Last updated: April 3, 2024
Are you looking for a fast and efficient way for preparing bottles for night feeds? Then you have come to the right place!
As a mom of 3 and to twins, it was essential to have a quick and easy method for feeding my newborns at night. In this post I will be sharing the methods my husband and I used to quickly prepare both formula and breastmilk bottles for night feedings. I found this process to work really well!
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Preparing Formula Bottles For Night Feeds
If you are formula feeding or are combining breastfeeding and formula feeding, there are strategies you can use to efficiently prepare bottles of formula at night. Below are the steps we used in our house to do this.
- Prep supplies – You will want to stage the following supplies next to where your baby sleeps at night. In our case, this was on the nightstand next to our bed. We had our twins in bassinets on each side of our bed.
- Bottle of room temperature water
- Empty baby bottle
- Small Tupperware container with formula powder and scoop
- Burp cloth
- Make formula bottle when baby wakes up – When your baby wakes up during the night, make the formula on demand. That means you pour the amount of water you need into the bottle, then add the number of scoops of formula you need. Shake and your bottle is ready. Do this on your nightstand so you don’t have to get out of bed.
- Feed baby in your bed – Take your baby out of the bassinet, grab your burp cloth and feed the bottle.
- Change diaper, swaddle, put back to bed – If needed you can also change your baby’s diaper right there on your bed too. Then swaddle your little one and put her back in her bassinet to sleep.
I found this method to work really well as someone who has a hard time going back to sleep after waking up. I kept everything nice and quiet in the room during feedings. Having everything you need next to your bed, keeps the whole process of both feeding and diaper changes very efficient.
We used this night bottle feeding process until our babies were capable of sleeping about 6 hours at a time. This is the time when we moved our babies to cribs in their own room (around 3 months old).
Can I Pre-Make Formula Bottles For Night?
Personally, I found the method above to be much faster than trying to warm up pre-made formula. But some people might prefer to pre-make the formula. So the answer is, yes you can pre-make formula bottles for night.
How To Store Milk For Night Feeds
If you decide to pre-make formula bottles for night feeds or will be feeding your baby breastmilk from the fridge, then you need to properly store the milk. Both formula and breastmilk are only good for 1 hour after coming out of the fridge.
For proper storage at night, I recommend a cooler with ice. You can use a cooler that you already have and put ice packs in it, or get a cooler that is made to fit baby bottles.
Another thing to keep in mind is that when it’s time to feed the bottles from the cooler, there is a good chance you will need a bottle warmer. Sometimes baby will drink cold formula or breastmilk straight from the fridge.
However, I tried with all three of my kids and none of them would take it. If this is the case for your baby, you will want a bottle warmer for night feedings.
>>Grab a Breastmilk Storage Guide or Formula Storage Guide for quick reference<<
Preparing Breastmilk Bottles For Night Feeds (For Breastfeeding & Pumping Moms)
As far as breastmilk goes, there are two options for bottle feeding breastmilk at night. The first option is to pump right before you go to sleep.
Breastmilk lasts for 4 hours at room temperature. If you know your baby will wake up in the next 4 hours, then you can use this breastmilk for a night feed. The other option is have the following supplies next to where your baby is sleeping:
- Cooler containing bottles of breastmilk (or bottles with a mixture of formula and breastmilk)
- Bottle warmer
- Burp cloth
When your baby wakes up, get a bottle out of the cooler. Then, warm it up in the bottle warmer. When it’s ready, feed your baby the bottle. Try to do this from the comfort of your bed, so you don’t have to get up.
The downside to this method is it does take a couple minutes to get the milk warm enough to drink. You will likely be dealing with a crying baby for a few minutes.
Bottle Feeding Tips For Nighttime
Those are the steps I recommend when preparing bottles for night feeds. But before I go, I have also compiled a summary of general tips to help make bottle feeding at night as easy as possible.
- Stage the supplies you need (listed above) next to where your baby is sleeping.
- Make sure you have enough bottles and milk to get you through the night. Remember, your baby might wake up more than once to eat.
- Prepare the bottles at your own pace to make sure it is done correctly. It’s easy to feel rushed with a crying baby, but if you spill milk the whole process will be much longer.
- Have your baby sleep next to the bed until he or she is capable of sleeping in a long stretch (at least 5-6 hours). This way you can do bottle feeds without ever leaving your bed.
Which method will you choose for preparing bottles and feeding them at night?
That sums up my thoughts on the fastest and most effective ways to prepare bottles for night feeds. Whether you are feeding with formula or breastmilk. I hope you found this post beneficial and are able to use these tips. Good luck!
