Sleep issue of the day

ktibbits1

There seems to be a different challenge every day! Is there such a thing as too much sleep? My twins are 11 weeks old and have been sleeping almost all day so far! They've woken up for a bottle and then gone right back to sleep.

Last night my son was up every two hours for a feeding (usually will go three) and my daughter would only sleep on DH, she'd cry in the crib but fall asleep the moment she was picked up. Both had great naps in their crib or pack n play yesterday, so I'm not sure if they slept too much during the day?
We are in no kind of routine yet, should we be? I'm starting to feel like I got us off on the wrong foot...

MrsP419

Hang in there!  It is so hard in the beginning to figure out a schedule, even without twins.  The short answer: No, I don't think you need a routine yet.  

I don't think they can sleep too much during the day, but I think it is possible to get day and nights confused.  My girls go to bed around 7.  At 6 they get a bottle, then jammies, then sometimes I nurse them before bed.  They do not have that same routine for naps- naptime the just get their binkie, their lovey, and their music.  Maybe having a different pre-bed routine vs pre-nap routine would help?

I personally (with my two singletons and with my twins), spent the first 3 months or so just watching the babies' patterns.  I would try to keep them awake a bit after eating during the day, but did not really push it.  They ate every 1.5-2.5 hours during the day at that point.  I would say around 3-4 months, I started taking the information I gathered (for example, did they tend to take their longest nap within a specific hour of the day?  Did they clusterfeed between 5-7?), and tried a rough "eat, play, sleep" schedule from there.  I would not say even now they eat and sleep at the same times every day, but the pattern now (at 7 months) is wake up, eat, play for 1.5-2 hours, sleep for 1.5-2 hours.  
Good luck!!!  I hope this helped some.  I promise they will sleep eventually, and hopefully SOON!

carrotcake06

quinncat said:

We are just now getting a nap routine down at 6 months. Before that, I just went with their cues. I did try to start a bedtime routine early, but that was about it. They still feed on demand. I just try to get them to nap at certain times of the day.

All of this. It will fall into place between 6-8months. Until then, go with the flow. There's no harm in looking for patterns and then encouraging them, but there likely won't be anything consistent for a couple more months.

chrissynena

I'm so glad you asked this. I was logging on to ask almost the same thing.

Not to hijack your thread, but can someone remind me how long before I don't have to wake for feedings anymore? I know the general rule of thumb is after they've gained their birth weight back (which they have plus 2 lbs) but I swear after the 7am feed they would sleep all day if I let them. I'm so afraid to let them because I don't want their days and nights to get mixed up. They do pretty good at night, but they also wake up and let us know they are hungry. We struggle from 7pm to 12-1 at night (their witching hour I assume).

Again sorry to hijack

MrsP419

chrissynena said:

I'm so glad you asked this. I was logging on to ask almost the same thing. Not to hijack your thread, but can someone remind me how long before I don't have to wake for feedings anymore? I know the general rule of thumb is after they've gained their birth weight back (which they have plus 2 lbs) but I swear after the 7am feed they would sleep all day if I let them. I'm so afraid to let them because I don't want their days and nights to get mixed up. They do pretty good at night, but they also wake up and let us know they are hungry. We struggle from 7pm to 12-1 at night (their witching hour I assume). Again sorry to hijack

My personal rule back then would be to not let them go past 3 hours during the day.  Now, I let mine go 3-4, but they are 7 months old.  Back when they were under 4 months, it took work to stretch them to 3 hours between feeds, but it ultimately made them eat and sleep better.

I would not freak out if you do accidentally let them sleep long or anything.  Sometimes they just need a long sleep during a growing period!

ktibbits1

Thanks ladies, that makes me feel better! This twin thing is tricky, and they're my firsts so I never really know what to expect. I guess I should be happy when they sleep at all, today they aren't sleeping longer than 30 minutes at a time...