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This is just what I would probably do: I would use what you've already stored in your side-by-side fridge/freezer and everything new you pump, just put directly into the deep freeze for longer storage. It's probably just safer that way but I'm not an expert.
I put the bags straight into the freezer. With the lansinoh bags they freeze flat very well. What I've heard of and think works well is get a small gift bag and cut a slit out of one side at the base. Then you can store the milk bags on top of each other in the gift bag in the freezer and the oldest milk is on bottom. The slit in the bag allows you to take the oldest milk out first without disturbing all the other milk. Think of it like an upside down Pez dispenser. Explanation with video.
I'd suggest you gauge how much your LO takes in an individual bottle (mine was taking 3 oz bottles but he takes 4 oz now) and pump that into your bags when you can. If you pump more or less sometimes, it is no big deal (I'm not consistent on my production since stress at work really affects me) since when you prepare bottles you can add bags together to get what you need prepped for that day.
@Pelikila: thanks! I've never thought to freeze the bags flat! How smart. What sort of ice pack system do you use in your diaper bag?
We actually don't use an ice pack system in our diaper bag right now. The only time we use it is to daycare which is about a 30 minute drive. We thaw the milk the night before in the fridge and then pour into bottles that morning. The bottles are put back into the fridge until I am ready to leave the house so the drive to daycare isn't long enough to allow the milk to get warm (the side pockets in my jujube bag are insulated). At daycare the milk goes straight into their fridge. I know this won't always be the case and I'll have to explore options in the future. I did buy a little insulated bag with gel packs marketed specifically for bottles but because my bottles are the BornFree glass bottles, it only fit 2 instead of the 3 it said it would fit so I returned it.
@Pelikila: Okay that makes sense, thanks :)
Anyone else have ideas/answers?? (bump!)
I freeze my milk in the regular freezer in 2-ounce portions. My daughter is almost 5-weeks, but is fickle with her eating, so I don't wanna waste any milk. I can always thaw more if needed. I pump and pour into Lanisoh bags. Lay the milk flat to save room in the freezer. I also use this gadget to organize the milk (use oldest first): http://www.amazon.com/First-Years-Milk-Storage-Organizer/dp/tags-on-product/B000K4YSVI
@goodbuddy: I've seen that product, do you flatten the milk so it takes up the whole bag or have it at the bottom?
@Pelikila: I thought of another question! When you freeze your breast milk flat, is it tricky to thaw it without spilling?
@Sulli301: Not in my opinion. The Lansinoh bag (as well as the Medela bags) all have double zippers to prevent any leaks from occurring. I use a batter bowl (got mine at Target) and fill it about 1/2 way with cool water (I don't want the milk to get hot since I'm usually prepping bottles to go to daycare rather than be used right away) and let the bag sit in the measuring cup about 10 minutes. As the milk thaws, it moves down to the bottom of the bag. Once thawed, just shake the bag up to mix well and pour the bag into your bottle(s). I've never had any worries about spilling or leaking using that method.
Also, you can always fill your sink with warm water (or cool water as the case may be) and drop the bag of frozen milk in. The double zipper keeps water out and milk in without issue.
@Sulli: After you pump, pour the milk into the Lansinoh bag (or whatever bags you're using). Then lay it flat on top of an ice cube tray, (or better yet, on the top of the First Years Milk Storage Organizer). There's a double zipper on the Lansinoh bags, so you don't have to worry about leakage. When it's frozen solid, transfer the bag to the organizer. Because you froze it flat, the bags are more compact and the organizer can fit a lot! It's spring loaded, so you just keep putting the newer milk in the back (so the oldest gets used first). You can definitely freeze everything without the organizer, but it's relatively cheap and super handy (in my opinion). Why not make life easier, right? :)
@goodbuddy: how many bags can you fit in the organizer? they are super thin! I have 3 flat bags now (and like 50some with the milk at the bottom standing up but that's okay)
@Sulli: I'm not sure exactly how many fit because I just started freezing my milk over the past two weeks. (Until then, I was just pumping a few extra bottles for the fridge in case I needed a little break from breastfeeding.) I currently have about 10 super thin (2-ounce) bags in there and the organizer is about a third of the way full. But you can also store bags in the lid too. I think the capacity depends on how much milk is in your bags, as that will determine the thickness.
I like that (free) gift bag idea but that storganizer is cool too.
I pump 4 oz and store it flat. When I first heard of that idea, I was amazed...like why didn't I think of that. (Genius!)
Another free way to organize the bags is to put them in bigger sized ziplocs by month. Then you just rotate/ use up the ones from the oldest month. I do not have much to store these days so I gotta get back in the mood to pump before I go back to work in a month. Boohoo. Thanks for the motivation. 50+ Bags...smart girl!!
@Pelikila: thats what i did. i didnt do the gift bag thin i put them in the ice bucket that goes in the door. it kept them flat and organized and standing up so i could see the dates (i wrote them on the top tab of the bag)
@goodbuddy: I've been doing 4oz at a time but maybe I should start doing some smaller ones too. Good thoughts!
@808bride: I've thought about doing the large freezer zip locks for the bags I have that are "standing" and the milk is in the bottom) but wonder how many would fit/bag? I felt the same when I heard about freezing flat! SO MANY MORE WILL FIT!!! :D
@Sulli301: I just asked my pediatrician about your freezing question. She recommended chilling the milk in the fridge first, then freezing in the regular freezer before transfering to the deep freeze. Her reason being that if you go directly to the deep freeze only the outside of the bag may freeze leaving the core thawed or less frozen than the rest.
