Bottles bottles everywhere!

I was very into the idea of breast feeding before I tried it. I wanted my baby to be as healthy as possible! Well, after trying breast feeding, and getting headaches from the pain, and feeling stress and anxiety everytime my daughter wanted to eat, I gave up on it. She ended up not wanting to latch on anyway, and I wasn't letting down fast enough for her after she had a bottle. I pumped for a bit but my supply sucked (probably partly because of my pump) so eventually that dwindled away too, and she was put on formula.

With formula comes A  LOT of bottles, and washing bottles is not fun. It consumes your life! (although i'd rather wash bottles than feel the pain of breast feeding again anyday!) Anyway, I tried 3 different bottles, and I finally found one I love. Here's my review on each bottle i've tried!

Dr Browns

I tried these first because I heard they were one of the best for the prevention of gas, colic & spit up! (playtex drop ins being #1)  So I registered for these, and got about 9 bottles. Immediately, I hated washing them because of how many parts they have. There are 6 parts including the cap that needs to be washed. Did they work for gas, colic & spit up? Hard to say. Miah doesn't spit up as often as most babies, and I don't think she has colic, but she does have a lot of gas. Is it due to these bottles? Probably not. I believe it's her digestive tract, and possibly her formula. If she wasn't on anti gas bottles though i think she'd definitely have a lot more gas and issues with her tummy!

Pro's:

- Reduces air intake

- Good nipples for going from breast to bottle (Miah was on these first and was able to transition from breast to bottle with it, but I couldn't find any slow flow nipples for this bottle, only natural flow, which I still think was too fast for my tiny newborn) 

Cons:

- Very difficult to mix formula in bottle. I didnt like pre-preparing formula, it scared me! So I always filled the bottles with water and mixed the formula in on demand. With this bottle you can't shake because of the vent air system. So it was very inconvenient for me with my method of making bottles. 

- Leaks! I had a couple of times they would leak from the nipple part. I'd double check to make sure all the equipment was where it needed to be, and it was, but it still leaked. 

- Natural flow nipples made Miah "gulp" and take on too much too fast before she was used to feeding from a bottle. As I said, I never found slow flow nipples for these bottles.

- A lot of pieces to clean. It's not that its hard to clean these bottles, it's the fact that it's time consuming with so many pieces. For the inside pieces you needed a special brush to get into the tube. Washing in dishwasher does help but there are still a lot of pieces. 

Playtex Ventaire

I tried these after the Dr.Brown's, and my bestfriend recommended them to me. Again, vent aire technology so it reduces Gas, Colic & spit up. Did that work? Again, Not sure! Still has a lot of pieces to clean with this bottle. 

Pros:

- Easier pieces to clean. No special brush needed for vent aire technology. 

- Can mix formula easily in this because you can shake shake shake! 

- Nipple was good and came in slow flow, which Miah does A LOT better with. 

- The upright shape prevents ear infections

Cons: 

- Leaked after a few weeks from the bottom. One leak was so bad, I left a 4oz bottle filled with water on the counter, and when I came back hours later to make a bottle, there was only 2oz of water in it, and it was surrounded by a huge puddle. 

- Still a lot of pieces to clean 

Playtex Drop-in's

My last attempt at anti gas,colic, spit up bottles!!! While I was pregnant, I researched bottles, and found these to be the #1 anti gas bottle, and the bottle people loved the most. I did not want to get them since you have to buy the drop in's for the bottles, and that is just more money to be spent! After my ventures with the Dr.Brown's & Ventaire I said, what the heck, we'll try them! To my surprise, Target offers their version of the inserts, for less money. 

Pros:

- You only have to wash 4 pieces (including the cap). The actual bottle doesn't need to be washed much because no formula or liquid ever actually comes into contact with it (I wash the actual bottle once a day, mostly because I am touching the outside of it, and I am a germaphobe!!!)

- Very easy to wash & sterilize

- Nipple options (They offer slow flow, fast flow, silicone & latex) I do the silicone since it's what Miah is used to, and because I have a latex allergy! Washing bottles would be way less fun with a rash on my hands from the latex!

- No leaking

- Presterilized inserts!

- You actually see the air being released from the bottle when you push it out, and then the bag collapses in, so no air gets in.

- You can mix the formula in the bottle.

Cons:

- You have to buy the inserts. But like I said, I get targets version and I get 100 inserts for $5.00 (rather than 100 for 9.99 with playtex's brand) 

- You have to premeasure in a measuring cup or another bottle to get the right amount of liquid, because the measurements are a little off with the drop in's. 

Overall, We are happiest with the drop ins and will continue to use them, But we have the other two brands in our cabinets just in case!!!! 

Overall, I am happiest with the playtex drop ins! They seem to work best for our family, and lets face it, the less parts to wash, the better :)