Double Trouble

[TwinMommy]

So I heard preschoolians shoes were great shoes. Plus if you have multiples they give you 40% off. Well I went to their website and almost dropped over at how much their shoes are!!! I mean $40 for kids shoes?! Are you kidding me! They outgrow them wicked fast! Crazy I tell you! I will stick to Target or second hand stores for sure!

I just woke up from a nap. DH stayed home from school and let me rest. Sad thing is I am still tired! UGH! And hungry, I must eat while the girls are asleep!

I think they are wanting to go 4 hours in the morning between feeds but then the rest of the day still every three...interesting.

[TwinMommy]

Ok seriously, they are trying to change their schedule on me and I do not know what to do!!! I do not like change! lol. They do not want to eat every three all the time now, but sometimes do. They are not napping as well either. They still need 4 naps a day to function at dinner time. When did yours go to a 4 hour feeding schedule?? If I do that it just goes into their naps so I just am at a loss of what to do! Because they can not stay awake for the 4 hour schedule or I would have some cranky babies!!

[tolbee]

Hi Twinmommy -- I don't remember exactly but my twins went to 4 hour schedule pretty early on like around 5 month? Everyhting is blurred in the early months and I don't remember much about how they reacted to the schedule change. Until about 2 months ago, they were still on 4 hr schedule and had four bottles per day, about 7 to 8 ounces each. Now that they eat more solid, they are on 3 bottles and I am planning to gradually elimnate the second bottle in the afternoon (eventually will be milk from sippy cup). When it comes to schedules, they are the boss so I would just go with the flow... Maybe they are not ready yet for 4 hour schedule during the day? or would they take more quantity and be ok with four? I also do not like when they change their schedule on me. Alyson's been fighting the morning naps and I guess I have to figure out something here. If one baby, it's easy but when there are two it's not!

How is everyone else? I haven't had good sleep at night lately. I think just being in the third trimester is taking a toll. My vericose vain (sp?) is getting very bad as well. It's very gross looking and it runs all the way up to my upper thigh. I am going to ask my OB about it next Wed. Who knows maybe he'll write me up a bed rest order and I can take my short term disability benefit from my company. whooohooo! That would be good. But really anything to keep my baby and myself healthy.

Kimberly -- that's a good tip about the mittens. I will have to try that next winter. Your kiddos snow outfits are so cute! All matching and everything. Seven kids!! That is so funny. I had a friend of mine from colleage come over yesterday and he was giving me a hard time about the row of high chairs we have in the dining room. It's so busy and tiring at times (well all the time maybe) as you know but having 3 children is very rewarding. I think you'll have a lot of fun with yours.

Kim -- Thanks for checking out my blog. My MIL bought Sean's mittens from Landsend.com and I don't think they make them anymore but they have a velcro opening on the back of the mitten which makes it so much easier to put the little hands in. I looked for them for my twins online but I could not find them on their website anymore. Sorry about the snow. I bet you are ready to ditch it! Spring cannot come fast enough for us, either. The rain, gray sky, kids runnng in circles indoors... we had enough or them.

On different topic, do you guys go out to eat with your babies/toddlers?
We went out last night to a popular Chinese place and it went ok in the end but Sean was throwing food on the floor, Alyson wont' sit on the highchair and Noah was mostly quiet (thank goodness) but made a huge mess with fried rice. It went ok but I certainly didn't have fun trying to keep things under control. It was much easier when the twins would just stare at the ceiling in their infant carseat, but those days are over. I guess we just have to do take outs from now on?

Well, I better log off now and make twins' lunch.

Enjoy the rest of sunday!

K

[kholtan]

Kimi~ Dining out. . . . Well, we do try to do it every now and then but really it's not fun for me because it's so busy. When we were on our 2 week vacation to southern California we ate out a lot and it was managable but I'm pretty armed with loot! Books, small toys, snacks, cups, ect. . . My kids also make a mess and I just try to leave things in an order that they will let me come back!
I hope your vv's and sleep start getting better! Did you have that problem before? It's nice that you work for a company and can get short term disability. I would take it for sure if I could and had any reason to need it! Keep us posted.

Twinmommy~ Like Kimi said, it's hard to remember what exactly happened and when. I do know that I put mine on the three meal a day with solids ASAP and nursed them before,in between, and after for a while. I also gave mine sippy cups with water to practice with early on as well while we were eating. They never really drank much out of them but at the year mark they loved milk and the transition was easy as pie. Not sure how to help really at all! I would say to push them a little into a schedule if they aren't showing you a consistant one as of yet though.
Good luck!

