Conference moira::parenting_v3

    For travel, I buy the 6-packs of ready-to-feed 8oz. formula.
    It's expensive, but the "only way to fly", in my opinion.
    I open the can when ready and feed at room temp.  I also pack
    the bottles all made up and ready to fill.
    
    cj/

I had pretty good luck with powdered formula.  I'd measure the powder into the 
bottles and use the kind with a snap-on top.  I was always able to find warm
water, and I'd add it and shake it up. 

On long trips, I'd bring the powder along in a margerine tub (include the 
scoop!) and make up a day's worth of bottles-with-powder at a time. 

I brought plastic bags for the "used" bottles, kept the ready-to-go bottles in
a separate bag.

    I always use ready-to-feed formula while traveling.  Get the 8 oz.
    ones.  So you don't have to worry about refrigrating.  Since the
    weather is so hot, you probably don't want to make the bottle too
    warm, room temperature is good enough.
    
    Wendy

    We travelled a lot with our daughter when she was on formula.  Mostly
    eight hour drives to Western New York.  We found restaurants more
    than willing to put a cold bold of formula in the microwave for a
    few seconds or at least provide a cup of hot water to put the bottle
    in.  We used to make up bottles ahead of time and store in the cooler
    until needed.
    
    Of course, as suggested above, the easiest method is the 8 oz cans
    of pre-made but this can be expensive too.
    
    We tried to minimize our stops by driving at night while the baby 
    slept.
    
    
    
    

    I used a 32 oz. Thermos bottle to store a can of formula, then kept water
    in the plug-in heater.  All I had to do was pour out some formula from
    the Thermos, then let it sit in the hot water for a few minutes.  I did
    refrigerate the formula first, just to be on the safe side, and let the
    Thermos sit with ice cubes and cold water in it overnight, since it's
    a Hot/Cold type. The Thermos was a lot smaller and easier to work with 
    than a cooler. If space is at a premium (when isn't it, what with all
    those toys, playpen, walker, diapers, etc, etc). I bought the one with 
    the flip top, to minimize spills.
    Sarah
    

    Gee, has it really been since V2 that we last had this same discussion? 
    I'll give my views, once again.
    
    There is no reason whatsoever to warm a baby's bottle, whatever may be in
    it (or their solid or semi-solid food, either).  Neither Aaron nor Eric
    had a warmed bottle in their life.
    
    It is true that if you have (foolishly?) gotten an infant USED to a
    warm bottle, you may need a day or two to transition them to other
    temperatures.  But a bottle straight out of the refrigerator is
    perfectly FINE for a baby.  That's how they'll be getting their milk in
    a few months, anyway.
    
    When travelling, nothing could be easier than taking along powdered
    formula, and mixing it as needed with whatever water is handy.  You can
    even pre-measure the powder into the disposable bottle liners, so as to
    avoid measuring while under way.  Just fill with water, shake, and in it
    goes.  Probably as quick as nursing, and doable by dad, grandma,
    whomever; not just mom.  Add a bag of cheerios, and you can be
    self-sufficient for days.
    
    Just get out of the warming habit before you leave.  You'll be glad you
    did.
    
    		- Bruce

    Bruce,
    
    I was wondering how long it would take you to offer your 
    opinion on the "phenomena" of bottle warming :-).
    
    cj/
    

    cj - 
    
    Did you get me timed, down to the microsecond?  If I was smart I would
    have programmed a macro into my workstation to add an anti-warming
    tirade at the stoke of a function key!  Better yet, I could generate a
    batch routine that would monitor the file continually, and add the
    tirade automatically, without my even having to log in.
    
    		- Bruce

While I don't necessarily agree with Bruce about fridge temperature formula,
I definitely agree that you need not worry about it being at room temperature.
Melissa (6.5 weeks old, premature and on mixed feeding) gets her formula at
room temperature with no problem.  With really young babies or if you intend
to mix more than an hour in advance, some attention to using sterile
(pre-boiled) water is probably appropriate.

Dick
As they say in Hombrew circles, "Relax, don't worry..."

    Pre-boiled?  I know about boiling.  When I was young I lived on the
    coast of Peru, where we had to haul fresh water 15 miles across the
    desert, and then boil it a half hour.  No fresh milk (or many other
    things) for 9 months.
    
