Pump It Up!

As you all know, I go back to work on Monday. Most of you also know that I am determined to breastfeed Christian for the first six months of his life. Here's what I have done to make sure feeding him breast milk exclusively will be a success:

I have pumped, labeled and stored almost 200 ounces of breast milk for the last month. This way, in case he needs more than what's fresh in the fridge, he's got plenty of stock in the freezer.

 Pumping: I use the Medela Pump In Style breast pump and let me just say that it is a miracle device. (I was lucky enough to have a friend that let me borrow her pump. Yes, it's ok to use someone else's pump...my kid isn't going to grow a third eye or anything.)

I was advised to feed Christian on one side and pump the other side. Since I've been doing this, I have collected as much as nine and a half ounces of breastmilk a day on top of what he eats. But I'm not going to lie, if he wants to snack or if he needs a top-off in between a feeding, I let him eat and I won't pump anything during those times.

Labeling and Storing: Lansinoh Breastmilk Storage Bags are by far the best way to store milk. I haven't necessarily tried anything else, but every friend I have who has stored breastmilk swears by them. They hold up to 6 ounces, but I usually don't put but about 4 ounces in each bag. Christian doesn't eat anywhere near 6 ounces at any one feeding so I don't want any milk to go to waste. (At this point, even 4 ounces is a lot. He probably eats about two and half to three ounces at each feeding...during snacks he probably eats an ounce or two.But since there's no real way to tell how much he is getting since I am still nursing, these are all guesstimates. I suppose we'll know how much he's eating once he starts eating out of a bottle.)

I bought a label maker to label each bag of milk. The bags actually come with space for writing in the same information, but I liked the idea of a label maker because there's no room for messy handwriting. (If something were to happen to me, I want the lowest common denominator to be able to read the information on these baggies, dig?)

I label each bag with the date and the exact ounce amount. Every bag is labeled in the same way so that, again, there is no room for error or misunderstanding.

When we start using the freezer supply, we have to start by using the oldest milk first. The rule of thumb is that in a regular freezer milk is good for 5 months. Whereas in a deep freezer, the milk is good for a whole year! I really want to buy a small deep freezer once we see how the whole process with me pumping at work goes.

Cleaning: We use regular Dawn dish soap to clean the breast pump accessories after each use. Many dish soaps have antibacterial ingredients such as triclosan, so we have to make sure to just use the regular old soap. The antibacterial agents in soaps kill the natural bacteria in breast milk and baby needs those natural bacteria!

We were told that this particular drying rack was the best to use for bottles. I'm not sure why it's better than the rest, but it certainly is more aesthetically pleasing! The little crate to the side of the drying rack is for the dishwasher. By putting the smaller bottle elements in the crate, you aren't searching the bottom of the dishwasher after each cycle. (I'm not gonna lie. I had no clue what this thing was for...my old dance coach gave me a ton of baby clothes and threw this little crate in with everything and I was convinced it was something to wash my nursing bras in. Can you say clueless???)

Feeding: The hardest part of pumping, for me, is knowing that I won't be feeding Christian every time he eats. I savor the time we spend together at each feeding or snack. And even though I don't mind him using a bottle and having Daddy getting to share in the privilege of nourishing him, I will miss our special time.

It was suggested that we use the Breastflow Bottles because they function closer to a real breast feeding session. Most bottles are very easy to suck. In fact, a lot of babies won't go back to the breast once they start eating from a bottle. I wanted to ensure this wouldn't happen with Christian even though he enjoys the breast so much...I mean, really, I don't see this being a problem for my son.

These are all the measures I have taken to ensure breast feeding even when I'm away is a success. I pray that I have the will to stay strong and stick to it even when quitting would be easier. Updates to follow!