I'm not pregnant yet but would like to try this fall. However by the time i have the baby the kids i watch (4 total including mine) will be between 2 and 3 years old. My question is: what are your thoughts on me breastfeeding while watching other kids. My husband thinks its completely fine as long as the baby and me are covered. I feel a) i'm not going to be able to watch 4 kids while taking time to breastfeed X amount of times a day and b) curiosity while start to arrive with the kids. I'm not sure if i want to do it and my husband is all for the breastfeeding. Granted, i would LOVE to breastfeed but i don't really think its going to work out.

Reply

It'll work out just fine. I've breastfed for 3 years and will continue to breastfeed after this baby's born. You really, truly don't show much; baby's head and your shirt will cover practically 100% of things. Get the kids occupied, sit back in a comfy chair, and nurse the little one. You'llg et the hang of it pretty quick. You can also get a sling (like a ring sling or a maya wrap) and nurse baby right in the sling while you go about your business doing other things. Again, it takes practice but you'll get the hang of it.

The other kids will be curious; it's natural. You just answer their questions honestly "What's baby doing?" "Drinking his milk!" "Why doesn't he use a bottle?" "Well, some babies use bottles, and some babies get milk from their mommy."

You won't know until you try--it might be hard at first, but you CAN get the hang of it! The fact that your hubby is on board makes you many times more likely to succeed at bfing than if he wasn't on board.

Reply

I do hope you give it a try but ultimately it is YOUR decision and no one else's. (sorry hubby!)

Don't go nuts trying to buy nursing outfits - plain old Tshirt and shorts or stretch pants is all you need. You may want the nursing bra though.

I nursed both of my children - one for 12 months and the other for 18 months. One thing I learned is that you absolutely have to be relaxed for it to work for you.

The little ones will be curious and that's what life's about. You will see them "nursing" the baby dolls after watching you and it's adorable!

Reply

There just kids, Its not like their teenagers, completely appropriate to nurse around them, I nursed my daughter for a full year with daycare, in front of the kids everytime, The older girls would show interest in what I was doing, And ask, and I would just say, I'm giving the baby "baby milk", Its how babies get there milk........and then they'd walk away and start playing, And If there were older kids or older boys around I would just have a blanket, with the 2-4 yr olds, I really didn't even use a blanket, they are to young yet to view the breast as something other than what it is, a body part.

Reply

If you've ever watched 19 Kids and Counting, Michelle Duggar uses some sort of sling that holds the baby in place while he/she nurses. Looks homemade. If you can catch the show and they happen to show her using this, take note. Or maybe it's searchable on the net. I'd be willing to bet she or one of her daughters made it. She's able to walk around the house while the baby is nursing, and she's completely covered.

Reply

Everyone has given really good advice, and I totally agree about breastfeeding being completely appropriate around 2 and 3 year olds. Covered, uncovered, sling, no sling, it's fine. I still breastfeed my son and it's working out really well. But, if you are hesitant about just winging it, then there are some things you can do to improve your chances of having a successful breastfeeding relationship with your own little one while you run a home daycare.

I would have an electric pump handy and train my little one after the first 4 weeks or so of exclusive breastfeeding to take a bottle because you do need to be relaxed to breastfeed, and working moms get stressed, period. You don't ever need to be in a situation where you feel like your own baby is not getting enough milk from your breast, especially if this is your first time breastfeeding. Having a bottle of backup breastmilk and knowing your baby will take it can help ease the mind a great deal. If you start pumping a couple of times each day soon after the baby is born, you can build up a freezer supply for emergency use. In fact, the milk is usually so plentiful in the beginning that if you can manage to breastfeed and keep one hand free, you might be able to catch a few ounces a day of leaking milk from the breast that's not in use without pumping!

Breastfeeding is also an on demand kind of thing. For my little one, that meant as frequently as every 30 minutes, and never less than 90 minutes apart in the first 2-3 months. For other little ones, it can be 2-3 hours apart. But no matter what your baby's pattern is, it's demanding until you both get the hang of it. So again...having the breastmilk in a bottle can help. My son was 9 1/2 months old when I started working, and if he didn't have a bottle in between breastfeeding sessions, he wouldn't be getting enough of the right food because I'm really not able to breastfeed as much with another baby around needing things. Plus, he sees the other baby with a bottle and he wants one too.

I know lots of moms who nurse their babies in a sling, as well as moms who cover up when nursing. I wish I could have been one of these moms, but my son does NOT tolerate anything on his head, so any cover I managed to maneuver over myself in public was promptly whipped off! I also am rather, voluptuous? to say the least, and the shape of my breasts prevented feeding in a sling, or even keeping one hand free. I was able to breastfeed in one position only--sitting down, holding the baby with one hand and the breast in his mouth with the other.

I'm not discouraging you from doing this, and I'm not saying you're going to have any issues at all. You will do fine, I know it! I am just trying to say that breastfeeding is a unique situation for every mother and every child, and you will have to figure it out once the baby is here. But having the option to bottle feed your own breastmilk can really, really help. You may find you don't need it at all; you may find you only need it on rare occasions; you may find you want to bottle feed exclusively during the workday and then pump during naptimes and breastfeed at night. It's all about having options.

