leaving DD2 overnight - kind of

[Honey693]

DH and I have a wedding out of town next month.  DD1 will be 2.5 and staying with grandma and grandpa.  She's really excited about this and I'm not worried at all.  It's the second time I've left her overnight and she was great the first time.  My problems come with leaving DD2 (6 months at wedding time). 

She'll be coming to the wedding with us.  Kind of.  DH's brother, SIL and 2 nephews are driving down to where the wedding is to watch DD2 for us.  The wedding and reception site are really close to each other and we're booking a hotel right in the middle of the two so it's only a 5 minute walk from each if DD2 needs me.  I'll nurse her before the wedding, before the reception and then BIL will be able to get hold of me if they need me for the rest of the night. 

In an ideal world DD2 would be ok with bottles from 8pm-6am and sleep from 10pm-6am without waking.  She's done this at home the one time we tried it, but never in a crib.  I'm not worried about her missing me or freaking out b/c I know they'll call if she seems the littlest bit unhappy.  I'm worried about how much milk I'll need (she's not on solids), how we're going to keep it cold (a fridge in a room is an extra $50) and things like that.  I'll have to pump and dump once when DH and I get back from teh reception b/c I'd really like to have mo rethan 2 drinks and I really really want some alone time with DH. 

I'm really looking forward to at least a few hours of time where I can be hot wife instead of puke stained, exhausted mommy, but the logistics are getting me really worried.  Has anyone btdt?

[Adaline'sMama]

I think you'll be okay. I left DD with my parents (who were 7 minutes away) when my DD was 6 months old, and they brought her to me at 4 am because she was up and they couldnt get her back to sleep. She was asleep in the car when they brought her, so then they realized that they could have just kept her and gently moved her back to bed. I had more than two drinks, but I didnt worry about having a few drinks before midnight, spending time alone with DH, and having my parents bring her to me at 4 am. It was about 5 hours between the last drink I had (of 4 good beers spread out from 8-11). I nursed her for 5 minutes and she was sound asleep. I think you should at least give it a try.

As far as how much milk you will need, I would suggest leaving your parents with 10-15 oz of frozen milk in an insulated pack. If its frozen when you give it to them (surely someone who is attending the wedding lives in town and will let you store it in their freezer until the wedding), and its insulated, it will be fine from the time you go to the wedding until at least the next morning.

Have fun!