9 Weeks Old

All in all, this has been super fun. I am really enjoying myself and my husband is, too. It is SO much better than I thought it was going to be. Yes it is hard, yes I am sleep deprived, yes there are moments where I want to SCREAM AND GET AWAY from these two babies, but overall I feel extremely positive. It is exactly and presicely like everyone who has raised a child has said: it's by far the hardest thing I've ever done, and by far the most gratifying.

We have been very lucky to have family helping, even though our families live far away from us. My mom was here for nearly 3 weeks and then Hubs' mom or 2 weeks, and now Hub's sister. All have been cooking up a storm, feeding us well, doing tons of baby duty (and doodie) and really connecting with their grandchildren/niece/nephew. (doesn't hurt that Hubs' mom is a former L & D nurse!) And Hubs works from home so is always "on call" - but he's actually been able to work out in his office.

The babelets are smiling like crazy and developing at light speed. Girl is kicking her feet like she's in spinning class, and spent the majority of yesterday awake and happily alert. Boy is also spending a lot more time awake and smiling up a storm. He is also laughing on occasion, though he's still working out the exact sound he wants to make. Both respond like crazy to facial expressions, music, textures on their skin.

At their 2 month pediatrician visit they weighed 11lbs8oz and 11lbs2oz. They got their first round of immunization shots, which, of course, wasn't pleasant. However, neither got a fever or displayed much discomfort afterwards.

They are sometimes sleeping longer at night - up to 4 hour stretches. Or at least they WERE. Hubs decided to take them out the other night for a short jaunt to an outdoor concert thing to meet up with some friends. He wasn't there for long, but he went at just the time that we've been putting them down at night (around 7-ish, depending on where feeding is falling). They reportedly slept most of the time in their car seats, but nevertheless, they now seem rather confused about night/day and it seems like they've reverted a bit.

Has anyone experienced this? Is it terrible to think of ever taking babies to a restaurant during the time that might be their bedtime? Must we be tied to the house on schedule or risk the consequences of having them messed up for a week afterwards? Or is it just that they are little and not grasping the "program" quite yet?

We don't have them on a "schedule" - we're still basically on demand led by the first baby to request the boob. But they do seem to be falling into a fairly predictable pattern. We'd like to get them to go to sleep in their crib around 7PM and stay there (coming out for feedings) until the morning feed, which seems to be around 6:30AM. Usually what happens is we do evening feeding, bath time (they love it), then try to settle them down. More times than not, they will nap for about 1/2 hour and then wake back up, only to remain so until the next feeding (basically 3 hourslater at like 10PM). It's like they want one more Awake cycle. Sometimes, that's the end of it and they're down, other times.... not so much.

Advice? How can we encourage flexibility yet give them the predictable routine that kids take comfort in?

One Month Old

SO sorry for longtime between posts, but... heck, you can imagine why!

Things are going really very well with our baby boy and baby girl. They are both lovely and cute and very different in personality and looks. I wish I felt comfortable publishing photos on the internet here, but I just don't. Seems like a breech of their privacy. So believe me when I say, they are cute :)

Breast feeding is still going really well. Tandem about 98% of the time. It's the only way to have some breathing space in-between! But I'd love some advice from you other twin parents... I sometimes feel so bad waking up the baby who is still asleep in order to get them going at the same time - is this in any way bad for the babies? I feel like I'm force-feeding the one who wasn't ready yet and/or disrupting his or her sleep cycle. I mean, neither baby seems to mind being offered the boob at any time (they basically love it)... advice?

We've introduced a bottle once per night, which gives me a 4-5 hour chunk of sleep. It makes a big difference. That and the fact that my husband is awesome - VP of Sanitation Services (ie: diaper man) and he is a very good baby-comforter. My mom is also helping during the day. One thing is for sure - twins require more than one adult. It's just too much for one person.

The babies are starting to really see us. It's fun! No smiles yet, of course, except for those gassy sleep smiles, but they are a window into what will come. Pediatrician tomorrow to see how they're doing at 1 month mark. They are getting fat, I can tell you that!