Pumping for a work trip. Is this the best way to go about it?

[Lilly Milly]

I have a work trip coming up mid-March. It's only a couple days so I am pumping a few ounces each morning to build up a stash. I feed at the breast now because my MIL keeps my babe on site while I WAH and was only rarely pumping before.

Anyway, my question is am I doing this the best way? I'm pumping in the morning a few ounces from the breast the baby didn't drink from. So, if baby ate from left breast when she woke up, I pump 3 ounces from the right. I do it this way because I have had oversupply in the past and don't want to empty the breast because it goes way overboard and I am overfull, leaking, etc. Does this make sense?

My milk has been thin and a little greenish. I am not concerned about this persay, but I am wondering whether if she eats this thin milk (foremilk, right?) for two days will she be getting enough/be satiated or should I pump at a different time or what?

Oh, she's 6 months next week and we're starting to give her a little solids. I would guess that by mid-March she'll be eating more solids, but I'm not trying to wean or anything. I'd like to bf for a couple years, but I'm not trying to delay or limit solids either.

It's only two days, so I suppose I could pump a whole feedings worth and just do it for less time, like a few weeks. I've had mastitis twice though, so I'm scared to get to where I have too much milk because it will be hard to back it back down to the normal supply after, KWIM?

Any thoughts?

[monkey-lamb]

Personally, I would not worry because she is already 6 months and it is only a couple of days. Another option would be to pump the breast she did drink from. It's possible you still have some hind milk left, especially if you have an oversupply.

[Lilly Milly]

That's a good idea to pump the remaining hind milk from the first breast. It might not be much but def. worth doing. You're right though, I'm probably over-thinking the whole thing anyway!

Thanks!

[CheriK]

Good overview of hindmilk and foremilk here: http://www.kellymom.com/bf/supply/fo...-hindmilk.html

Your baby will do fine on the milk you leave. It's not like your breast makes skim milk until some arbitrary level of emptying. There is fat in the milk you're pumping. Human milk is supposed to look thin and watery - our babies don't need to be 1000# at a year old, like baby cows!