DS would happily take a bottle from DP's mum if we left him with her but wouldn't take one from DP. we used a cup a few times & that worked ok but if DS was in our house, then he wanted me (even if i wasn't home). we mostly used formula when i left him (it wasn't very often) & we had no problems with DS going back to the breast afterwards. i just didn't stick with expressing - i hated it. so i guess my point is that it's okay to have occasional FF if that works for you. i had grand plans to express & have a wonderful stash, but it just wasn't to be. my DS fed till he was 20 months so it didn't hamper our feeding journey in the slightest.

most of the time DS would come with us/me. i'm not a public feeder. this is nothing to do with the concept of feeding in public - i think that's great. i just have an issue with my boobs & having big boobs = the football hold = makes it difficult to feed without flashing! however, i still never had any problem finding somewhere (and no, never ever in a toilet!) private to feed DS. i say this because as wonderful as feeding in public is, it's not for everyone & i don't want people to think that they can't still manage to get out & about. i happily fed DS in the car & quickly worked out which shopping centres had nice parents rooms for feeding. if you are using the football hold, the fold down thingy in the middle of the back seat is useful for feeding (on whichever side the car seat isn't)

and while it all may seem overwhelming at the start, in hindsight those early months actually pass very quickly & soon enough they're eating solids & you don't need to time outings quite so carefully!