    There is no reason to boil water from almost any managed supply in the
    United States.  There is no need to boil anything else for your baby,
    either (unless you are canning your own food, or giving your own
    injections).  This includes: her thumb, before going in her mouth; your
    lips, before giving her a kiss; your dog's ear and tounge.  Not much
    else you give her (except leaving a bottle with her in bed) will be as
    rich in flora and fauna as those items.  Sterilizing things is
    unnecessary, and she will have viruses and bacteria in and out and
    sloshing around inside her anyway, no matter what you do.  It's
    nature's way of making sure she builds up immunities, whatever parents
    do.
    		- Bruce

    I've always used the 8 oz. cans while travelling long periods, mostly
    plane rides. They are by far the best because you don't have to pack
    water, panic when you see a sign for "Next Rest Stop 35 miles" and the
    child wants to eat NOW, don't have to worry about heating (or making
    sure it is good and cold as Bruce recommends so as to cause stomach
    spasms in the little child ;>) ), get to diminish your supplies as you 
    go, etc. They cost about $1 a can (price 2 years ago) but are worth every 
    penny.
    
    Ask your pedi as well. They often have sample packs which include the
    8oz can or the pre-made 4oz bottles. You might be able to even get a
    few out of them. Don't forget to ask the nurses as well - they seem to
    be more generous with samples.
    
    Have a good trip.  

Bruce,

The point about pre-boiling water is mostly for formula that may be mixed and
then kept for hours under non-optimum (read hot) conditions.  A milk based
formula will last longer if the water is boiled (and therefore slightly less
contiminated than normal).  I do not hold the opinion that you need to boil
the water used for formula that is not going to be kept around (though our
pedi does for newborns   8^{).

In any case, there is certainly no reason to worry about giving a baby
air temperature formula.

Dick

    My vote is for the 4/8oz ready-made formula.  In my opinion it is
    by far the better way to go.  Just open the can, pour into the bottle
    and feed!  Like one noter said, you don't have to worry about
    warming/cooling or looking for the next rest stop!!
    
    Have a nice trip.
    
    Denise

    Since we've been a double-DEC couple, we've splurged and used the
    premixed stuff (feed at room temperature) but that's a luxury. 
    Before that we just stuck the bottles in the cooler and warmed
    them up as best we could.  It's pretty easy to warm a bottle to
    room temperature (which is about 40 degrees warmer than
    refrigerator temperature) -- if all else fails, try sitting on it
    for a few minutes.  If your baby likes his/her formula warmer,
    invest in a bottle-warmer that plugs into the car's cigarette
    lighter.  
    
    We do usually carry a small cooler (since we don't carry playpen,
    stroller, etc.  we usually have a bit more space than lots of
    people) and include juice or snacks for the adults and older
    children as well as the baby's food.  We also carry water.  We
    used to carry a half-gallon insulated jug, but lately we've
    switched to those jars-with-a-straw you get at amusement parks and
    such.  We can fill one for each kid and reduce the chance of
    spillage. 
    
    If you don't want to bother with the cooler, either the Thermos or
    the mix-as-you go routines works well.
    
    --bonnie

    Thanks to you all I can say that "I've got a grip on this"
    "I can handle this"  "I'm relaxed, I'm happy, I'm not worried"!!
    
    Thank you all for the great responses, giggles and good wishes.
    Since Katharine has endured formula at a whole range of temperatures
    and is extremely mellow ... I'm sure we'll be fine (ruh-roe, did
    I just put the curse on our trip?!?)
    
    Thanks again,
    Michigan-or-Bust-Julia

    I feel sorry for the poor infants from .6 who had to drink COLD 
    formula from a refrigerator! How sad!
    
    A Concerned Mother
    

    No, what's sad is to have to drink warmed-up formula in this heat!
    
    Leslie

    Having something cold to drink can actually make you hotter later
    on.  The cold makes your stomach and other internal organs colder,
    so your body rushes blood to the core to make sure it stays warm
    enough, and your core body temperature goes up because the blood
    isn't along your skin any more dissipating heat.  So you feel
    better for a while but get a rebound effect later on.
    
    --bonnie

    But...  I always heard a hot cup of tea on a hot day will cool
    you off.  Baloney.  I still drink hot tea on hot days because I
    love tea, but I suffer for it.
    
    My little boy (now almost 1 year) drinks cold milk.  I would not
    warm up his milk in this hot weather.  I still get the comments
    from certain people about how he will get stomach cramps.  So tell
    me, at what magical age do you (in general) believe a human can 
    drink cold milk/formula without negative side effects?
    
    Donna
      

    Re .16 -- how judgmental and rude!
    
    How would you like it if someone said of your kids, "I feel so sorry
    for the poor kids who have to have such a judgmental mother".
    
    It seems appropriate to question the pros and cons of something, "I
    think warm formula is better because it's less likely to grow mold",
    or whatever, but you shouldn't assume you know the absolute truth and
    anyone who disagrees is a thoughtless idiot, which is implied by
    saying "I feel sorry for your kids" because the other person happens
    to disagree with you about something.
    
