Call It What You Want...

Adam, at 27 months old, is, to my mind, getting old enough to not be using a sippy cup any longer. He drinks out of a regular "big boy" cup just fine. He holds the cup just fine. The problem? Every single meal in which he has a regular cup -- no lid -- he spills it. Usually it's inattentiveness -- he's only two, he drinks from his cup, puts it down next to his elbow, then reaches for something and BAM! Milk is everywhere. But often, it's willful disobedience -- he dumps it directly into his lap. Then laughs. Or pours it onto his placemat (and everything else) and draws in it. Then laughs. Or flails his arms and hands around and knocks it over. Then laughs. Or splatters it on the table, floor, chair and window. And, yes, then laughs.

Comparisons are odious. Mark took to drinking out of an open "big boy" cup just fine, and we didn't have this problem, so I have no previous experience on which to base this.

Do I:
* Go back to a sippy cup and pretend he's still a baby?
* Clean up spills every meal and watch the steam come out of my ears, nose and even eye sockets?
* Use the cups with the built-in straw (you can use the milk coming out of the straw to "color" on your placemat, too, it turns out)?
* Start giving him a bottle?

What suggstions do you have as "rewards" for times he doesn't spill his milk/water? Once again, this is mostly to deal with the intentional spills, not the accidents, which will get better as he gets older.

Suggestions that yield actual results might win you some kind of prize... stay tuned.