Probably should know this, returning to work.

[bb99]

Having followed breast is not best lines I feel re-inspired to look at feeding for my 11 m/o.

I have continued to bf and will continue mornings and evenings / plus the current 4.30am trend, but had thought about moving onto mixed feeding for nursery. Have dabbled with different formulas but ds doesn't seem interested, even when I'm not around.

Now am having a bit of a rethink and have some questions as bf experience only extends so far and thought you ladies may know (a lot) more, so here goes.

DS is bf a minimum of 4 times a day, plus 3 solid meals and snacks with the rest of us.

1. I have the Easter Holidays coming up, after 1 week at work, so could pump and store so that ds could have expressed milk. What would be a reasonable amount to store/freeze and what would the best quantities be to store together ie how many ounces in one pot?
   
   
2. It's really not practical to pump and store at work (hence dabbling with mf) BUT would my ample chest keep up with pumping AND feeding in the evening. DS goes to bed at 8pm (may reel this in a bit) and has his final feed then. I was thinking - home at 6 - 6.30 with first feed. Dinner for the rest of us, he joins in with snack, bath with dad as I pump one side, bed and feed from other side, is it possible to return to the other side and pump before I go to bed? Meanwhile, back in the real world bb99 gassed up the pigs and released them for their first flight.
   
   
3. How could/should milk be presented to Nursery - unfrozen, frozen, defrosted in the fridge overnight?
   
   
4. Is it OK to warm ebm in a bottle warmer?
   
   
5. Has anyone else done this kind of ebm feeding through childcare?
   
   Stupid questions I know, but have had the luxury of only having to manage extended bf from home in the past and am feeling a bit queesy about adding regular formula to his diet if I don't have to (BIG family history of asthma, allergies and crap lungs, vaguely connected with animal fur, dander and milk products)
   
   Sorry for long post - I ramble when nervous.

[bb99]

Oh last one - do you need a cool bag to lug the milk around in? How cold does it need to be when traveling and how long can it be kept defrosted and ready for heating up (in a fridge, clearly)

TIA

[laundrylover]

How old is he BB?

[bluenosesaint]

You say that your ds is 11 months old - is there a reason that you want to continue to give him milk (either ebm or formula) throughout the day when you're not there, rather than just say, plain water with his meals?

The reason i ask is that i have an 8 month old and for some reason i am unable to express milk for her any more. We are pretty much feeding on demand still and she only has one, maybe two bf's through the day and will happily go from 8.30 - 5.00 without a bf if necessary. She just then feeds more when i am there if that makes sense.

My situation is different to yours in that i'm not regularly away from her and so don't have to worry about it on a regular basis, but as your ds is 11 months he would have maybe going onto cows milk as a main drink in the next month or so anyway if he had been ff-ed?
So maybe the nursery could just give him water through the day and he could 'catch' up on his breastmilk when he is home with you?

Anyway, i'm certainly no expert on the subject and i'm sure someone with a bit more knowledge and experience will be along soon.

[laundrylover]

Doh, sorry just saw that he is 11 months - I've got something wrong with my eyes and they are smothered in cream to stop them itching so seeing screen through a blur!!

OK, well at 11 months he will be fine all day without any milk at all so if i were you I wouldn't bother with pumping etc.

At nusery he will be fine with water/juice or cow's milk in a cup and then bfeed him morning and night. This way breast milk will still be his main source of milk whcih will eb great for him, you'll probably also find that at this stage your boobs will adapt very quickly and on your days off you'll be able to bfeed him in the day if you like.

HTH

[laundrylover]

You're right blue, cow's milk is fine after 6 months as long as it isn't the main source of milk. Many people introduce formula when it is completely unnecessary IMO. Same with bottles, cus are much better at this stage.

[madamy]

I work 3 days a week and 10mth old ds is fed just in the morning and when I get back from work on those days. The rest of the time I feed on demand (about 4 x day). He just has water during the day on my work days and sometimes has an extra feed in the night after I've been at work.
I didn't want to start using formula and am crap at expressing. Have been at work for 6 weeks and is working well so far.

[bb99]

Thank you all,

Thought he might go all day without and he has water with his meals now.

Just worried as he's not had many days where he's had to cope without some form of boob action and thought that ebm may be a substitute. Also Nursery like to know when milk drinks are due, so they can follow same routine.

LL, hope eyes get better soon, that sounds really uncomfortable!

[laundrylover]

Thanks BB - these eyes are a pain - literally.

Madamy, sounds like this is working well for you, thanks for illustrating my point so well - I do despair at the lack of info for leaving older bfed babies.

BB, I see your point about the boob comforting him but I think that EBM would not be such a subsitute and I'm sure he'll be fine at nursery with a cuddle if he needs one. How about asking the staff to offer a cup of warm cow's milk in between meals if they really want a routine? I find that nurseries usually have 3 meals and 2 snacks/drinks a day which is more then mine ever got at home!!

[MrsBadger]

if you do decide to express, I send frozen milk bags to nursery in a small coolbag with a freezy block, they put them in their fridge and thaw/warm one bag at a time for dd.
I reckon milk's ok in a coldbag / fridge for 24h after removal from freezer - after that I chuck it.

[madamy]

laundrylover - there's info about expressing and returning to work, but it all seems to assume you've already been expressing or the baby is younger. I think as maternity leave seems to be getting longer, there will be a need for info for older babies. I don't know if it's just me, but I would find it hard to start expressing now, I'd probably get 0.5 ml each time lol!!

My sister is v worried about leaving her dd when she returns to work next week. She will also be 10mth and sister is only working 2 days. I've tried to reassure her, but she seems adamant that her dd will want milk in the day and will give her formula. Just seems a shame to get this far without, iykwim!

bb99 - boob is a great comforter, but ds really doesn't seem to miss it the days I'm away from him. It's almost as if he knows! A benefit of this is that he'll now settle really well without boob so I'm not having to feed him to sleep. He's desperate for it when he sees me at 5.30 but then will go to sleep at 7ish without milk.

[laundrylover]

I agree Madamy...why not print out this thread for your sister? I think that introducing formula at 10 months is madness!

IKWYM about them being ready for boob when you pick them up - DD2 always greets me with 'booby' after a day of childcare. When I have her all day she doesn't ask at all.

[bb99]

Well, he had a taster lunch today and I got to pick up a hysterical virtually hyperventilating baby .

He doesn't get that worked up very often - I think all he needed was a drink of water and a hug - he was being sung nursery rhymes to when I got there, and then calmed down when he saw me (I feel sooo popular ) but he got really upset again in the car - gave him a BIG drink of water and he was fine. Only been unsettled for 20 mins or so. He's not due a feed until after 4pm and seems fine now. Guess he's just getting used to things .