Storage of Milk while pumping at work

MommyPace

I am sorry if question has already been asked but I cannot find the answer. When I return to work and pump 3 to 4 times at work, I do not want to have 6 to 8 different bottles. What do you do? My Medela bottles that attach to the pump only hold 5 oz so I really cannot combine in them. Any recommendations welcome! TIA

Cooper81

It depends on how much you end up producing.  After every time I pumped I would fill the medela bottles up reuse the empty bottles, I usually went home with 2 full and the other 2 half full from my last session.

jennyelf

I purchased a 10pack of 8oz medela bottles and pump into 1 5oz and 1 8oz then pour the contents of the 5oz into the 8oz bottle at the end of the session. I do the same for the second session. When I was doing a third session, I'd pump into 2 5oz bottles and then I'd have 4 bottles (2 5oz and 2 8oz bottles) to take home each day which happen to fit perfectly in the medela cooler that came with the pump.

Ms5586

I used Lansinoh storage bags (they are cheaper on Amazon than in store).  You can combine from each session, and then combine again if needed when they are all chilled (BM should only be combined together at like temperatures, fresh to fresh, or cold to cold, never fresh to cold).  I put the storage bags in a cooler bag, and had a mini fridge.  Before the mini fridge, I just put the cooler bag in our regular fridge.  If you don't have a fridge, an insulated bag with freezer packs should hold you over.

QueSrah

I usually only pumped about 15 or 16 oz. total while I was at work, from three pumping sessions.  I usually pumped into empty bottles the first and second sessions and have anywhere from 2-3 oz.in each bottle.  After the second session, I'd pour the fresh milk into the first set of bottles from the morning to get them to full servings for DD, leaving the second set of bottles with less than an ounce in each.  I'd reuse those bottles for the 3rd pumping session, since I never pumped enough to full them all the way.

 

shannm

How much do you intend on pumping? Four 5oz bottles sounds like plenty of room to me. Do you anticipate more than 20oz? I use four bottles to pump twice each day. I rarely go over 16 oz.

trackchik6

I pour what i pump into bags at work.  I also bought 8 oz medela bottles.

hoping4sticky

With DD I used the playtex drop-in system. You can pump right into the liners, cap and then drop them into the bottle when needed.

Unfortunately DS is super picky about bottles so I pour into the lanisoh bags. We go to an in-home so she keeps his bottles and washes them and I just hand her 3 bags at pick-up. At a center you will then need to transfer to bottles.

meli1025

Ms5586:

I used Lansinoh storage bags (they are cheaper on Amazon than in store).  You can combine from each session, and then combine again if needed when they are all chilled (BM should only be combined together at like temperatures, fresh to fresh, or cold to cold, never fresh to cold).  I put the storage bags in a cooler bag, and had a mini fridge.  Before the mini fridge, I just put the cooler bag in our regular fridge.  If you don't have a fridge, an insulated bag with freezer packs should hold you over.

 All of this exactly.  I would pour the milk from the bottles into the bags. 

aglenn

I just pump into the 4 Medela bottles and combine sessions as some others have described.  I keep a box of storage bags in my desk and any extra milk I get goes into one of those when I measure and label at the end of the day.

starlettedir

Cooper81:

It depends on how much you end up producing.  After every time I pumped I would fill the medela bottles up reuse the empty bottles, I usually went home with 2 full and the other 2 half full from my last session.

I did the same