Tips on successfully feeding baby expressed milk from a cup

[LifesQuestions]

I’ve gone back to work when my baby is now 14 months old. Before returning, she was breastfeeding around 4–6 times a day, with 2–3 of those feeds happening during working hours.

Since being back at work, I express milk twice a day to provide for her while I’m away. However, she’s being offered the expressed milk in a Munchkin straw cup and is only drinking a very small amount.

I’m a bit concerned and was wondering if anyone has any tips on how to encourage her to drink more expressed milk from a cup?

I’ve also noticed that she hardly poos during the week when I’m at work, but then will poo more regularly at the weekend when she’s back to breastfeeding 4–6 times a day.

Has anyone experienced something similar, or have any advice?

can you offer a sippy cup?
is drinking plenty of water ?

A 14 month old doesn’t need milk when you’re not there. She can make up for it just breastfeeding when you are at home. Will she drink water?

Nothing will work. You will just burn through money trying. Baby wants boobie. I speak from experience. Sippy cup, doidy cup, straw, costa babycino cup, bottle, nothing. Just put it in the food and feed her when you get home and throughout the night especially at 2am.

godspeed.

Yes she drinks plenty water but clearly this is not enough to make her poo as regularly as she used to

What kind of food did you put it in?

I wouldn’t worry at all? I went back to work at 11 months and never expressed. Baby just fed before / after work, and ate food/water/cows milk during the day. I can’t see any need to put it in food. Focus on giving her fibre rich foods to help with her digestion.

She doesn’t need to drink expressed milk whilst you’re at work if she’s eating and drinking water. As well as encouraging fluids, plenty of fibre in her diet might help her to get things moving?

I did express a bottle every day for naps in nursery, and DS just turned his nose up at it 🤣

So I agree, at 14 months they are fine just breastfeeding at night and eating normally during the day.

Porridge, smoothies, mashed potato… a friend of line used to express straight into a pan! but again at 14 months she doesnt need it. Have you looked at what her diet looks like that could be making her poo less? Too much banana? Rice? Anything thin that binds.

Problem is my baby doesn't mushy food. She likes food she can hold

Did you notice any change in poo frequency initially? If not, What foods did you typically give

I should add that my two eldest have been breastfed until 2, and both started nursery at 14m without expressed milk. Baby three will do the same in a couple of months! I think poo frequency can change a bit due to nursery food being different to what they have at home.

She's not going to childminder until April so has been eating at home still. No major change in diet but still only pooing on the weekend when I'm home and she gets more breastmilk

At 14 months she doesn't need mushy food. If she is not pooing Id ask your HV or GP about it. Maybe ask for a referral to see a dietitian. The lack of breast milk should not be an issue at 14 months. You are focused on this rather than focusing out what else it could be.

keep a food diary from today.

I know that babies don't need mushy food at this age, it's because you mentioned giving porridge and mashed potatoes etc and I was responding to this by saying she doesn't like mushy food therefore makes it hard to hide milk in her food

She doesn't need it. I'm still breastfeeding my toddler but I stopped pumping at 10.5 months (I went back to work at 6 months), on the paedetrician's advice. I still breastfeed morning , late afternoon and evening. More at the weekend.

Prioritise food.

She probably needs to drink more water.