Infant feeding aid apparatus and method

An apparatus for aiding feeding of an infant with a baby bottle while the infant is placed face-up on a substantially planar feeding surface with its torso in a substantially prone position, said torso defined in-part by a front and two sides, comprising:

• base adapted to conform in shape to the front and sides of the torso of the infant during bottle feeding when the infant is placed prone and face-up on said feeding surface, including:
• (a) a center section for placement across the front of the torso of the infant during feeding;
• (b) a flexible first anchor section coupled to said center section, and having a hollow central compartment filled in-part with heavy mobile particles, for placement along the side of the torso of the infant at an angle with said feeding surface during feeding with said heavy mobile particles substantially accumulated by force of gravity at a lower region of said compartment;
• (c) a flexible second anchor section coupled to said center section opposite from and axially aligned with said first anchor section, having a hollow central compartment filled in-part with heavy mobile particles, for placement along the side of the torso of the infant at an angle with said feeding surface during feeding with said heavy mobile particles substantially accumulated by force of gravity at a lower region of said central compartment, wherein said first and second anchor sections cooperate to anchor the apparatus to said feeding surface, to secure said center section in position across the torso of the infant, and to minimize side-to-side movement thereof, while minimizing the amount of weight placed on the infant's torso;
• a cushion substantially filled with lightweight, compressible, resilient filler material;
• a strap having an inner surface, an outer surface, and two ends, secured at each end to said cushion but unconnected to said cushion between said ends, wherein a clearance is provided between said strap and said cushion, said clearance being adapted in size to accommodate said bottle therebetween when said resilient filler material is compressed, and wherein said bottle is held in position between said strap and said cushion by pressure from said resilient filler material of said cushion;
• and
• means for releasably fastening said outer surface of said strap to said center section of said base.

A dual purpose apparatus for aiding in bottle feeding an infant while the infant is placed face-up on a substantially planar feeding surface with its torso in a substantially prone position, said torso defined in-part by a front and two sides, and for aiding in burping an infant while the infant is held upright by a handler against the front of the handler's shoulder with its face aligned over the back of the handler's shoulder, comprising:

• base adapted to conform in shape to the front and sides of the torso of the infant during bottle feeding when the infant is placed prone and face-up on said feeding surface, and adapted to conform in shape to the handler's shoulder during the burping of the infant while the infant is held upright by the handler with its face aligned over the handler's shoulder, including:
• (a) a center cushion section substantially filled with lightweight compressible resilient filler material for placement across the front of the torso of the infant during feeding, and for placement between the front of the torso of the infant and the shoulder of the handler during burping;
• (b) a flexible first anchor section coupled to said center cushion section, and having a hollow central cavity filled in-part with heavy mobile particles, for placement along one side of the torso of the infant substantially perpendicular to said feeding surface during feeding with said heavy mobile particles substantially accumulated by force of gravity at a lower region of said central compartment, and for placement against the back of the handler's shoulder during burping with said heavy mobile particles substantially accumulated by force of gravity at a lower region of said central compartment;
• (c) a flexible second anchor section coupled to said center cushion section opposite said first anchor section and axially aligned with said first anchor section, having a hollow central compartment filled in-part with heavy mobile particles, for placement along the opposite side of the torso of the infant and substantially perpendicular to said feeding surface during feeding with said heavy mobile particles substantially accumulated by force of gravity at a lower region of said central compartment, and for placement along the front of the shoulder of the handler substantially aligned with said center cushion section during burping, wherein said first and second anchor sections cooperate to anchor said base to said feeding surface, secure said center cushion section in position across the torso of the infant, and minimize side-to-side movement thereof while minimizing the amount of weight placed on the infant's torso during feeding, and wherein said first and second anchor sections cooperate to secure said base about the handler's shoulder to minimize sliding of the base along the front and back of the handler's shoulder during burping;
• a cushion substantially filled with lightweight, compressible, resilient filler material;
• a strap having an inner surface, an outer surface, and two ends, secured at each end to said cushion but unconnected to said cushion between said ends, wherein a clearance is provided between said strap and said cushion, said clearance being adapted in size to accommodate said bottle therebetween when said resilient filler material is compressed, and wherein said bottle is held in position between said strap and said cushion by pressure from said resilient filler material of said cushion;
• means for releasably fastening said outer surface of said strap to said center section of said base;
• and
• wherein said base minimizes side-to-side movement of said bottle during feeding, and wherein said means for securing is releasably fastened to said base for use in feeding and is removed from said base prior to use in burping.