Just got home from my nephew's birthday party. . . WHEW! He turned 3 and a house full of 3 yr. old's is far crazier than a house with twins of any age! I'm pretty sure of that!

[TwinMommy]

tolbee: We do not go out with the girls. We did it once and ended up having to hold them so they would not cry. So we may do it once they are eating dinner with us.

Well they are on the three hour at the moment but here is what happens....

7-7:30AM (when they wake up) they eat 5 or 6 oz.
10AM they eat 2 oz
1PM they eat 4-6 oz
4PM maybe 2 oz again (Kenzie sometimes does not eat an ounce!)
6:30 pm half a can of solids for each and 4 oz.
10PM 6 oz
3Am 4 oz is all I will allow

So do you think they would eat more if I spread it out to 4? I mean when they have a big bottle at one feed, the next they hardly want to eat unless they are going through a growth spurt.

My thing is this...they still nap a lot. So I do not know how to do naps on a 4 hour schedule. Any ideas?? I mean they take an hour nap in the morning then 2 hour nap at 10AM then 2 hour nap at 1PM then 30 minutes or so at 5PM. Tonight they did not nap at 5PM so they ate at 6PM and then did baths and story then bed.


I am rambling and probably not making sense. Mackenzie scared the poop out of me this morning at 5AM. It sounded like she had the hiccups but then I realized that was her breathing!! I got her out of bed and put her in bed with me (something I NEVER do but I was scared) and she would pause every so often but pick up her breathing again. So I could not sleep real well because I was scared she was going to die in her sleep and stop breathing. So I probably will not sleep well again tonight because I will check on her so much to make sure everything is ok.

I am fighting a cold. I am doing the Zycam again to see if it works again and I pray it does. I do not want to get the girls sick!

So I need to work on their schedule. They were right to the clock before so I do not know what is going on!!!

[kholtan]

Twin mommy~ Quickly, it looks to me like they are snacking all day. . and night. They have great weights and are certainly old enough to go all night and be able to spread out their feedings a bit more. If it were me, I would simply refuse any food at all at 3 am. Zip! They are getting you up out of habit and not need at this point IMO. At this age my kids went to bed at 7 and got up at 7 like clock work and they actually still do to this day. All that has changed is our nap schedule. Everyone is different but I initiated my kids schedule when they were little and stuck with it. It payed off for me and is what I truly think contrubuted to my kids being such great sleepers. I think dropping your night time feeding will help them to eat more in the morning and help throughout the day. I would also add more solids. I hope it all works better for you soon! Keep us posted!

[buckeyegal]

Kimi--We do take our kids out to eat...usually once a week or so. I think the more you do it, the more they get used to the expectations. I always have little snacks and toys and crayons on hand. Some meals are better than others...although, I only have two kiddos to deal with. I don't know what I'd do if there was another child to keep in line!

Suga--I am pretty sure by the time my kiddos were six months, they would do a morning bottle and a solid. Then 3 or 4 hours later, do another bottle and solid (like lunch time), then another 3 hours a bottle, and then a dinner bottle/solids. Around 6 or 7 months, their schedule started to look like a "normal" meal schedule--breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner. I agree with Kholtan--I was not feeding my kids at 3 am...sounds like the girls have learned the habit. I have no advice for you on that one. Sorry! I would try to drop that last nap. It means you'll have to put them to bed a little earlier, but I think you'll like that! Like Kholtan, by that age, my kids were going to bed around 7 or 7:30 and sleeping until 6 or 7. Good luck!

[TwinMommy]

What time did you feed them though? Because I put them to bed at 7 and they eat at 6:30ish usually then go straight to bed. What was your bed time routine? Should I bathe them first then eat or eat then bed? Well, I can make them cry it out at night I suppose. So should I drop the dream feed as well at 10PM?? And you are right, they are snacking during the day. Tomorrow I will start the 4 hour schedule to get them on it then once they are used to that maybe nip the 3AM feed? Or should I do it all at once? Plus when should I make them nap? So confusing! Would one of you like to put a sample schedule together for me ?! haha. They wake up and go to bed at 7...at least that is the same every day!!!

So I should not even take into effect that they are preemie and only 4 1/2 months old?? I mean they do weigh like 16 lbs each! Ok bed time for me!

[buckeyegal]

Suga--Do you have the BABYWISE book? If so, look at that for a schedule. Since mine were sleeping through the night at 10 weeks, I don't see why your girls (even if they are 4 1/2 months adjusted) couldn't be sleeping through. Your girls are old enough and big enough to sleep through...and they are also old enough to know that they "want" something instead of "need" something, you know?