    Radia

    re: .19, how do you tell when the child can drink cold milk?
    
    It varies widely according to the individual.  Some newborns will
    drink it cold right away, and I have a 34-year-old friend who
    can't eat ice cream, popsicles, or anything like that because the
    cold gives her stomach cramps.
    
    It's another of those trial-and-error kind of things . . .
    
    --bonnie

    .18 > Having something cold to drink can actually make you hotter later
    .18 > on . . .
    
    Sorry, bonnie, but I have to suggest that that is an OST (Old Spouse's
    Tale).  I could simply invoke the 2nd Law of Thermodynamics.  Or I
    could offer the equally involuted suggestion that going out in the hot
    sun will make you hot, and uncomfortable, and thus sweaty, which will
    cool you off marvelously.  Running up stairs to generate a soothing
    breeze warms you more than it cools you, but cooling a part of the body
    without exercise simply lowers your average temperature.  Your blood
    can be cooled just as effectively melting an icecube in your tummy as
    in counteracting evaporative cooling of the skin.  In fact, the thermal
    mass of anything you are likely to be able to drink is so small in
    relation to the body that the physical effects are likely to be
    overwhelmed by the psychological ones.  Go for a fan or a swim (or an
    air conditioner) if you really need to lower your body temperature.
    
    		- Bruce

    I sat here and had to chuckle as I remembered walking through the
    Eastern States Expo when AJ was 9 mos old.  We each took turns
    "warming" his bottle by putting it under our respective armpit.  If
    people had only known what we were doing!  The next spring we took a
    long weekend at Cape Cod, for that we were on whole milk, much easier
    to handle, but we bought a Rival Brand electric hot pot.  They have a
    larger capacity, and very wide opening.  We spent the weekend taking
    the chill off bottles and warming jars of food.  We managed to get away
    with only a small cooler, just enough for the milk, bought a quart at a
    time and kept in a screw top bottle, apple juice, or any unused portions of 
    food or applesauce (his favorite thing). We found pre-bottled cereal
    with fruit and bottled dinners and took lots of these for breakfast in the 
    room, so he could be fed on schedule before we ate breakfast in the 
    hotel restaurant.
    
    Just a word of warning, the powder is a great idea but be sure to
    either carry a gallon or two of your home water, or buy bottled water
    enroute.  Water from a strange area can do nasty things to a little
    tummy!
    
    Happy traveling!!
    Lyn
    

    re: .22
    
    I read it in the New England Journal of Medicine, Bruce, so if
    it's an old spouse's tale, it's an educated old spouse.
    
    It has to do with the mechanisms the body uses to regulate core
    body temperature.  Yes, the ice cube in the stomach cools the
    blood down.  That's the problem -- because the cooling is in the
    core rather than in the surface vessels, the body interprets the
    chill as an environmental threat and proceeds to do whatever it
    does to warm up the core.  So you're cooler for a few mintes, and
    then your body temperature actually goes higher than it was
    before.  The amount varies from only a couple of tenths of a
    degree to over a degree and a half, depending on how cold the
    drink was, how much you had, and whether your temperature-
    regulating apparatus is generally stable.
    
    In terms of lowering your core body temperature, yes, working up a
    sweat and allowing the breeze to cool you is highly effective. 
    That's why a person sometimes needs to put on a jacket after
    exercising in hot weather -- sweat and rapid circulation have
    dissipated the excess heat very effectively, leaving the core
    temperature a little cooler than ideal.  
    
    In neither case am I talking about comfort, or how cool you
    perceive yourself to be.  A cold drink or a dish of ice cream
    might make you perceive yourself to be cooler, at least in the
    short run.  I'm talking about core body temperature. 
    
    --bonnie 

                      <<< Note 132.23 by NRADM::TRIPPL >>>

>    I sat here and had to chuckle as I remembered walking through the
>    Eastern States Expo when AJ was 9 mos old.  We each took turns
>    "warming" his bottle by putting it under our respective armpit.  

When graham was only a few weeks old I drove him and my wife
over to where she used to work.. not bothering to take a bottle
because  "I wont be long"!

Some time later I got a frantic phone call ... to the effect
that she had spent a lot longer there than she had expected
and now Graham was shouting for his bottle.. could I
drive over to pick her up.. with a bottle "ready to go"

So I set off in the car ASAP.. and to warm the bottle I err..
well .. tucked it between my thighs (if you get my drift!)

Graham thought it was fine when I got there

Could have been very interesting if I had been pulled over
by the police "is that a bottle down there or are you just glad
to see me ?"