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Worried about DC policies

iggles09iggles09 member
in Working Moms

So my LO will be 6 weeks tomorrow. I have to go back to work on the 1st but she will not be in DC until Aug 5th. 

I was reviewing our DC policies and some worry me so I was looking for suggestions on if I should address these with DC/how to deal with them

For instance - they shake BM and discard of any milk not finished immediately after a feeding. So I am worried about them shaking the bottles as I read you should never do this. Also, how do I ensure they have enough milk without having too much go to waste if they are just going to discard of it frequently? I work long days, so LO will be dropped off just after 7 and picked up just before 6. I figure, in that time, they need to have enough for at least 4 feedings - maybe 5? However I do not know if I will pump enough milk to provide 12-15 oz of milk a day to them especially if they are potentially throwing away a bunch.  

Also, DD is a very needy baby and will not sleep on her own during the day - at night she is fine. She also usually needs a decent amount of rocking, singing, and shushing to go to sleep. Is this something she will outgrow because she has to at DC as they obviously cannot hold her all day while she is sleeping like I do? Or will she just become so overtired and worn out from potentially crying all day and not sleeping?

TIA - this is my first and I am obviously very worried about all the possibilities that could go wrong. 

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Re: Worried about DC policies

  • fryratfryrat member

    BM will separate, so yes it does need to be agitated. Not to be confused with a full-on vigorous shaking. My DH would occasionally forget and shake the bottle, and the only downside was that we had a gassy baby after that meal because of the bubbles. I EP'd so she always got the bottle.

    Even if you have to send a dozen bottles, do it. If their policy is to toss the leftovers instead of saving them, then make smaller bottles. You can do a weighed feeding to find out approximately how much LO takes at each feed.

    If you do not pump enough at first, LO will do night feeds and be more hungry overnight triggering your body to produce more. Do not worry about oversupply, you can always freeze it!

    They will do what they need to do to get your LO to rest. They are human, and do not want to listen to a screaming child all day. Like PP said, they sometimes will bend the rules if they sleep well in the swing, and have even been known to let them sleep on the floor of none of the other babies are mobile. If they know your LO will only sleep in the swing, for example, they will make sure not to put him/her there at any other point in the day, because of the state law about not being in one "activity" too long.

    Usually, LO will change a lot and be more flexible because of the noise, the added people, and most of all, the caregiver doesn't smell like mommy!

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  • MrsWindyCityMrsWindyCity member

    It seems like a really weird "policy" to shake BM bottles. I would clarify that and ask why they do it, and provide some literature like pp suggested.

    As far as amounts, with both of my kids we started with 4 smaller bottles, and then I also froze some BM in 1 ounce increments. I kept the frozen milk at DC so that if the bottle didn't fill him up, they could add an extra ounce, but I didn't have to worry about him not drinking the whole bottle since it was on the smaller side. Pretty quickly both my kids moved to 3 (predictably sized) bottles that were slightly more spaced out.

    As for the sleeping thing, every kid is different but I swear daycare workers are miracle workers. My kids always napped better at DCP than at home, despite both needing to be rocked to sleep for most naps. Ours has swings too and while not ideal permanently, they are good for getting LO to sleep if they can't rock or he's taking too short of naps in the cribs, etc. 

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  • iggles09iggles09 member

    Thanks everyone. You are definitely making me feel more at ease. I will see if there is a place to store frozen BM at DC. I do know they have separate fridges for FF and BF bottles as well as different warmers so maybe they do.

    I am going to talk with the directors today or tomorrow regarding the shaking BM thing. In their policy manual it states: " Infant bottles will be reheated in hot water for 5 minutes, shaken, and temperature tested before feeding."

    I guess I will just see how vigorous that shaking might be and provide literature if needed to discourage vigorous shaking vs simple agitation/swirling.  

    Thanks again. 

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  • Cooper81Cooper81 member
    I would talk to the director and the teachers about shaking the bottles, that might just be in there for the peace of mind for the FF babies?  Print out some info on why they shouldn't be shaken.  I would suggest doing a weighted feed, it will give you the best idea of how much your LO is getting from you at a time; or try giving your LO a bottle doing 2 oz at a time to see when they will stop.  Between my 2 kiddos' I've found that my supply has been better with #2 and I think (although I can;t be certain) that it is because I make sure that when we are together I nurse her.  With my first I just fell into EPing because for some reason I thought it was easier, in hindsight I'm not sure why I thought that.  Babies are more efficient at empything a breast than a pump and I think, for me personally, nursing as much as I can has helped my supply stay up.  Make sure to drink lots of water while at work, I sometimes get busy and forget to and I end up not pumping as much as a result.  My first was a great napper at DC, at home, and he is still a great sleeper.  My 9 month old is not, she usually takes 2 20/30 min naps at DC, and sometimes just one.  She STTN, but she is a light sleeper so she just doesn't nap well at DC, but she seems fine.  She takes extra long naps on the weekends and will sleep 6:30/7 pm to 7 am, to make up for it
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  • iggles09iggles09 member
    imagetheresat858:

    I would find a different daycare if you cannot get DC to agree to

    1) not shake BM

    2) Send unused bottles home so you can resend the same milk the next day or use it at home; there is NO REASON to discard breastmilk.  Or, if they refuse to do this, make their lives a PITA by sending all milk in 1 oz portions, so they never discard more than that.

    ---

    3) You should be able to pump 12-15 ounces per day (if you make it a priority -- pump in the morning, maybe on your commute, and at least every 3 hours at work, and at home after LO goes to bed if needed) -- aim for giving LO ~ 1 oz/hr while you are gone.

    4) Your LO will probably adjust... my LO always napped better at DC than at home.

     

    I wish I could find another daycare. This was the only one we even remotely liked. Thanks for the recs and for those that recommended weighted feedings. I am going to try that this week. 

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  • iggles09iggles09 member
    imagembenit4:

    I am shocked you hold her all day?

    Mine blown.

     

    Yep. I baby wear most of the day. If  I lay her down she wakes up and cries almost instantly. From what I've read on other boards this is not a rare issue why are you so surprised? I do not believe this will lead to a learned behavior this early. 

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