GOT MILK?!
MOMSICLES - Frozen Breastmilk On A Stick
Mini-momsicles Variations for Older Babies
Have you heard of "Breastmilk Popsicles"? Lots of breastfeeding moms call them "Momsicles". They are easy to make, and most babies love them.
You can purchase a single Popsicle mold from the dollar store (the ones at Target had a pretty long stick & handle, and it might be hard for baby to handle), which holds 4 popsicles, for a dollar. After washing and rinsing well, pour expressed breastmilk into the mold and freeze. You can store these in the freezer above the fridge and offer them daily, every other day, every few days, or once a week.
If you find the regular popsicle molds to be "too big" or "too much" you can try the following to make Mini-Momsicles:
1) Freeze water about half way up on the popsicle mold, and then once it's frozen use wax paper, or saran and "layer" so you can break the water part off once the breastmilk is frozen. Once you have the layer poked in you can then pour the breastmilk and put the "stick" in & freeze.
2) Use the cap off of a Gerber bottle, and a pacifier. The one shown here (below) is an Evenflo "Natural Comfort" - which has no hard parts.
Fill the cap 2/3 or 3/4 of the way with ebm and stick the paci in.. then freeze. To release the frozen "pop", run hot water over cap for just a few seconds, the milk will "melt" a tad and release. Be sure not to hold under the water very long or the milk will melt too much
3) Freeze breastmilk in clean ice cube trays. Store the cubes in a heavy-duty FREEZER bag. Place a "cube" in a Baby Safe Feeder and let baby chew on it. Using the Baby Safe Feeder keeps the "cube" from being too slippery for baby to handle. Note that babies who have teeth may tear the net!
For babies who are are not quite old enough for solids, but are showing interest in what's going on around them during meals, momsicles are a great alternative to introducing solids too early. Teething babies really enjoy "chewing" on these, and it is also a healthy snack and a good way to get a little more breastmilk into a baby who may not be nursing well due to teething, distractibilty, or not feeling well.
Be aware they "are" a little messy as they melt so you may want to use a bib on baby and you may want to have a "splat mat" on the floor if you have carpet in kitchen to catch the drips.
HERE to read all the great ideas and the rest of the article
