Breast Pump

I knew I would need one of these if I wanted to work at all, and the choice came down to Ameda or Medela. It seemed like they were basically the same thing, so I chose Ameda. These little machines that can take batteries or be plugged into an outlet or a car adapter, are probably worth about $40 but they get away with selling them for $250 probably because they think insurance will cover most of the cost since they are considered “medical equipment” and you get a prescription for them. At least, that’s what I thought.
But the truth is, at least in my experience, that insurance will only cover a portion of the cost IF you have maxed out your deductible for the year. Which you will do AFTER going through labor in a hospital. Which means you would need to go buy the pump in that time that you are at home with a newborn in order for the insurance claim to go through after your deductible has maxed (also meaning that the insurance clam for the hospital stay has been submitted). In trying to prepare for the baby, I went and picked out the pump before the birth and therefore had to pay the full $250 out of my pocket.
But, it has been a handy tool. I use it at work, increasingly amazed at the amount of “baby food” my body can produce. It goes into plastic bottles and into a cooler until I take it home and transfer it to glass bottles in the fridge. When I started to stock up and run out of bottles, I got the bag adapter. These little plastic pieces hook through the top of the plastic bag so that you pump right into the bag. It works fine for one side but trying to do both is difficult; there is nothing to hold on to. I recommend buying the (much cheaper) bags (like Lasinoh), pumping into bottles and then pouring it into bags. The Lasinoh bags also have a much more accurate measurement on the side. I don’t even know how the Ameda bags figured out their measurements! They are WAY off.
Whatever you choose, you will want to acquire the skill of surfing the Internet/reading/doing People crosswords while pumping to make the time go by during your "break".