ChristusG Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 I'm making my baby registry at Target and Babies R Us for a baby shower this summer. Yes, I know I have two kids but I've never made my own baby food, nor bottle fed before. So I'm not sure what to get. What do I need for making my own baby food? Things for making the food, freezing it, storing it, etc. Links at Target or Babies R Us would be great so that I'll know exactly what to add to my registry. Also, what about bottle feeding? I'll be exclusively breastfeeding, but my 7 year old has already talked about wanting to be able to hold the baby's bottle. I have an electric breast pump but have never really used it. Neither of my older two ever had a bottle. So what do I need? I know I want the BPA free bottles. Do I need to put the breast milk into a liner inside of the bottle? Are there certain bottle nipples that are more like the breast? What do I need to store the milk in the freezer? Lots of questions LOL. Links would be great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farmgirl70 Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 I can't help much with the bottle information, as none of mine would ever take a bottle. However, for baby food, I just used my blender to blend things up. Then I froze the food in ice cube trays. When they were frozen, I popped them in zip loc bags in the freezer. It was so easy just to take out what they needed and stick it in the diaper bag. They were usually thawed by the time we needed them, but they stayed cool long enough, too. Nothing fancy. Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KristinaBreece Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 (edited) I would say, breast milk storage bags. I think the Lansinoh ones can fit inside Playtex nursers, but I'm not 100% on that one. I liked DD's Adiri bottle when DH needed to feed her. A friend of mine like the Avent VIA system. Of course, there might be a storage system that goes with your pump, depending on what brand it is. I would also look at small freezer-safe containers if you want to be able to store baby food over time. I used ice cube trays & froze small portions of baby food that way, but it was a bigger PITA than I thought it would be-- so I ended up blending up fresh baby food every day or 2. ETA: Wish I had thought of something like what Farmgirl did with the baby food cubes. THAT sounds like it would work VERY well! Edited May 31, 2011 by KristinaBreece Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WeeBeaks Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 I find my Cuisenart mini chopper is good for blending baby food. I got it at Costco, though I'm certain Target would have a similar idea. These things are what I use in the freezer. My baby is 10 months now, and it still holds a decent amount for her. They are also handy for dry items in the diaper bag/finger foods. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000CQXYCS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littlebug42 Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 (edited) My children both liked the Playtex nurser bottles the best. They were primarily breast fed but did have bottles also and they never refused those. I had an Avent handhled breast pump that had plastic bottles with it. I stored/froze the breast milk in those and would thaw it/warm it and then put in the playtex inserts. I didn't do baby food myself so no advice there. ETA: These are most like the bottles I used. 10 years ago, they weren't BPA free but ours had the silicone nipples. I did not like the Ventaire ones but they were new to the market than and may have improved. http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3247624 Edited May 31, 2011 by littlebug42 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Punchie Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 I used Dr. Brown and Born Free bottles (they come in glass or plastic options, we used glass). Both girls were BF'd and neither had nipple confusion with either brand. We already had this on hand: http://www.amazon.com/Cuisinart-CSB-77-Blender-Chopper-Attachments/dp/B0006G3JRO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1306876751&sr=8-1 So I used the chopper attachment to make baby food. For storing, I froze in regular ice cube trays, then popped out the food and stored in freezer bags. 1 cube = 1 tablespoon. As they got older, I'd pop whatever we were eating for dinner in the chopper (along w/a bit of water to help), and give it to them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BatmansWife Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 I know you didn't ask for this advice....but I wouldn't have given any of my babies a bottle just because big sister/brother wanted to bottle feed them. Maybe you could break it to your dd gently that the baby won't be getting a bottle. But...probably too late for that. I pumped *one* time and got horrible mastitis. Not to scare you. But, this is where my feelings on it are coming from (not a good memory!). For homemade baby food....as someone else said, I just blended up the food, froze in ice cube trays, and popped the cubes out and put in freezer bags. Easy peasy. Buuuuttt....if money weren't an object I think this is pretty cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluemongoose Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 I had the best success with the breastflow bottles. My LC advised me to use them when the other (avent-Playtex) were causing latch problems. As far as the baby food making. I started with a steamer and got the food item soft, then I used my Cuisinart food processor to blend it smooth. I then made cubes with the oxo ice cube trays. These have a sliding lid that protects the food. As I made quite a bit at a time, I would dump the cubes into Ziploc bags. To reheat, I would use the via system cups as a food jar, then drop it in the bottle warmer. i liked the via because it was dishwasher safe, it was a perfect size for 3-4 cubes (4ish oz) of food, it had a tight screw on lid so I could carry the food around, and they were made to fit in the bottle warmer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melinda Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 We have had good success with the Playtex drop-ins for bottles. As far as baby food, buy the book Super Baby Food (it has charts for when to introduce what, etc) and go to this website: http://wholesomebabyfood.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slartibartfast Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 (edited) I told my dd that the baby would eat breastmilk like she did and she could help feed the baby when he was older and could eat food. For baby food you just need a fork. One sweet potato bake mash with fork One avocado mash One squash cook mash etc If it has to be super smooth or your baby will gag, your baby might not be quite ready for solids. You can freeze things in ice cube trays if you like. I have organizational problems. I don't want any extra gadgets Edited May 31, 2011 by Sis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristusG Posted May 31, 2011 Author Share Posted May 31, 2011 I don't plan on letting DD feed the baby very often....but I do want her to have the opportunity. And I do like to keep bottles on hand, as well as a few bags of breast milk in the freezer, in case of an emergency. I've had mastitis before but it wasn't from pumping. I felt like I was dying! :001_huh: Thanks for all the recommendations....I'll see what I'd like to add to my registry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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