Does anyone else struggle w/feeding both at once?

Does feeding your twins at the same time go pretty smoothly for everyone else? We feed them together most of the time, and have had mixed results. Sometimes it goes fine and other times it's a struggle--they can get very upset when we pause to burp (though we try to pacify them ... have also tried bottle propping but it doesn't seem to work well) or if I have to go get one of them a refill. (Even though they eat at pretty regular intervals, the amount they eat at a feeding varies from 3 or so ounces to 7.5 or so! We start with 4.5 oz in each bottle but often have to pause for a refill for at least one of them.) Then if one of them is gassy or pooping during a feeding (which is often), they'll sometimes be pulling away, refusing the bottle, randomly fussing, etc., and trying to figure out what's going on with them without disturbing their brother can also lead to frustration for all.

DH has the first half of the night shift (generally 7:30pm-2am) and he hates feeding them at the same time. He thinks it's more stressful and that they both get upset and just want to be held while they eat (which may explain some of the random feeding-time fussiness), so he usually feeds one and then the other unless, of course, they wake at the same time. I sometimes find that easier but since they take anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour or more--each--to eat--I find it takes way too long if I feed them separately ... yet I agree things can get crazy if we feed them at the same time. Just wondering if anyone else struggles with this and what you've found that helps.
(We generally have them propped in Boppys to eat and we sit between them holding both bottles. We've been experimenting with the fast-flow nipples and sometimes they seem to do OK with them but most of the time they struggle and we end up with formula all over the place if we're not really vigilant--which is harder to be when feeding both at once.)

 

I never liked feeding them at the same time. I always tried to feed them seperately. However, there were lots of times when they were both hungry at the same time and demanded to be fed together. Yes, it was a struggle! I remember a lot of times what I would do when they were demanding to be fed at the same time is I would give one the Podee bottle. The one on the Podee didn't really eat very much (or any) but a lot of times just sucking on the bottle would pacify her until her sister was done eating and then I would switch out the podee parts to the regular bottle parts.

When mine were tiny they liked to be held while eating and just didn't do very well with me feeding them at the same time. They would spit up more and be more fussy, etc. But I had to do what I had to do when I was by myself (or when DH was by himself) b/c we found that both of us getting up for every feeding was even worse.

:hug:

 

I am lucky that it went fairly well with mine. I did and still do feed at the same time. I feed mine in two boppys. I sit in front of them and hold both bottles. When they were younger they needed to burp more and when I was alone (which was during the day) I placed both babies on their bellies, kind of draped over the side of their boppies and burped both at the same time. It would kind of look like they were on your shoulder while being burped. I would turn them over and continue feeding. That worked well with mine. They can pretty much finish their bottles now before being burped and they just have to wait their turn. Im not sure what you feed your in but Boppys were my best friend!! They have so many uses and I can take them any where.

I did/do wish I could have held them while feeding them but unfortunatly being alone with twins doesnt allow that. I would take advantage of anyone who was there so I could at least feed them them once a day being held. I hope it works for you!! If you don't use Boppy's, give them a try.

How old are you LO's?

 

I also have always disliked feeding them at the same time. While I sometimes did enjoy the benifits of it (having a break after the feeding if both went to sleep) the stress of the actual feeding along with this sometimes turning into a bad feed wasn't always worth it for me. You aren't alone!

 

I do! Our babies will be 8 weeks on Wed. During the day when I'm home with them by myself, I try to stagger their schedule by 20 min or so... just long enough to feed/burp the first one before the second one starts to wail. If they are both screaming, I try carseats or boppys, but that doesn't work as well. Overall, it takes about 45 min either way. At night, my DH and I decided that we'd rather both be up for shorter periods (1/2 hour twice a night vs. 1 hour once a night) and so we get the girls up at the same time, each take a baby, feed her and put her to bed. Also, at night, if they don't have to fuss as long before meals they don't wake up as fully and are easier to put back to bed. I can't wait until they can at least hold their heads up, though, for daytime feedings!!! And even more when they can hold their own bottle!!!

 

We all hated feeding them at the same time. They moved too much so it was hard to keep the bottle in their mouth, and I think they just liked being held, plus they cried every time we had to burp the other... I hated it. We just held them for every bottle, and fed them one after the other (we still do, lol). Yes, sometimes one cried while we fed the other, but we staggered their schedules and overall it was never a big problem.

