Night Time Routine

You could try a sippy cup with water in it instead and give it to her when you put her in her crib. Maybe go pick out a new sippy cup with her.

Hi A.-

I nursed my now 19 month old until he was 13 months old. That last month or so we were just down to that before bed nursing as well. It was much harder for me to stop nursing than it was for my son. We followed a very similar routine as you: dinner, bath, pjs, books, nursing. When I decided to stop nursing we kept up the same routine but after I was done reading books my husband would come in with a sippy cup of warm milk and rock him. He now LOVES his Daddy cuddle time at night, and my husband and I love that we can both be part of his bedtime routine.

One sidenote- my son "snubbed" me a bit for about 2 weeks after I stopped nursing (didn't want to cuddle me anymore at all). Please know that your little one might snub you for a while but when she gets used to her new routine things will get back to normal. My son is now more of a cuddler than he ever was before!

Good luck- and kudos to you for nursing this long!

rub the back gently in circles...clockwise, counterclockwise...this is also very relaxing and my three kids really enjoyed it

my daughter nurses to sleep and when I am gone she goes to sleep with out it. Its a bit of a struggle but I wouldnt wean her so that the few times I am gone she goes to bed easier. Why wean her if what you are doing works for both of you? Breast milk is still nutritious after the child turns one. If it makes bed time stress free why would you change that?

I nursed my son as well. What we did was very similiar to what you are doing now. He took a bath, put on pj's, and then we sat in the rocking chair and read or sang or both. It was difficult when I took the nursing away. I introduced something else for him instead. I gave him a blanket or a stuffed animal to hold on to. He did keep fighting to nurse, but after about a week finally gave up. Just hold strong and it will happen.

I love nursing my kids to sleep. It's so sweet to get that drowsy look from them when they are done. I just stopped nursing my 3 year old to sleep because she's out of diapers now and she's fine with it but I"m not! It was nice and I still lay with her and read a book and do everything else but I miss it! It's so silly. Our routine is bath, teeth, pick out two books, then we get into her twin bed, me, her, and my one year old, and we read and I nurse the baby. Then usually he falls asleep and I go and put him down. Sometimes I go back and lay with her for a while, sometimes I don't. She'll let me know if she wants me some more.
Don't be in a hurry to stop nursing her. This is when it starts getting easy! It's a very special bond that only you and her share and when it's over, it's over, there's no going back. I've never heard anyone regret nursing, only not nursing.

We replaced nursing with warm milk in a sippy cup.

I have the same issue. On the very few times I haven't been able to put our son to bed, my husband has had absolutely no problem putting him down without a bottle or anything. He just follows our normal routine, and since I'm not there, I think our son just accepts that he's not nursing. I think when I stop nursing (I too am down to that last feeding) soon, I'll do the bath and stuff, but when it's book time, I'll say goodnight and leave. He can put him down after reading. Hopefully, that will be fine!

Check out the book "The No Cry Sleep Solution". I used the one for toddlers when my 27 month old quit nursing. Elizabeth Pantley is the author and she has some great techniques. Good Luck.

Both my girls quit nursing at a year old. I would then just rock them and sing to them softly. At first it was three or four songs, then it was just two, then just one and eventually I would just lay them down and give them hugs and they would go to sleep. It only took a few weeks of transition. They were both going to sleep easily at about 2 1/2.

When my son quit nursing, we started a massage before bed. I let him pick back massage or foot massage. I would do a short "routine" covering either his whole back or each foot then kiss him good-night and leave the room.

I am still nursing my 11 month old but have started feeding him bottles of breast milk before bed. When he's done with his bottle, I put him in his crib and he settles himself to sleep.

You're never sopose to lay with them or hold them until they sleep. They'll keep you doing that until they're in jr. high. Watch Supernanny tonight on a.b.c. It will teach you everything you need to know now and in the future rearing of your child.

I don't mean to sound rude but if your daughter has lost interest in nursing, maybe it is time to call it quits. I know that it is a special time that you share with your daughter but I think it is time to modify your bed time routine a little. My daughter used to nurse before bed too and I thought that changing that routine would be h*** o* her. I think it was probably harder on me :) I modified her routine by switching her to a special "big girl" sippy cup (that she picked out) then she drank milk from her cup while mommy or daddy read books with her. I was surprised that she took to it right away. She even enjoyed the greater amount of freedom, she was able to sit in my lap, talk, and interact with the books more. My daughter is 2 now and that is our favorite time of day. We both enjoy it and really gives me the chance to bond with her and get to know the little person that my darling daughter is becoming. I enjoy it more than the breast feeding days!

We did milk in bottle, then, sippy cup, then water, then nothing. Gradually over time. Baby step ya know.