The Great Sippy Cup Debate

As I stand at my counter, painstakingly hand washing the load of sippy cups, a thought came to my mind: “How long should these things even hang around?”  I mean, some of them have nooks and crannies that even the best dishwasher just cannot reach.  When each new addition joined our family (referring to the cups) we vowed to use them for water only which makes cleaning them a non issue.  Oh, how quickly that fell by the wayside.  So as I am scrubbing and digging into the crannies I wonder, “should I just be throwing this thing out?”.

Then, I get a request from one of my three kids for “chocolate milk in my blue sippy cup please”.  Great, just as I was ready to let one go, it becomes in high demand.  Each of my three kids were able to drink out of a glass long before a sippy cup, which makes me wonder why we ever invested in the newest, coolest version of these sippy cups; insulated, straw, spout, plastic and stainless steel.  They all haunt me, they fall out of our kiddie cupboard (where all the plastic dishes live) every time it is full and they refuse to get completely clean (even after following the manufacturers recommendations).  “I will just get rid of them all” a rebellious voice inside me shouts. All my kids are TOO old for them anyway.

But wait….what will the kids drink from when snuggled up on the couch watching a movie or lying in bed sick? How will I bring drinks with us to the mall? Who will clean up all the spills?

PS. After writing this, I called Playtex to see if they had any recommendations for how long these cups should hang around and I was told that as long as they are working, I could keep on using them but if I WANTED I could replace them after 1-2 years. Tommee Tippee plays it a little safer, recommending to replace their zippy cups every year.

Our Top 5 Sippy Cups:

Pura Kiki Sippy

1. Pura Kiki Sippy – Want a zippy with a lifetime warranty? Here it is! 100% plastic free stainless steel with a medical grade silicone nipple. Safety aside, this product also grows with your baby (nipple to sippy to water bottle) and is compatible with nipples from other feeding systems (such as Avent and Dr. Browns).

2. Boon Swig – I would like to give a big kiss to the person who decided to attach the cap to this sippy cup. Not only is it a brilliant idea but its cute too, since you can interchange the colours. The Boon Swig is lightweight, easy to hold and comes in straw or spout options. If you have purchased Boon products before, this will be an easy sell as their products are really great.

3. Tommee Tippee Explora – I don’t know how they did it, but this is leak proof. A really cool thing with the Tommee Tippee is that you can put their first sips spout right on their Tommee Tippee bottle. The idea behind the Explora is for the next step when toddlers are ready for cup drinking. They come in a lot of cute designs as well!

4. Thermos Foogo – Choose from the BPA free, leak proof straw bottle or the stainless steel soft spout zippy cup (also leak proof). Some toddlers love straws, some toddlers love handles and the Thermos gives you lots of options. Cool tip – stainless steel insulated cups and bottles keep drinks cold on hot days! 

5. Zoli Baby Bot – Ok, I have to come clean here. It is not exactly spill proof but my daughter liked it so much I had to add it. This sippy has many other features that make it great, like easy to grip handles and a weighted ball at the end of the straw so your toddler can get to every last drop. The lid is also built in to cover the straw and protect it from dirt when its dropped (or thrown).

Written by Jennifer Paredes