when did your kids start drinking from a regular cup on a consistent basis? I guess I just haven't thought of it until now. Seeing the mention of dixie cups in the other thread about sippys made me think about it. That's a good idea!
When do you start pushing using a real cup? I'm totally ignorant on this one.

By Dawnk777 on Saturday, May 20, 2006 - 11:37 pm:

My kids drank out of sippy cups for years. They were just a cup with a press-on lid, though. It was just easier. They did leak if tipped over, but not as much as if the cup wasn't covered. I think it was about 4-5, when we gave up on them. (I think it was older than one family on the nanny shows. She thought some three-year-olds needed to give up their sippy cups! I was like, "NOOOOO!")

By Tripletmom on Sunday, May 21, 2006 - 12:50 am:

Ditto Dawn-Katie used them until she was around 5 years old.We never had a problem with her peeing the bed, so she took a sippy cup every night to bed,she'd use any excuse to get out of bed.She now takes a bottle of water to bed.I think they're great and alot less spills to worry about.

By Dawnk777 on Sunday, May 21, 2006 - 09:18 am:

I'm not alone, then! I know I used them past three! I'm like if the Nanny wants to clean up spills, more power to her!

By Christylee on Sunday, May 21, 2006 - 10:23 am:

Brendan is 5 and he takes one to bed at night because he always needs a drink of water, other than that he uses a regular cup. If we're going on a long trip in the car I "might" let him take one but mainly it's just at night.

By Pamt on Sunday, May 21, 2006 - 04:29 pm:

Well Dawn, I'll agree with Nanny here. I would say by 3 years of age at the latest. Sippy cups cause you to drink with your tongue covering your bottom teeth just like sucking a bottle nipple, a pacifier, or a thumb. Extended sippy cup use can lead to a tongue thrust and a lisp just like those other things. For travel and bedtime cups of water a sports bottle or lid and straw (I used to save kiddy cups from restaurants and use disposable straws) are best.

By Dawnk777 on Sunday, May 21, 2006 - 05:26 pm:

Now that you mention kids' cups from restaurants, though, we did use those, too! I just can't remember exactly when I did any of this stuff, though, since it was a long time ago.

By Tink on Sunday, May 21, 2006 - 05:40 pm:

My younger kids stopped using them right around three years old. I let my oldest use her's until she was almost four and she has a lot more dental issues than the other two, although she didn't have any speech problems. We used cups with straws for between meal drinks but at the table, regular plastic cups were and are used.

By Yjja123 on Monday, May 22, 2006 - 04:21 pm:

No sippy cups here. They used a straw or small plastic regular cups. Our doctor warned us about sippy cups causing dental problems. We did not have very many spills and the kids seemed to not have trouble using the regular cups.

By Jackie on Monday, May 22, 2006 - 05:17 pm:

I can not remember when the older 2 started drinking out of regular cups. Faith still uses a sippy cup, and she is 21 months old. She can also drink with a straw as well. Sippy cups are easier to take out with us. I could not imagine the mess in the car if we did not use sippy cups. My older kids used sippy cups for at least 2 yrs, probably longer, and they have no had any dental problems. They are almost 12 and almost 7, and do not have any cavities.

By Kaye on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 - 08:48 am:

There are always exceptions to the teeth bit. But studies have shown the chances are higher to have issues (more with bite and straightness of teetch) the older they get.

As far as the spills and stuff go. I think the plan is to contain it. We certainly used sports bottles, straw cups etc, if we had to use a cup in the car. But mostly we tried not to eat or drink in the car.

I kind of laugh when I look back to the differences when our parents raised us. Lots of bad stuff has been changed (like seatbelts, carseats), but one of the few things that we don't do well is that family meal time. We certainly didn't run around with cups all over the house. We sat down and ate a snack. We were put in high chairs and talked to by our parents while we ate, then cleaned up. We didn't spend near the amount of time we do in the car, so there wasn't as big of a need for sippy cups.

By Reds9298 on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 - 09:08 am:

It's interesting that you say that Kaye, about how different things are. Most of my friends let their kids run around the house with food and drinks, and I'm just the opposite. I'm too picky about the house that I earned and put together long before my kiddo came along! ALL snacks are in a chair at the table, and occasionally I will let her have a sippy elsewhere in the house. (She doesn't drink anything but water anyway.) My parents & DH's parents don't understand why she can't just eat wherever she wants! ALL children that come to our house under the age of 16(I have 7 nephews) eat/drink in the kitchen where food belongs. Natalie will have a sippy in the car, though, especially after a music or gymnastics class. We're just trying to teach her that food goes in the kitchen.

It's a personal preference I guess!
I didn't know anything about this whole dental thing with the sippy cups.

By Boxzgrl on Tuesday, May 23, 2006 - 02:27 pm:

Kaitlyn has been using regular plastic cups since she was about 2 1/2. The only sippy cups that are in my house are the ones that have migrated over from the neighbors house.

On the other hand, my neighbors 7 year old DD still uses them because the younger kids will spill her cup. I thought it was hysterical the first time I saw her with one.