Bottle Warmer

Erica is right about heating water in the microwave and then placing the bottle in the water - I do this at work - but at home I do have The First Years bottle warmer and it works great - I do have to use a little more water than the instructions say to use.

First of all, breast feeding is wonderful so keep doing it as long as possible. My doctors with both children told me warming bottles can be one cause of colic so my babies drank bottles right out of the fridge and I never had any problem with either of them. Maybe you do not need a bottle warmer, try cold bottles and see how she likes it.

What all daycares do and what I've used is a crockpot. Even the small one you'd put the queso in would work for one bottle at a time. Just leaved it plugged in and when you want to warm bottle put it in the crockpot and it should be warm in no time. And fyi, most babies don't even care if the milk is warm. You could try giving it to her out of the fridge, she might not even notice or just warm enough to take the edge off. Frankly, in my opinion, it's better if you can get them to be ok with chilled milk or food. That way if you're on the road or away from home you can have a bottle in a cooler and just give it to her and not worry about having to warm it. After all, when we wean them to sippy cups of whole milk we don't warm that. . . . Anyway, if you're defrosting frozen breast milk or taking it out of the fridge the crockpot would work. If you're switching to formula you could just use room temp water to make the formula and you wouldn't need to warm it at all. HTH!

I owned one with my first child and it was a pain! I think it is easier to just heat some water in the coffee maker and put the bottle and some hot water in an insulated cup for a few minutes. I do this with frozen breastmilk and it still only takes a few minutes. Good luck!

K., I'm interested in why you are thinking about weening your baby. The longer you nurse your baby, the better for her. I nursed all three of my babies, 1 to 9 mo., 1 to 15 mo. and 1 to 16mo. Many Moms go longer than I did. When my children turned 4 mos., they stopped sleeping through the night. At this point I put them on cereal at bedtime and over the next few months added more food very slowly. As long as you and your baby are healthy, you can continue to breastfeed only. Your baby will regulate your milk supply. Once you start giving your baby anything other than breast milk, you are opening the door for allergies, etc... The best thing for your baby and her digestive track is your milk. Have you ever had to mess with bottles, nursing is much more convenient and the spit up from formula stinks. If your problem is going back to work, consider using a pump.

J. L.

We bought I think a $8 one at Target that was great. It was small, heated well and fast.

My daughter was exclusively breastfed until I went back to work. So we bought the First Years bottle warmer. My husband, SIL, and sister all use it and love it. It also works well with warming up her solids when we started her on that.

Here's what I used to do, rather than purchase a bottle warmer. Fill a large insulated stadium cup (the really big ones, I'll bet you got one from the hosptal when you had your baby) with water, warm the water in the microwave, then set the bottle down in the water to warm. It works really quick, is easy to clean, and pretty much free!

I agree with the other poster.
I returned two different kinds because they boiled the milk...go with hot water in a coffee mug!

Use warm tap water to make the bottle or microwave a cold bottle. Bottle warmers are worthless unless you are in a hotel room. Mine has been in my cabinet since my first was a couple of months old.

40 seconds in the microwave for an 8 oz bottle.

Aww, I hate to hear you want to wean. Look up the benefits of breastfeeding and downsides to formula and you'll probably definitely change your mind. I breastfed my son exclusively for 13 months with no other supplements or solids and am still breastfeeding him now (18months). He's healthy as a horse!

I agree with the others...I received one (you are welcome to have it if you want it) and have NEVER used it.

We don't use formula because I pump. The milk we store in the bags is warmed quickly by just running hot water over them. My husband figured out that warming the milk in the bags before putting it in the bottle was much quicker. We now realized, after throwing away a bag of milk (we had in the frig for over 7 days) that freezing them and placing them flat, they warm almost as quickly as just being in the frig.

K.,

Congrats on your baby and breastfeeding. Since you are just considering weaning maybe there is a chance that you will still breastfeed? Most recommendations are to breast feed for at least a year if at all possible. It's the best for mommy and baby. I don't know your specific situation but if you need someone to talk to about this please contact me.

Take care,
T.

