6 month old twins and our day

Does anyone else feel like all they do is feed, change diapers and constantly pick up babies from swings, to exersaucer to jumeroo and spend very little "quality" time with your babies. I get very frustrated by mid afternoon.. this is my hardest time of the day

I think if I had them on a schedule it would help but we only have a night time schedule, otherwise we are all over the place.

Let me know if anyone else feels this way or if you have any suggestions for a solution. TIA

 

I think we all went through this at that stage. I don't ahve much to offer other than to say it will be over soon! When they get a little bigger, you will have a "schedule" and get to play with them more often.

 

I'm going through the same thing with my 6 month old boys. I find myself bouncing them around from the floor to their swings to their exasaucer etc. As some of the other woman on this site pointed out to me, this is a frustrating age. They're much more awake and alert, but they can't do a whole lot yet, can't crawl or sit up on their own. So I think what we"re doing is fine! And, I do have my boys on a schedule. They eat every four hours so I plan my days around their feeding schedule and I am usually able to get things done or sneak out of the house with them for a couple hours a day (with help). Sticking to a schedule is key, so I recommend it!

Hang in there, Lord knows I'M TRYING TOO!

 

Mid-late afternoon is a hard time! Everyone's nerves are starting to fray...

Do your babies eat and nap at the same times? I wouldn't worry about scheduling these things by the clock, but if you can get their needs in sync, it's a huge help. HSHHC is a good resource for working on naps.

It will get better as they get older. And even if you can only get a couple minutes of quality time here and there, that's better than nothing. It is so easy to get caught up in all the nuts and bolts of baby care - feed, burp, diaper, nap - and juggling two babies and trying to keep both happy at once - just try to stay in the moment... (Ha, easier said than done!)

 

This link might help with a schedule...

[Wiki]Sleep_Schedules[/Wiki]

Our schedule really straightened out right around 6 months. After they started sleeping through, their naps fell into place, and things got much easier. But yes, I felt like I was feeding or changing constantly!

 

My babies have been on a schedule from the very beginning.I know people say that they can't until they are older but I don't agree. Granted it doesn't work every day and sometimes gets off but I would try to keep on a schedule. Think about yourself when you travel and don't eat, sleep or do things at a regular time. Aren't you miserable. I know I am. Babies are the same way. This is not to say that you can't vary when needs be but now at almost 5 months my babies get up about 7, sleep from 9-11 another nap 1-3 and a final nap 5-7 and go to bed for the night at 9. It is a great schedule and they do really well most day. Each time they are up 2 hours and are happy except for the last 15-30 min when they are getting fussy. I just got a bumbo and it is great. They play so much better and are happier. I also have a blanket on the floor to play on. My DD would rather lay on there with toys and ocassional interaction from me. It is constantly getting easier so keep trying but I would definatly try to get them on a schedule, it makes them so much happier.

 

QUOTE
Think about yourself when you travel and don't eat, sleep or do things at a regular time. Aren't you miserable.

It is constantly getting easier so keep trying but I would definatly try to get them on a schedule, it makes them so much happier.


Not all babies will be happy with by the clock schedule. And what makes me miserable about travel is not getting to eat when I'm hungry and sleep when I'm tired! (ie being limited to a few restaurant meals a day and having scheduled events conflict with when I want to go to bed) The most important thing for my babies' mood on any given day is how well they nap, and how well they nap depends on how good I am at getting them down when they need it - when they're tired but not overtired. I think watching the window of wakefulness, as per HSHHC, is key - watch your babies, see how long they can be happy awake, and respect that. Mine can only go 1.5-2 hrs, and whenever I make the mistake of letting it slide longer than that, everyone pays a price. This would be totally incompatible with a BTC schedule, because some naps are 45 min and others are 1.5 hrs - if I tried to nap them by the clock, instead of just paying attention to when they woke up and when they'll be ready for the next nap, they would be miserable.

 

Ugh! I've been very much feeling this way, and my babies are only 4 mo (and premies at that!). Does this mean I have to suffer through more than three more months of this?!? I was going to post about that feeling of just shifting babies from seat to swing, etc. and feeling bad about it.

A follow up question: how long do you leave a baby in each swing, etc. at a time? If they are sitting there quietly but awake and alert, do you ever just leave them to themselves? I feel like I need to play with them all the time when they're alert, since they can't grab or play on their own. But it's killing me!

Are you sure there's no way to fast forward in time? :lol:

 

I think 6 months can be tough for a variety of reasons. They are on the verge of learning to do so much- crawling, eating, etc. But all they (my girls anyway) can do is sit in one spot or scooch backwards. I have found that keeping one baby on my back all the time helps with that feeling of moving them from place to place. My girls never sleep at the same time during the day, so they get to go everywhere with me or play alone on the floor happily. Once they are not so happy, on to my back they go to "help" with laundry, cleaning, cooking, shoveling snow, etc. It wasn't working for me when they were on my chest in a sling or wrap, but I love the Ergo for carrying on my back.

 

I agree with pp's who said that 6 months is rough just because they are on the verge of learning so much. My girls used to get SO frustrated because they wanted to do more than they could.

Also around that time we really started implementing a schedule/routine. They wake up, eat bottles, play for a little while and then nap, repeat, repeat, bed... I think my girls like the routine and can anticipate what will happen next in their day.

The other thing we got at 6 months (but probably could have used earlier) was a johnny jump up (the thing that goes in the doorway) and two different exersaucers. We rotate them thru those and playing on the floor even now and they love it.

We also try to schedule one outing a day because they love getting out of the house... either for a walk outside if its not too cold, a trip to the supermarket or target, or walking around the mall. It doesn't matter where just that we get out. Its also good for mommy's so they aren't just shuffling babies and changing diapers all day. I've become (or have been forced to become!) a more social person because people love to stop and chat about the babies.

 

QUOTE(mhardman @ Dec 23 2007, 06:07 PM) [snapback]545056[/snapback]
My babies have been on a schedule from the very beginning.I know people say that they can't until they are older but I don't agree. Granted it doesn't work every day and sometimes gets off but I would try to keep on a schedule. Think about yourself when you travel and don't eat, sleep or do things at a regular time. Aren't you miserable. I know I am. Babies are the same way. This is not to say that you can't vary when needs be but now at almost 5 months my babies get up about 7, sleep from 9-11 another nap 1-3 and a final nap 5-7 and go to bed for the night at 9. It is a great schedule and they do really well most day. Each time they are up 2 hours and are happy except for the last 15-30 min when they are getting fussy. I just got a bumbo and it is great. They play so much better and are happier. I also have a blanket on the floor to play on. My DD would rather lay on there with toys and ocassional interaction from me. It is constantly getting easier so keep trying but I would definatly try to get them on a schedule, it makes them so much happier.


Same here, we have been on a schedule since day one. Our schedule as shifted as they have grown, but we have been on a schedule. They know what to expect when and it works out quite well. I also have a blanket with toys on the floor and my kids will play there on their own for a while, and then I will play with them down there. They love that!