I plan to breastfeed, however, I work full-time and my son will be staying with his father during the day (we are a little backwards I guess, but I make more money so it works out), so I have to have a bottle system for him so his dad can feed him while I'm gone. So I went to work on my registry today and became VERY overwhelmed by the bottle section. I had no idea that there were so many kinds that do so many different things. I literally scanned like two things and then had to remove myself from the section immediately before getting to overwhelmed! haha My question is 1) What kind do I register for? What are the important things to look for in deciding which ones to get. 2) What kind and how many nipples do I need to look into registering for? 3) How many do I actually need?
I would take any other advice on things that you guys think is important for me to have as well. This is my first, so I literally need EVERYTHING! This was just the most overwhelming part! I could do the bibs and blankets no problem! lol Thank you all!
Target carries some bottles called Breast-Flow and they work great if you plan on both bottle and breast-feeding. I've never had a problem switching back and forth between giving my pumped milk in a bottle and breast-feeding using these bottles. Good luck!
I used the Avent bottles with my first daughter, mainly because they worked with my breast pump which was Avent. I could pump right into the bottle and then just attach the nipple when she was ready to eat. The Avent nipples are also fairly similar to the Soothie pacifiers, so the switch was easy for her. I'm using the NUK bottles with my second daughter because I'm breastfeeding her 90% of the time and those are supposed to be good when first training baby to nurse - something about how they make the baby position her tongue is the same as when nursing. What I realized is with the NUK bottles, she doesn't like the Soothie pacies. She wants pacies shaped like the nipple of the bottle. So we had to use different pacifiers that were more similar to the nipple of the bottles.
After the first week of having our first daughter, these were the things we had to buy that we didn't register for or didn't receive:
bottle warmer
clothes hamper
baby thermometer
baby nail clippers
small sorter/organizer for bottle parts and nipples in the cabinet drawers
mobile for above the crib
Other things that we didn't register for, but we had to buy eventually when she got older:
safety things (outlet covers, cabinet locks, etc.)
silverware and dishes
sippy cups
potty chair
I'm sure there's lots more, but I agree with the others to avoid registering for clothes, blankets, or bibs. People will buy you these anyway, so don't encourage them! Ha.
Regardless of what you do, you'll be returning stuff and exchanging things, so don't stress too much. :)
Don't feel bad - I was the same way! I had no idea there were so many! :) I really like the ones that have the bend in them and the larger top - it seems more breast-like to me. You never know what your baby will prefer, so I'd suggest either registering for two or three individual bottles and then after you've introduced the bottle, see if s/he has a preference, and then use gift cards to get a set. As a working mom, I had 8 bottles so you can get through a day or two without needing to wash them. As for nipples, get a full set of the slow speed, and then about half as many of the fast speed (by then, the baby won't be eating as often). That's just my opinion. Hope it helps!
My son would take any bottle at all, so we bought a lot of the cheap $1 bottles at Wal-mart. My daughter will only take the Playtex Drop-ins, but only with the B. latex nipple, I guess it feels more natural than the silicone. With those the only thing that really gets dirty is the nipple, so we just bought extra nipples (slow flow only, you want to make your baby work for the milk just like at the breast). So my suggestion is buy a couple different bottles, and start with the cheap ones, if you're lucky your baby will take to those.
If you plan on breastfeeding, get that down first - then worry about bottles. I nursed all of mine and all 4 took to the ADVENT bottles when I needed to go out. They have the nipple "upgrades" as your baby can drink faster.
I have a large family and "work" family and people wanted to go in on gifts together so don't always think "small". Must haves: Breast pump w/ storage baggies, breast pads, nursing pillow(s), bassinet/pack-n-play, crib w/ bedding, car seat/stroller combo, hands-free baby carrying device (bjorn, peanut, snuggly, etc.), wipes/diapers (great things to have TONS of), detergent, spray and wash (by the gallon). Worry less about bibs and blankets - you'll get tons of those no matter what, and bibs you won't need for a few months. : )
I was having the same problem earlier in my pregnancy (I like to plan ahead!) The things that I have gathered about bottles are - the more you get, the better! They have bottles by Playtex that have inserts so it's more sterile. They also have bottles that are supposed to reduce nipple confusion as well, which could be helpful since you said that you were also going to be breastfeeding. I also heard that silicone nipples are better than latex ones. I would try to stick to one type of bottle so it's easier for you and your baby. So pretty much, they have lots of options! I would test out a few and then decide which one the baby prefers more, and stick with that one. Good luck!
