Nuby Grip N Sip

This is one of my new favorite products! We just recently got Liam on a bottle. That was a freaking nightmare. He started giving up his pacifier around 4 months and had completely gotten rid of it by 5 1/2 months. Close to 7 months nursing was getting to be very challenging and then I got deathly ill one weekend and my mom came up to help, so we thought we'd try a bottle so I could get some rest. I knew that introducing the bottle was going to be challenging, but I had no idea what I was getting into. There was much wailing and gnashing of teeth, so in an attempt to get him to drink out of anything my mom picked this up at the store. This thing is sheer genius. The straw has some sort of valve in it that allows the baby to get liquid out just by simply clamping down with his or her gums (or teeth in our case) on the straw. Once Liam tasted the scrumptious watered down apple juice that freely flowed from this magnificent contraption, he quickly figured out how to suck on the straw to make it come out faster.

There are two large handles on the sides that are simple for hands of any size to grasp. The handles are also covered with "bumps" made of a sort of "no slip" material that is easy to grip. The flip top functions smoothly and is so handy because it makes it easy to take the cup with you already filled and also makes for easy storage in the fridge without the drink tasting like last night's leftovers. That always grosses me out. The cup claims to be "no spill" and that has been true for the most part. Liam is definitely rough on it too, banging it around and throwing it on the floor from his high chair. Sometimes he doesn't get all of the liquid out of the straw, so if I don't squeeze it out before I close it, that sometimes leaks out. Also, occasionally the straw has squirted when opening or closing because of the valve mechanism. These occurrences have been rare and it is very likely that this is operator error and not a defect on behalf of the product :) I'm not always known to be the brightest bulb in the room.

The bright colors and interesting design of the cup instantly grabbed Liam's attention, so there was very little time between when we showed him the cup and when he was drinking out of it. He was dying to get his hands on it and, once he did, couldn't wait to get it in his mouth (like most everything these days.) When he's done drinking, I just flip the lid and he bangs it around and plays with it like any other of his toys. Because of the valve feature , soft silicone material and the ingenious oblong shape of the straw, this really is the easiest and most logical transition from bottle to cup. I just put the straw in his mouth and he started chewing and BAM! Juice!

The cup and all of its parts are dishwasher safe. The top screws off easily, the soft silicone straw on the top and the hard straw in the cup come out, and the cup and handles separate into two pieces. That way you can wash by hand if desired and are sure to get it thoroughly cleaned. So far we have had no problem in the dishwasher, but I have read online about a few people having problems with the parts warping on the hottest setting.

The cup comes in many color combinations shown below:



We finally did get him to take a bottle for formula, but still use this for water and juice daily. Love it, love it, love it!