DS wants to drink milk at night. Would you brush his teeth afterwords?

[kozachka]

We used to be able to get away with giving him water whenever he woke up thirsty at night, or I'd let him nurse (not in the last 3-4 months) but lately he is adamant about getting his milk. I am in no mood to fight a sleepy toddler at 3 AM, so after offering water couple times I give in and let him have his milk, but feel guilty about not brushing his teeth afterwords. Obviously, DS does not feel like having his teeth brushed in the middle of the night, we have to struggle through it before bed. WWYD? Get into a contest of wills and insist on DS drinking water, give him milk and attempt brushing teeth (can't imagine doing a a thourough job), or just hope he does not get cavities.

I've also heard that giving a piece of cheese after a meal helps if you can't brush, but I am not sure DS would be interested, he normally just wants to go back to bed. The other thought I have is maybe getting him a fun water bottle that he can only use at night. Any ideas would be appreciated, I feel like this is an issue that I need to take a stand on.

[Sarah1]

I agree-this is definitely an issue on which you need to take a stand. It doesn't have to be a contest of wills to insist that he drink water. Just say NO and stand your ground. Let him cry and scream. Ignore him.

My advice is, when you are putting him to bed for the night, tell him THEN that if he wakes up he will only be getting water, not milk. Repeat it several times. I like your water bottle idea, too. And then, if he wakes up and wants milk and cries and screams when you don't give it to him, well, then let him cry and scream. And don't over-explain. That will probably make things worse.

The thought of brushing teeth (or even worse, giving cheese???) in the middle of the night is just laughable. Do you really want to get into that?

Sorry if this is harsh, I just really think you are not doing your child a favor by giving into him.

ETA--I think I see that today is your DS's birthday?! Is that right? If so, maybe wait until a day that ISN'T his birthday to go into tough-love mode :P

[kozachka]

>My advice is, when you are putting him to bed for the night,
>tell him THEN that if he wakes up he will only be getting
>water, not milk. Repeat it several times. I like your water
>bottle idea, too. And then, if he wakes up and wants milk and
>cries and screams when you don't give it to him, well, then
>let him cry and scream. And don't over-explain. That will
>probably make things worse.

Thank you for your advice, Sarah. I really appreciate it. That's what I did tonight, even before reading your post, so now I just have to stick to my guns and not give into DS' crying. Just wish I had a chance to warn DH about our new 'policy'. We all sleep in the same room now that we moved to a one-bedroom apartment and DH has to go to work in the morning.

>The thought of brushing teeth (or even worse, giving
>cheese???) in the middle of the night is just laughable. Do
>you really want to get into that?

I did not really think either would work, was just trying to go through all the possible options.

>Sorry if this is harsh, I just really think you are not doing
>your child a favor by giving into him.

You don't have to sugar-coat your advice, I needed this. Everybody around me seems to think that I am depriving my toddler by not giving him candy and chocolate. And most people I've met since we moved don't even brush their baby's teeth since they are not 'permanent'. No wonder people in Ukraine have such bad teeth.

We've only been giving DS milk at night for two weeks or so. It all started when I was away for a week and DH was taking care of DS. I just need to get things to where they once were :).

>ETA--I think I see that today is your DS's birthday?! Is that
>right? If so, maybe wait until a day that ISN'T his birthday
>to go into tough-love mode :P

And thank you for reminding to update DS' Lilypie ticker, I've been meaning to do it for a few days.