Two Newborns Q and A

Today is the twins one month birthday! We did it, we have survived a full month! I decided to write a post answering the 5 most common questions I've been asked so far about life with two newborns, plus asking a few questions myself from all you experienced mommies.

Lydia's sad face makes me laugh

Eden has a good sad face too

Question: Are you getting any sleep? How often are the babies up?
Answer: Sleep? What is that? Just kidding, I know night times could be so much worse than they are. The girls are usually up only once or twice a night depending on how the day went. On a good night, they will go down around 11:00 and only get up around 3:30 and then not again until 7:30. If their schedule has been off during the day, they will probably be up around 1:30 and 5:30. I don't mind waking up once or twice a night to feed them. The problem is when they don't want to go back to sleep! They still haven't quite figured out the difference between day and night and some nights, one or both of them refuses to go back to sleep for hours! Other nights, they are perfect angels and go right back to sleep after eating, so I just never know what kind of night to expect. Any advice for getting a wide-eyed baby back to sleep in the middle of the night?

Question: Are you breastfeeding or bottle feeding?
Answer: Breastfeeding 98% of the time but with an occasional bottle here and there. I do believe the mantra breast is best, but I'm also not a crunchy mama who vows to never let formula cross my babies' lips. However, my insurance did send me a brand new fancy breast pump last week that I've just started using. Now even when they get a bottle it will be breastmilk. We still have quite a bit of formula that we got as free samples, so I'm sure we will use that at some point and then hopefully we won't really have to buy any more. Not that I'm opposed to using formula, I'm opposed to spending money when I have the free milk bank right here! I was very concerned in the beginning about not being able to breastfeed two babies and have been super excited that it has worked out so far. My only problem is the babies had a hard time latching in the beginning so the hospital gave me some breast shields to help. Now the girls are hooked and won't nurse without them. Any advice on weaning off the shields?

Question: Do you have any sort of schedule or routine?
Answer: Yes and no. While in the hospital, they got on a good schedule eating every 3 hours. Since coming home, they've done pretty well at staying on that schedule during the daytime. Now that's not to say they don't have crazy days where they are starving every hour or two. On those days, the schedule goes out the window. It's more important to me to have babies that are happy and growing then to stick to a rigid schedule at all costs and have them screaming at me because they're hungry. The most challenging part of our routine is keeping both girls on the same schedule. When one baby wakes up to eat, it kills me to wake up the other one who is sleeping so peacefully. But I know if I don't, I will end up being a 24 hour milk machine! I'm trying to start getting them into the E.A.S.Y. routine. (Eat, Activity, Sleep, Your Time). Right now, my question is what do you do for activity time when they are this young and not very interactive yet?

Question: Do you always dress them alike?
Answer: There are two camps among moms of multiples. Those who think every outfit you buy should be matching and those who believe you are going to damage your children's identities by dressing them alike. Well my kids already have their own personalities, trust me, so I'm not worried about that. I do dress them alike sometimes because we've been given some super cute matching outfits from people. I'll probably buy them coordinating outfits sometimes too, but as of now I'm too cheap and the only clothes I've bought them have come from garage sales and consignment stores so they don't match.

Question: Is it what you expected it to be?
Answer: No. Despite my countless hours of research, I could never have anticipated what it would be like to raise twins, but I'm loving every moment of it. Well maybe not the moments where I get peed, pooped, or thrown up on :)

Twin Newborn Photos

While my mom was here, she took some beautiful newborn pictures. They turned out great! It's hard to believe our sweet babies will be 3 weeks old tomorrow! It has been so fun to watch their little quirks and personalities emerge.

Eden is growing like a weed. When we left the hospital, she had dipped down to 4 lbs 14 oz but by her 2 week appointment, she was already up to 6 lbs 4 oz! While she is catching up to her sister, Nate still likes to call her Little Peanut. She is incredibly observant and when she is awake, she is wide eyed and eager to take everything in. She tends to make a squaking sound when she is trying to get your attention. She also sneezes frequently and loudly just like her dad. My mother in law swears she looks just like Nathan did as a baby.

 

Lydia is also growing well and is back up above birth weight. She was 7 lbs 8 oz at her 2 week visit. She has a "salmon mark" on her forehead and eyelid that her pediatrician says will fade over time but will be more prominent "when you piss her off." She also has a "stork bite" on her neck but it is hidden beneath her cute rat tail! I like to call her Snuggle Bug because she loves to wrap her arms around my neck and give me hugs. She tends to have a somber expression when she is awake but she also has frequent gas smiles that I like to pretend are real smiles. Her favorite sound to make is a cross between a grunt and a moan.

I am so blessed to be their mother and so excited to continue to watch them grow!