*** Quoting Andy Ball from a message to Carol Shenkenberger ***


AB> Hello Carol,

AB> Thanks for the tip, perhaps I should visit the pet shop then!  :-o

Hehehe.  Might be!

First thing to keep in mind is a teething kid has *teeth* so anything too
¨fragile (even our normal kids stuff) has to be checked.  A bottle in bed
at ¨this stage can be dangerous unless the nipple is very firm.  Get rid of
all the ¨older ones and swap to the clear firmer plastic ones if the kid
still likes ¨'bottles' (many do at that age still and dont worry as it's
normal).

Here's another tip.  This is the stage where uyou have to start really to
be ¨careful on any night time bottles. It's perfectly *OK* to give plain
water at ¨night.  Adding sugar or juice is bad.  Those new teeth are quite
delicate and ¨can rot right out.  No formula, juice, or sugar water.  Plain
water is fine ¨though as it is a 'comfort food feel' and wont hurt the tot
at all.  Might make ¨for harder potty training through the night, but no
other issues.

Dont worry about the fancy bottle liners at this stage, if the kid is still
¨using a bottle.  It's ceased to be an issue and in fact, smarter to swap
off ¨them by now if the kid still uses a bottle.  By now, they need the
feel of air ¨in the 'cup' to adapt to later more adultish drinking.  They
figure it out ¨really fast all on their own.

To speed the teething process, those hard teething crackers sold in boxes
in ¨the baby food isle, can help alot.  Also if you need to make your own,
toasted ¨(darkish toasted) bagels work well.  You want the size to be big
enough they ¨can grab it but not fit the whle thing in their mouth.  A
bagel cut the normal ¨way we would, is just about perfect.

Like every other phase, this too will pass but not be forgotten .
                                       xxcarol

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