just leave them on the table. Even if they don't head for it right away, they do make it, and get some actual food in their little bodies.

ohhh my daughter did the same thing! The only thing she might drink otherwise was applejuice so I would do 1/2 water and 1/2 applejuice. To this day, she is almost 6 and she still will only drink those two at home unless it is a capri sun or juice box. She would suck down the milk in less than 2 mins and want more. I would just tell her to drink it slow b/c she is not getting anymore for awhile. Of course she did not but after she sucked that down, I would say, 'not now, maybe later' and she would go play. or I would say, "only if you drink juice first'..... at least milk is good for her! ha ah

Stick to your guns. She is going to cry & throw a tantrum (put it in a sippy cup with a lid; that will hopefully make the mess less messy to clean). You could try watering down the juice a lot and offering that instead, or maybe getting some of that flavored water (although, again, that is going to get expensive, too).

Give her only milk at meal times, and only after she's had

Toddlers, by preference, often want to drink their calories instead of eat them (hey, they were used to doing that for the first 90% of their life, right, either from a bottle or a breast, LOL). We have to be strong and do the right thing, even when it means real unpleasantness & frustration for us.

She might refuse to drink for a day, but she will come around. When all you offer is water, she'll eventually drink it.

Good luck!

Mine love milk too. You need to decide how you are going to parent. Is every temper tantrum going to win her her way? It sounds like it. You are setting yourself up for future battles you can't possibly imagine. I get little tykes chairs thrown at me, tv's flipped off the stands, shoes, books, etc...thrown at me when i say no.

I have a little guy with sensory issues that has NO impulse control. He just explodes when I say no. I am always consistent but he still tries to get me to give in. I say no only when I mean no. If I don't mean no then I do not say no. I say, let me think about that a few minutes then I'll let you know.

You have to decide how much milk you are going to let her drink then stop. I let mine both drink several cups per day. We go through a gallon of milk every other day for 2 kids. I would gradually go down, not cold turkey it.

Put the gallon container of milk in the fridge somewhere she can't see it and have a smaller container, the amount she can have for the day, then tell her that's all the milk until you get more. Once it's gone show her the container and tell her it's all gone. If she throws a temper tantrum tell her she chose to drink all the milk in the morning and now there isn't any.

My little guy loves milk, too, but he gets a sippy cup of it in the morning and one at night, period, regardless of how politely he asks. The point is his ped said 2 cups of milk a day (his sippy holds 9 oz so he's getting 2 oz a day more than she said.) More than that fills them up and prevents them from eating the foods they should, she said. He gets juice at lunch, ice (he loves it cold) water the rest of the time, which he loves but didn't always. I just kept giving it to him (I sometimes told him it's all we had and he'd look at it as if to say, "oh well" and would then drink it.) At 21 months I handled tantrums and throwing his cup the same way I do now that he's almost 29 months, he goes to his room to throw his tantrum there behind a closed door or in a time-out in the room we're in or place we're at until he's quiet, usually a couple of minutes.

One tip I have is what my sister's ped told her, to give my nephew his milk after he had eaten his meal, not before or with his meal, so he would be filled up with his food and satisfied with one cup of milk, and he was.

Tell her that her body needs all kinds of food and drink to grow, she can understand that somewhat. Then say no more when she's had the amount she needs. I don't know why we are so afraid of our children crying. Just ignore it and put her where you don't hear it until she learns you are in control. Wait until it's way bigger issues than milk and she's way older. You need to get her to realize she's not the one making the decisions.

Well, if you are really wanting her to slow down on the milk then I think that it starts with you. Since she can't get her own milk then that leaves it up to you to limit the amount that she gets. If she throws a tantrum then deal with it and move on but don't give in. She knows that you will give in so she will continue that cycle and so on and so on. So you have to be consistent and don't give in - be strong - you are the mom!!!

Yes, we have that issue too, both my kids love milk. First off, what % milk is she on? I know I like to keep my kids on whole until they are 2, but that of course makes them fill up quicker. If you aren't already you can consider moving to 2% or skim. I didn't want to give up the whole milk yet (my son is 23 months) so I am just limiting his intake. It can be really hard b/c like you said, there will be a tantrum, but I agree with some of the other moms that said you'll just have to brace yourself for it and move on! Also, milk is healthy but calcium can actually block the absorption of iron, which is also an essential nutrient, so you really have to balance the intake of milk so they can take in the other stuff!

I don't necessarily think you only need to offer milk at meal times, but start weaning her down. Tell her that you'll give her a cup and that's it. If she finishes it she may choose water or she may wait until lunch (or dinner or snack or whatever) until you offer milk again. It may take a few days but she sounds pretty verbal if she is already being polite and talking to you about it, so just tell her if she gets upset that won't change your mind and you'll be ready to play with her when she's done crying.

Hang in there!