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The Best Twin Breastfeeding Pillow

Which Twin breastfeeding pillow is the best

Twin breastfeeding pillow: Twin Z Pillow vs. My Brest Friend

TWIN BREASTFEEDING PILLOWS:

Hey there! I am Becky Bernstein, I am a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, IBCLC and mom of 4 (last 2 were twins!). I have been breastfeeding my twins for the past 2.5 years and sharing the journey on Instagram as we go along because it has been quite the ride as you could imagine!

One of the most frequently asked questions I get is “What breastfeeding pillow is the best for nursing twins?”.

There are 2 main twin breastfeeding pillows on the market: My Brest Friend Deluxe Twin Pillow and the Twin Z Pillow. This is the question that I get asked the most: “Twin Z or My Brest Friend?”

There is no getting around it, no matter what twin pillow you use, twin breastfeeding pillows are HUGE and it just is what it is, but to me it is necessary to breastfeed twins. You can get away with nursing a singleton without a pillow, in fact, many people prefer not to use one.

tandem breastfeeding twins — Tandem breastfeeding twins

With twins, especially in the beginning when they are small and you are just learning, it is an incredibly valuable tool. Having both babies in double football hold is usually the easiest way to nurse both twins at the same time and both of these pillows allow for this hold. But of course, everyone finds whatever way they are the most comfortable.

I will break down each pillow for ya. (Also i am not affiliated with either company, I got these as gifts for my baby shower and have used both and am just spreading the word here!!)

My Brest Friend Deluxe Twin Pillow – $75

This is one large pillow that has an adjustable clip that goes around the waist and fits most sizes. It is VERY STURDY which is important. Even when babies start to grow, gain weight, and get bigger, it can support their weight well. The design also has a lip at the edge so the babies tend to slant towards you when you are nursing them which is an advantage.

I love the clip because you can secure it tightly and you can bring it right below your breasts so the babies can be close to your breasts which is beneficial because you don’t have to hunch over. You can also put another pillow (any kind of pillow) underneath the Nursing pillow to raise it up a little when they are newborns so you aren’t hunching over). There is a removable back support piece, also.

Breastfeeding Twins — Tandem breastfeeding twins with My Brest Friend Twin Pillow

Once you get the hang of latching the twins, you can really be hands free. If you have other kids at home, this can be really helpful, too (or you can scroll the internet and relax as much as you can!). It also provides a great surface to burp them afterwards as well. Speaking of burping (and spit up!) there is a removable, machine-wash cover. There is also a pocket on the cover, you can throw a remote, water bottle, or your phone in there which is handy.

It is so sturdy and secure that I used the My Brest Friend Twin Pillow until the twins were 17 months. After that, it was easiest to not use a pillow and nurse them in a cradle/football style hold where one is in the other’s lap (I essentially use a baby as a pillow LOL).

Tandem breastfeeding toddler twins — Tandem nursing 17 month-old twins

The downside of this pillow is that it really only is for nursing. The Twin Z pillow (which I will go over) is more versatile and has some other uses (but does come at a higher price). However, I have used mine to prop the twins in, and it can work, or you can always put them in a chair, boppy, the FLOOR, or whatever else you have!

Twin Z Pillow – $110

If you’ve ever heard of or used a boppy for a singleton, this pillow is what that reminds me of, like 2 boppies melded together. When using it for nursing, the center part folds back as a back rest and then you can clip the pillow together in the front.

This pillow is definitely more versatile and can be used for bottle feeding, lounging, tummy time.

Twin Z Pillow Twin babies tummy time — Twin babies doing tummy time on Twin Z Pillow

The pillows obviously have different shapes that offer different benefits. Because the My Brest Friend is more sturdy, it has more prominent edges, so it doesn’t work for tummy time and it doesn’t work for lounging but it is AWESOME for nursing. The Twin Z has softer edges and slopes down more like a traditional boppy which is great for lounging and propping up but in my opinion, it’s more difficult to nurse because the babies are down so low and I feel like they are always sliding off and away from me and I never felt comfortable nursing with the Twin Z as I felt it wasn’t as sturdy supporting the twins. I also don’t like the back support, I felt it very uncomfortable and it can’t be removed (like the My Brest Friend back support).

Twin babies getting bottles breastmilk — Twins getting bottles of breastmilk on Twin Z Pillow

I also pumped A LOT with the twins, I’m still pumping now 2.5 years later when I’m at work but in those first 2 years, it was like a second job. So the twins got lots of bottles (along with tandem feeding). I found using the Twin Z Pillow myself for feeding was quite uncomfortable because I had to hunch over so much and I would usually pump while I was nursing, so I really didn’t like using it for that. I preferred using the Table for Two (we got this as a hand me down, it’s quite expensive, and you can use other contraptions like chairs to feed them).

