BF MoMs of twins

SmallCityLiving

What is your routine for feeding/changing babies? Right now DH is home so he changes and brings me babies to nurse and burps in between. I can't figure out how to do it on my own though so would love to know your routine. I can tandem feed but my smaller baby typically needs a bottle of breast milk after feeding too.

I'm hoping to allow DH to sleep through a feeding at night too once he goes back to work but have to figure out the logistics first. Thanks for any help!

carrotcake06

I tandem almost exclusively using the MBF pillow and sitting on my bed. In the beginning, I would set both babies on the bed, put one on one side and then the other and then latch them. When they were super tiny, I was able to pull one out and burp while the other stayed latched.

H would change and bring them to me MOTN and then fall back to sleep while I was feeding them. I'd wake him up to help me put them back, so he actually got quite a bit more sleep than I did - it was just punctuated w 2 quick wake ups. I was the one up for an hour feeding them.

TheDairyQueenx3

I haven't ever had help from my DH so I fell into my routine from day one. Basically as soon as the fuss I pick one up with one hand pick the other up with the opposite hand lay them on my lap ( sometimes with a pillow sometimes without) unsnap my top and latch them on. I burp and the change as soon as they are done and we are good to go. I go off of their hunger cues and try not to get too caught up in a routine. I find I can do it all faster by myself. As soon as they are done feeding I hold them to my shoulder and "hug them" and bounce a little they burp I lay them down and unsnap each baby take off both diapers then put new on snap back up and back to sleep. Whole process takes about 25 minutes. First few weeks it took about 45.

ETA sorry for the horrible formatting I'm movie bumping and nursing them as I type this.

twinmom1121

I've pretty much done it all by myself too. We did feed on demand when they were younger but now I try to make sure they eat every 3-4 hours (they are 4 months now). Our routine in the morning is get one up, change and get dressed, get the other one up, changed and dressed and take them both to my room to tandem. I usually only tandem in the morning and right before bed. I lay them on the bed, get my brestfriend nursing pillow on, sit on the bed and then move each baby on the pillow and then latch. When they are done, I burp one at a time. At nights it is just me too since I am BFing there is really nothing for my H to do. I get the crying baby up, change diaper and feed. Then same for the other one. Really the only time I need H help is if one wakes and cries while I'm in the middle of feeding the other one. It is definitely doable! My babies are fast eaters so I'm usually up for 30-45 mins in MOTN. Good luck!

seawater

It is hard to get used to doing it alone, especially if you have a very involved DH in the beginning.  I try to look for early hunger cues and start the whole process right away so I don't end up with two screaming babies.  I'm pretty lucky in that mine tend to want to eat about the same time as each other.  We do demand feed, but they tend to get hungry about every 3 hours.  I change before they eat unless I catch them a little late and they're starting to get impatient.  After diapers, set both up in a boppy on either side of me.  I also use My Brest Friend Twin nursing pillow.  I get myself set up with pillows/water/snack and then latch them on.  It definitely took some practice to be able to burp them alone.  Once they get a little bigger and less "floppy" it was easier.  Just move very slowly to unlatch one/put over shoulder and burp (move too fast the other one gets knocked off...ouch...) or wait until all done and burp one at a time like PP said.   

If one of your LOs needs a bottle after nursing, I'd nurse both until they're done and then put the first back in the boppy next to me and bottle feed the second.  But hopefully you'll get to the point where you won't have to do that anymore.  

Night time is like PP also.  I nurse (side-laying position once you get the hang of it is glorious) one at a time when the first one wakes.  Then hope and pray he'll finish before the other one wakes.  Just like PP the only time I wake DH is if one is crying before the other has finished.  But it is rare.  Usually I finish and have to wake the other up.  That way I'm not feeding every hour all night long.  

Sorry for the novel, I hope it helps!  It took us 5 months to get to the point where I feel like I have a hang of it so don't give up!  It's hard work but so worth it.  Good luck.  

megs2011

carrotcake06 said:

I tandem almost exclusively using the MBF pillow and sitting on my bed. In the beginning, I would set both babies on the bed, put one on one side and then the other and then latch them. When they were super tiny, I was able to pull one out and burp while the other stayed latched. H would change and bring them to me MOTN and then fall back to sleep while I was feeding them. I'd wake him up to help me put them back, so he actually got quite a bit more sleep than I did - it was just punctuated w 2 quick wake ups. I was the one up for an hour feeding them.

^^ I could have written this exactly.