Nursing necessities!

I'm month four into my second term as a nursing mother. I'm proud to say that I did it for twelve full months with my first son and hope for a repeat performance with number two. Nursing for any number of months is a huge accomplishment, but I'm especially proud that I did it, and am doing it again as a full-time working momma. So, as I'm sitting here in my company's "Mother's Room" pumping away, I thought it very fitting to put together a little list of my nursing must-haves. Some of these things I figured out myself and others were from some of my mentor moms, working hard and doing what I do. So, here you go.

1. A great breast pump. I've always used Medela. First, the Freestyle and now the Pump in Style Advanced. Having a good breast pump is crucial to maintaining your supply when you're away from your baby for 8+ hours per day. Another plus - is that I was able to grab mine for free through insurance.
2. The Easy Expression Bustier from Medela. Just trust me, be hands-free if you can. Especially at work. 
3. Breast milk storage bags. When all of your pumping pays off, you'll need somewhere to store that liquid gold. I love Lanisoh - the bags are large and durable, giving you room for pouring without the risk of overflow.
4. Freezer milk storage. Last time, I kept frozen milk in the freezer, on the door. This time, I found a solution from Milkies, which is a compact way to organize and store frozen breast milk.
5. Fenugreek. Something that I ended up figuring out on my own, with help from Google, that my milk supply would drop a bit, leading up to the start of my monthly cycle. Before I knew what was happening, it made me panic. Once I realized it, I started to load up on Fenugreek, to maintain things until it passed.
6. Mother's Milk Tea to promote lactation. This is something that I just started drinking this time around. If I feel like my supply is lower, I have a couple of cups of this tea during the day and it seems to do the trick.
7. Coverd Goods nursing cover. Again - there are many different types of covers, I have three that I really like and tend to rotate though. Each one is great, but so far, my favorite has been my Covered Goods nursing cover. It literally wraps around me so that my belly and back aren't sticking out. This design also reduces the risk of flashing, if baby wants to have a party under there.

I hope that this list is helpful for you or for a mom-to-be. Even though this isn't my first rodeo, I'm still learning and finding things to make this part of the journey easier for me and for my tiny human.