I can't remember my exact schedule...too long ago!

But, from what I can think:

-They usually woke up around 7...ate a bottle and had some cereal/fruit

Took a nap around 10 o'clock or so.

Ate lunch when they woke up. (Maybe 11:30 or so?) Another bottle, some fruit and veggies.

Before their nap, I'd usually give them a bottle.
Took another nap around 3? Maybe nap until about 4:30 or 5?

We'd eat dinner around 5:30 or so. After dinner, we'd play, do a bath, and then go to bed around 7 or 7:30?

I don't really remember ever being on a strict 4 hour schedule. I think for us it varied from 3 to 4 hours.

Hope this helps!

[TwinMommy]

Yeah I JUST looked it up...here is one they say once they are on a 4 hour schedule...

7:30 bottle/solids
8:50 nap
11:30 bottle/solids
1:00 nap
3:30 bottle
5:00 nap
6:30 bottle/solids

And now that I look at that actually....they have been trying to go to that and I would not let them! I wanted them to stay with what we have been doing not realizing that they were ready to stay awake longer and eat longer periods...DUMB me!!

I was wondering why they cried so bad when I put them to bed at 8:15 for nap then would only nap for 30 minutes...they were not ready to go back to bed...humph! I will start this tomorrow and see how it goes...

[kholtan]

Suga~ I would try that schedule for sure. Since teh indtroduction of soilds at 6 months I have always done meals at 7:30, 12, and 5. They use to snack in between meals but then I found mine ate much better with no snack and just a liquid (bfed or milk now). Let us know how it goes.

[TwinMommy]

K So I can not get them to nap longer than 45 minutes at that first morning nap then they have a hard time staying awake till 11AM to eat. And when they are tired they do not eat. So today I did 3.5 hours and that worked good with Brooke (she ate everything) but Kenzie a no go. I do not know if it is also because Kenzie is getting the cold I have or what.

Also I did solids and a bottle for breakfast but they have a hard time with solids still. They just are not good eaters of solids. I mean I know I have to work on it with them but they hardly get any solids at this point.

I have a bad cold. I do not want to do anything!!!

[courtney]

Suga~What a huge bummer you are sick. I am so sorry. I cannot imagine making it through our schedules while having a cold...ugh, the worst! And it so hard with two, very different individuals. I tried a 4 hour schedule for one day, and was punished for the next two! Clearly, they were not ready. Patience is not a virtue of mine!! Hang in there. I wish I could be of help, but we are only two months over here!!!!

Kimi~We do take ours out, but at two months we are still in the staring out the window stage! Hopefully, we can get them accustomed to going out...I hate being in the house all day, every day.

kholtan~I love what you put on your blog about your dad. I am such a daddy's girl too. Are you two in the same city? My dad lives in Destin, FL and is about to move to Tampa...even further away. I cried like I was 10 years old when he told me!!! Didnt you live in Tampa at some point??

[TwinMommy]

Courtney: Yeah I do not think mine are ready for 4 hours. With their reflux if they eat too much I get it all back on me! lol. I think 3.5 is the one that will work...it seems to be at the moment anyways. I just need to work out naps now! Gosh 2 months...is time flying yet?

I have to go buy formula...something I dread. But I think I will get some chocolate while I am out

[buckeyegal]

Suga--be patient with it. It might take them several days to get used to it! Oh, and if they do have colds---yeah, that will make ANY schedule harder. Good luck! Colds SUCK when they're little, but they do get better! Colds don't seem to be nearly as bad these days as they were when E and B were drinking bottles or bfing. Hang in there!

Kholtan--Your dad is so sweet! He got you a new camera! Oh, the new pics look great! What kind did you get? I'm trying to save up for a new one (SLR fancy type)...my little Olympus is just too slow to catch my kids in action! I'd love any advice you can give!

Well, I'm ticked at my DH today. Anyone want a new one? I wanted to sign the kids up for swim lessons at our Rec center. We did it last year, and they LOVED it! Of course, with twins, you need one adult per child. Well, DH informed me that he did NOT want to do lessons this year. Argggh. So, I called my dad....and HE's going to do the lessons with us! THank God for grandpa! Now my DH is acting all pissy.....I gave him the chance to do it with us, but now I think he's embarassed that my dad has to step in. Serves him right, I say! At least when the kids are older, I won't need to depend on anyone for these types of activities. Right?