So how do you choose?

It really comes down to what you need and what you are going to use it for.

If you ask my opinion, I would DEFINITELY say the My Brest Friend if you’re going to be tandem nursing. I would not have gotten the Twin Z but I had no idea what I was doing and this is why I am writing this for you LOL. If you’re going to be bottle feeding, the Twin Z is convenient, but honestly, it’s uncomfortable to feed them using the Twin Z, but it is possible but it can work.

Bottle feeding twins at the same time — Bottle feeding twins on Twin Z Pillow

You could use a lot of things in place of the Twin Z, like 2 boppies, or other chairs. We were given the Table for Two as a hand me down and that thing was pretty sweet for bottle feeding and pumping at the same time and just for the twins sitting around as well. The sturdiness, shape, and the fact that the My Brest Friend can be tightened so it’s close to your body makes it win in terms of nursing, but again, it’s not as versatile (however, you can use other things if you’ll be bottle feeding too!). See how high up and secure this is to my body here?

Look, having twins can be hard, breastfeeding twins is definitely a feat! If you are pregnant with twins and are interested in breastfeeding, I offer an online twin breastfeeding course which you can check out here. I also offer one-on-one lactation consultations and parent coaching sessions which you can check out. I have been through the weeds and I am here to help!

Also, to download my FREE Twin breastfeeding checklist and Pro Tips Guide, click here.

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Tandem/Twin Nursing Positions

These are my favorite tandem nursing positions. I know everyone will always have their own preference depending on comfort level, their specific babies, anatomy, etc. But when I’m asked about positions, these are what I recommend (and obviously whatever works for you!).

Double Football Hold:

This is my tried and true definite favorite position to nurse the babies if I have my pillow (I *highly* recommend the My Brest Friend twin nursing pillow, and the regular one for singletons!). This has been my go-to since the beginning. This is the easiest position to learn to breastfeeding newborn twins in from the beginning. You can latch the more difficult twin first (so you have 2 hands to latch and position them and you can move more if needed), then roll up a towel behind them so they don’t pop off, then you can latch the other twin and adjust as needed.

I definitely preferred this position until the twins were about 11 or 12 months. They still fit on the pillow well, they were easy to get into this position, and we were all comfortable like this.

Tandem breastfeeding twins in double football hold — Breastfeeding twins in double football hold

Cradle and Football Hold:

My second favorite position is the cradle and football hold. This is now my go-to since about 11 months if I don’t have my nursing pillow. It is super comfortable and you basically use one baby as a pillow for the other baby’s head. So you can latch the first in cradle hold (whatever way you’re most comfortable), then use that baby as a pillow for the baby in football hold. This is easier to do without a nursing pillow.

Crisscross:

I like this one if I don’t have my pillow and they are still young/small. I never felt totally comfortable in this position because I felt like I was always holding them and I didn’t feel like I had a lot of control over what was going on.

breastfeeding newborn twins — Breastfeeding newborn twins in crisscross position

Relaxed:

This one basically speaks for itself 😆, if I’m laying in bed and both babies are hungry, this is pretty comfortable. If my boobs were big enough, I would do side-lying, but 🤷‍♀️. This is how I feed the twins every morning (still at 2.5 years old) and it’s very comfortable and a great option when the babies are a little bigger (I’d say past 6 months or so).

breastfeeding twins laying down — Breastfeeding twins laying in relaxed position

Upright latch:

This is also called Double Koala Hold. Yes those are dolls and I’m at work 🤣. I didn’t have a pic of me with them in this position, but as they’ve gotten bigger, this one is pretty comfortable to have them in a sitting position.

Pumping and Bottle Feeding:

This is also breastfeeding (I have much respect for my EP mamas)! Getting set up beforehand and pumping while feeding bottles is a huge time saver. I have a post about pumping and bottle feeding twins which you can read more about here for tips and tricks!

Nurse one at a time:

I do this more often now that they are older and take way less time to feed and it’s nice for the momentary one-on-one time. And in the beginning, I fed one at a time to figure out both of their latches first before getting comfortable with tandem feeding.

Get Creative!

Do whatever makes it easy and comfortable for you, these are just ideas and what I’ve found helpful.

There is no “right way” to breastfeed twins. You can do whatever is easiest or most comfortable for you and your babies. If you need any help, I am here for you, I offer twin breastfeeding consults and I also have a digital Twin Breastfeeding Course that has everything you’d ever need to know about breastfeeding twins! Reach out to me with any questions!

Easy Family Favorite Casserole!

On this edition of ‘Becky Can’t Cook’ we are making a 5 ingredient Easy Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli Casserole.

