Munchkin Latch Bottle

Since the little man was born we've used a combination of Tommee Tippee and Dr Brown's bottles. The Tommee Tippee ones came as part of a set and The Dr Brown's ones were bought to try and reduce the amount of wind the little man had and at the time they were the only anti colic/wind ones were could easily find. Since then it appears nearly every bottle manufacturer has jumped on the anti colic waggon and brought out that variety in their ranges.

We've had no issues really with either type of bottle but I do find the Dr Brown's ones a right faff to clean and put together, particularly during the night when you're half asleep. We were recently asked if we'd like to try out the The Munchkin Latch bottle* and stage three teats*, whilst we didn't necessarily need a new I'm always keen to try out anything new and innovative and I was really interested in the claims about the bottle. The bottle and teat is designed to mimic the breastfeeding action for your baby and the teat stretches, moves and pumps similar to a breast. When I had the little man I REALLY struggled with breastfeeding, whilst I had ridiculous pressure/some support I didn't really have enough information or help to carry on trying.I did attempt to establish a breastfeeding routine again at home when we were released from hospital and settled in our own environment, but I still couldn't get to grips with it. I both bottle fed and expressed breast milk (despite a rather horrible midwife telling me I was 'wasting my time unless I was exclusively breastfeeding) for a few weeks before giving up completely and solely using bottles. 

I do wish, looking back, that I'd persevered a bit more, particularly if I'd known about this range of bottles then. I feel I'd have been more likely to succeed had I used this type of bottle early on whilst still attempting to create some kind of breastfeeding routine.

The Latch bottle allows the ability to switch back and forth between bottle and breast, which would be ideal if you're breastfeeding, as it allows tired Mammy's to have a break and give Dad the chance to get involved too. 

The bottles are very hand friendly, for both me and the little man. I don't know if it's just coincidence or what, but the Latch bottles are the first bottle that he's been able to hold up and feed himself with. The bottom of the bottle is quite slim so he can easily hold it with his little hands. 
The bottle has an accordion style teat which moves in the same way as a breast and nipple andcan with the transition from breast to bottle as well as varying between both. The bottle has an anti-colic valve at the bottom which helps to prevents air bubbles traveling up through the milk and helps reduce wind in your little people.Out of the three brands of bottle we own, I've found the Latch bottles the easiest to clean. There are no unnecessary ridges or crevices for dirty or old milk to build up and because the teat is so flexible it's malleable enough to get the bottle brush inside it to clean properly. The only negative thing I have found with the bottle is that sometimes if the little man sucks too vigorously, the teat can invert and get stuck, so has to be pulled out by me or Hubby. Obviously it's not a massive issue and is probably down to the fact the teat is much less stiff than other brands we've used. 
The larger 240ml bottles retail at £6.99 for a single bottle and a pack of two teats cost £4.98 which are a matter of pennies more expensive than Dr Browns and Tommee Tippee bottles. For something that is so unique I wouldn't mind paying the extra money.
I'm a little more baby savvy and less frightened of the so called experts now so when we have our next baby I will try harder to establish a breastfeeding routine. I think with products like the Munchkin Latch bottle and teats my success rate may be higher.