Non-Tandem EBF Twin Schedule - 5 Months

lisalynnmama

hi everyone! I am trying to get a grip on my daily routine a little bit and wondered where everyone else was. My girls refuse to tandem nurse and I EBF. I would love to get them to take naps at the same time and to go to bed at the same time. Is this possible without pumping/bottles or tandem nursing?

I definitely want to keep nursing them but I would also really like to get out the house!

MrsP419

How long do they take to eat (each) and how long can they go in between?  I would be happy to share what worked for us with you (I still tandemed back then, I think, but it should not make a big difference).

lisalynnmama

Thanks for responding @MrsP419 my girls are six months old today and can each nurse for up to an hour at a time. Sometimes it is less. I am going 3.5 to 4 hours between feedings. So I am doing 5 feedings a day.

twinmom1121

I ebf my twins, rarely tandem nursed (before bed and in the mornings) and we got them on the same schedule by 4ish months! My boys ate pretty fast though (10-15 min sessions). We got out of the house a lot too, but I definitely had to plan the trips out around the feedings. Just remember one up both up during nap times and bed times. Try not to let one sleep much later than the other and eventually they will go down together and wake up around the same time.

basil2

We did some nap training just after 6 months- our naps had become very haphazard- in the bouncy seat/ on my lap etc - we transitioned to the cribs upstairs- they fussed some initially but eventually settled into a nap routine really well.
I usually tandem feed when they're really hungry (often at bed/nap time), but now that they're mobile sometimes they're too easily distracted and I have to do one at a time. I'll nurse one, then the other, then do a book and bed for both.
Are you nursing them to sleep? Your issue may be one of needing them to learn to fall asleep on their own.
Good luck!

spoonleg

Mine are 4 months old and we EBF, not tandem. I find nursing them individually more comfortable, but it's not too difficult because they only spend about 10-15 minutes nursing each. I feed and burp baby A, then set him in his Rock N Play to hopefully prevent any spitting up. Repeat for baby B. Try to keep them up/play for about an hour or until they show tiredness cues (eye rubbing, whining). Then swaddle and rock baby A for about 5 minutes, put in crib. Repeat for baby B. They only nap for about 30-40 minutes at a time, unfortunately. Right now they're taking 3 or 4 naps per day.