You basically just mix it all together and throw it in the oven! Seriously it’s the easiest thing in the world and one of the only things that all 4 of my kids really like. This one is extra special because it’s one of the first things that Jax actually liked and ate when we were dealing with his feeding aversion. So it holds a special place in my heart.

INGREDIENTS:

3 cups diced rotisserie chicken
3 cups cooked rice
3 cups cooked, chopped broccoli florets
2 10 3/4- ounce cans Cream of Chicken Soup
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 F and spray a 9 x 13 baking dish with cooking spray.
In a large bowl, combine the chicken, broccoli, rice, cream of chicken soup, and 1 cup of cheese. Mix together with a large spoon.
Add mixture to the baking dish.
Top with 1 cup of cheese.
Bake for 30 minutes.

NOTES:

I like using packaged chopped frozen broccoli florets (it takes out one step so you don’t have to chop the broccoli). Then I just microwave it before adding it to the chicken mixture.
You can use rotisserie chicken or whatever leftover chicken you have. You can even use leftover chicken tenders!
You can also use leftover rice. I’ve use brown rice, white rice, and basmati rice. If I don’t have leftover rice, I will use the boil in a bag brown rice to make life easier.

Easy Chicken Parmesan Sliders

Here is an easy, quick, and delicious go-to dinner or lunch for your family. Even picky kids love this because it’s covered with cheese, has chicken nuggets, and bread. I mean, what kid wouldn’t love this?! Enjoy!

Easy Chicken Parmesan Sliders with Chicken Nuggets

Recipe by Becky BernsteinCourse: DinnerCuisine: ItalianDifficulty: Easy

Servings

servings

Prep time

minutes

Cooking time

minutes

Ingredients

1 (12 pack) Hawaiian rolls
12 chicken nuggets (frozen or refrigerated)
6 slices of mozzarella cheese (or 2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese)
1 cup marinara sauce
1/4 cup butter
2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp garlic powder

Directions

Cook chicken nuggets by following the package directions
Preheat oven to 350 F
Spray your baking dish (9 x 13) with non-stick spray (or extra melted butter)
Cut Hawaiian rolls horizontally in half without pulling the rolls apart from one another
Place the bottom half of the rolls into the baking dish and bake for 3 minutes (this is so it doesn’t get soggy)
Place precooked chicken nuggets onto each one of the bottom rolls
Top each chicken nugget with a spoonful of marinara sauce
Add sliced or shredded cheese on top of chicken nuggets/sauce
Add top half of rolls onto the cheese
Melt butter in the microwave and add Italian seasoning and garlic powder, mix together and brush on top of rolls
Cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes
Remove foil then bake for another 5 minutes (or until the rolls are golden brown)

Notes

Recipe adapted from https://www.instrupix.com

Easy Instant Pot Crack Chicken

It says it all in the name and it’s as addicting as it sounds. This super easy and quick Instant Pot meal is a family favorite that all of the kids (even the picky ones) will love. You can serve it as sandwiches, sliders, dip, or top it on a salad.

For the bacon, I just cooked it in the microwave while the chicken was cooking in the Instant Pot. Enjoy!

Easy Instant Pot Crack Chicken

Recipe by Becky BernsteinCourse: DinnerCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy

Servings

servings

Prep time

minutes

Cooking time

minutes

Ingredients

2-3 chicken breasts
8 slices cooked bacon
1 package ranch seasoning
1/2 cup water
8 oz cream cheese
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions

Add the chicken to the bottom of the instant pot
Add the 1/2 cup of water
Sprinkle ranch seasoning packet over chicken breasts
Cube cream cheese then add to Instant Pot
Put Instant Pot on manual high for 15 minutes
Do a quick pressure release when done
Shred chicken (can either take chicken out and shred with 2 forks or use a hand mixer)
Put shredded chicken back in Instant Pot
Chop cooked bacon and add to Instant Pot
Add cup of shredded cheese
Mix all ingredients together with wooden spoon
You can serve this as sandwiches, sliders, dip, or whatever you want. But beware, as the name insinuates, it’s addicting!

Easy Dump and Bake Pasta and Chicken

Get ready for another amazingly easy meal that your family will love, even your picky toddlers. There is MINIMAL prep and you basically just stir everything together and pop it in the oven! Enjoy!

Easy Dump and Bake Pasta and Chicken

Recipe by Becky BernsteinCourse: DinnerCuisine: ItalianDifficulty: Easy

Servings

servings

Prep time

minutes

Cooking time

minutes

Ingredients

2 cups diced cooked chicken (can use leftover chicken breast or rotisserie chicken)
16 oz pasta (uncooked)
1 jar of pasta sauce (26 oz)
3 cups of water or chicken broth
2 cups mozzarella cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 F
In a large baking dish, add uncooked pasta, cooked chicken, chicken broth or water, salt, pepper, and pasta sauce and stir together.
Cover with foil, then put into oven for 25 minutes.
Remove from oven, uncover, stir, sprinkle cheese on top, then put back into oven uncovered for 10 minutes.