I have The First Years storage container and love it. The design of the container is so that you can put the thawed bag in and the spring loading device flattens the bag, so you don't need to freeze flat before placing in the container. The oldest bag is then towards the back. Also the Lanisoh bags fit much nicer than The First Years ones (they give you a few to try).
BTW I wish I had 50+ bags! I couldn't store my milk for the first few weeks due to medication and am just now starting to get a stash going. I'm sad that it's going to be mostly gone next week since we have a wedding to attended out of town and the baby is going to Grandma's.
@pansyshell: AWESOME! Thank you! I've been searching every blog/site/etc to ask and that makes sense I'm also meeting with a lactation consultant this afternoon so I'll ask her too but that makes me happy because I can still save the milk I've been working so hard to pump.
Good to know about the storage containers. I ordered 2 off amazon to try. It works for you to put the bag in before it is frozen? I have the lansinoh bags so that works out!
Yeah, I didn't really know how long I'd be able to BF since we had a lot of issues (had to supplement/use nipple shield/etc and we are still working on her latch which is why we are heading to the lac. consultant again today) and just have kept pumping! How is your milk supply? My one side will get me 3-4 quite often but the other only 1-2 ususally. Have a good weekend away, first one?!
@Sulli301: Yes the container works just perfectly to put the bags in before they are frozen. That's actually how the directions tell you to use it. The pressure from the spring loaded feature makes the bags freeze flat even when they are added to the container unfrozen.
That's great news about your supply. Our LO is hungry all the time (he's already gained about 3 lbs since he was born a month ago) and is too nosey to sleep much during the day, so I usually end up pumping right after I fed him and I can get about 2-3 oz in the one and 2 oz in the other...I have the same issue where one produces nearly twice as much milk as the other side. I've also started feeding on one side and pumping the other while feeding which was recommended by a LC in order to keep my supply up and to build a stock pile since I don't get much "free time" during the day to pump.
This will be our first time leaving the baby for any extended period (we left him to pick DH car up but that was about it). We are going to the wedding and then coming home the same night, so we are figuring it will be about 10 hours without him so not too bad I guess. I'm going to have to pump every 3 hours while we are there though so this could be interesting. :)
@pansyshell: The lactaction consultant said the same thing about the storing your doctor!
Now another thing, do you pump at the same time(s) everyday? That's what I was told to do yesterday but does that mean at 7a.m on the dot or around 7? I've been trying to write down the average times I pump the past day and next couple to find times to shoot for.
You'll have to let me know how the trip is and how being away is and pumping is and all that...I haven't had to do that yet! I've only pumped/nursed/etc in the comforts of my own home so far and haven't left her yet.
@Sulli301: That's nice to know your LC recommended the same freezing guidelines. I have not been pumping the same time everyday. I was just pumping when I got the chance, but now since I'm pumping while feeding I've been able to pump at around the same time daily. I'm sure if your off by a half hour give or take you would be fine. The important part I would think is that you keep the demand up.
I'll let you know how next weekend goes. I actually had to get a manual pump for the trip (which I haven't tried yet) since my regular pump (Avent twin electric) does not have a car adaptor and they are sold out from the manufacture. I should have looked into that sooner :/ I'm used to running errands so I've started doing that again these last few weeks and every time I need to feed him so far I've done it in the car behind the tinted windows. I'm just not ready to whip it out in public yet. As for next weekend I'm not really excited about leaving him for so many hours but it has to happen at some point.
@Sulli301: We had our night away from the little guy last night! We were gone from about 1:30 pm to 11:00 pm, just to give you a time frame.
It wasn't too bad being away because I knew he was in good hands with my mom and she respects the decisions I've made on raising our son so she tries to do everything the same way we would (e.g. I asked her if she wanted disposables or cloth diapers and she said "I want to do what you do"). He did pretty good. I know she said he was fussing and not sleeping which she initially thought was because he knew I wasn't around, but then he drank 12.5 oz in 2.5 hours (which I think is A LOT for a almost 6 week old breastfed baby) and then he slept from 8:30pm to 3:30am.
As for myself the experience was a little awkward with pumping on the go. As I mentioned before I had to use a hand pump and I was planning on going to the bathroom or something to pump however the venue only had two uni-sex bathrooms for 200 guests for I felt bad taking up the space. I ended up pumping in the car...once when we first got there (pumped ~5 oz) and again four hours later (again ~5 oz). Then on the way home my boobs felt HUGE and so heavy. I planned on holding off till we got the baby, but he was sleeping when we got home and my chest looked like it was going to explode so I pumped another 8 oz! By the time he woke up they were very engorged again. I'm not sure if he is trying more and I'm starting to produce more milk or if it was being away and thinking about him and hearing him cry when I called my mom that made my body go into overdrive.
Overall things went pretty well. At the end of the night we picked up a happy sleepy baby which I couldn't ask for more. IF you think of any other questions feel free to ask. (Oh and as for using the frozen milk so had no problems and the bags thawed super fast).
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Hi everyone :)
My little one will be 4 weeks old tomorrow (CRAZY!!!) and I've been pumping and saving milk for 3 weeks now. I have been using the lansinoh bags and storing them in our freezer that is a side by side with our fridge. It has only been 3 weeks and I'm already running out of room, so my husband and I ordered a freezer chest for the garage/basement. Now here is my question, can I move the milk that is in my regular freezer (which I hear can keep in a regular freezer anywhere from 1-3 months) to the deep freezer chest and store it longer (like the 6-12 months that they say the chests can save milk for)? Or should I keep that milk for use in the next couple of months because it has been in the freezer that doesn't keep the milk as long and not move it?
Any information would be great. Also, for those of you who also pump and store, do you just put the bags straight into the freezer or do you use trays or something else to put them in/on? How much do you store/bag? I have been doing 4 oz right now.
Thanks in advance!