Customer Reviews

Medela Breastmilk Feeding Gift Set - Medela 87137

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

With twins and serious sleep deprivation, I nedded bottles that were simple to use and easy to clean. The Medela Breastmilk Feeding Set is excellent and BPA-free. The set works for both newborns and older babies, as it comes with three 4-oz bottles and six 2-oz breastmilk storage bottles that you can put nipples on too.

I bought two sets for our baby twins, as they worked well with my oldest child. With him, I made the mistake of buying enough bottles to last me the whole day, but I found that if you leave the bottles dirty and let them accumulate it becomes harder to hand wash them as the formula thickens and becomes sticky (at least fill them with water). I found that if you keep just three bottles on hand per child, you'll be washing more often but it will be less of a chore that doing a ton all at once (unless you use the dishwasher). Make sure you don't screw the nipple/ ring on too tight - if you see the nipple collapse or your baby pausing a lot, there's a vacuum in the bottle - just loosen it a tad.

For washing, we like an Philips AVENT BPA-Free Bottle Brush and Method Pump Dish Soap Sea Minerals, 18-Ounce (Pack of 6), which is gentle, low sudsing and easy to rinse. Palmolive liquid soap is hard to rinse off and Dawn will wreck your hands from the frequent washings. It takes about a minute to clean 1-2 bottles.

We used the Medela Quick Clean Micro-Steam Bags to sterilize - you can put four 4 oz. bottles or six 2 oz. ones plus nipples, add 2 oz. of water, and put on high for 3 minutes. Pour out the hot water through the vent before opening. Each bag lasts for 20 cleanings and there are 5 in the box, so it's 100 cleanings/box. Not too bad and super easy.

To dry, you can use a drying rack such as the Munchkin Deluxe Drying Rack

An easier option, keep a roll of paper towels in your kitchen and tear out about 18 -24 inches, and place bottles / nipples on it. Replace this each day (I clean the counter off each night with Lysol wipes before putting down a clean paper towel).

After you steam the bottles and nipples, let them cool a bit inside the bag, then (with clean hands) place the assembled nipple & ring on the paper towel and then place the sterilized baby bottle over it to cover it, pressing down - it will seal completely, keeping the nipple and bottle clean and free of any potential contaminants until you use it. It's Ok if the bottles are still wet inside as they've been sterilized, just make sure to use them that day (if longer, air dry them before putting on the nipples).

For water, check your town's water report. In our area, lead levels are within recommended limits for adults but not necessarily children (your report will say this). Some local wells contain uranium. Boiling the water will not remove the lead and regular bottled water may be from a municipal source. We use Gerber water (blue lid) or Nursery water (pink lid), found at CVS, Walgreens, Shoprite & Target, next to the formula. It's not too expensive and it will give you peace of mind. For outings, we use Poland Spring water in the diaper bag (bought at Costco or Staples). We alternate fluorinated (blue lid) and non-fluorinated water (pink lid) as the jury's out on whether or not fluoride is OK at this age.

Talk to your children's pediatrician as to when you can start using powder formula, as this isn't sterilized (with some formulas like Enfacare for preemies, you don't have a choice). If you decide to continue with liquid formula, you could try Similac Advance Early Shield Infant Formula with Iron, Ready to Feed, 8-Fluid Ounces (Pack of 24). The best source is Amazon -- keep an eye out to see if it goes on their Subscribe & Save program -- it used to be on it. With twins, each Simila bottle will give us enough for two 4 oz. baby bottles or two 2-oz bottles at room temp and then another two 2-oz bottles (warm them in a cup a hot water for a few minutes).

You can but extra Medela Breastmilk Bottle Spare Parts and Medela Slow Flow Wide Base Nipple, 3pk. Medium flow nipples are also available.

You can also try the quart size liquid formula. If having it refrigerated and warming it up with each feeding is not an issue, then it's a good option - we actually put a small fridge in the nursery as I couldn't use stairs much after my c-section. They're inexpensive and very useful.

Always follow instructions regarding how long formula is good for - label the bottle with packing tape and a sharpie, with date and time. It's usually an hour after they start drinking from it, but don't rely on your memory - with sleep deprivation is easy to forget or mix up bottles. Unused liquid formula usually keeps up to 48 hours in the refrigerator, and powder formula, for a month after being opened.

Mixing formula - best with water at room temperature, just follow instructions and swish the bottle around a bit. If you wait a couple of minutes any air bubbles usually subside. Don't bother to warm it up - it's one habit a baby doesn't need to get, unless it's to take the chill off refrigerated formula. This worked better for us than mixers, jugs, etc. we used for our first child but as always, every parent is different and you might prefer another method.