Notes

Easy Chicken “Enchiladas”

This super simple casserole has very minimal prep and can’t be easier! Even your picky toddlers will love this. You can also substitute the chicken for pulled pork, ground turkey, ground beef, whatever you want (as long as it’s cooked first), so it’s a great way to use leftovers as well! I found it the easiest just to use leftover rotisserie chicken!

Easy Chicken “Enchiladas”

Recipe by Becky BernsteinCourse: Dinner, MainCuisine: MexicanDifficulty: Easy

Servings

servings

Prep time

minutes

Cooking time

minutes

Ingredients

3 cups shredded or diced cooked chicken (Ex: rotisserie chicken, leftover chicken breast, or you can make it quickly in the instant pot). If you don’t have chicken, you can swap chicken for ground beef/turkey or pulled pork.
1 cup enchilada sauce (green or red). If you don’t have enchilada sauce, you can use salsa!
4-6 tortillas (flour or corn)
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese (Mexican blend, cheddar, pepper jack, whatever you have!)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray down a 2 quart (8 x 8) casserole dish with cooking spray.
In a separate, large bowl, add the chicken, 3/4 cup enchilada sauce, and 1 cup of cheese. Stir together.
Spread 1/4 cup enchilada sauce on the bottom of the dish.
Cover the bottom of the dish (on top of layer of enchilada sauce) with tortillas. (You can rip them apart to make them fit).
Layer half of the chicken mixture on top of tortilla layer. Repeat layers once again (tortilla then chicken mixture).
Add a cup of cheese on top of second layer of chicken mixture.
Cover baking dish with foil and bake for 25 minutes.
Uncover baking dish and bake for another 10 minutes.

Notes

If you cook your own chicken and you have an instant pot, add chicken breasts to your instant pot with 1 cup of water (can season with some salt and pepper) and set to manual high for 5 minutes if fresh chicken and for 10 minutes if frozen chicken. You can shred chicken with 2 forks or use a hand mixture to quickly shred.
Recipe adapted from The Seasoned Mom

Top 10 Twin Breastfeeding Tips

From a Twin Mom and Lactation Consultant!

The thought of breastfeeding twins can be overwhelming. It is not the same as breastfeeding a singleton and there are definitely more hurdles you have to jump. But, I’ve made it to the other side and now I know it’s MORE THAN POSSIBLE.

When I was pregnant, I looked everywhere for twin breastfeeding information and there is little to no support out there. I felt like I was alone and had to figure this all out on my own. So I started an Instagram page and began sharing my experiences with the twins.

A little bit about me: My name is Becky Bernstein, I am a Nurse Practitioner and I specialize in pediatrics. I have 4 kids; 2 singletons (ages 7 and 6) and 2 year old twins. I knew I wanted to breastfeed my twins so I scoured the internet while I was pregnant to no avail. Nearly 3 years later and I am STILL breastfeeding them. It’s been an incredible experience and I want to share everything I’ve learned to let other twin moms know that it is possible and I want to help set everyone up for twin breastfeeding empowerment and success.

During this experience with the twins, I became a Certified Lactation Counselor and then an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant. I wanted to have the training and credentials to be able to help other women in the situations I have been in. So in this post, I want to share my Top 10 Twin Breastfeeding Tips!.

1. Have realistic expectations

Sounds weird, but set your bar for breastfeeding your twins low. If you happen to exceed it, then that’s amazing, if not, then you won’t feel like you have failed. Breastfeeding twins is another beast and it’s not the same as breastfeeding a singleton (which can be challenging in itself!).

I feel like as moms, we have these unrealistic expectations of parenthood and if we don’t live up to them, we are failures. That’s just a recipe for disaster. Having a baby is hard. Having twins is HARD. Don’t set yourself up to fail from the beginning. Lots of parenting is just literally surviving!

2. Take a twin-specific breastfeeding course while you’re pregnant

Did you know that studies show that women who receive comprehensive prenatal education end up breastfeeding longer and more successfully? That’s pretty awesome! However, not all breastfeeding courses are equal. Taking a singleton breastfeeding course when you’re having twins I’m sure can have benefits but there is so much more to take into consideration when you have twins.

That’s why I created a digital twin breastfeeding course called Twin Breastfeeding Academy that you can take at your own pace, from your house (or wherever you want!). You can check that out here if you’re interested. I put everything into that course because I want other women to know everything they need to know before they start on the twin breastfeeding journey that will set them up for the greatest success! My mission is to spread the word, educate, and empower parents about breastfeeding twins.

