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  1. #1
    kgdolan Guest

    Default Breast milk and daycare

    I will be sending my 2 month old son to daycare for about 8 hours a day M-F. I am exclusively breastfeeding. So far I think he is eating about 4-6 ounces every 2-3 hours. How have others sent breast milk? I was thinking of sending 3 six ounce bottles of milk with him and seeing how he does. I hate to waste precious breast milk, but want to send enough...

    If breast milk is refrigerated and then warmed to room temp, can it be re-refrigerated and re-warmed?

    Thanks for your help,
    Gail

  2. #2
    trumansmom is offline Emerald level (3000+ posts)
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    Default RE: Breast milk and daycare

    My 10 week old just started in daycare two weeks ago. I've been surprised how little he eats there. I think it doesn't occur to him that he can eat when I'm not around!

    So here's what we've been doing. I usually feed him around 6:00 a.m. and then my husband takes him in to daycare so I can get dressed. I stop by around 8:00 or 8:30 and feed him. Then at first I was coming by at lunch and feeding him again and pumping once in the morning and once in the afternoon, but we discovered that he wouldn't eat anything else all day until I picked him up and I wasn't getting a whole lot when I pumped. And then he was eating every hour and a half the rest of the evening and all night long!! Now I don't come by at lunch, still pump twice a day, and he gets about 4-5 ounces around 11:30 and 3:30. He's sleeping better and gained 8 ounces last week. So that's what seems to work best for us.

    Hope that helps. Good Luck!

  3. #3
    kgdolan Guest

    Default RE: Breast milk and daycare

    Thanks for your help. I still have a couple of weeks before my 7 week old will be in daycare (he's 4 weeks old now). That whole reverse cycle feeding seems kind of frightening if you ask me. Did you get any sleep while he was turbo feeding? It is encouraging to hear that you are only getting up 2 times a night and your son seems to be doing fine. I can't imagine Jack missing a chance to eat since he is quite a little piggy now and still eating every two hours! :)

  4. #4
    GreenIZ1971 Guest

    Default RE: Breast milk and daycare

    Hi, you might pick up a breastfeeding guide/book from a local bookstore. Evidently (to my surprise) there are lots of do's/don'ts about storing breastmilk, thawing it, shelf life, etc. I found one that has great info for working moms - The Complete Book of Breastfeeding by Marvin S. Eiger and Sally Wendkos Olds.

    One of the big basics I see everywhere is to store milk in small bags/containers (4 oz or so) and only thaw out or warm what you need, because if it's warmed it can't be refrozen or re-refrigerated.

    Good luck,

  5. #5
    MinnieMouse Guest

    Default RE: Breast milk and daycare

    My dd is almost 7 months old now and has been going to daycare since she was 12 wks.

    I do 4oz bottles ...which seem the most flexible to us. I do not have a HUGE milk supply so every drop is important to me. It kills to throw out even an ounce of this liquid gold that I work so hard for.

    I use a Medela PIS pump and Gerber Seal n go Zipper bags for storing the milk. They are great bags...very little leaking (only from operator error) and work in almost any disposable bottle system...we are using Avent's.

    May I suggest an outstanding support board for working and pumping moms?? It has been a HUGE help to me and has given me tons of ideas and confidence in what I'm doing....they also have a great FAQ with all kinds of info about storing & freezing EBM.

    The current message board is here:

    http://boards.parentsplace.com/messa...umping431.html

    You can also reach it by going to parentsplace.com, going to their message boards and choosing Working & Pumping

    HTH

    Christine

  6. #6
    trumansmom is offline Emerald level (3000+ posts)
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    Default RE: Breast milk and daycare

    The first night of "turbo feeding" was kind of tough, but then it got better. He sleeps with us, so it makes it a lot easier. Once I woke up and he had found his way on all by himself! Now he's down to 2 or 3 times over the course of the night, but also 3 times during the evening as well. I cherish these! And, since I don't get to see him as much during the day, it's almost a treat to get to wake up and spend time with him during the night...

    I know alot of people don't like co-sleeping, but it has been a lifesaver for us.

  7. #7
    MinnieMouse Guest

    Default RE: Breast milk and daycare

    Sorry, I never answered your EBM question.

    Generally the recommendation is this

    Fresh, Non refrigerated EBM is good for 8-10hrs

    Refrigerated EBM is good for 5-8 days

    Frozen EBM is good for about 3 months in a regular freezer, 6 months in a deep freeze

    Thawed EBM is good for 24hrs in the refrigerator

    Warmed EBM (previously frozen or refrigerated) is good for 1 hour

    This is all what I remember...I could be wrong so I would double check it with either/both of these resources...

    Working & Pumping Message Board (FAQ link is on top of the page.)

    http://boards.parentsplace.com/messa...umping431.html

    La Leche League

    http://www.lalecheleague.org/

    Both will have info on using and storing EBM.

    HTH

    christine

  8. #8
    opus Guest

    Default RE: Breast milk and daycare

    Just a little word of caution...If your son is in daycare, mark your bags/bottles clearly. Despite this, the daycare I used (notice the past tense), fed my breast milk to another child. Of course, breastmilk is a bodily fluid so, you can imagine the horror of the other parent who didn't know me personally. It was awful for all involved (the worker, the other mom, etc.) I volunteered to take an HIV test to reassure the other mom but I could see in her eyes the nagging concern wondering if I did drugs, etc. The daycare only put my Avent bottles in a basket in the fridge with my name on it. If I had to do over, I would have bought my own basket in a different color than all the others, emblazened my name in red on it and every single bottle...just something different from the next parent who uses the same bottles as you.

    Just FYI.

  9. #9
    nola Guest

    Default RE: Breast milk and daycare

    I bought about 12 4oz Avent bottles on ebay when my daughter started daycare. They were really cheap this way. It seemed like alot of bottles, and my husband told me to resell them on ebay. It turned out that I used them all and felt like I could not have lived without all those extras. I would put off the bottle washing and then do a huge batch all at once. It made things more flexible in the evenings.

  10. #10
    parkersmama Guest

    Default RE: Breast milk and daycare

    I agree with what everyone else has said about BM storage, etc. I will admit, though, that I have allowed breastmilk to be warmed and re-refrigerated and fed to the baby in the same day. I've seen things saying that you shouldn't do it that way but I've done it on occasion with two babies and never had even the smallest problem. I know (and take full responsibility) that this is against the advice the you read but it worked for us. The only times we did this were when my supply was low and every single drop of milk counted! Anyway, just my experience for what it's worth!

    Denise
    mom to:
    Parker, 9/1/1997
    Wesley, 3/9/2000
    and #3 (a girl!) due 4/29/2003

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