https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Sun, 26 Apr 2026 17:05:03 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/advice-for-milk-storage-management#post-887907 Thu, 27 Jun 2013 08:48:46 +0000 purrpletulips 887907@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>In the beginning I froze in 1-2oz packets because I didn't want to waste any since you have to use defrosted milk within 24hr of thawing.</p> <p>Freeze flat for easier storage. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/advice-for-milk-storage-management#post-887351 Wed, 26 Jun 2013 21:46:48 +0000 Beehive 887351@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I think I'd keep enough for 1 or 2 supplements in the fridge, just to take some of the pressure off you in case you ever skip a post-feed pump. </p> <p>For freezing the rest, I freeze 2oz and 3oz bags. Sometimes I just need a little extra milk to top off a fresh bottle, in which case I wouldn't want to have a big bag of frozen milk. And with 2oz and 3oz, you can make any size bottle by combining them. LO has gone from 2oz/3oz bottles to 4oz and now he'll take 7oz bottles - I have maximum flexibility with my frozen milk. Plus, the small bags of milk thaw really easily under the tap. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/advice-for-milk-storage-management#post-886994 Wed, 26 Jun 2013 17:59:41 +0000 katsupgirl 886994@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@LaineysMom: I like that! :happy:<br /> I'd freeze everything now and do it in 3oz increments. You could keep 3 bottles worth in the fridge as backup </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/advice-for-milk-storage-management#post-886988 Wed, 26 Jun 2013 17:55:58 +0000 LaineysMom 886988@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@autumnlove: the most I've put in a bag is 6.5, bc I'm too chicken and don't want to risk leaky bags! That being said, I can't see myself freezing in smaller portions than 6 oz. I think my goal is to pump to 1 year and then give 6-12 oz. every day til 18 mo. It's a big enough pain to freeze a few 6 oz bags.. I can't imagine tripling the work and the cost! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/advice-for-milk-storage-management#post-886971 Wed, 26 Jun 2013 17:45:47 +0000 autumnlove 886971@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I froze 4 oz portions for the first week and now I only freeze 6 oz portions. I always have about 6-10 ounces of fresh milk in the fridge.</p> <p>@LaineysMom: I am the same way. Sometimes I freeze 7-8 ounces...I hope I don't have any issues when I thaw them out! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/advice-for-milk-storage-management#post-886953 Wed, 26 Jun 2013 17:34:12 +0000 LaineysMom 886953@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@softcream: I always have at least 10 oz in the fridge. I freeze in 6 oz. portions bc I'm cheap and don't want to buy more bags.. I bought the 300 ct. of Honeysuckle bags and don't plan on buying any more.. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/advice-for-milk-storage-management#post-883788 Tue, 25 Jun 2013 15:55:32 +0000 Mrs. High Heels 883788@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>In the beginning, I froze bags in 2-3 ounce increments. Now, I freeze a variety of ounces per bag so I can mix and match depending on how much LO might need to drink as he grows. I have a mix of 3 ounce, 4 ounce, and 5 ounce bags in my fridge. It's easier to put less ounces in bags and combine two bags to make one feeding if you need - that way you don't risk wasting milk.</p> <p>If I were you right now, I would probably freeze all the excess, since you're constantly pumping fresh milk anyway after each feeding. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/advice-for-milk-storage-management#post-883743 Tue, 25 Jun 2013 15:43:05 +0000 Bluebonnet 883743@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>On maternity leave, I froze everything immediately and used the oldest milk first (so I would cycle through my stash).</p> <p>Once I went back to work, LO got half frozen and half fresh (that way LO got lots of fresh milk, but I also kept cycling through my stash).</p> <p>In the beginning I think I had 2-3 ounces per bag. When I went back to work I did 4 ounce bags. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/advice-for-milk-storage-management#post-883704 Tue, 25 Jun 2013 15:37:52 +0000 softcream 883704@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Espion: ha, i guess the surplus is a positive ... everything else has been super stressful =( looking forward to when it gets easier </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/advice-for-milk-storage-management#post-883517 Tue, 25 Jun 2013 14:54:59 +0000 Espion 883517@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>No advice, but jealous of the surplus!! </p> <p>I'll be following, though, for when I can save/freeze some. I can't save any because we'll be in transit until July 15th. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/advice-for-milk-storage-management#post-883470 Tue, 25 Jun 2013 14:44:50 +0000 softcream 883470@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>our little guy is 11 days old today and it hasn't been easy breezy, to say the least.</p> <p>we have intentions to breastfeed, but are having lots of trouble with latch and thus efficient feeding. so we've been supplementing with pumped milk after each attempt at the breast. routine is: 1. spend ~45 minutes trying to feed (sometimes successful) 2a. dh feeds lo a bottle of pumped milk from the previous feed/pump, while 2b. i pump for ~20 minutes</p> <p>but now i'm pumping more milk each session than needed, anywhere from 1/4 oz to 2 oz too much. which supposedly is OK since i'll need more in the coming weeks.</p> <p>anyway, my question is ... how should i manage all the excess milk? how much should i keep in the fridge as backup vs starting to freeze some? how much should each frozen bag have? anything else that you think might be helpful? </p>