3. Work on latches separately

This is very important. I did not know this at first and it was a blessing in disguise that one of my twins went to the NICU when she was 2 days old. It allowed me to work on latching the twins separately and to really figure out each twin and give them the individual attention they needed. At first, I attempted to tandem feed them from the beginning, but I realized that one of my twins had a very shallow latch.

When one of the twins went to the NICU, I was able to breastfeed that twin in the NICU (and also pump milk for my other twin) and then I was able to breastfeed my other twin in my hospital room (and pump milk for my NICU twin). I was able to figure out my “difficult latcher” first before attempting the beast that is tandem feeding! And I think this is really important for twin moms to know, that each baby has their own latch and their own issues that need to be worked on.

4. Get familiar with your pump and parts before delivery

95% of breastfeeding twin moms end up pumping at some point, it’s just the nature of the beast. Whether it’s working on latches separately, NICU time, latching difficulty, sleepy babies, triple feeding, parallel pumping, there are a million reasons why you may need to pump.

Get your pump out of the box ahead of time, figure out the settings on your pump, sterilize all of your parts, figure out how everything is put together. This can be super helpful to do while you’re still pregnant because you will not be trying to scramble around, stressed out, rushing, with screaming babies!

5. Figure out the best way to pump and bottle feed your twins

THIS IS A MUST!! Because we have already established that you will likely be pumping and bottle feeding at some point, pumping and bottle feeding simultaneously can be a huge time and sanity saver. I wrote an entire post about this which you can read more about here.

And I’m not saying you’ll be pumping and bottle feeding indefinitely, unless that’s what you choose (many twin mamas become Exclusive Pumpers and that is awesome and that is breastfeeding!). But being able to pump to keep your supply up while working up to nursing can save your breastfeeding journey so just always keep that in the back of your mind.

6. Don’t expect to tandem feed immediately

Tandem feeding (nursing both babies at the same time) takes time, practice, and patience. Rarely can someone deliver twins and immediately put them both to breast and everything is perfect from there on out. I am not saying this to deter or scare anyone, I am just being realistic and honest with you from my personal and professional experience. Again, from tip number 1, we want to set realistic goals!

There are certain steps to work up to tandem feeding that I go over in my course in detail but there are a few criteria to meet before starting to attempt to tandem feed.

Have a comfortable latch with both twins
Don’t attempt tandem feeding by yourself at first, have another set of hands to help hand you the babies, help with latches, and everything else.
When you feel comfortable latching the twins with another set of hands, then you can attempt latching them solo and I have a great setup for this. Ideally, you’ll be sitting on a couch with 2 boppies (and a twin on each boppy) on either side of you, then you will latch your more difficult latcher first (there is always one that’s more challenging) and then you’ll latch the second baby.

7. Have support set up for when you get home

Having a relationship with a lactation consultant with twin experience can be very beneficial for when you return from the hospital. You can set up a prenatal consult and schedule followups for when you’re home and in need of assistance with breastfeeding your twins.

I also offer virtual assistance if you don’t live in the Miami, Florida area that you can check out here. Otherwise, search your area for lactation support!

8. Get a good twin breastfeeding pillow

Investing in a good twin breastfeeding pillow like the Twin MyBrestFriend or the Twin Z Pillow will make a world of difference when you tandem feed your twins. Having a sturdy surface to place your twins while feeding and burping your twins will make your life so much easier. I used the Twin MyBrestFriend for about 17 months (then I just used their own bodies as pillows when they got bigger) but up until then, it was an absolute necessity and I took it everywhere.

I wrote a blog post comparing the popular twin breastfeeding pillows and you can check that out here.

9. Enlist in help at home

This is not a choice. You absolutely NEED HELP at home with your twins. Whether this is your spouse, your mom, your in laws, you hire someone to help, it just needs to be set in place. No, they obviously can’t breastfeed for you, but they can do just about everything else: they can clean all of your bottles and pump parts, they can do the dishes, they can wake your babies up for feeds, get them ready for feeds, get them dressed, put them down for naps, help take care of your older children if you have older children that need tending to.

Literally anything that needs to get done besides the physical act of nursing or pumping, they can do it. And DELEGATE IT OUT!!! Don’t feel like you need to do everything or you’ll get stressed and burnt out. Focus on feeding your babies and try and forget about the rest.

Let the house get a little messy, order take out, whatever you need to do, it is okay! I even had my 5 year old son help with bottle feeds!! Use whatever hands are willing to help!

10. Give yourself grace and expect bumps in the road

This is a very important tip… and don’t just brush it off. You need to give yourself the space to fail, for things not to be perfect, and to be okay with it! You can’t compare your journey with anyone else’s. Your experience is unique and it is okay and expected for things not to go as totally planned.

