How much milk to express for evening/night out?

[cycler]

I’ve a 12 week old baby who’s mostly breastfed, she’s taken bottles of expressed milk in the past but not for the last 6 weeks.

I’ll be leaving her with DP for the first time this Saturday and would like to express some milk to leave. I’ll check she’ll still take a bottle but any idea on what I should be looking to express? I have no freezer stash & unsure if I’ll be able to express enough in the next 5 days? If not, I’d be looking to top up with formula but she’s yet to have any formula and not sure how she’d get on?

I’ll be out from around 1pm until possibly 11ish? She usually feeds every 2 hours or so, longer if she’s asleep (4 hours) and usually once overnight. I’ll be having a few drinks so will take a haakka, will this be sufficient or am I best taking a pump?

thank you

I think usually you need about an ounce per hour. My current baby drinks about twice that any time I leave him though!! So 10-15 oz might be a safe bet, but would be a pretty huge ask to pump between here and Saturday, especially if you've never expressed before (it can take some experimenting to find flange sizes etc that work best for you). No harm in trying though!

It seems like for many women, first thing in the morning tends to be the best time to get a decent amount. Just to warn you, it's perfectly normal to pump for ages and get like half an ounce!! And perfectly normal for the amount you get to vary lots. I pump most mornings just to build up my stash, and I can get anything from 0.5 Oz to 3 Oz per pumping session, but mostly somewhere in the middle.

I would try to take a proper pump with you when you go, especially if it's for 10 hours. Don't forget breast pads and a spare top and bra, in case of leaks.

I don't think haka will cut it.
Try to get relaxed and comfy before you pump (and hydrated!) Do a bit of breast massage, and watch videos/look at photos of your baby while pumping, you honestly will pump more. Apparently making sure you can't see how much milk you're producing also helps. Morning or nighttime is when you produce most.

We had some of the bottles of readymade formula on standby, it gave a bit of peace of mind.

Your baby won't starve (but they might try to make up for lost time when you get back!)

Thank you both! I’ve managed to get 2oz this afternoon after she’d had a feed using my medela manual pump so will just keep trying after she’s finished.

thank you for the advice re taking a proper pump, not sure whether to take my manual or electric, agree that a haaka may not cut it certainly don’t want any leaks if I can prevent it

Ill also get a few bottles of those readymade ones I think @Mulledjuice

You'll be really engorged if you don't pump for almost 12 hours. Take an electric pump, especially if you have a hands free one, it will be much faster than the hand pump.

You'll get much, much more milk in the morning. I pump as I am back at work and I get significantly more before 11am.

Have dad give the bottles and leave the room. Mine, even at 9 months, will not take a bottle if he smells me anywhere near.

Not trying to be negative, just realistic, I think you will struggle to express enough by Saturday to cover most of the day. I would try her with a bit of formula today/tomorrow to check she is ok with it and have that as backup if your expressed milk runs out.

Thank you all! I managed to express 20z in the end as was out from 12pm - 2am with a few bottles of pre-made formula as a back up. The 20oz lasted until 9am the following morning as it was! LO is happy to take bottles from both me & DP which is a plus :) Had a good night & LO was apparently very contented :)

I did forget to take any kind of breast pump in the rush to get ready had to hand express a few times but supply seems to be okay!

thank you all x

Wow, you managed to express 20 oz in a few days?! Very jealous - I feel like I've been building my stash for months to get that far 😄 glad it all went well, OP.

Thank you @Eestar, can I ask whether you exclusively pump or combine with breastfeeding & how old is your little one? I don’t have any kind of stash going but I’d like to be able to start one :)

I have a 7 month old and exclusively BF (well he is on solids now too), but I have a few things coming to that I will need expressed milk for. I exclusively pumped for several months for my first child though, that was an experience I'm glad I didn't have to repeat!!!