Family Forum / Pregnancy / Breastfeeding / October 2009

Oh, let's see:

'The Nursing Mother's Companion' (serious) or 'So That's What They're For!'
(humorous)
A quart-sized sports bottle with a valve so it won't spill if it falls over
A double-handful of Met-RX Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough flavored protein bars
Other small snacks of the 'may be eaten with one hand' variety
Chocolate chip cookies
A hand-held computer game such as FreeCell (I'm still using mine at most
nursings 11 months later)
Your phone number/phone number of local LLL leader /phone number of hospital
lactation department
A cordless phone (if she doesn't have one)

--angela

I love the breastfeeding gift basket concept!  I'm doing one for a friend of
mine too, and I keep thinking of more things I could include, but I do have a
budget!  :-)  Anyway, potential contents for you to consider:

-Nursing pads (the Lansinoh ones *rock* if you leak much; the Johnson's
contoured show the least under clothes)
-Tube of Lansinoh for chapped nipples
-Hydrogel pads for sore and/or cracked nipples -- either Ameda ComfortGel or
Soothies
-Gift certificate for nursing clothes/bras (e.g., Motherwear) or (if you are
sure of her taste and size) some nice nursing pajamas or a cute nursing shirt
-Water bottle (I like the Rubbermaid flip-top straw kind, called "Sipp'n'Sav'r"
or something like that)
-Cookies, chocolates, other eat-one-handed goodies
-Boppy pillow and/or covers (one of the few new things I just *had* to have for
my second baby was Boppy covers!)
-Burp cloths
-Baby nail clippers (I found that it's most convenient to keep a pair at my
'nursing station' and use them when baby falls asleep at the breast)
-Magazines or books from her favorite easy-read category
-Cute notepad and pen, for obsessive-new-mom use in keeping track of feedings
and diaper changes, or just for noting down stuff she thinks of while nursing
that she'll otherwise forget before she gets up
-Cozy afghan or fleece cardigan, for throwing on when sitting up to nurse in
the middle of a chilly night
-Avent pump, if you know she wants or would use one

For the breastfeeding how-to/reference books, I suggest _So THAT'S What They're
For_ by Janet Tamaro and/or _The Nursing Mother's Companion_ by Kathleen
Huggins.  If it were me, I'd also include _The Baby Book_ by Sears & Sears.

Holly
Mom to Camden, 3 yrs
and Laurel, 1 month

What a lovely idea!  No experience of breastfeeding myself as yet, but
somebody on another group has told me that what she really found she
needed were drinking straws as she couldn't pick up a drink while
holding the baby & needed to drink from a glass on the adjoining table.
Sounds like a good idea so I thought I'd pass it on.

A good book on b'feeding that I read is 'What to Expect When You're
Breastfeeding (And What To Do If You Can't)' by Claire Byam Cook.  No
idea whether it's out in the US, though.

All the best,

Sarah

How about a box of Mother's Milk Tea?  And a bf t-shirt for the baby--my
favorite places are wavin' baby and granola threads.  For books, I like
"Nursing Your Baby" by Karen Pryor, the 1970s edition that you can get at a
used bookstore.

What a nice idea, Laurel!

Leslie

Emily (2/4/91)
Jake (1/27/94)
Teddy (2/15/95)
William (3/5/01 -- VBA3C, 13 lbs. 5 oz.)
and Lorelei, expected 11/2/04

"Children come trailing clouds of glory from God, which is their home."
                   ~ William Wordsworth

Just a few suggestions:

A good novel to read while feeding, a boppy pillow, recieving blankets,
breast pads, breast pump, a small pillow for back support, that's all I can
think of really!

KR

Great idea!

Off the top of my head, some things that I found invaluable in the
early days of breastfeeding (I'm just going to list everything that
comes to mind without worrying about cost!):

- a small package of reusable breast pads (I like Kushies or Bravado),
plus some disposable ones.

- a reusable water bottle or a few small bottles of water - I kept a
glass of water beside my rocking chair at all times since as soon as I
started nursing, I'd be overcome with this incredible thirst.  Still
do, actually, and DS is 8 months old.

- the book "So That's What They're For - Breastfeeding Basics" by
Janet Tamaro (http://tinyurl.com/2ck85)

- some healthy snack foods - protein or soy bars (I like GenSoy, Luna
and Clif bars), dried fruit snacks, juice boxes, and anything else
that can be eaten one-handed while stuck in a rocking chair for hours
on end.

- some fun magazines or books that aren't breastfeeding/baby related -
light fiction, Glamour/Cosmo if she's into that, etc.

- some fun DVDs or videos

- cordless phone

- lanoline cream such as Lansinoh

- an Avent Isis breastpump (this is getting to be a very expensive
basket!)

- nursing pillow such as a Boppy (although this wouldn't really fit
into a basket); I also have an inflatable one that has come in handy
for travelling

- nursing canopy/cape - I have a couple of nice ones by Kushies but
these seem to be a love-em or hate-em kind of thing.  I found they
made me feel a lot more comfortable nursing in public but I know that
others here have found them completely useless.

- maybe a nice nursing top but, as with the nursing cape, these are
kind of a YMMV thing

- list of phone numbers of lactation consultants, La Leche League
office, breastfeeding support group, or Mommy and Me group in her
area.

- not really breastfeeding related but if there's a movie theatre near
her that does Movies For Mommies then a gift certificate for that
might be nice.

- also not breastfeeding related but another nice thing might be a
gift certificate for a local spa for a pedicure, massage or something
similar for later on when she's ready to leave baby with her partner
or a friend and go out on her own for a couple of hours.

That's all I can think of for now.  I know that for the first few
weeks, I spent most of my time sitting in my rocking chair with my DS
on the nursing pillow on my lap, watching TV or reading.  Once I got
the hang of positioning him on the pillow so that I didn't need to
hold his head with my arm, I was able to have both hands free to work
on the computer.  Now that's where I nurse him most of the time.  But
for those first few weeks, I would have killed for some good movies or
TV shows on DVD.  I got tired of the regular daytime TV shows pretty
quick :-)

Good luck and you're a great friend for thinking of this kind of gift!

Katie

How about including a gift certificate for a visit by a certified
lactation consultant?  This can be expensive (and usually not covered
by insurance), so if you aren't in the bucks, maybe at least the phone
number of one?
Also, I HIGHLY recommend "How My Breasts Saved the World" by Lisa
Shapiro Wood.  It is very funny and heartwarming account of one
mother's struggle/triumph with breastfeeding.  It is less how-to, and
more just fun light reading.  I have the AAP New Mother's Guide to
Breastfeeding.  It is OK, but very basic.
Also, an offer to come over in the first two or three weeks, when
breastfeeding is so time-consuming and overwhelming.  Don't suggest
that she go out, or go to the salon or spa.  Just come offer to come
over and help her while she lays on the couch and rests, or do her
laundry, or let her do her laundry, or cook, or let her cook...  I
wish someone had done that for me.  I would have loved to just lay in
bed/on the couch with my baby while someone else did the household
chores!

Nancy

Nice thoughts..!!!

Eileen..
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