I wish there was a calculator that asked for your return date to work, how frequently your LO eats, how much they should eat, and how much I pump to determine when to start freezing my pumped milk before I go back to work.
Right now, I let DH feed her a bottle (4 oz) of my breastmilk per day but I fear once her amt increases, I'll need to start building up my supply for when I return to work (got 6 more wks left).
@alikay20 I found that I didn't really need to have a big freezer stash for daycare - I was almost always able to pump enough the day before to cover each day. At first my LO took 3, 3 oz bottles, and I was able to pump over 9 oz while at work. Any extra went into the freezer. I also would only feed from one side each morning and use a manual pump on the other, so that helped me cover what was needed as well.
I did start pumping while on leave, at maybe 3-4 weeks. I would wait about 30 mins after LOs morning session (he would take a good nap after). All of that went into the freezer. We also introduced bottles in the evenings, but I would end up pumping any evening that we did a bottle anyway.
I mostly ended up using the freezer stash to cover any days that I missed a feeding or pumping session. I also was able to build it up over time that I was able to stop pumping a few months early and still had enough breast milk to get us to one year, which was my goal.
@AliKay20 i would start by counting the number of times she nurses in a 24 hour period. Then divide that by the estimated number of ounces.
Breastmilk babies will plateau the number of ounces per feed unlike formula. The mad I ever sent was 5 oz per feeding. By the time they could handle more they were starting solids and the amount actually went back down to like 4 oz per bottle.
@AliKay20 i would start by counting the number of times she nurses in a 24 hour period. Then divide that by the estimated number of ounces.
Breastmilk babies will plateau the number of ounces per feed unlike formula. The mad I ever sent was 5 oz per feeding. By the time they could handle more they were starting solids and the amount actually went back down to like 4 oz per bottle.
Same here. Even at 11 months he was only drinking 5oz at a time.
Thanks, ladies. First day went well, so we'll see how tomorrow goes, since I have to teach a night class, so I'll be away from about 1 pm to 8 or 9 pm. That wI'll be my first time attempting to pump at work, too.
Married May 2014 DD born August 2016 Baby #2 due December 2017
Re: Moms Returning to Work
Right now, I let DH feed her a bottle (4 oz) of my breastmilk per day but I fear once her amt increases, I'll need to start building up my supply for when I return to work (got 6 more wks left).
I did start pumping while on leave, at maybe 3-4 weeks. I would wait about 30 mins after LOs morning session (he would take a good nap after). All of that went into the freezer. We also introduced bottles in the evenings, but I would end up pumping any evening that we did a bottle anyway.
I mostly ended up using the freezer stash to cover any days that I missed a feeding or pumping session. I also was able to build it up over time that I was able to stop pumping a few months early and still had enough breast milk to get us to one year, which was my goal.
Breastmilk babies will plateau the number of ounces per feed unlike formula. The mad I ever sent was 5 oz per feeding. By the time they could handle more they were starting solids and the amount actually went back down to like 4 oz per bottle.
Married May 2014
DD born August 2016
Baby #2 due December 2017
Married May 2014
DD born August 2016
Baby #2 due December 2017