Questions on Breastfeeding Basics

[mamac]

I have a two new clients that both asked if it would be okay to bring breastmilk for their children. I wasn't able to bf my children so I'm a bit clueless about all the basics.

How do parents usually bring the breastmilk? Frozen? Bags? Bottles?

Where/How do you store the breastmilk?

If it's frozen- how do you defrost it?

What are your specific policies regarding breastmilk?

Any tips would be appreciated!

[Blackcat31]

My BF"ing moms bring me a weeks worth of frozen breast milk in bags.

I thaw them by placing them in a large zip-lock baggie (in case the original bag breaks or leaks) and then place the zip-lock bag in a container of warm water.

However, someone here suggested keeping a crockpot of water on warm and letting the bags sit in it so they are always ready to go.

[youretooloud]

Double post.

[youretooloud]

This last mom would bring it in bags, and she wrote his name and the date on it. She didn't really need to write his name, because he was my only infant. But, the date was helpful.

I thawed them in a coffee cup of hot water.

I could not hold the baby, and pour it from those bags at the same time. The bags were a pain in the butt to pour. They often leaked, or folded in half and spilled on the counter.

Her milk seemed to have a lot of fat in it, so the bottles were usually greasy and tended to get gunky. So, after a few days of that, I started sending the bottles home each day instead of washing them myself.

[Lyss]

This last mom would bring it in bags, and she wrote his name and the date on it. She didn't really need to write his name, because he was my only infant. But, the date was helpful.

I thawed them in a coffee cup of hot water.

I could not hold the baby, and pour it from those bags at the same time. The bags were a pain in the butt to pour. They often leaked, or folded in half and spilled on the counter.

Her milk seemed to have a lot of fat in it, so the bottles were usually greasy and tended to get gunky. So, after a few days of that, I started sending the bottles home each day instead of washing them myself.

I've had both the bottles and bags.

In the past DCMs usually have brought about a weeks supply for the following week on Friday but I have a 5 week old now and DCM is having a hard time pumping so she usually brings in some of the bags/bottles for the next day at pick up and one or two more at drop off. We go through 4 2-3oz bags a day about.

I think the bags are easier to thaw (but definitely do as yourtooloud & BC suggest, they can spill easily so pour carefully and thaw in a larger bag) but I've found they seems to have less than DCM thinks she pumping, like it says 3 oz but when you pour it in the bottle it only has 2? :confused: The bottles are nice because I just thaw and screw on the nipple and am good to go but they are more difficult to thaw and take up more space in the freezer. I also rinse and send bottle home.

I generally take 2 out of the freezer in the am, put one in the fridge and one in warm water (I use a large coffee mug too). Then at the next feeding I take the one from the fridge to warm and feed, taking one from the freezer and putting it in the fridge until I need it.

[SilverSabre25]

I prefer parents to bring me all the bottles for one day in a reuseable lunch-box-type thing, usually with an ice pack because I do NOT promise room in my fridge to store the milk. I warm a bowl of water in the microwave and then warm the bottle in the bowl for about 5 minutes. The bottles go home each day.

I keep several bags of frozen milk in the freezer "just in case".

[Leigh]

I've had moms bring bottles daily that are ready to warm and serve, others bring bags. Either way is fine with me. One thing I insist on is that they have a backup can of formula, as well. If mom forgets to drop off milk, or has trouble pumping, the baby can still eat. I've never had a mom bring a week's worth of milk-2 days worth, tops.

I prefer that they bring bottles to me ready to go. It's so much easier for me. I don't wash bottles-I send them home for mom or dad to wash. If frozen, I try to defrost in the refrigerator, if not, I defrost in hot water. I store it in the freezer with everything else. I don't have a "policy" for breastfeeding-I can't refuse to feed breastmilk. I do believe it is the very best for babies and is the right thing to do. Of course, I much prefer feeding formula because it's easier for me.

Formula fed babies, I ask for 2 bottles from the parents and 2 cans of formula (one is always available for backup).

Some call me picky, but I will NOT allow my parents to send cheap, crappy bottles, like Parents' Choice from Walmart (they make for fussy babies who are in pain from all the air they swallow!). My parents must use high quality bottles (Dr. Brown's, Born Free, etc.). If they choose not to buy them, I will borrow them up to 6 bottles to use at home (I have a stash of over 2 dozen). If they don't like it, they can TRY to find someone else to take their infant-I haven't heard a complaint on this yet.

[e.j.]

I could not hold the baby, and pour it from those bags at the same time. The bags were a pain in the butt to pour. They often leaked, or folded in half and spilled on the counter.

My dcm brings 4-5 bags of frozen milk every day. Each bag is labeled with the date and amount. I lay the bags flat in a covered container in the freezer. When I want to thaw out a bag, I just put it in a pot with warm water. It thaws very quickly.