Having unrealistic goals and ideas of ourselves just sets us up for failure. Sometimes things are out of our control and that’s really such a huge lesson in parenting. Be kind to yourself. YOU HAVE TWINS! That is a lot to take on. The last thing we need is too much pressure on ourselves to be perfect.

You’ve got this mama!!

If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask, I am here to support you! Email me at becky@thebernsteinbrood.com or leave a comment.

Instant Pot Southwestern Chicken and Rice

Another simple Instant Pot recipe that your kids will love! It’s also very versatile so it’s great for leftovers. You can use it for burritos, nachos, salad, tacos, or just eat it as it is!

Instant Pot Southwestern Rice and Chicken

Recipe by Becky BernsteinCourse: DinnerCuisine: MexicanDifficulty: Easy

Servings

servings

Prep time

minutes

Cooking time

minutes

Ingredients

2 chicken breasts
1 1/4 cups brown rice
15 oz can black beans
1 cup frozen corn
1/2 cup salsa
1 1/4 cups chicken stock (or water)
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp shredded cheddar cheese

Directions

Add rice, black beans, corn, salsa, and chicken stock into instant pot. Stir ingredients together.
Add chicken breasts into instant pot (leave them whole) so they are sitting in the liquid.
Add the spices (chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and cumin) on top of the chicken and in the liquid. Stir the liquid a little bit to incorporate the spices.
Put the instant pot lid on, make sure the valve is sealed. Set it to manual high for 20 minutes.
Once it’s done, you can do a quick pressure release.
Take chicken breasts out of instant pot and shred them (you can do a hand mixer to do this or just shred with 2 forks). Fluff rice mixture in the instant pot with a fork.
Add shredded chicken back into the instant pot. Add shredded cheese and mix everything together.
Ways to enjoy this: on top of nachos, as a dip with chips, in a burrito, in tacos, in a quesadilla, on a salad. The options are endless!!

Notes

Recipe adapted from Meaningful Eats

Best bottles for a breastfed baby

*Disclosure: I only recommend products I would use myself and all opinions expressed here are our own. This post may contain affiliate links that at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission. Read full privacy policy here.

When you are pregnant and filling out your registry you’ll likely see a million different bottle choices and be very overwhelmed with all of them. Even if you plan on breastfeeding directly from your breast, there are plenty of reasons that you may need to pump and feed your baby a bottle and we want to make this as easy as possible.

Reasons a baby may need to take a bottle:

Issues latching so while working on latching, your baby may also be fed by a bottle while you’re pumping. (check out this post about pumping while bottle feeding).
You will be away from your baby for a few hours so you will pump and have someone feed a bottle.
You may not be producing enough milk to feed your baby solely from your breasts so you may need to combo feed (combination of directly latching, formula feeding, and/or feeding pumped milk).
Going back to work: pumping milk at work and feeding that pumped milk to your baby. I have an incredible resource about going back to work and breastfeeding here.

Whatever the reason, if you are going back and forth between nursing your baby and using a bottle, we want it to be a smooth transition. Let’s find the best bottles to help your baby be able to go between the two seamlessly.

Studies about bottle feeding vs. breastfeeding:

There are studies, like this one, that show that the mechanics of breastfeeding and bottle feeding are completely different (go over the differences).

According to this study, breastfed babies and bottle fed babies use different patterns of sucking, so just like breastfeeding, babies also have to learn how to bottle feed and it should be ideally led by the baby (pace feeding) so they don’t tend to prefer the fast pace and flow of the bottle then get more frustrated at the breast.

Steps to know before choosing a bottle:

First: make sure you are using a slow flow nipple. The slowest flow the company makes. For example, Dr. Browns has a preemie nipple which is even slower than a level 1 nipple (usually level 1 is the slowest). And there are a few other companies that make preemie nipples as well.

Dr. Browns Preemie Nipples:

Second, we need to be pace feeding. I went over this last week, so you can read about it here.

Lastly, let’s choose the right bottle. If you are already bottle feeding and it’s going well, then keep doing what you’re doing!

Different Types of Bottles:

I will first say, there are so many bottles that are marketed to be “like a breast”, whether that’s color, shape, look, or feel of a breast, there is just no bottle that is like a breast. And a lot of those bottles may not be the best bottle nipples to be going back and forth between bottle and breast.

All of these bottles (Como Tomo, Avent, and Tommee Tippee) above have a narrow nipple tip and a wide base, and the Avent bottle has a flattened nipple. These are usually the bottles that are marketed to “look like a breast”. So a lot of parents (myself included!) may buy this bottle for that reason alone.

