What I learn from 'bubbye bottle'.

Yusuf managed to say goodbye to his Avent bottle today. We're so proud of him. He's 2 years and 5 months old and we believe that he should be able to drink from a cup - and he proved us right!

I know it's not an easy thing for Yusuf to do, especially when he has been depending on milk from the bottle starting from 6 months old, to comfort him to sleep and it became his savior from hunger (if Ummi takes too long to cook!).

Remembering what the nurses in King Eddie Hospital back in Perth advice, which was to teach the toddler from the age of 2 to let go of their bottle, in order to protect their teeth from rotting and to ensure a better sleeping pattern at night and better brain growth (since no waking ups for milk in the middle of the night) - it gave us strength to prevail, though Yusuf actually asked for his bottle (only) twice during the first day (and both were not caused by hunger, but merely to comfort him to sleep).

Steps for 'Bubbye-Bottle'

Bubbye bottle, Hello Wiggle cup!

1. We comforted and praised him that he is a very good, big boy, and big, handsome boys don't drink from bottles. They use cups. And we asked him whether can he be a good big handsome boy. Of course he replied, "YES!' without understanding fully the consequences of the answer.
2. Then we asked him to find his bottle from his cot and asked him if it was dirty. And of course, another 'YES,' from him. So we reasoned him that it's not healthy anymore to drink from the bottle. Grown-ups like us (includes the older siblings in the conversation) do not use bottles. He then told us, 'I'm a big boy! No yucky bottle!' (Phew, correct answer from him!) And we asked him to throw the bottle in the rubbish bin (himself). <--- This step is important so that he'd remember that he chucked it away himself.
3.  Then we introduced to him to his new pals, Elmo and Wiggle straw cups, just like his sister's. Alhamdulillah, he accepted it. (Alwani did not approve of her cups when she was younger, so we drove to Target in Carousel, Perth and asked her to choose her own cup! And she was stuck to it for a looong time. <---This was another tip given by the nurses at King Eddie's which was to reward the children for their sacrifice.)
4. Be persistent. Some kids (like Al Fateh) take a bit longer to adapt to the new situation. They might rebel. But some (like Yusuf) understands well and reason with himself when he was in need of the bottle. Some of his monologue; 'No bottle, I'm a big boy', 'Wiggle cup but same milk', 'I don't want bad teeth'. 
5. Though Yusuf transformed exceptionally well, his milk consumption became less at the beginning (4-5 days), which actually worries the nursery carers. But he'll gradually learn to drink more from the cup day by day. Both my children, Alwani and Yusuf, enjoy the chocolate flavoured milk in the cup, as compared to the normal flavoured milk. I can't answer why. Al Fateh only drinks full cream milk, even till now.
6. For us, because we knew and believed on why were doing the this, we symphatised when Yusuf desperately sought for his bottle, but we didn't give in. Patience and perseverance are essential to both mom and dad.

We are proud of you big, handsome and good boy Hamza Yusuf!