I figured out (by accident, like most things in parenting!), that not having to warm bottles was a really great thing. Don't know about making the transition, but once you're there, not having to warm bottles so much easier. I watched friends deal with screaming babies at restaurants while they tried to get warm water to put the bottle in and then try to achieve the perfect temperature. We used warm water for a bit at first, then just started doing room temp and even sometimes cold.

I agree - it is not necessary. I had twins so I had 2 of the cheap kind and they were nice b/c I had to warm 2 bottles at once, but those other methods work just as well!

Just wanted to add my 2 cents...We used a warmer (I think The First Years brand), and I regretted it. It warmed quickly and worked great, but after a while, it was a pain to have to warm bottles period. I wish I had never started giving my son warmed bottles, because that is what he 'demanded' from then on. We had a hard time even transitioning him to milk when he was 1. There is nothing wrong with giving them cold milk/formula, it is just a preference the baby gets used to. Save yourself the future hassle, and switch her to room temp, then cold. You'll thank yourself later! ;)

Hi K.,

With both of my sons I breast fed for a year even though I had to go back to work and worked 24 hr shifts. Therefore when my husband was home with the boys he would warm up breast milk using the AVENT bottle warmer. It worked wonderful because you could adjust the settings and warm the milk up slowly. It can also be used to safely warm baby food as well. We are currently pregnant with baby #3 and will definately be using our AVENT bottle warmer a third time. Hope this helps.

Hi K.:

I breastfed both my kids and also supplemented and switched using the playtex nursers with drop in bags and also the ventair for nursing babies. They were great and there is a perfect warmer for those bag type bottles. It's from First Response. I think I got it at Target (r) and it has a little holder to warm jar food too. It's just a plug in and you put a little water at the bottom and within 1 minute, it's warmed. It was fantastic because I didn't have to nuke anything. Although, with my 2nd child, I started nuking bottles with lid off and then just shook it...works just as good. :)

Good Luck!
H.

It is a waste of money. Just do it the old fashioned way... set the bottle in a pot or bowl of hot water and lightly shake it around to make sure it mixes throughly as it warms. Test it on your wrist to be sure it isn't too warm. Put your money toward something you really need. Good luck! ;-)

I have the Avent bottle warmer. But I think it would only work well for the Avent bottles. It's short and fat so the long and skinny bottles would probably be too tall. I only use it when I have pumped and stuck it in the fridge. It would not work well to thaw baggies of frozen breast milk. And it might be overkill for formula. I've only mixed a formula bottle once for my nephew and my sis just used warm tap water. It gets pretty hot. But on the plus side it is super easy to use and inexpensive. I actually bought mine at a garage sale!

Don't bother. I microwaved water and then sat the bottle in it for a few minutes. Then I found out that it was more of a preference thing for the babies. Some don't care if it's cold, and it doesn't hurt their tummies, so you may not need to warm at all!

I learned with my second that you don't need a bottle warmer. Just microwave some water in a coffee cup or other type of cup. Then stick the cold bottle in the hot water for a few minutes. It is the same as bottle warmer. (DON'T put the bottle in Microwave. This is very dangerous.)

Most likely you will find that they really don't need a super warm bottle, just warm enough to take the chill off. If you still want to buy one, we just got ours at Walmart - a pretty cheap one.

I have 2 warmers and use neither of them. I fill a large cup with hot water from the tap and let the bottle float for a few minutes. It's easy to do with one hand and by the time you get baby and get back to the kitchen to retrieve it, it's warm. Good luck!

I just want to add my opinion to the mix -- as many moms said below, bottle warmers are a waste of money. I have a seven month old and my husband used a bottle warmer briefly when I went back to work part time -- but quickly learned that heating up water in the microwave and then putting the bottle in the hot water worked better.

I agree with the other responses. I had one with my 1st child 6 yrs ago and it was more pain than it was worth, and not really worth the money. I am due with my 2nd child in April and do not plan on getting one this time around.

I agree with most of the other posters. Bottle warmers are a waste of money.

At walmart me and my husband for a botle warmer for the car it is great. it is the parents choice brand. it takes up to twenty minutes but if your baby is on a schedule it is not a big deal.