However, many times, a baby will not be able to get a deep latch on those bottles because the base is so wide and will just suck on the top of the narrow nipple. They will just end up chomping down on that part and getting milk out that way with a shallow latch, this can also lead to sucking in more air and milk leaking out because they can’t get a good latch and/or suction on the bottle base because it’s too wide.

These bottles above (Baby Buddha and Spectra) also have a narrow tip and abrupt wide base making it difficult for baby to get a good deep latch on the bottle nipple.

What type of bottle is best?

So then what type of bottles should we look for to make it easiest for baby to go back and forth between breast and bottle?

Slow flow nipple, or a flow that is similar to the rate from your breasts. Some women do have fast flows and fast letdowns so feedings are shorter and milk flow is faster, so if this is the case, then maybe you could start with level 1 nipple and not a preemie/level 0 nipple. However, many babies will benefit from slower flow nipples. Basically the flow of the nipple is just how big the hole is (or how many holes) in the top of the nipple.
Nipple shape: one that is similar to the breast that is a gradually widening nipple.
One that they can get a good latch onto the bottle like they would a breast.

What kind of nipple shape do we want? A nipple that gradually widens towards the base.

Gradually Widening Nipple:

This shape more closely resembles an actual breast and nipple. This optimizes a baby’s latch and allows a deeper latch, lips to be flanged out, and they can get a good seal and suction on these nipples.

Lansinoh NaturalWave Nipple: This nipple is amazing for breastfed babies because it mimics the actual shape of a real nipple; it has a gradually sloping nipple so baby is able to get a good deep latch. If you use a wide neck pumping system (Ex: Spectra), you can just use the Spectra collection bottles and put this nipple into the Spectra bottle collar and then feed it to your baby! This is a great trick because you don’t have to transfer your breastmilk into another bottle (risk of spilling) and you also save yourself from cleaning another bottle!

If you use a narrow neck pumping system (Ex: Medela), you can use an adapter piece to attach to your flange neck to pump into wide neck collection bottles. This is the attachment piece to pump from narrow neck into a wide neck bottle:

Bottle adapter: This will also depend on what type of pump you have and what bottle you’re pumping into. JUST A HEADS UP: The Lansinoh bottle does not connect with Spectra parts!! So if you have Spectra collection bottles, just get the nipple and attach it to your spectra bottle collar.

If you want to just use the whole Lansinoh bottle and nipple, here is the link for that bottle.

Another great option for a gradually sloping nipple is the Pigeon Nipple. You can also place this in your wide neck bottle system!

Another great option is The Evenflo Balance Plus Bottle. The nipple shape is also very similar to that of a breast with a gradually widening slope.

If you just want the nipple to place into your wide neck bottle and bottle collar that you’re already pumping into, here is the Evenflo Balance Plus nipple.

Narrow Nipple:

These can work well for breastfed babies, especially for small or premature babies.

Dr. Brown’s Narrow Neck Bottle:

The idea is for the baby to take in the whole nipple in their mouth and have a good suction and seal down at the bottom (at the bottle collar). These can also be a good option for babies with lip/tongue ties.

The other great thing about this bottle is that they sell a preemie nipple (a very slow flow nipple) which is great for breastfed babies.

I hope this was helpful in explaining why we want to look for certain bottle nipple shapes when going back and forth between nursing and bottle feeding. Of course, if your baby is already taking a bottle well and is transitioning back from bottle and breast smoothly, stick with it!!

If you have any questions, of course don’t hesitate to reach out. Another reason you may be looking into bottles for your breastfed baby is that you’re going back to work and want to continue your breastfeeding journey. If that’s the case, I have an incredible resource that you can check out here.

Easy Pizza Roll Ups

easy dinner and snack with crescent rolls

This is a super simple way to get some food in your kids! You can make it as a snack or side, but since my kids can be picky, I just made some broccoli to put on the side and served it as the main dish. I called it a win because they ate it all and I didn’t have to chase them around LOL.

My kids are not really into pepperoni so I didn’t add it to the ones I made but id you want to add some more protein and you or your kids like pepperoni, you can absolutely add it in and use the same directions.

I hope you enjoy this easy, kid-friendly recipe!

