Friday, August 12, 2011

Sippy Cup Drama





I have always said that if I do not go to heaven after this life I will spend the rest of eternity forced to try on jeans and swimsuits in a dimly lit dressing room. Well, I believe I have determined a new destination for my wayward self. I think true punishment would be being forced to sit and sift through, sort, clean, and try to put together a darn sippy cup that DOES NOT leak!!!

Miles has watched me do this so many times that when he see me even begin to open the drawer that holds the said cups he sends out a chorus of "leaky, leaky." Yes - I know my dear son - EVERY cup we have leaks to some extent and it is driving me MAD! So please be patient while I vent.

We have purchased stainless steel cups, at an astronomical expense, because initially I was more interested in the lack of toxins in the source of sustenance for my beautiful child. Then I became irritated with the FOUR piece tops that never snapped back together properly. Inevitably I am trying to do this while my child is clawing at my leg while whining and signing for "MiwK MiwK" his favorite liquid! To top it off, if juice is left in this version for any extended period of time - an afternoon on errands - this disgusting science experiment type mold begins to grow between the clear parts. Please tell me how the designers never actually tested and discovered this flaw?

After a play date Miles seemed to be drinking happily out of another child's cup. I broke all my own rules and bought an all plastic cup - not even sure if it was BPA & phthalate free - so much for a toxin free environment. This cup worked for awhile, fairly leak free too! So I bought more of them, and special ordered the lids that for some reason you cannot seem to find in stores. Well, there is a reason. I discovered the reason when Miles starting teething again. As his incisors worked their way through his swollen gums he proceeded to gnaw off the tops - literally! I had visions of searching through his diaper for the top of a sippy cup. So then they got the boot.

In between there have been the errant purchases of cups here and there, all of which inevitably LEAK! Culminating in the purchase yesterday of even more cups to try... and this morning to my dismay they are leaking. Not just dripping - pouring from the lids, so Miles has left a trail of milk all over the floor.

Why I ask in our modern and technologically advanced world can we not get this simple invention right? I know toddlers can be tough on products - but we are not sending a rocket to Jupiter here folks. We simply need a device that can deliver liquid into a child's mouth without making more work for mom to clean up. Both my brother and my father are talented designers... guys - here is a project I can assure you will profit in the gazillions if you get it right. My other brother is an engineer - if we can build bridges that span great lakes, why can we not make a cup that won't leak? Have we really determined the edge of human ability in the humble plastic contraption that as I write is dripping mango juice on my floor?

So there is my challenge - to all architects, designers, engineers, inventors, artists and the like. Help solve one of the mysteries of motherhood and end the SIPPY CUP DRAMA!

thanks for listening :-)


1 comment:

  1. Haha! Sally I love this post. Chloe has chewed or stuck her finger through the tops of all of her Munchkin cups, so we have thrown most of those out. Because she has a deep affliction for her Avent cup she hasn't chewed off the top, and luckily that one doesn't leak. I'm sure Miles would eat it up, though. Have you tried the Nuk hard plastic cups? Those don't leak unless your child chucks the cup on the floor and knocks the filter from the top of the cup. Not perfect, but good. We have switched over to a regular cup whenever possible.

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