Cleaning Bottles & Buying Formula

[Cat Herder]

oh, you are so right, I guess I did have a very strong opinion,
I breastfed all my kids and they trained to a cup, they never had bottles, ever and I was always told to never share bottles , so I just thought that was the way to do it.
I absolutely would freak out too if I saw someone letting babies fall asleep in a swing. I had a friend once that would tightly wrap her newborn, stick her in a swing AND prop a bottle up in the swing!!! she would get mad if the bottle fell and she had to prop it again.She left her there for hours and just kept refilling the bottle. All her kids got taken away...drugs etc. what a surprise

I breastfed mine, too... I am sorry your friend did that, but glad there is one less provider who has to bear the tirade of my expletive laced swing sleeping rant...::::

[Christina72684]

All of your questions about preparation and refrigeration can be answered by reading the label of the formula container. Next time you are at the grocery, take a look.

As for washing bottles, here's a question for you...

Do you eat off the same plate for lunch that you ate off of for breakfast without washing it? There's your answer to cleaning the bottles.

I have parents supply it because there are way too many kinds on the market.

Have the parents either bring you a can of powder formula and a couple bottles to leave at your house or have them bring you already prepared bottles for the day.

I don't mean to be so harsh but these are fundamental questions you should know the answer to before providing care!!!

This is why I'm asking these questions BEFORE I open. I'm a new mom and a new provider, trying to learn all the tricks and rules to all sorts of things, including feeding.

[Blackcat31]

Sometimes I read some of your ladies posts and I think , Wow, I want to be like that too...such as eating like Nanny De or making teepees for my kids.
I just thought that I would share my ways of doing things with this new provider. To help her get off to a good start.
I have asked around here, friends, parents etc. if I am just crazy and they all say, no, that my obsession for wanting the best for these kids are why they chose me. I have had perfect strangers ask me, so which kids are yours?
I love them all so much and I just want the best for them as they start out in life.
sorry if I made anyone mad.

Michelle~ I meant no disrespect either. I too, was simply stating my personal opinion. And as PP's have mentioned, it seems no one has stronger opinions that self-employed women who do what we do all day. It is also that same reason we all do what we do. Because we care and because we can do things in the ways that work for each of us in our own businesses.

We, as a group need to make sure we are always respectful to our differences and use them as learning opportunities and never to make another provider feel inferior or angry or upset that we don't think their way is the right way. There is only one way to run your child care...YOUR way.

LOL!!...maybe we should start a thread listing each providers hot button topic?!?! it could read like the acronym list:

Catherder: infants sleepong in swings
Nannyde: healthy organic foods

This is why I'm asking these questions BEFORE I open. I'm a new mom and a new provider, trying to learn all the tricks and rules to all sorts of things, including feeding.

I think it is great that you are asking questions and gathering information but I will warn you...every plan you have and every idea you think you have in place will all be left on the wayside when you actually open and do it. This job is one of those jobs that educates you WHILE you do it not before.

[hwichlaz]

I just look at it like this, Would I put a bottle in my OWN new born babies mouth knowing it had another woman's breast milk in it? or in the mouth of an 8 month old that just got diagnosed with strep throat or some other
illness?
The 2 R.N.'s that I have would boil their babies bottles and bottled water, send the bottles,nipples etc. in sterile bags every day. I have had their kids since they were born and they LOVE it that I take germs so seriously.
Because they are in the medical field, they see the things that could happen to little ones. I know that when kids get older they all share the same toys but what I'm talking about is young babies that need to be protected.

Would I? yes I would let my own newborn baby use a bottle that another child has used, as long as it's been washed. Heck, not even the dishwasher, just hot soapy water and a bottle brush. And by 5 months they are all mouthing the same toys anyway. I wash them daily, but they still trade occasionally without me seeing it happen.

[mamamanda]

I just look at it like this, Would I put a bottle in my OWN new born babies mouth knowing it had another woman's breast milk in it? or in the mouth of an 8 month old that just got diagnosed with strep throat or some other
illness?
The 2 R.N.'s that I have would boil their babies bottles and bottled water, send the bottles,nipples etc. in sterile bags every day. I have had their kids since they were born and they LOVE it that I take germs so seriously.
Because they are in the medical field, they see the things that could happen to little ones. I know that when kids get older they all share the same toys but what I'm talking about is young babies that need to be protected.

Just to add my thoughts...Do you serve guests in your home from your kitchen glasses? Once you've washed them, do you consider them clean again? If so, I don't see that as any different than serving a baby from a clean, but previously used bottle. I will say though I admire your commitment to cleanliness & excellence! I love how we're all different, but at the end of the day we're all working toward the same goal...caring well for the children that are entrusted to us.

[Blackcat31]

Would I? yes I would let my own newborn baby use a bottle that another child has used, as long as it's been washed. Heck, not even the dishwasher, just hot soapy water and a bottle brush. And by 5 months they are all mouthing the same toys anyway. I wash them daily, but they still trade occasionally without me seeing it happen.

Just to add my thoughts...Do you serve guests in your home from your kitchen glasses? Once you've washed them, do you consider them clean again? If so, I don't see that as any different than serving a baby from a clean, but previously used bottle. I will say though I admire your commitment to cleanliness & excellence! I love how we're all different, but at the end of the day we're all working toward the same goal...caring well for the children that are entrusted to us.

This thread is from 2011.

Just in case you weren't aware.
As always the info is relevant and useful but the member you are quoting isn't a regular poster any longer. Pops in here and there but not as frequently as before.

[mamamanda]

This thread is from 2011.

Just in case you weren't aware.
As always the info is relevant and useful but the member you are quoting isn't a regular poster any longer. Pops in here and there but not as frequently as before.

Thanks for pointing that out! I never think to check the original posting date.

[BrynleeJean]

If your that confused honestly id just have the parent supply the formula (read the back for directions, add the water first it should say that and never nuke a bottle) and have the parent provide the bottles as well and just send them home dirty at the end of the day, maybe rinse them out as a courtesy but just stick them in their bag and let them clean them. EVERY center i know of does this it isn't out of the ordinary.

I however provided bottles, i asked what kind of bottle they liked and got a bunch when they enrolled with the admission fee and they bought the formula because every child is different, there are so many kinds, id have the formula LEFT AT MY HOUSE so they never forgot it and the bottles were always there so i was never in a pinch. I soaked that all together at the end of the day and scrubbed them out with a bottle brush just to get the oily formula residue out then threw them in the dishwasher to sanitize and unloaded in the morning, easy peasy, just tedious . and i just ran the bottles under hot water in a large cup to warm them and tested them on my wrist, you could buy a bottle warmer, i never used mine.

toss the bottle after an hour is our policy here, don't save even in the fridge. a new bottle every time so you may need like 4-6 bottles a day depending on how much the child eats.

Good Luck!happyface