Good luck. I hope you decide in the end to go ahead and do it, because as demanding as it was for me, it is one of the things my son and I most treasure at the end of the workday. I think you can make it work.

Reply

I breastfed my daughter with the kids (2-5 years old at the time), and the kids were curious, and I always answered their questions. I think it is important for children to learn that it is normal, natural and part of life to see breastfeeding women. I even breastfed DD during an interview with a family, and they still put their son with me.

Reply

I quit my job when my younger dd was born last November and started my home daycare at the beginning of January. All last year I was concerned about breastfeeding while doing the daycare. I breastfed my older dd for a year and pumped while I worked (something that I found to be a real PITA), so I figured that this can't be worse than pumping. I also debated whether or not to tell the parents my intentions.

I decided to ultimately not say anything to the parents and I've been super casual about the whole thing. I figured if they ever mentioned anything, I would be honest but nonchalant. I do use a cover as I am very modest so they do not see anything. I breastfeed around them all the time (outside in a chair, on the floor in the playroom, on the couch, in the rocking chair in the nap room...wherever!). I never use a sling because like others, I am somewhat well endowed and the carriers do not fit me quite right. Plus, my dd hates to be in the slings/carriers.

The 2 1/2 year old girl in my care never asked anything, but the 3 year old was somewhat curious. She would ask what I was doing and I would say "I'm feeding the baby." She would ask "what are you feeding her" and I would tell her milk. She would ask where the milk was coming from and I would tell her that it came from me and all moms with babies make milk. Basically, I was somewhat vague, yet honest and casual with my answers. They do not ask any questions anymore.

Funny story: I had to take a class for licensing so my mom was my backup provider for the day and she had to feed my dd bottles of thawed breast milk. When I returned home, the 3 year old dcg said "Your mom is funny. She gave the baby milk from a bag."

Reply

I am currently expecting as well and completely understand your concerns. Mine a little different however. I'm not so much concerned with the other kids curiousity since the two I care for are 11 mos. and 6 weeks right now. Then I have my 20 month old daughter and 6 yr. old son. I am however having an issue with the fact that because I just opened and these are new clients I am not comfortable closing my daycare for maternity leave and am hiring a sub. to run things for me for 2-3 weeks until I am recovered. It is typically around that time that a newborn hits a growth spurt and in past experiences I have started formula feeding during that time because I was so overwhelmed with being stuck in a chair nursing what felt like all day long. I can't imagine how I'm going to pull this off when at that time I will have a 8 or 9 month old, 1 1/2 year old, 2 yr old and 6 year old and quite possibly another toddler. How will I tend to any of their needs? I thought about exclusively pumping instead... at least that way even though I know your not supposed to and obviously wouldn't need to do it often but I could prop a bottle up on occasion. But from what I've read exclusively pumping is quite a bit more demanding than just outright nursing! I don't know what to do either.

Reply

I posted about this a while ago... here is the thread https://www.daycare.com/forum/showth...=breastfeeding

and I breastfed my son for nearly 2 years. Granted I didn't do daycare at that time. I definitely will be breastfeeding this next child, (due in Oct)

Reply

I breastfed all three of my kids while doing daycare, for 12-21 month each. It was just fine. I had kids of all ages and I think only one time a 5 year old girl asked what I was doing. I said "feeding the baby" and mentioned it to her mom, who was fine with that answer too.

It will be much easier to breastfeed, than to deal with mixing up bottles while watching other kids.

Reply

I easily breastfed my daughter when I was doing daycare. I just fed her while sitting in the room with the kids. I often read or told stories while doing it. Or I breastfed during coloring time, lunch or snack, or when the kids were running outside in the yard.

My #1 tip for breastfeeding is DONT STRESS OUT OVER IT. If you relax, it will all work out.

Reply

I was an exclusive pumper for both my kids. I lasted longer with DS (1st born) than I did for DD (2nd). It is VERY demanding and time consuming. Plus, it is very hard to do it modestly since you have both breasts hooked up to the pump at the same time (assuming it's a double pump, which it should be if you are eping) and there isn't much you can do while you're hooked up to the pump. If you can breastfeed, it'll be much easier. I'm expecting #3 any day now and am hoping this one will nurse as I'm dreading the thought of pumping again.

Reply

My daughter just turned 1 and I breastfed her the whole first year. The kids were curious at first, but after a couple of days they didn't pay any attention. The hardest part for me was that my daughter was VERY easily distracted so it was difficult to nurse her with all the commotion of the other kids. I made a "choice box" that I would take out before I started nursing her. It had things like dry erase boards, lacing cards, manipulative toys, things like that. Everyone got to pick something out and that kept them entertained and slightly quieter while I nursed. The choice box only came out when I was nursing so they were always really excited to see it. She still didn't nurse as well during daycare as when it was a quiet environment, but we got on a schedule where I would put her down last for nap and she would get a really good "fill up" session in then.

I was really nervous about it too. I even talked to my licensor, I know they don't have any say in it, but I just wanted her opinion in case there were parents that complained. She was very supportive, and it turned out that all of the parents were too.

