Pumping While Going to Work

baby food jars are great because they are glass (which is the best way to freeze and heat foods)
They do make special bags for breastmilk... so you might just invest in those if you cannot find good jars (even canning, jelly jars would be great)
GOOD LUCK and THUMBS UP ON keeping baby healthy!

Hi! I'm a teacher and started pumping at work in September. I pump right into those bags and have a cooler with ice packs that keep all day. I can't waste time during lunch and recess running back and forth to the teacher's lounge.
You say you will try to keep your pumping to a minimum, but try to pump as often as when your 5 mo old would eat. Otherwise, you may risk dropping your milk supply. It's a big challenge to get the milk supply back up once it drops and you aren't nursing full time.
Good luck to you! How nice to have your own private office!

Do you have a microwave in your office? If you do, you can get the Medela Quick Clean bags for cleaning the pump parts, including the bottles. When I pumped at work (also a teacher like the previous poster), I rinsed the parts out really well and then cleaned them with the Quick Clean bags at home.

I did not pump directly into the storage bags; I used the bottles that came with the pump. It was just easier to transfer them to the storage bags at home, if necessary.

I pumped for 12 months with my first and my second is now 5 months old. I was given an office for pumping and just work in here and close the door when needed, like you. I am down to two pumpings a day - at 10 and 2, or there about. I have a pumping bra (I don't wear it. It really got stretched out with my Ameda pump, and doesn't lay right) that I put over my shirt (or lift my shirt and put it on as needed), and that way I can easily continue to work while pumping. I put the milk in storage bottles, and into my carrying case with the ice pack, and wash the parts in using soap and hot water in the kitchen sink. I have a towel with me that I cover the parts with too and from, and dry them off with. It takes maybe 2 minutes to wash (I set them on a paper towel before drying). I haven't tried that bag, but I may need to look into that before my next business trip. If you have any further questions about pumping at work, or any advice I can offer, let me know.

Get the adaptor for the car and one of those nursing covers that go around your neck and cover you well. I found it was easier to pump once on my commute once at lunch and once on the commute home:)

Hey there, I went back to work part-time when my son was 3 months old and I breastfed until he was 15 mos - starting full-time work again when he was a year old. Needless to say - there was a lot of pumping! :) I work in an office full of guys and I work in a cubicle in an open area. I would simply pick an available office and hang a sign on the door which read 'Milking in Progress'. It kept the humor in the situation and at the same time allowed people to feel like it was a subject we could talk about, it worked out great! To keep bottles and stuff to a minimum and out of the kitchen/break room as much as possible I used the Medela bags (no bottles necessary) to pump into and sealed them in the office then tucked them in the freezer in a small thermos with an ice pack that I would bring back and forth from work to home. It made clean-up quick and simple!

I successfully pumped at work with both my B. for 6 months! You can do it too, I'm sure. When I didn't have time (or access to water) to wash all my pumping equipment, I just used the medela sterilizing bag. You put it in the microwave for 2min and it's done! If you have a microwave at work, that would be a great thing for you. good luck!

I second the Medela steam bags! They are awesome and such a time saver!

I nursed my little guy for a full year while working full-time with a 40 minute commute. In the beginning I pumped 3 times a day at work, as my little guy's eating adjusted I pumped 2 times a day.
I bought an extra set of tubes, horn assemblies & bottles for the pump so I only bagged and had to clean at work after one pump session in the beginning. when I moved to only pumping twice a day I kept it in the bottles (unless there was a bit more - then I bagged it) and sterilized all my stuff at home in the evening. I also pumped on the weekends and in the evening after I nursed and froze the milk in the reseable bags (hint: if you do this put 2 - 4 of these bags inside a ziploc bag before putting into the freezer) then roated the milk by date. It helped keep my production up. I didn't like putting the milk into the fridge at work (it made me feel weird - i didn't want it out of my sight) so I used an isulated freezer bag with the reuseable "ice" packs. It worked like a charm. I didn't have my own office so had to go to a room set aside for this specific purpose so it took extra time. Month # 9 was the hardest for me but was all smooth sailing after that.

I did the same thing. For me I pumped once in the morning and then again afternoon while I was at work. I too had an office that I could lock the door and when it was shut everyone knew not to disturb. I had some steam bags as well. After every pump I put my bottles and attachments in the bag and put in microwave for the minute or so it says to do. It worked really well for me. I had a black bag that I kept my milk in while in the fridge at work. I hope you can find a good system for you. Good luck to you.

That is what I did and it worked perfectly fine.

Good luck!

that's what my coworker does and she hasnt had any problems. She just shuts her door once in the morning and once in the afternoon to her thing and keeps all her stuff in the fridge.