“My babysitter breastfeeds my baby while I’m at work”

Leann Harris is more than happy for her friend to go that extra mile when looking after her daughter

um Leann Harris M is passionate about breastfeeding and believes she’s got the perfect friend in Chloe Witcombe – because she’s agreed to breastfeed Leann’s six-monthold baby while she is at work.

Chloe, 26, is nursing her own two-year-old son Rudy, but has also agreed to wet nurse baby Effie. And despite Leann’s family and friends having mixed feelings about the arrangement, she’s adamant it works.

BACK TO WORK

Photographer Leann, 26, who also has three-year-old daughter Cornelia, says: “I was worried about going back to work and having to express milk because Effie hates the bottle. She also has a dairy allergy and can’t drink formula. I was already friends with Chloe, so when she offered to babysit and breastfeed my baby it was the perfect option.

“I go back to work at the end of the month, but Chloe has started to look after her and nurse her whenever I need her to. My partner was a bit sceptical about it and some of my friends aren’t that keen but I’m doing what’s best for Effie.”

Chloe – who has decided to become a vegan because of Effie’s dairy intolerance – adds: “It feels natural feeding Effie. My grandma was a wet nurse so I think it’s a great thing to do. Effie feeds from the right breast and my son Rudy feeds from the left. I don’t run out of milk and, luckily, Rudy doesn’t get jealous.”

Chloe and Leann, both from the West Midlands, first met at a breastfeeding support group in August.

Leann, who lives with her partner, photographer Brett, adds: “Nursing a baby creates such an amazing bond with your child. I fed my eldest until she self-weaned at 19 months, but I wasn’t ready to stop. Chloe shares my passionate view about breastfeeding and we started meeting up with our children.”

EXPRESSING MILK

But when Leann started to think about returning to work parttime she panicked.

She explains: “I usually work 16 hours a week – so I’d need to express some milk. But Effie has never wanted to take the bottle so I knew it was going to be hard.

“One day I was at Chloe’s house and asked her to keep an eye on Effie when I took Cornelia to the toilet. Effie had started crying and when I came back Chloe was holding her and said: ‘I nearly breastfed Effie then.’ It felt like the most natural thing in the world for her to do.

“We started talking about wet nursing and I thought it was a good idea. I wasn’t worried about it affecting my bond with Effie.”

IDEAL SOLUTION

She adds: “Chloe was setting up as a nanny and offered to babysit and breastfeed Effie when I was at work. It was the perfect solution.”

Leann will return to work at the end of the month, but Chloe has already started helping out.

But not everyone is thrilled with the set up.

She says: “Brett isn’t so probreastfeeding because he wants to be able to bottle feed Effie so it can help him bond more. I told him what I had decided to do and he wasn’t thrilled, but agreed. Some of my friends couldn’t understand why I would feed my daughter another person’s milk.

“But if it wasn’t for Chloe I don’t think I’d have been able to return to work. She’s the perfect childminder.”