BABY #2: Our Struggle with Combination Feeding and Tips that Helped

Combination feeding (breast and bottle) is something that we choose to do when Isabella was a baby and it worked really well. We had planned to wait until she was six weeks old, but after what felt like hours of constant feeding we ended up giving her a bottle when she was 3 weeks old. We started with the tiny bottles you can buy with ready made Aptamil in that also come with the teats. Isabella happily guzzled away and that was the start of her combination feeding journey. She would happily swap between different bottles, expressed and formula milk and drank it without a problem. Naively that was what I expected this time around. How wrong was I.

10 THINGS: To do whilst feeding your baby

Bottle or breastfeeding babies takes a lot of time in those early months especially. Days would pass and I swear I hadn't done anything other than feed Isabella, all in a sleepy daze. Before you know it those long feeds are distant history and you have a baby that crawls/climbs around so you can say goodbye to any level of relaxing during the day! Below are my top 10 things to do during the longer feeds, they may seem like they'll never end but they will and you will have lost that precious 'sitting down' time. Embrace it!

BABY: How I went about reducing the night feeds

Back as 2016 was quickly approaching and it's the year I return to work, I reflected on the routines we had with Isabella. We have never implemented strict routines, but Isabella has always got herself into some level of a routine. I love our day time routine at the moment, it's pretty consistent so I know when I'll have time to get things done and time to play with her. 

BABY: Our combined feeding journey so far...

Back when Isabella was 3 weeks old she went through her first growth spurt, cue days of constant feeding. Literally. When the Health Visitor came on the Friday of that week I was completely exhausted and Isabella just didn't seem satisfied. I had been expressing milk too, so I knew I had enough milk coming through to feed her, there just weren't enough hours in the day to fill her up. The Health Visitor recommending giving her a bottle of formula milk at night, with the aim of filling her up. As I've discussed on my blog before, we were always planning on combined feeding (when you bottle and breastfeed) but not quite that early. Initially I was really nervous giving her a bottle so early on into breastfeeding, I didn't want her to reject breastfeeding after she'd had the bottle. My worries weren't needed as after she had had her first bottle of formula milk she went straight back to breastfeeding without a problem. Luckily Isabella has been able to swap between bottle and breast with ease, partially due to the bottles we've been using.

Before Isabella was born I had bought Aptamil that was already mixed up in a bottle with a teat, so she first had those. But each bottle was only 60ml, so quickly that wasn't enough to fill her up. At this point we bought Aptamil powder and started using bottles. So far we've used the NUK First Choice+ 150ml bottle with Size 1silicone teat and the Lansinoh m0mma Bottle with NaturalWave Nipple. I've already written about the NUK bottles on my blog, which you can read here. 

The Lansinoh brand was one I associated more with their HPA Lanolin Nipple Cream (a must have item for anyone breastfeeding!) than their bottle range. However I've been seriously impressed with not only the design but the ease of use and suitability for anyone who is combined feeding. If, like me, you're not familiar with the Lansinoh m0mma Bottle with NaturalWave Nipple* (£5.99 from amazon) here's a bit more information...

'The Lansinoh® mOmma® Bottle with NaturalWave® Nipple is clinically proven to reduce nipple confusion in established, breastfed babies.  Backed by more than 50 years of research, the silicone NaturalWave® Nipple enables baby to engage in the natural, wavelike sucking actions learned at the breast, making it easier for baby to go from breast to bottle and back to breast.

The Lansinoh® mOmma® Bottle is BPA and BPS free and can be  used to safely store breastmilk in refrigerator or freezer. The ergonomic design is compatible with both the Lansinoh®Signature Pro™ and Lansinoh® Manual Breast Pump.'

(quoted from their website)

Isabella has found this Lansinoh bottle really easy to drink from, the flow isn't too fast and the design allows her to suck like she would when she's breastfeeding. At around six weeks she started having about 130ml of formula milk at night, in fact my husband gives it to her at around 12am so that I can get a bigger block of solid sleep. Bliss.  

I've also been expressing every so often and freezing it, ready to use when we need it. Personally, I've found expressing much easier than I expected (I've been using the NUK Luna Electric Breast Pump). Since introducing the formula feed at night I've been extremely full by the morning, so have needed to express to stay comfortable. Once I've expressed I've been either pouring the milk into the Lansinoh Breastmilk Storage Bags (£4.39 for pack of 25 from amazon) or Lansinoh Breastmilk Storage Bottles* (£8.l2 from amazon). The storage bags are really good if you don't have much space in your freezer, they don't take up much space and are pre-sterilised so can be used straight from the box. There's also a space to write the date and time you've expressed the milk, which is important as you can only keep breastmilk for a certain amount of time after expressing. The storage bottles are perfect for taking/using the expressed milk straight away, rather than decant the milk from the storage bag into another bottle. Once the milk is defrosted you can attach a NaturalWave teat to the storage bottle and you've got a bottle ready to use! The bottles are compatible with the Lansinoh breast pump, as well as a lot of other standard sized breast pumps. This saves on washing up/sterilising even further, as you can express straight into the storage bottle, put the lid on to freeze, then defrost and attach the NaturalWave teat to use. Easy peasy. 

Did you do combined feeding? When did you introduce the bottle?

Feel free to leave me a comment below :)

Helen x

BABY: Getting prepared for combined feeding with NUK - Bottle Feeding

This post continues on from the 'Getting prepared for combined feeding with NUK - Breastfeeding' blog post, which you can read here.

Onto bottle feeding, the other side of combined feeding. We really wanted the bottles we chose to include features that make the transition between breast and bottle as smooth as possible. The NUK First Choice+ Perfect Start Set* (£27.50) has everything you'd need for either combined or bottle feeding.

