First timer question

[sugarpop]

This is my first child and I will breastfeed. I believe it is important and I completely buy into the whole idea. That being said I have a question.

My baby is due 9/21, my husband has an event on 11/22. The event would last most of the day and prevents us from having the baby around us (weather is just too cold). Any how my question is how will it effect an 8 week old to be bottle fed for 12 hours by grandma? Is that too soon? Is it a bad idea? Has anyone else had good/bad experience with this? Am I being silly even worrying about it/selfish to consider leaving our baby for 12 hours?

I just have no idea please tell me your thoughts!

[lifeguard]

I left ds with dh for 8 hours when he was 10 weeks. It worked out fine but it was an incredibly long time, especially for my breasts.

Is there anyway grandma & baby can be close by so you could leave periodically to bf?

[pumpkinseed]

I had surgery at 9 weeks-it was supposed to be out patient-so I would be gone from dd for 4 hours-however, there were complications-and I had to stay overnight. Luckily-I was able to get her to spend the night with me at the H. She was gone from me for 12 hours. I pumped while she was gone and she took milk begrudgingly from my mom by a bottle while I was gone. She was angry and it took her over an hour to latch on when we were reunited-but she finally did.

[blessedwithboys]

breastmilk or formula, i wouldnt leave a baby that young

[isign]

I wouldn't either unless you had to. Are you going to be able to pump while you are at the event? Going that long without pumping won't be very good.

[curious&eager]

Even if you felt comfortable leaving her, you would have to pump or else you'll have to uncomfortable ginormous breasts. Twelve hours is a long time. I find most people even my friends won't parent the baby like I'd want them to, so I wouldn't feel comfortable.

[caitsaunt]

I had to return to work around that age, but I wasn't thrilled about it. I would not want to be away from baby for that long if I didn't *have* to be.

You definitely would want to pump every 3 hours or so to avoid clogged ducts.

[CanBoo]

Honestly, wait until baby is born and see if it is still *that* important.

I left DD1 a little bit more (with DH) and it was always a disaster. I just thought I needed to do whatever. It ended with stress over taking a bottle, pumping hassle and screaming baby.

I have not bothered with dd2. She either comes with me or it is not*that* important. I am realizing that everyone is doing much better that way. I just openly announce that she is stuck to me until she eats enough solids to be left for a few hours and it all seems fine. She has come to me to a day spa, a dentist appointment, the court and a job interview. For the job interview, I had a good friend look after her in an adjacent boardroom.

Maybe you want to consider having someone look after baby in a warm place nearby and bring him/her to you every couple hours? Or just bundle baby nice and warm and keep baby around. I am from a cold area : and in my family it has always been normal to take baby out with us for ice fishing days. My cousins, niece and nephew have also napped outside regularly. As long as baby is dressed warmly (my niece used to be wrapped in my dad's parka over her winter suit) or worm under a jacket it should be fine.

You might also want to consider cup or spoon feeding.

And yes, keep in mind you'd have to pump.

[mamazee]

How important is this event? Unless it's a real emergency, I'd skip it, regardless of feeding method.

You'd have to pump while you were gone, like everyone else said, or you'd get super uncomfortable.

I had to have surgery both times within a couple of months of when my babes were born, and even being unavailable for 3 hours was a pain in the neck.

[user_name]

it would be a good idea to wait and see how your nursing relationship is going at the time. if you &/or baby are struggling, the event just might not be worth the risk. although if all is hunky dorey, then a one-time, 12 hr lapse in baby's breastfeeding world probably will be fine. notice i said "probably will be" instead of "will be!"
if you do decide to go to the event, i like the pp idea of having grandma close-by somewhere so you can occasionally duck out and breastfeed. however if that doesn't pan out, then maybe cup feeding or spoon feeding your pumped milk would be feasible? you can also try having an adiri bottle on hand for grandma if baby doesn't take to the cup or the spoon well enough. it's not a substitute for the breast, but rather it's an alternative to fasting for an insistent baby -- though it would be better than any other bottle i've seen 'for nursing babies' or otherwise.
hth!

[PatioGardener]

If you do decide to leave baby with a bottle, here is a handout from kellymom on bottle feeding a breastfed baby in a way to reduce the risk of bottle preference. It's a good resource for grandparents and caregivers so they don't over feed baby or feed to fast etc: http://www.kellymom.com/store/freeha...le_feeding.pdf

I agree with all the PPs who said wait and see how you feel once the baby is here.

[catters]

Uh, if it's something you've got to do, it's something you've got to do. Don't feel guilty about it. Here's my advice. Don't spring a bottle on your baby that day, of course. At six weeks, I'd start trying to get a little pumped milk in a bottle for baby. See if he/she takes it. For me, it was important for DH to be able to feed our first baby so he could feel more bonded. I don't have a problem with that, so I pumped and he would usually give DS a bottle every other night or so. Anyway, the thing I'd be concerned about is your body. If you can, I'd get a little hand pump and pump every two hours in the ladies room to relieve engorgement and not to mess with your supply or you'll be filling out your dress a LOT more by the end of the day and it'll HURT!

Like I said, if you have to do something, you have to do something. Your baby will be FINE.