My Toddler's Favorite Straw Cup

You don't need to be a genius to realize that my son loves his Baby Einstein Straw Cups. He started drinking out of them, preferring them to traditional sippies, when he was 12 months old. So we have been using these cups for over 15 months. We tried a few other brands, but he usually would demand his milk from the Baby Einstein one. It's hard to say why the preference, other than this being the first straw cup we ever tried. Since then we bought all of the offered colors - red, blue and green. I paid around $5 for each at the local supermarket. It is a Playtex product.

CUP USAGE
If you fill it to the top, it holds 1.5 cups of liquid. We usually fill it up a little less, putting about 1 cup of liquid in there. It is great at insulating the milk. It keeps the milk cool the entire time my son is drinking. Playtex claims the straw "promotes mature mouth movements".

ASSEMBLY
To assemble the cup is relatively simple. There are five parts to the cup. The dome top (1) that screws onto the cup base (2), the top part of the straw that your toddler drinks from (3), the bottom part of the straw that is actually inserted into the liquid(4) and the top slider that slides over the straw when not in use (5). There is a hinge on the top part of the straw that you can open to make cleaning it easier. And you just insert the bottom part of the straw into the top part of the straw. Then push the straw into the dome top. There is a little stopper on the top part of the straw to keep it at the right height.

CLEANING
Wash with soapy water. You can also use the top rack of the dishwasher.

PROBLEMS
There are only a few problems. One, if you don't clean the straw immediately, it only gets harder to clean. At times, when I was too lazy to clean it immediately, I am forced to use a Q-Tip to get milk gunk out of the straw. Ewww. Also, the pressure builds up in the cup and it will start forcing the milk out through the straw. I only imagine it has something to do with the milk getting warmer and the cup being insulated. But the way to keep it from continuing to push the milk up the straw is to slightly unscrew the top, thus relieving pressure. But you don't want to give it to your toddler that way, because if he knocks it over milk will spill from between the untightened top and bottom. Also, the classic Baby Einstein images on the side of the cup wear off with repeated use and washings. So then you just have ugly images on the side of the cup. You will also want to keep an eye on the straw. If your toddler is a chewer, he can chew through the soft pliable straw or create holes in it. In that case you either want to buy replacement straws or just replace the whole cup. We replace the whole cup. Finally, there is this blue slider thing that will roll over the straw top when not in use. If your toddler bangs the cup around too much this will fall off - or go flying. It snaps back on, but once it falls of once it will continue to do so. Playtex claims the cup has break-proof construction, but it must not count the slider falling off as "breakage".

So You Know
Wash the cup before first use. And after every use. Do not use with carbonated beverages. I never tested it out with bubbly liquids, I mainly use it with water or milk. But Playtex says no carbonated drinks. It's made in China. For more info you can contact playtexbaby.com and babyeinstein.com.

OVERALL
So, overall the cup doesn't hold up well. But my son prefers it to any other type. So I would suggest that if you are in the market for a straw cup, try another brand first. But, I have bought 4 of these and I am about to buy a fifth one today. So, you can believe I know what I am talking about!