Question about baby formula

[Chip126]

Does anyone know if there is anywhere on Disney property to buy baby formula (Similac Advance) and if so the cost?

Thank you!
Kim

 

[NCDisneyMom]

I didn't take note of brand or price, but I know I saw baby formula in the gift shop at the All-Star Sports. But, based on the inflated prices of other "necessities" that I forgot, I imagine it would be quite a bit more expensive than you would find at home.

Diana

 

[justhat]

I only saw Good Start sold in the Baby Care Centers, but I don't use formula so I didn't look all that well.

 

[Scoootch]

The baby centers in all 4 parks carry Nestle Carnation Good start brand and also some Similac formula. The Gift shops in the resorts also carry a more limited selection of the Good start formula but as mentioned at quite inflated prices - you can go right outside the gates of DTD to Goodings and they'll have a bigger selection of all brands but again Goodings is quite pricey - but convenient. For your best bet for prices if you'll have a car go to either Publix or Wal-mart -- they're outside WDW but not too terribly far from what I understand. I'm sure someone will come and post exact locations for you. If you can bring your own powder type from home, you can make the bottles at the baby center or if you'll have HAFH accommodations you can make them in your room.

HTH's

 

[BevS97]

if you bring powder you can make a bottle anywhere - any room, anywhere in the parks - it's very very easy.

We brought a travel kettle to boil water, but I understand that not all american moms use boiled water.

Either way, fill your bottle with teh appropriate amount of water, and then either measure your formula in to a suitable container (there is one sold especially for the job but anything would work) or even easier, buy the formula that is sold in pre-measured sachets.

Just carry bottles and powder seperately - no need to refridgerate as it's only water, and when baby wants a bottle you can just pour the powder intothe water, shake it up, and hey presto instant bottle.

If you need warm bottles then put hot water in the bottles and keep them in a seperate cool bag, which will have the opposite effect and insulate them, so the water will stay warm for most of the day

 

[Neecoal]

We traveled to the FL Keys when my son was 6 months and we drove from NJ, powdered formula was a lifesaver. We used bottled water at room temp. and the powder dispenser (3 premeasured sections) We were also using Similac advance at the time and when we did need to buy a new canister we did have to go to several stores. Also, you can purchase a bottle warmer for the car, it is a little sleeve that slides over the bottle and plugs in to the cig. lighter, I'm sure you could get one for the room with an adapter, but our son was fine with the room temp. bottle. Hope this advise was helpful and not just rambling.
Nicole

 

[petchie]

Didn't you find the powder was clumpy if you didn't boil the water? I always just brought the small cans if ready to feed

 

[ahutton]

It has been a while, so I may not be exact... I believe the "short" can of formula was between $15-17, very expensive. If I recall right the same size can was $9 at our home grocery store, and it is about $7 at Wal Mart or Target. We bring powder from home and then buy a case of water at the store to mix it. I also add a very small amount of hot water from the restaurant we are at (they've always been glad to bring a tea pot when I ask) when I've needed it warmed up.

 

[DissyLove]

We were there last year and used the baby centers at each park to feed the baby, and they did have baby food, supplies like diapers etc. and formula available-they must have a thing with the Nestle company because it is true they have Carnation formula everywhere-but we used Similac Advance and it was available there. I would call and check before you go to be sure. I don't recall the cost however.

 

[shafke]

Originally posted by petchie
Didn't you find the powder was clumpy if you didn't boil the water? I always just brought the small cans if ready to feed

If the water is cold it can be clumpy. Room temp or higher (from a few hours in the FL heat) and it should be OK. You can buy a little dispenser that you can premeasure the powder into for later use.

 

[BevS97]

the formula I use here at home (SMA Gold) is totally fine with even very cold water, but the formula we bought in Walgreens was a little clumpy - I can't remember the name but I wasn't impressed with it.

We are told to mix our formula with cold water anyway (boil kettle, let it cool, then mix bottle and refridgerate until needed when it should be rewarmed - I don't do most of that , but that's what it says on the tin)

 

[sandyluvsdisney]

I also use Similac Advance and this coming Feb will be my 1st trip with my DD so what i plan to do is bring the powder and mix it with the water when she needs to have a bottle, I'll just carry the water with me, also i plan to bring the disposable bags that u use for breast milk so that way i don't have to keep washing the bottle, since i won't be able to sterilize it, i can just use a bag and then get rid of it once she is done.
I will report more when i come back from my trip to see if this idea actually worked the way i hope it does.

 

[dmonroe]

We're going soon with our 6 mo. son. We've been trying to decide what to do about the formula too! He absolutely will not take the powdered stuff (we use Enfamil, and it always seems grainy) Anyway, we're driving so taking formula is not a problem; but our friends are flying and they are shipping their stuff to their hotel before they arrive. My biggest concern was keeping the bottles cold in the parks, and then having to go heat them up when he's ready for them (he'll do room temp, but not cold). I think we have decided to bite the bullet and order the premade bottles from the Enfamil website (similac has them too). They cost ALOT more; but we decided for the convenience it would be worth it for just one week. That way we can just throw however many bottles we need in the bag and give them to him when he's ready. No keeping anything cold or warming anything up! What ever kind of formula you use, I would definitely look into shipping it to your hotel ahead of time. HTH and have a great trip!

 

[swilshire]

I raised four kids on powdered Similac and loved it! If you shake it well, it's never lumpy, even if done with room temp water (which we always did). The only thing I did special, after they were past the age where the doc said boil the water but were still small, was bring our own water from home in a jug. Not that we had great water, but it seemed that differences in water could sometimes cause a stomach upset. Once they were a bit older, I didn't even bother with that. We just filled the bottles with water, then spooned in the powder when they were ready to eat.

Sheila

 

[gigi1313]

if you breastfeed then all of this is a non-issue

what i did when i used powder formula was to bring a long spoon (old fashioned iced tea spoon) w/me and used that to stir the bottles... i found that all the intense shaking added air to the formula and made the baby gassier...

 

[LynnTH]

It's been a few years. But, when we went we packed a can of formula to use in the room but then we always used those Enfimal Individual Packets of Powder when we went to the park. They fit easy in the diaper bags and you just put them in the bottle and add water. It was quite easy and not so heavy to carry around.

 

[Chip126]

Thank you for all your responses. I think my plan will be to bring the powder and room temperature bottled water with me to the parks. I will then use the ready to feed at night (my son seems to do better on the ready to feed - I think it's the consistency).

I was just a little concerned about how much to bring with me. I certainly would not want to run out and not have anywhere on property to buy more. I guess I will just make sure I do some really good pre-planning and bring more than enough.

Thanks again,
Kim

 

[DizneyKaren]

An advantage of bringing a child still in diapers and drinking formula is that you know there will be more room in the luggage for the return trip. When we took DD traveling as an infant, it was nice to be able to use the now empty space for souvenirs and all those other odds and ends that seem to accumulate on any trip. One suggestion I might make if you are concerned about space in your luggage for the trip to WDW - put the powdered formula in a large ziploc bag (double bagged if you're concerned about it getting out). The cans always seem to have a lot of empty space in them from the powder settling. Their shape also makes them a bit bulkier to pack.