Good luck!! Do what feels best for you and your baby!

Reply

i think you should give it plenty of time before having this to worry about.

Reply

I breastfed my daughter also while doing daycare. I second (or third?) that it is much more difficult to pump than to nurse. I recomend getting the My Breastfriend, It is a nursing pillow that straps to you so the baby can lay on it while nursing and you can walk around. they have nursing covers that are handy, several kinds, they all work fine, but will probably only work until the baby is about 4 months old. They get really curious about that age and wont want their head covered so they cant look around. My daughter started just pulling it off so she can look around. Slings are also helpful once you get used to it.
I told all my parents that I would be breastfeeding. No one had a problem with it, but I figured that if they did, I was going to do what was best for my baby, and they could go elsewhere if they had a problem with it.
The simple answer is, dont worry about it. Dont plan on doing a lot of involved projects for a while, until you get the hang of walking around with the baby. Just let the kids play, color, snack ect. or plan projects that you can walk away from at any time and the kids will be fine.
It is hard the first couple of weeks, but if you push through and do it the first month, you will probably start to wonder why people think bottles are easier lol. I couldnt imagine having to get up in the middle of the night to go fix a bottle.
Sorry this is lenthy, but I hope it helps someone.

Reply

I nursed both of my girls for a year each while doing daycare! They are now 6 and 4! I have a 2 month old that I am nursing and it is working out just fine! Yes curiosity the kids have shown, but it is completely innocent! I told the parents that I would be breastfeeding and they were all fine with it and knew that there might be some questions comming! If I ran into someone who wasn't okay with it then I guess they would of had to find new childcare arrangements! Both my daughters have breastfed their baby dolls from time to time! I think it is completely healthy and nothing wrong with nursing in front of children! I think by doing so I am educating the children about nutrition and the best meals for a baby are made by a mommy! I just answer their questions simply! They still try to sit on my lap while I am nursing, they are all just fine with it and think nothing of it! Actually it took a good week for any of the kids to even notice what I was doing! I had a 4 year old telling me and his mother that I never feed the baby! LOL Then I told him yes I do and he asked some questions and that was that.... You will be just fine! It is much more convienent and works out great and is a great thing for your baby! : )

Reply

I nursed with my first. I started doing daycare with he was 3 months old- with just one older kid and then at 5 months had 4 kids full time. I never had an issue with it. It takes just as long or longer to get a bottle ready and feed that to the baby. I always woke baby up 40 min before my first client and did a good feed then so that when drop off happened we didnt have issues. Same with pick up. I just wrote out a sched. and then started getting baby on it right away. Sometimes I would nurse 2x in 2 hrs just to make sure he wasn't hungry at lunch or snack or something but it never seemed to be an issue.

I thought it was my obligation to tell my daycare parents about it but I will not this time. I guess if they ask I will tell them but they don't need to know every detail of my daycare day-including this.

I did have a pump and did occassionally pump and feed bottles when I needed to but I think pumping takes longer (for me anyway) than breastfeeding did.

One little girl (2 yrs old ) after nursing a few days with her around told me she still nurses to sleep and her mom mentioned it that night at pick up too. In this business I think people are pretty comfortable with it. And if not- find other clients.

Reply

I just want to be clear to the OP...I was most certainly not advocating exclusive pumping, unless that's what she chooses to do. I'm advocating spending 15 to 30 minutes per day from as early on as possible and building up a freezer supply of milk to help ease her nerves (even an ounce or two per day would help) and more importantly, to allow someone other than her to feed her baby when she needs her hands to be free, or just needs a moment of alone time to take a bath, take a nap, or just take off for a few! That's all. I think it could help when she's working too. I wish somebody had suggested this to me before I gave birth. It would have helped me with a lot of the little bumps in the road I hit.

The pump is just a tool that helped me a great deal and might help her too, in whatever way she chooses or doesn't choose to use it.

Reply

My dd did not latch on quite well when i got home the hospital with her. So i did pumping. However i was not pumping a lot at all. She would be waiting for me while i was pumping a bottle for her! Very hard and stressful. I would not mind at all doing both cause i sorta did it with my first DD. Hopefully this one will either latch on or i can give milk enough to make a supply with!!

Reply

The best way to increase/maintain your supply is going to be to nurse, nurse, nurse! Nurse on demand, let baby linger at the breast for as long as she wants, nurse at night (co-sleep if you can and nurse all night long).

You can also do things like eat oatmeal, take Fenugreek, drink something called "Mother's Milk Tea" (available at many natural foods stores), and make sure to drink lots and lots of water.

Reply

I started my daycare when my son was roughly 7 mos. old. I nursed him until he was 1 yr old. I had no problems sitting in a rocking chair with a blanket over my shoulder nursing him. As a matter of fact, I think I ended up nursing during an interview with a parent (maybe it was both parents). I think as long as your discreet about it, it shouldnt be a problem. I never had any problems with children "wondering" what I was doing. For me, I pumped when I went back to work after my 1st two children and I hated it. I loved being home with ds and not having to set up a pump and clean all of the supplies. So much easier to just nurse him and that's it.... no clean up or storage concerns. Much easier.

Reply