Hey Mamas! I promised myself I wouldn't do the review for this one until I switched my Little One's (LO) milk to a straw cup... but I'm not too far from it and actually researching my options, so I decided that now was the right time to write this!
Zoli Bot Cup is a straw cup with a weighted straw technology so that the bottow of the straw follows the liquid, wether baby tilts it right, left or upside down!!! Drinking guaranteed!! hehe It's BPA and phthalates free, so of course, I'm loving the chemical-free part!
I purchased this before my LO was even born! I was so excited with the whole concept! However, when came time to use it, I thought it was quite hard to suck the liquid out (after I tried it myself, of course! hehe). After baby got used to using a straw and was getting pretty good, I gave him this cup. He was a bit insulted at first, but it quickly passed and now he doesn't mind wether he gets this cup or his other one from another brand with weighted straw.
Now, on to the reasons why I love it! First: I didn't mind the mess a straw cup could do before, but now that I'm thinking of milk, I don't want that mess! This cup is pretty good with reducing the leaks! almost like a tight sippy cup! Second, this straw is super duper bendable, so follows the liquid to the T!!! I'm making stipulations here, but I think they even thought of adding the small bump and the end of the straw (on the weight) so that the opening of the straw doesn't fall flat on the cup's inside surfaces which would prevent liquid from getting sucked in! I'm telling you: drinking guaranteed!!!! hehe A few down sides though. One is that it gets so air tight sometimes that pressure is built up and so it will leak from the straw (against gravity!). It just happens sometimes, so it's not a big deal, but I just try relieving the inside pressure when that happens! Another is that after trying it for a while, I find it can leak sometimes and I'm still not sure if it's because I put too much water in it or because I'm not putting the lid back on right, so conclusion for this: don't over fill and make sure you're following the right thread when you screw the lid back on... and then test it first!!! Another last little thing I just realized is that the straw is sooo bendable that sometimes it will actually fold on itself. This means that my LO is leaning the cup a bit, trying to sip and the opening of the straw is pointing up, so no liquid comes out, when there's plenty in the cup!
So far, it's been dropped (hence, thrown!) on the floor many times, and it still works well! We also have the smaller size and it's the perfect size for a baby! it's light, easy to grab (seriously, this is a big thing and the companies don't usually consider it... as I realized doing my research!). My LO can pick it up with one hand or two, easily. He even learned to open and close the lid flippity-thing by himself early on!!
Overall, if he is ok with the fact that it's not as fast flowing as his other cup, I love this cup! Basically, functionnality wise, this is just excellent! To me, this product is the proof, that things have to be tried many times, over many months, following baby's developpement and in different situations, to really see if it works for you! So, learn from me: if something doesn't work, wait a few months and try it again... it's soooooo worth it!
Like I said, I purchased this before my LO was born, in a little Seattle boutique, but these are available at local shops like Ana Banana or online on Snugglebugz. And on Amazon for my American followers!
Thanks for reading!
V
Links:
http://www.anabananababy.com/products/zoli-bot-straw-sippy-6oz
http://www.snugglebugz.ca/straw-sippy-cup-6oz.html
http://www.amazon.com/Zo-li-Bot-Straw-Sippy-Cup/dp/B0031E1GEG