With my son I found that he was the one who picked the bottles, not me. By that I mean that there were some he didn't love, some he was nuts about and some he wouldn't eat from at all. My advice is always to get one of each of a few different bottles til you find what makes your kiddo happy, then stock up on those. We ended up with MAM bottles, they are available on amazon.com, reasonably priced, BPA -free and easy to use. I highly recommend them, but again it isn't up to me. I primarily breastfed and only supplemented with bottles occasionally at first, so I'm not sure exactly how many you will need. But I would say 6-10 is probably a good place to start, depending on how often you want to be washing them.
Good luck with your new little one!
Did you have your baby yet? A helpful website is www.breastandbottlefeeding.com. There's also a great book Balancing Breast and Bottle: Reaching your breastfeeding goals. It discusses nipple shapes, flow rates, how much to leave for your baby, and other common questions. Enjoy your baby!
I am a childcare provider. The bottles my nursing mamas have been most successfull with are the Avent and the Playtex Nursers. My suggestion is to choose a brand and get only 1 or 2 bottles until you know if your little angel will take that one or not. Some babies are really tough, they want Mom and nothing else. I would suggest having Daddy start trying to give a bottle at about 2 or 3 weeks. Once you know that your little one will take the bottle then you can buy a bunch. There are plenty of other things to register for!!
M.
I feel your pain! I am registering for baby #3 and was overwhelmed by the bottle selection. With my first two, I nursed both for months but they had to take bottles of breast milk when I went out. I used Playtex drop in system and both of my kids took to them perfectly. So, I will use those again this time around and hope for the best. I have talked to a lot of breastfeeding mamas, and they all like Playtex drop ins or Playtex Nursers. Plus, they are fairly inexpensive. You can get a set of 5 bottles and nipples for around $20. Just make sure to use the slow flow nipples in the beginning with any bottle you choose.
Also must haves for your baby:
- A bouncy seat (the only way I ever got a shower)
- Sleep sacks with the open bottoms (so easy for middle of the night diaper changes)
- Lots of burb cloths! I recommend the Gerber cloth diapers to use as burb cloths.
- A bottle brush
Congrats on your new baby!
We've tried several different kinds of bottles (including Dr. Browns which didn't work too well for us) And Playtex VentAire Advanced (slow flow) were by far our favorite.
Note: The wide nipple is the best if you are going to be breast feeding too...we have no problem switching between breast and bottle
I really like the playtex drop-ins bottle. Used for both kids. Breastfed mostly, supplemented bottle with breastmilk starting at 10days for both. No nipple confusion. slow silicone nipple first 4 to 6months. Buy the drop-ins at target (target brand) - it's cheaper than the playtex drop-ins.
I had a fussy baby and the only bottles he liked were Dr. Browns. Now, if you dont have a dishwasher, this bottle is a no go! Too many pieces would take forever to get them clean. What one of my girlfriends did was register for a few different types of bottles and let the baby decide. Some babies could care less what bottles you use, but some are pretty picky! Good luck!
Everyone posted a lot of good answers as to which kinds of bottles you might want. I just wanted to add that many breastfed babies--mine included have a hard time accepting a bottle. You may have to try many different bottles and nipples before you find the right one for your baby. I have a bunch of brand new bottles and barely used bottles from my baby shower and from trying different ones. You might want to just register for a bottle or two from a few different brands rather than a whole big bottle system that your baby might not accept. I would ask for a 1 or 2 advent bottles, 1 or 2 playtex, 1or 2 dr. browns, etc... rather than a whole gift set of them. Just a thought. After trying many of them and worrying that my daughter would starve when I went back to work she finally accepted the soothie bottles by first years--they have the extra wide nipple. Good luck!
my oldest didn't care what type of bottle he took when supplementing but my youngest only took breastflow bottles. I would not go over board w/ bottles. I'd register for a pump and breastmilk storage supplies. I would then buy one or two different types of bottles and have hubby try them w/ baby once you and baby get breastfeeding down if baby takes one of those bottles go out and purchase more of that brand w/ the slowest flow nipples.
