When to give regular milk??

Logan and Andrew are going to be 1 on June 4th!! I haven't given them any regular milk yet, they still drink formula. They also drink water and juice from their cup.  Should I start giving them some regular milk during the day, or just wait and just switch them? I have no idea, I also have to start giving them their formula in their cup to start getting rid of the bottles. 

Any advice on how you transitioned your kids over to regular milk?  Thanks!

I also waited until the Ped gave the go ahead!  then I mixed half and half  some people do and some don't some kids transition just fine!
Hope you get lots of advice!!
Beth

Thanks Beth!  I thought about doing the half and half so they get used to it.

Our pedi gave us the go ahead at 11 months.......

When Savannah turned 11 months I started the transition so that she would be off formula and on whole milk by the age of 1 year.  I started by giving her 1/2 formula & 1/2 milk for 2 weeks in her bottle.  After 2 weeks, I cut out the formula (after making sure she was A-Okay on whole milk).  For 2 weeks I have her just milk in her bottle.  By that time....she was 12 months and off formula completely.  The next step was getting her off the bottle completely.  I did this over a 2 week period.  I first cut the morning bottle out.  Giving her milk in her sippy cup only.  The next cut was the night time bottle.  After that 2 weeks was up, she only drank milk from her sippy cup....and the bottle was just a distant memory!

I plan on doing the same thing with Skyler and baby#3.  I just hope they are as easy to take off the bottle as Savannah was! 

Good luck!

Ash :)

Since my kids never had formula I can't help you with that but I want to warn you that cows milk can be really constipating. We had so much trouble with Savannah, my 16 year old. We gave her cows milk right at 1 year old and she suffered from chronic constipation for weeks until her body got used to it.

Good luck! It is so hard to believe they are turning one! Our babies sure are growing up fast.

Dylan was never a big bottle drinker, even at 11 months I was lucky to get 4 or 5 oz in him at a time, he would rather have eaten food.  I started him on Similac Go and Grow around 10 months to give him that 'milk' taste and I was hoping he would consume more formula.  Around 11 1/2 months I started mixing it with whole milk and right around his 1st birthday he was on straight whole milk. 

And I was lucky, he seemed to prefer the coldness of milk over warm formula so I never had to warm his milk.  I have a niece who would only drink warm mil****il she was about 18 months.  I would hate that!

We've never given our kids cows milk ever nor have they ever had juice. Our Pediatrician said that there is nothing but empty calories that children don't need in juice and they'll get better vitamins and nutrients from the whole fruit rather than the juice, so we just kind of went with that. Our babies do, however, eat yogurt, kefir and string cheese that comes from cows milk for the extra added calcium, but I make sure that it comes from farms that are absolutely NOT putting animal byproducts into their feed, that the cows are allowed to graze on grass and that are antibiotic and hormone free. When they are old enough to ensure that all of their daily calcium comes from the food they're eating, I'll stop the cows milk products all together.

I know that some people will not agree with our not giving cows milk to our babies, and that's ok. We've read multiple articles and talked to other parents that have chosen not to give their children cows milk and found out that milk is really not necessary beyond the infants first 12 months of life. If a child eats the right kinds of foods, which most do not, then all of the necessary vitamins and nutrients should come from a well balanced diet rich in whole foods and things that are not processed. 

Again, like I said, most will not share my views. I've done months and months of research, spoken to many sources and parents who share in the same thoughts as we do - how to minimize the chances of our children having all sorts of issues from skin conditions to allergies to ADD and Autism. The truth is that no one knows for sure what has changed and made our children come down with odd things in droves, and if I can at all prevent it by taking the natural approach to things as my parents did with us, then why not give it a shot? It makes sense to me. They drink almond milk and love it. It sounded so gross to me when someone suggested it, but it's actually really yummy! We decided against soy milk because of all of the links to different kinds of cancer, especially in women. 

This post went off in a different direction that I'd intended. I know it is more of an explanation that you probably wanted to hear, I just thought that I'd give you my thoughts from a different view. 

makes sence to me :).. what is kefir?

 Kefir is a creamy, cultured milk product, similar to yogurt, but kefir packs a double punch. Kefir contains beneficial yeast as well as the friendly probiotic bacteria found in yogurt. This naturally occurring bacteria and yeast in kefir combine to provide superior health benefits. Kefir is fermented or cultured milk, and has been used in such disorders as: 

Tuberculosis 
Intestinal stomach disease 
Chronic constipation 
Allergic reactions 
Control of high cholesterol 
Lactose Intolerance. 

Kefir is loaded with vitamins and minerals. It contains easily digestible complex proteins, and has natural antibiotic properties. And for people with lactose intolerance, kefir’s beneficial yeast and bacteria provide lactase. Lactase is the enzyme that consumes most of the lactose left after the culturing process.

is it smooth? or chunky like cottage cheese?... where would i get it? whole foods or a regular food store?...amd to your other post... its very interesting to read what your views on nutrition... i wish you would go on and on LOL