Earlier this year, we were blessed to welcome our third child to the world. I soon entered a maternity leave time warp, and in what felt like the blink of an eye, it was time to return to work. As any breastfeeding mom working away from baby knows, the process of pumping, transporting, preparing, and washing bottles can feel like an extra full-time job. With each new breastfeeding/pumping journey, I’ve made some small changes to increase my efficiency and decrease my waste. Some of these things may seem obvious, or you may even have a better way. However, if I can offer you even one idea that makes your life a little easier, then I’ll consider this a success. Here are some milk storage and pumping tips from one working mom to another.
Pour immediately into bottles for the next day.
Looking back, I had a pretty inefficient system in place for milk storage and transport with my first kid. I would pump, measure the correct amount per bottle, label and pour into a disposable bag, take the bags home at the end of the day, freeze some of the bags of milk, thaw some prior frozen milk, create bottles for daycare the next day, etc. There were honestly more steps, and I made some strange decisions throughout the whole process. It wasn’t until a few months into pumping at work for my second child that I finally thought about just pouring milk directly into bottles for the next day. This realization was mind-blowing, and to this day, I frequently laugh at myself, thinking about how long it took me to think of doing this. I’m saving time because the milk is ready to go in her bottle, and I have less waste because I’m not using so many plastic bags! (What in the world was I thinking with all those plastic bags?!)
Get the right cooler
I couldn’t find my old breast milk cooler this time around, so I had to order a new one. I love the choice I made just in time for my first day back to work. This cooler is tall enough to hold baby’s bottles for the next day, as well as my pump parts/bottles for safe transport back home. For kid #2, I used these wet bags to transport my pump parts back and forth. This method was fine, but it led to extra steps and laundry.
Use your dishwasher!
I never truly want to think about the hours I wasted hand-washing bottles and pump parts for my first two children. Use that dishwasher, Mama! I’m saving time, water, and money (because I’m not constantly replacing those bottle brushes!).
Long-lasting labels
I’m sure most of us know about the cute sticker label companies, but have you heard of Orbit Labels from inchbug? These silicone labels can stretch around your bottles to make sure baby’s name stays put. You can toss them right in the dishwasher without worrying about stickers peeling off. Bonus: You can continue to use these as your kids get older. Just remove from bottle and place on sippy cup or bigger kid’s water bottle!
Date stickers
Another win from inchbug. These date stickers make the daily daycare labeling easy. There is nothing special about these stickers apart from the fact they have just made my life easier.
Dry-erase marker for temporary labeling
This was a recent “Why did I never think of that?” moment. Sometimes, I have a storage bottle or baby bottle with milk that I have not yet sent to school or frozen. In the past, I would find some masking tape, write the date, and later toss the tape. Now, I just grab a dry-erase marker off the fridge and write the info I need directly on the lid or side of a storage bottle or bottle. Once it is used, I can just wipe it off and toss the bottle in the dishwasher.
As with all things in motherhood, there are many different ways to go about all the details involved in pumping if you are a breastfeeding/pumping, working mom. But I hope that someone’s life is made at least a little easier by one of these milk storage or pumping tips that I have found helpful. If you have any other great ideas, let us know!