As far as pouring the thawed milk into the bottle, I had the same problems as youretooloud at first. The leaking bag problem was solved by dcm changing the brand of bag she used. A small funnel helped solve the problem of getting the milk into the bottle without spilling it all over the counter. The funnel sits in the bottle and I pour the thawed milk into the funnel so it goes right into the bottle without spilling. I can't hold the baby while doing it but the funnel definitely works better for me than trying to pour the milk directly into the bottle.

[jenn]

I prefer parents to bring me all the bottles for one day in a reuseable lunch-box-type thing, usually with an ice pack because I do NOT promise room in my fridge to store the milk. I warm a bowl of water in the microwave and then warm the bottle in the bowl for about 5 minutes. The bottles go home each day.

I keep several bags of frozen milk in the freezer "just in case".

This is exactly what I do.

[Scout]

I found it uneconomical to keep buying bags so I pumped into bottles 4x a day to get ds 3bottles while I worked. I did have a frozen stash to start from my maternity leave that was bags at first but, once those ran out I just pumped right into the medela bottles or the cheap gerber bottles that fit onto the medela pump(my baby was not a gassy one so it did not matter to use cheaper bottles for him!). I too thawed in a cup of warm water and just sat it in the water to warm the milk before I would give him(if I was the one supplementing him with my milk, which I did when my supply was low). He never had formula as a backup, although if he did I might've not worried so much about the amount I pumped!!

[cheerfuldom]

a good resource is kellymom.com for breastfeeding questions, like how to store correctly. keep in mind that just because a mom has decided to breastfeed, does not mean that she is correctly informed on all things breastfeeding. definitely do your homework regarding how to store and thaw milk

[TheGoodLife]

I prefer parents to bring me all the bottles for one day in a reuseable lunch-box-type thing, usually with an ice pack because I do NOT promise room in my fridge to store the milk. I warm a bowl of water in the microwave and then warm the bottle in the bowl for about 5 minutes. The bottles go home each day.

I keep several bags of frozen milk in the freezer "just in case".

This exactly! I started by allowing my DCM to bring bags, but after I ended up spilling while trying to pour her half-frozen milk into bottles, having bags leak in my fridge (ewww!) and a lot of other headaches I started having her thaw and bring pre-bottled milk here. I also had a few back-up frozen in supply. All I have to do is heat the bottles when baby is ready for one!

[mamac]

Thank you all so much! These will be my first clients and won't be starting for a while but I wanted to make sure I was prepared. My fridge is currently an unorganized mess but I plan on keeping things a bit neater once I open. I may even end up getting a dorm size fridge in the future because I'm not sure how my dh will be with some other woman's milk in our fridge. ::

For those that send bottles home to be cleaned- do the parents have a problem with that? I would feel like it makes me look too lazy to clean them. ??

[Starburst]

This is what I put in my Handbook as far as breastfeeding goes (look into your own state laws on some things):

"Nursing mothers are welcome to bring breast milk in appropriate packaging that is marked for their baby. Due to health/safety issues expressed breast milk will not be shared with a baby from another family unless an agreement is signed by both of the families, the provider, and possibly a doctor*. Breastfeeding mothers of infants younger than 12 months old are also welcome to come in during their child's stay to feed their baby in the nursery or in an area of the child care home designated and approved by the provider."

*At a FCC I used to work at one mom couldn't BF so another mom who had a baby of the same age donated some of her breast milk to the other moms baby. Because some things can pass through breast milk (like medicines or HIV/AIDS), I would require a consent form so both parties understand what is going on and I have it on file just in case

BQ:
I personally do not plan on sending bottles home to be washed- I would just wash them. The FCC I used to work at we usually washed them when we did the other dishes after meal times and the bottles always stayed at the child care home; usually only younger babies or those who were occational drop-ins where the only ones who were sent home with their bottles.

[Lyss]

Thank you all so much! These will be my first clients and won't be starting for a while but I wanted to make sure I was prepared. My fridge is currently an unorganized mess but I plan on keeping things a bit neater once I open. I may even end up getting a dorm size fridge in the future because I'm not sure how my dh will be with some other woman's milk in our fridge. ::

For those that send bottles home to be cleaned- do the parents have a problem with that? I would feel like it makes me look too lazy to clean them. ??

If the parents just sent one bottle and the milk in baggies then I usually wash it and keep it here, they just bring baggies of milk daily or whenever. If they send the milk in the small bottles then I just rinse when baby is done and send home. DCM cleans them and then pumps, freezes and returns to me. I've never had a parent give me a problem over washing.

DH says its a bit weird to have the milk in the fridge but it doesn't bother him that much. you could always put it in a lunchbox or something in the fridge if that helps