Easy Pizza Roll Ups

Recipe by Becky BernsteinCourse: dinner, Appetizers, snackCuisine: ItalianDifficulty: Easy

Servings

servings

Prep time

minutes

Cooking time

minutes

Ingredients

8 oz tube crescent roll
4 mozzarella sticks (cut in half)
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp Italian seasoning
Pepperoni slices (16 pieces cut in half)
1 cup marinara sauce (for dipping)

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 F. Spray cooking sheet with cooking spray.
Open crescent roll dough and separate into 8 triangles and place on baking sheet.
If you’re using pepperoni (my kids don’t like it so I just stick with cheese!), but if you want to use the pepperoni, add about 8 half slices to each crescent roll triangle.
Now place a piece of string cheese (that’s been cut in half) onto the long edge of the triangle.
Start to roll up the crescent roll starting with the long edge of the triangle (where the cheese is!). After you’ve rolled it up, just fold the sides down so it’s covering the cheese. Place the roll on the baking sheet with the seam down.
Do this to the rest of the dough and place them all about 2 inches apart from each other.
Melt the 2 tbsp of butter in the microwave for about 20 seconds. Add the Italian seasoning to butter and stir.
Brush melted butter on top of rolls.
Place rolls in oven for about 10 minutes (until golden brown).
Warm up the marinara sauce and use it for dipping the rolls!

Notes

Recipe adapted from The Country Cook
You can add pepperoni to these if you’d like! My kids personally don’t like pepperoni so I just stick with the cheese and they love them (who wouldn’t?!).

Paced Bottle Feeding

Are you scouring the internet on tips for how to bottle feed a breastfed baby? Well, you’ve come to the right place. Paced bottle feeding is an important technique to use when bottle feeding. You’ve probably heard of “nipple confusion”. I don’t like that term because the problem isn’t the baby preferring the bottle nipple over the breast. It’s usually a “flow” preference. You’ll see here why babies generally prefer the bottle and how pace feeding can help your baby transition easily between breast and bottle.

pace feeding, bottle feeding a breastfed baby

This picture here shows my 5 year old son pace feeding one of my newborn twins. If he can pace feed, so can you! You’ve got this. Keep reading to see how.

Okay, so why is this important? We want to pace feed when bottle feeding because it “paces”/controls the flow for the baby. Your baby will learn to realize when he’s full because his belly isn’t being filled before the signals of satiety occur in the brain.

When we are breastfeeding, milk isn’t just spurting out of our boobs! Your baby has to work for it. So we want to do the same with bottle feeding. With pace feeding, your baby is going to eat more slowly and work harder for the milk, just as he would if he were breastfeeding.

This picture below shows how you’d typically see a baby being bottle fed:

You can see that gravity is doing all of the work and the baby doesn’t have to do anything. The baby is not working at all to get the liquid out, it’s instant gratification, and the bottle goes super quickly.

The baby can’t recognize satiety signals that quickly; they don’t have to work for it so they can get both overfed and used to a significantly faster feed/flow.

STEPS TO PACE FEEDING:

1. Baby is sitting more upright

You can place baby on a pillow or your lap. You can lean against a chair and place baby facing you on your knees.

However you are comfortable feeding, go with that, the most important thing is that baby is sitting more upright.

If baby is a newborn and doesn’t have good head/neck control yet, you can support their head and neck just as you would if you were nursing them with your thumb and index finger at the base of their skull .

2. Tickle baby’s lips with the bottle nipple (just like you’d do with your nipple) so they open wide

Tickle just above the upper lip, just like you’d do with your nipple when breastfeeding, so they open wide.

Tickling their upper lip stimulates the rooting reflex and the baby will open their mouth up wide for the bottle. We do NOT want to shove the bottle nipple in their mouth EVER.

3. Have baby latch on

Just like baby would latch onto your breast, have them latch on to the bottle. Make sure lips are flanged out, there are no clicking noises, and they are actively trying to extract the milk.

4. Hold the bottle horizontal

Holding the bottle horizontal like this will slow the flow down so gravity is not doing the work.

Just a little milk should be in the bottle nipple tip (it should not be filler with milk). This makes it so baby has to work more to get the milk out.

5. Pause for a few moments

After pausing, then let baby draw the bottle back into their mouth and start the process again. You can pause just by tipping the bottle down and still keeping it in the baby’s mouth (there just isn’t milk in the bottle nipple). Or if that is upsetting the baby, just take it totally out of the baby’s mouth for about 30 seconds).

6. Repeat these pauses

Repeat these little pauses of tipping the bottle down throughout the feeding until baby is done. A feeding should last just like a nursing session, about 10-20 minutes depending on baby’s age.

A few more tips:

You can switch sides in the middle of a feeding too, just as you would if you were nursing. You can burp the baby before switching sides, then start the process again on the other side.

Keep a close eye on your baby to recognize when they are full so you can end the feeding. The bottle doesn’t need to be totally finished. Just like when you’re breastfeeding, the baby signals when they are done, the same should be true with bottle feeding!

I hope this helps! Again, you may be using a bottle for many reasons, and it can be stressful thinking your baby may prefer the bottle over your breast. But what they prefer is that fast flow, so if you don’t give it to them, you won’t be competing with the bottle. In my next post, I talk about the best bottles for breastfed babies, so check it out here. You’ve got this!