First time taking expressed breast milk.

Laetitia has been an exclusively breastfed baby since birth but it has been my intention to get her used to the bottle once she has passed her first month. I wanted her to be able to take both expressed breastmilk and even some formula once in a while. This is to make sure that she is able to be fed in any circumtances (e.g if I fall ill or could not be around to breastfeed her at her meal time) and will not starve. At the same time, I am not sure how long I want to breastfeed her and I do not want to get into a situation where she has been so used to the breast that she rejects the bottle (which was the experience of some friends who waited a longer time before introducing the bottle).

So, today, I pumped the first bottle of expressed breast milk for her. For a first time, it was a very successful pumping session in my opinion. I managed to get 100ml from one breast in about 10 mins. I will need to get more bottles if I do intend to build up a small supply of expressed breast milk.

Etienne was given the wonderful task of feeding our little darling her first bottle feed in the early evening. I showed him how to go about preparing the bottle, e.g. warming it in a bowl of water, a quick sterilization of the teat and finally testing the temperature of the milk. Once everything was done, he was ready to give the bottle to Laetitia. I think having him feed her is a great way for papa and daughter to bond. If possible, the plan will be for him to do a feed a day.

There was a couple of minutes of confusion for Laetitia when Etienne first introduce the bottle to her. She tried it the first time and kept pushing the teat out with her tongue. I bet she was wondering why is it so different from mummy's breast! I had to watch from a distance since I read that the mother's pressence would usually create more difficulties in introducing the bottle to breastfed babies. Etienne persisted by gently sticking the bottle back into her mouth evertime she pushed it out. Within 5 mins or less, our precious baby was sucking on the teat like a pro! She eventually took in a total of 80ml of expressed breastmilk. Yipee, first bottle feeding session is a success. :-)