How does this work?

[GuavaGirl]

This might be a silly question....but how does it work when dh is out and about with baby during a feeding time? Does he warm some breast milk, put it in a bottle (or a jar? so it doesn't leak?), then in some sort of insulated thing, then in a diaper bag, and then uses it when baby gets hungry?

I guess I'm trying to figure out what I need to put in the diaper bag, for when it's just dh by himself.

[DeChRi]

I had a lot of milk frozen (was working FT), but if I ever sent DD out with DH, or dropped her by his office for a bit, I would pump fresh milk. Fresh breastmilk will last awhile (someone can tell you exactly how long, i'm sure) without being in a cooler.

I think I usually pumped fresh milk in a bottle, stuck in the little bottle holder thing in the diaper bag, then out of mama paranoia would stick a bag of frozen milk in a cooler bag just in case. (Even if leaving her for an hour, lol).

DHs learn to be resourceful. DH has thawed BM in a bag in a warm cup of coffee from McDonalds, in a pinch, lol.

[MammaB21]

Originally Posted by DeChRi

I had a lot of milk frozen (was working FT), but if I ever sent DD out with DH, or dropped her by his office for a bit, I would pump fresh milk. Fresh breastmilk will last awhile (someone can tell you exactly how long, i'm sure) without being in a cooler.

I think I usually pumped fresh milk in a bottle, stuck in the little bottle holder thing in the diaper bag, then out of mama paranoia would stick a bag of frozen milk in a cooler bag just in case. (Even if leaving her for an hour, lol).

DHs learn to be resourceful. DH has thawed BM in a bag in a warm cup of coffee from McDonalds, in a pinch, lol.

I'm pretty sure it's 4 hours. Longer if chilled. But I used the 2 hour rule with DD because that was my personal comfort level. I would assume my DP wouldn't be anywhere with the babe for longer than a couple hours that didn't have a place to prepare a bottle. Also, you can make sure to get a good feeding in right before they leave. That will buy him a couple of hours.

[BlackSheepPDX]

Bottles have little shield top things for nipples, and even more effective, separate regular screw top caps, to close them up. So milk can be carried right in the bottle.

Plus, the milk doesn't REALLY need to be warmed. Obviously stone cold is a little unusual, but my DD didn't really care one way or another.

[AfricanQueen99]

My husband would have died if he had the kid for more than an hour alone in the beginning. And, honestly, once they're a bit older and can go longer between nursings they don't really seem to care if the EBM is warm or cold - at least my daughter didn't mind straight out of the fridge bottles.

[woodchick]

DD2 won't drink from a bottle unless the milk is really warm. Bordering on too warm. Dh has gotten boiling water at mcd's or a restaurant to warm the bottle up in. But since she is so finicky he doesn't usually go out with her for very long. Home is no issue.

DD1 was easier with the milk temperature and he'd take her on little dates and she'd take freshly pumped milk at room temp wherever they happened to be.

[Jenica]

I haven't tried this because DD isn't born yet but my SIL gave me a bottle warmer for the car that she had for my nephew. It plugs into the cigarette lighter and you set the bottle in it to warm it up. SIL never used it so I don't know how well it works but maybe someone else has one and can chime in.

[ivymae]

Are we talking in the first 12 weeks, or after that? My kids were boob snobs, and in the first 3 months or so, it just wasn't an option for them to be out of boob-range. They refused bottles, and they were hungry constantly, so we just stuck around together. I could run to the store and leave them at home with dad for a bit, but if they were out and about without me, inevitably they would start screaming for food, but refuse anything he offered.

After a few months they could go an hour or two without starving, so we would just make sure we were not apart longer than that. Once they started eating some solids dad could take them out for even longer, and they also were willing to use a sippy cup by that point.

We were fortunate that I did not have to go back to work right away (and when i did, i had the flexibility to take them with me/have someone bring them to me every few hours) so the fact that they refused bottles was not a huge deal. it WOULD be nice if this baby would let dad take her places without me, but they are newborns for a pretty short time period, and I won't be surprised if she just sticks with me for a few months.

[Tizzy]

DS1 was great with the bottle, I pumped occasionally and DH was a pro at warming bottles up. Both my boys took to eating every 3 hours on their own so I could plan for at least 3 hours before they'd need me again. Well need the boob, sometimes they just need mom sooner than later
DS1 never liked cold milk at all, always had to be warm, and DS2 never took a bottle or soother. You learn how to improvise real quick! Most restaurants, fast food places and even corner stores will give you hot water to heat a bottle with. Since you are heating the outer bottle, not the milk directly, it's not as big of a deal to use boiling water. Plus if it is only on the rare occasion, it's not going to hurt them if they have a bottle of "nutritionless" milk that has been over cooked.

[RedOakMomma]

We never did get our kids to take a bottle, so in the early months dh didn't go very far away from me. Two hours, tops...and only if we knew we could count on some heavy sleep.

[jecombs]

Originally Posted by Jenica

I haven't tried this because DD isn't born yet but my SIL gave me a bottle warmer for the car that she had for my nephew. It plugs into the cigarette lighter and you set the bottle in it to warm it up. SIL never used it so I don't know how well it works but maybe someone else has one and can chime in.

Breastmilk is best warmed in a cup of warm water from the tap. Those bottle warmers can over-heat breastmilk and kill some of the good stuff in it.

OP, you will get pretty good at determining what your LO's routine is and predicting when LO will need to eat and just plan your errands and outings around it. My DD went to daycare, so I sent bottles of EBM with her everyday. The cap the bottle comes with really does work! I never had any problems with leaks.

[jecombs]

OP, here is a good article on storage and handling of EBM.

[Friday13th]

I'm pretty sure DH didn't take DS out alone until he was almost 1. DS was not a bottle fan and DH would have been totally overwhelmed trying to figure out how to deal with pumped milk while he was out running errands.

That said, you could probably send a small frozen bottle that DH could defrost in a cup of warm water, that's what my mom did when she watched DS. It doesn't take long at all to defrost, especially if it's been in a diaper bag at room temperature for a little while.

[1babysmom]

Can I ask a question? How does THAT work? How do you get DH to take baby out and about by himself?

[jillmamma]

Originally Posted by 1babysmom

Can I ask a question? How does THAT work? How do you get DH to take baby out and about by himself?

Yeah, really? I know mine would be WAY more likely to offer to take out the 7 or 4 year old than the newborn by himself.

[MamaMonica]

Moved to Breastfeeding.

[sunshynbaby]

BM can keep at room temp for up to 10 hours, depending on the room's actual temp (see link below for milk storage guidelines). If you are using frozen/refridgerated milk, I would put the bottle out ahead of time so it warms to room temp, and then just send it with them.

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/milkstorage.html