When you were a kid, you loved to show off your Lisa Frank sticker collection to your friends. As a teenager, you probably had a museum-worthy display of M.A.C. lipsticks. But now you're a mom and you're ready to open your freezer and show off a bountiful breast milk stash while whispering things like, "My precious." If you're thinking breastfeeding without trying to pump extra milk is hard enough, I get it, but you just need a few tips to build a breast milk freezer stash you can be proud of.
Because, as crazy as it sounds, there is something very empowering about seeing a freezer full of milk you've pumped for your baby. Partly because, hello, your body is amazing and seeing the fruits of its labor just reaffirms that. But also because pumping and breastfeeding is hard work. Knowing that you're taking extra steps to build up a freezer stash of breast milk should make you want to pat yourself on the back and take a trip to Target alone.
But a freezer stash also has major benefits. You can pump milk to freeze for future baby food (add breast milk instead of water to fruit or veggies in a blender to make purees), for business trips, for those days when you pumped two bottles for daycare and then they spilled all over you, and for other emergencies. It can take away a lot of stress to know you have milk ready if your baby needs it, so try these nine tips for building a breast milk freezer stash you'll be proud to show off.