What is the best cup?

[Rockett]

Hi ladies,
I'm wondering if you can tell me what the best spout type cup is? With handles preferably.
I'm looking for a spillproof one,and one that is easy for bub to actually get her water out of! I tried the Heinz Baby Basics cup,but you have to suck really hard to get anything out of it (yes,I tried!)
Any suggestions? Thanks :)

[Chickadee]

Don't worry, I tried the cups too :)

I think all the spillproof cups take a lot of suction to drink out of, otherwise they wouldn't be spillproof. When bub is just starting out it helps to take out whatever bit of plastic is controlling the flow. If you just start with water then spills aren't too much drama to clean up. Once bub has the hang of the spout you can put the control thing back in.

[draught]

My daughter would not suck on the spout cups at all, so got no water from them, so they were a waste of money for me. She also wouldn't suck on a teat, so I was despairing of ever weaning her! What worked for us in the end was the Mag Mag straw cup - spill proof and portable and they get the water out with less effort. The only problem with them that I have found is that if you leave cold milk in them and the lid on tightly, the milk creeps up the straw and leaks. The trick to avoid this is to loosen the lid when baby isn't sucking on the straw.

If you do want a spout cup though, I have been very happy with the Tupperware bell tumblers. The only downside they have is that they don't have handles, but the spout is designed so that water doesn't pour out of them, but comes out easily for drinking. The other thing I liked about them is that they work out to be $5 each instead of $15 like all the other ones I could find, and they are"normal" drinking cups when baby doesn't need the lid anymore, so they have a future! I also discovered that the Tupperware snack cup lids fit them so I can put them in my handbag/nappy bag if I need to when we are going out and they won't leak. (Can you tell I am a fan? shame I don't sell the stuff, I could make a fortune!!)

[Elfin]

A straw cup is a good way to start but of all the sipper non spill cups I have tried, I think Playtex is the best brand. It does take a while for them to get the hang of it.

[Rell]

My daughter used the Platex cup when she was little but my son just couldn't use it. I have tried the Heinze and the Tommy Tipee but he can't work them eather. In the end we used the very basic cup you can get from the suppermarket that has a lid on the top with 3 holes in it. It isn't spill proof but at least he can use. Martha M your idea of removing the valve is a great one.

[jembelina]

funny, i was going to post a similar question myself today :) i have three cups sitting in the cupboard none of which i am entirely happy with. I think i'm going to go with Martha's idea of taking the valve out, sounds like it might just do the trick!

[Chickadee]

Wow. I'm flattered but I'm sure I got the idea from someone else!

Our cups have a hard plastic spout that DD just kept chewing on. She couldn't suck on it the way she would a softer bottle teat, against the top of her mouth, so it took some learning for her to figure out there was water in there and how to suck it out. Taking the valve out just helped her along. A cup with a softer spout or straw like Draught suggested would be easier to learn from probably. A regular plastic cup, no straw or spout, is also good as they will learn the sip/suck action as the water hits their lips.

Good luck.

[onabreak]

Hi Butterfly

I just bought my daughter one of those heinz baby cups and yes I did the same thing and sucked out of it too and boy you do have to suck really hard. But you can take the part out that stops it making it spill proof and water will just run out of it no worries.

[Rockett]

Thanks girls.
I will try without the valve,if that gets too messy the Playtex or Tupperware ones sound good.
Also,yesterday I gave DD a Heinz baby juice in one of those tetra pack things that come with a straw,and she took to it straight away, sucking away quite proud of herself! So maybe a straw cup might be in order too. :D

[Ky]

Another option which is an inexpensive one if you dont mind not having handles is to go to Babys R us and they have supposedly "throwaway" plastic cups with sipper lids (not sure of brand). They don't leak easily (only if shaken hard) and the lids last for ages! In the end you are left with 6 (yes, 6 in a pack for approx $10!) really sturdy plstic tumblers!

I have used these and something similar that I found in a $2 shop for both of my kids and got rid of my more expensive cups in favour of these!

I found the expensive ones with the valves really hard to keep the valves clean and that the babies never drank everything in the cup as it was impossible to get the last few mouthfuls out!

[No1 mummy]

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[jembelina]

Just wondering, since we are on the topic of sipper cups... at what age do they usually get the hang of it?? My DS hasn't got a clue - regardless of wether the water just flows out or not, he just wants to chew it!!. i think he could easily suck as hard as he would need to with the valve, he just has no idea that's what he's supposed to do! He's a booby baby, so I'm guessing that's why... what have others experienced??