The Start Set includes:

2 x NUK First Choice+ 150ml Bottles with Size 1 Silicone Medium Feed Hole Teats and sealing disc
2 x NUK First Choice+ 300ml Bottles with Size 1 Silicone Medium Feed Hole Teats and sealing disc
2 x NUK First Choice+ Size 1 Silicone Medium Feed Hole Teats
2 x NUK Genius Size 1 Silicone Soothers

It's so reassuring to know that NUK have both their teats and soothers approved by the British Dental Health Foundation. The orthodontic design of the NUK First Choice+ Teat and the super soft zone, which simulates a mother's nipple during breastfeeding, adapts perfectly to a baby's sensitive palate. The teats also feature the improved Anti-Colic Air System which minimises infant colic caused by swallowing of air. The Start Set has everything we were looking for in readiness for the bottle feeding side of combined feeding and all for such a reasonable price!

Finally, cleaning the bottles is obviously important as your little ones immune system is still developing. The NUK Baby Bottle Cleanser* (380ml £3.99) removes milk protein that soapy water alone won't remove. It's based on natural ingredients, PH neutral and can easily be added to warm water for the necessary prewash before sterilising bottles, soothers and accessories.

We feel equipped and ready for combined feeding with the unique, practical and supportive features of these NUK products. NUK offer a fantastic range of feeding, cleaning and soothing products, all of which have carefully considered designs and many of which we have on our 'to get' list. 

Do you have any tips for combined feeding?

Feel free to leave me a comment - I love reading every single one :)

Helen x

BABY: Getting prepared for combined feeding with NUK - Breastfeeding

As my due date is quickly approaching we have been considering how we would like to feed our baby and for us it wasn't as simple as saying 'breast is best, so let's do that'. We wanted to make a more informed decision, so we looked into the pro's and con's of both bottle and breastfeeding. There are clear benefits to breastfeeding, which you can't deny makes it the better option for your baby. But it doesn't mean it's the only option and I've also read about how hard breastfeeding can actually be. The journey towards breastfeeding confidently isn't always a smooth one, so I didn't want to put myself under lots of pressure, just in case I do find it really difficult or can't do it for some reason.

I do intend to breastfeed exclusively for the first 6ish weeks, but then start to combine feeding - a combination of bottle and breastfeeding. There are many reasons for this, one being so that my husband has the chance to bond with our daughter, as well as it would give me some time to rest/sleep. I know a lot of Mummy's that have opted for this method of feeding and it's worked really well for them. We only intend to introduce one bottle a day, probably in the evening so I can sleep for longer than 2 hours at a time. I also intend to express for the bottle feed, rather than use formula milk, as I've read that if you reduce the amount of breastfeeding you do then your milk supply will decrease too, which I don't want to happen. These are all intentions at the moment and we will have to see how our feeding journey goes but planning on combination feeding does mean we will be prepared for either breastfeeding or bottle feeding.

NUK have a wide range of products that can aid your chosen feeding journey with your baby, whether that be breastfeeding, bottle feeding or combined. The NUK Luna Electric Breast Pump* (£69.99) is the perfect product to use if you do decide to express. After speaking to other Mummy's the general view was that if you do decide to express then investing in an electric breast pump makes the process a lot easier and quicker. Anything that is going to make life easier with a newborn baby has got to be a winner, as at the moment I can only imagine how exhausted and challenging life is going to be for those first couple of months.


The Luna Electric Breast Pump has a wide range of features that makes this electric breast pump stand out from others...

• Simple but sturdy design, made in Germany.
• High expressing action due to a 2 phase rhythm which simulates a baby's natural suction when breastfeeding.
• Fully adjustable suction strength for particularly gentle expressing.
• Can be operated with just one hand and is easy to clean (few parts).
• Can be mains or battery operated and includes a global adaptor which is great for travelling.
• Compatible with all NUK First Choice baby bottles and teats.
• Pack includes a stand, 150ml breast milk container with screw ring and sealing disc, First Choice Plus Silicone Teat Size 1 (0-6 months) small feed hole, protective cap, mains plug and adaptor plug.
  I love how compact it is, yet has the same features as much larger electric breast pumps. You can see from the picture above, it fits perfectly into one hand, allowing ease of use and still looking after a baby. It's ideal for travelling too, even if that's just to your family or friends house. It even comes with a range of plugs, so you can take it on holiday and not need to buy any conversion plugs! I'd say that's an excuse to go on holiday abroad :) 
  
  Storing expressed breast milk correctly is important and the NUK 150ml Breast Milk Containers* (2 pack - £7.99) are ideal. You can store, freeze and warm the breast milk in these containers, as well as feeding your baby directly by attaching a NUK First Choice Anti-Colic Wide Neck Teat. This saves time, sterilising and storage space, not to mention the convenience of it for being out and about!
   
  They are also compatible with the NUK Jolie Manual Breast Pump. Once your little one isn't breastfeeding anymore, or you have stopped expressing, you can use these containers for storing baby food in - such a versatile product!
  One 'must have' product for breastfeeding are breast pads, leaking nipples are not only inconvenient but could be embarrassing. I'll never forget the time someone I knew had finished breastfeeding their baby, heard another baby crying and suddenly she was leaking all over her dress and had to go to the toilets to try and dry the area with the hand dryer. Leaking is inevitable at some point during breastfeeding but it doesn't mean most women don't want to try and reduce the risk. The NUK Ultra Dry Breast Pads* (24 pack £2.99) are designed to fit your breast perfectly, making them almost invisible and very comfortable. I forgot they were there, which is exactly what I'm looking for in breast pads!

Have you got any tips for expressing or breastfeeding?

Feel free to leave me a comment - I love reading every single one :)

Helen x