Pumping While Traveling Without Your Baby

Hello and Happy Friday! We are winding down the last few weeks of summer over here and I am fighting it so hard. Can I file for an extension on summer??!

Last week Eric and I got back from Whistler, Canada for his annual President’s Club trip (more on that in another post) and it was the first time we’ve ever left Olivia overnight and this trip was 5 nights! And yes, there were definitely tears and asking my husband, “What if she forgets who I am?!” Anyway, I am still breastfeeding her and had been stockpiling milk for the last two months in preparation for this trip. What I didn’t prepare for, however, was pumping while traveling.

I knew that I would be pumping during the trip, but somehow it just didn’t occur to me that I would have to pump on the actual travel days, in actual airports, on actual planes, and in actual cars. So my hope is that this post will leave you better prepared than I was. Now let’s start out with a list of things you’ll need for your trip:

• milk storage bags (I swear by the Ziploc kind because I’ve had issues with others getting holes in the bag and leaking when thawing the milk. Those companies should have to pay me for my lost milk.)
• your breast pump (I prefer to use an electric pump, but you can bring a hand pump too)
• extra bottles to pump into
• Dapple soap (or whatever kind you prefer)
• cooler bag and ice packs (This is only if you plan on bringing the milk home with you. Shipping is another, more complicated option.)
• a nursing cover or long scarf (I like this one from H&M because it is lightweight and still cute enough to wear with your outfit)
• hand sanitizer

Okay, now that you have everything you need, let’s talk logistics.

Airport Pumping: I can’t speak for other airports, but after a bit of Googling, it seems that O’Hare has a sort of makeshift pumping room run by a social service called Traveler’s Aid. I didn’t use this because we didn’t have time to find it before our plane boarded. I just found a secluded corner (and I use the word secluded loosely) and used my handy dandy scarf and nobody even noticed or cared.

Airplane Pumping: Okay, this is where you have to throw modesty out the window because it’s really hard to pump on an airplane in private. You always have the option of using the bathroom, but that seems to be a less sanitary option. If possible, try to get a window seat so that you can turn away from other passengers if you feel you need to. Most airplanes now have outlets in between the seats where you can plug in your electric pump, but if you are using a hand pump then you don’t need to worry about that, or you can bring a battery pack (due to my unpreparedness, I did not have one of those). If you really need help figuring out your options then definitely ask a flight attendant.

Hotel Pumping: You’ve finally reached your destination! Now you can pump in private! But first, make sure your hotel room has a working fridge or ask the front desk if they can store milk for you in one of their fridges. Store your milk in bags and label your name, date, and amount of milk.

Bringing Your Milk Home: You’ve pumped all this liquid gold and you’ll be damned if you’re just going to dump it, right? That’s where your cooler bag and ice packs come in! Before you head home, make sure your ice packs are fully frozen (again, ask the hotel front desk to do this) and make sure your milk is fully secured and zipped in the milk storage bags. Also, make sure you do not freeze your milk before transporting it because you cannot freeze milk, thaw it, and then refreeze.

How much milk can you bring home? I searched and Googled and asked around, but it’s SO hard to find a concrete answer to this question! But I can say that I carried on my cooler bag full of milk that was probably about 75 ounces. Security did a quick scan and test and then I was on my way.

Whew! I know that was a ton of info, but I hope this information prepares you better than I was. I’d love to hear your tips and tricks for pumping while traveling. Or even better, anyone have a funny pumping story??!

XO,

L