In any case, this is the solution we found as I found it hard to clean all the parts and straws in other bottles. I still use them and my babies are turning one.

Lastly, don't forget to register for Amazon mom - it's free, gets you free shipping and huge discounts on baby supplies.

Comes with the medela bags so you get a "feel" for them before you decide to buy and use them or not. I prefer the Lansinoh bags because they are easier to seal and hold more. Only plus to Medela bags are that they can be attached to pump. Downside is you really shouldn't put more than 4 1/2 oz. in them because the seal isn't great and the milk expands during freezing causing spillage. Also, once my milk came in, I was pumping 5 oz. or more per breast so I had to keep checking the bags while I pumped to make sure I didn't overfill. (Ended up buying some cheap 8 oz. Gerber bottles to pump into and so I wouldn't have to worry about overfilling and I just pour into bags to freeze once I am done.) Good deal since three 4 oz. bottles are about $17+ tax alone. I was going to buy the bulk pack of the 2 oz. storage bottles but now am glad that I didn't. The six are enough and I am not needing them now. We were having latching problems so they were useful, but now that we've got bf down, I hardly use them. Also, once baby gets older, you'll be feeding lots more than 2 oz. at a time. Might be useful again once I get back to work though. Also good to get the bottle spare parts when you purchase this because all those little pieces tend to get misplaced/lost. Pump will attach to both bottle and 2 oz. bottles and you can feed straight out of 2 oz. bottle also.

Love the new style of bottles. The old style are good too...

Good to know before buying:
before 2009 Medela baby bottles took the "old style" "skinny base" nipples. The nipples with the correct Collar will fit *ANY* Medila bottle. (**** You just have to have to correct collar/ nipple combination****) the yellow lids also only fit the "old style nipples and collars.

** AGAIN- These collars on these bottles WILL fit ANY Midela bottle, Assuming you match the right nipple with the right collar.

I have mixed feelings on this set. I love the storage bottles and the bags (haven't used any other brands for the bags yet, so I may change my mind when I get a cheaper version as the bags are pretty expensive on their own). But the actual bottles I am not a huge fan of...more not a fan of the nipples. The milk flows WAY too fast out of them! It pours into my baby's mouth without her having to suck or latch onto it at all. There have been many times she has choked on the milk because she wasn't quite ready to start drinking it yet and it poured into her mouth and down her throat. They say they are "slow flow", but I don't believe it! I am trying to figure out which type of bottles to switch to since the nipples don't work for us at all. Other than that, its a good starter set for the price, especially since I am unable to pump anymore than an ounce or so at a time.

I had chosen these to put on my registry and am SOOO glad I got them! I pump straight into the tubes and either attach the nipple to it to feed right away or store it in the fridge or freezer. They're super easy to clean, I don't have to transfer the milk... EVER. My baby is only 6 weeks and only drinks 2 oz. at a time so I haven't needed to use the bottles yet. But I love the whole medela system! So convenient how everything fits perfect!

I bought these with my pump thinking i'd be able to use them to store extra. I only used the small 80 ml bottles a couple of times since they very quickly became too small to be very useful. I suppose if you only wanted to store small portions to add to what you pump later they might be good. I really like the 5oz bottles though and the ability to pump straight into them for storage and feeding.

Great starter set for any breastfeeding mother. Nipples, rings and caps fit the 2 1/2 oz containers as well. Great for mothers that are just starting out pumping with the smaller containers and then nice to have a few 4 oz bottles around as well. Really a very nice complete set.

I love the fact that the milk collection bottles turn into feeding bottles. I do not find the nipples to bee to fast flowing, but I bought this set when my daughter was three months old so it's possible that they are inappropriate for newborns. The bottles are light, good quality plastic, and the add-on nipples provide so much convenience. I actually like these make shift bottles way more than the slow flow platex or breastflow ones because both the bottle and the nipple are very easy to clean. I also did not find my baby to be burping any more than with the fancy "less colic" designs of the bottles mentioned above. It's also a great idea to have more than just two bottles that come with the pump - I find myself washing everything less often and having more than enough clean bottles when needed.

The medela pump and save bags have a horrible smell sorta like a latex/ plastic smell and it made my breast milk taste bad. Lansinoh bags have no smell- get them instead. Gave it 3stars because of the bags otherwise would have gotten 5 stars. I love medela and im disappointed in this product.

These set was great, I used everything in it. The bottles were great for storage, but sometimes the bottle smell even after I wash them over and over. It might just be the soap I use. Other than that, no complaints.