25 Cent Nipples

I spent A LOT of time before having AJ mulling over what bottles we should be getting for him. After months of painstakingly detailed research over pro's and con's of the products out there, we bought two sets of bottles - the Como Tomo and the Tommy Tippee, both brands are highly rated for being "biologically" shaped, and therefore the easiest type of bottle for babies to take.

While that may certainly sound good, there were several key considerations that pre-baby Tina forgot to think about.  Or rather, perhaps pre-baby Tina didn't KNOW to think about.

1) cost.  

No, really I did think of it.  What I DIDN'T think about was the things you'd have to buy to maintain bottle feeding, once you've established.  Most people know about buying the basic set of bottles and what not, but did you know that nipples come in different sizes?  Call me stupid, but I didn't.  

2) convenience

Yeah you're gonna have to clean them.  And it's not like adult dishes, where you can just pile 'em up high and use paper plates for a while if you're too lazy to do the dishes.  Nope, you gotta wash them.  So any extra parts that comes with your feeding paraphernalia will of course add to the pile of stuff you have to wash at the end of the day. Plus, if you're an idiot like me and pump into one bottle but feed out of a different kind, that's 2x as many bottles and parts to wash.  BLEH.

3) storage space

Let's not pretend like this stuff makes our countertops more attractive.  Baby bottle stuff is an eyesore to look at.  I have an entire cabinet dedicated to feeding supplies.  That is almost to embarrassing for me to admit.

OK, what's this really about?

So since the day AJ's been using bottles, I've had a HUGE pile of dishes to wash every night.  I pump and store my milk in the fridge in Medela bottles.  I know there are Medela nipples and collars you can buy and screw right onto those bottles for feeding, but pre-baby Tina was too stubborn to be convinced that her baby should use anything that got a 3-star rating on Amazon.  Don't tell me you haven't heard the whole crap about how baby's success in feeding highly depends on how "biological" the bottles are? With that in mind, I was equipped to do whatever it takes to make sure that my baby gets the best.  

So 8 weeks after AJ started using bottles, I'm exhausted from washing those damn bottles. OK, more like I feel like my time is better spent doing something that's NOT washing bottles. Plus, I'm pretty sure that the caregiving grandparents are sick of transferring milk to different bottles (MIL spilled 4 ounces of milk during this process a few weeks ago).  Today, I found a sample "standard" nipple and collar in the closet, washed it, and threw it onto the bottle today.  We gave it to AJ and....dear....Lord.... HE LOVED IT.  A LOT MORE THAN THOSE DAMN FAT BOOB SHAPED NIPPLE/BOTTLES!!! Gulped his 4.25 ounces down in a matter of 5 or so minutes.  He sounded exactly like what he sounds like when he eats off the boob.   WHAT. THE. HECK.

That's it. We're headed over to the store to buy some 25 cent Gerber nipples.  AJ, you've been cut off of your fancy bottles.