And honestly... I've always liked holding them for bottles. Sure, sometimes it's a pain and it takes longer, but I think it helped us bond. The nights were harder because we both had to get up but really it was only hard for 4 months. Even now DS snuggles with us when it's bottle time (DD wants to drink while sitting so it's more of a pain), and I think I will miss it when they (finally) can drink from sippies.

 

Thank you so much for your comments...been feeding one mouth at a time and i thought i was a horrible mother for not doing them both at the same time. Still very new at this, they were 7 wks old on Monday and WOW!

 

I usually always feed them both at the same time, only because I am pumping and I like to pump and feed them at the same time so that I have some down time to play with them both and have some time to rest while they are resting. THen when my husband is home we feed them individually. I find what works best is using one of those pillows that have arms on them. I put them both both on the corner of the pillow and they stay proped up. I then give them a passifier while I burp the other one. At first they would cry while I burped the other one and now they realize that they will get the bottle back in a few min, so they take the passifier. I also find proping them up in almost a sitting position makes them burp really quick. ALso if you lean them back, then front then side to side they burp really well. My doctor said it helps the gas bubbles in the stomach come together. It is a toss up, but that pillow has been a godsend. I can put it on my bed and prop them both up. Before feeding them both in the bouncy seat was killing my back and I felt so far away from them. sounds sill, but now I feel like it is a little more intament since I am so close to them during feedings, plus it doesn't hurt my back and feels very comfortable. They love hanging out in the armrest thing and will sit their until I am done pumping, so it works well. hope this helps

 

I always fed them both at the same time and I guess I just made it work because the alternative was that it would take double the time, and that I did not have! Yours are still young, so you may have not found your rhythm yet. Hang in there. :hug:

 

I always feed mine at the same time. They are on a strict every 3hr schedule during the day and have their last feeding at 9pm and sleep until 5am. Not my doing but theirs. It works out better this way for me. I have to keep them together. If they stagger off schedule things get too crazy for me. Especially since DH is away for work. Do you have a recliner? What I find easier is to sit in my recliner "indian Style" and have both babies in my lap. Their heads at my knees and legs and body resting on my legs. I keep the bottles close by on the table next to me along with two burp cloths and a pacifier. If one is fussy while I burp the other (on my shoulder) I give them the paci. Mine are 3 months old now and eat 4oz at each feeding. At the age yours are mine were only taking 2.5oz a feeding. I am surprised your LO's can take 7.5 at one time!! Are they eating every 3 hours during the day and still at night?? Mine were still waking 3x a night at 6 weeks. It will get easier. I promise!!

 

QUOTE(babybrooks @ Mar 3 2009, 02:44 PM) [snapback]1212851[/snapback]
Thank you so much for your comments...been feeding one mouth at a time and i thought i was a horrible mother for not doing them both at the same time. Still very new at this, they were 7 wks old on Monday and WOW!


:hug: DEFINATELY not a horrible mom! I never could feed my two at the same time. I just got to frustrated and it wasn't worth the 20/30 minutes I was saving. Plus it gave me some one on one snuggle time. :wub: Do what works best for you lady. :good:

 

I fed mine separately probably until they were at least 4 months old and had good enough head control to be fed in the bouncys side by side. Yes, it took longer but mine had such horrible reflux and they each had a specific hold that they would eat better in.

 

I always tried to feed them at different times. I liked having one on one time with them. Of course sometimes one would be wailing. If it got too bad I'd use car seats or pillow props to feed them at once. I tried to stagger the schedule so I fed one 20-30 minutes before the other.

 

QUOTE(SC_Amy @ Feb 23 2009, 04:11 PM) [snapback]1201952[/snapback]
Does feeding your twins at the same time go pretty smoothly for everyone else? We feed them together most of the time, and have had mixed results. Sometimes it goes fine and other times it's a struggle--they can get very upset when we pause to burp (though we try to pacify them ... have also tried bottle propping but it doesn't seem to work well) or if I have to go get one of them a refill. (Even though they eat at pretty regular intervals, the amount they eat at a feeding varies from 3 or so ounces to 7.5 or so! We start with 4.5 oz in each bottle but often have to pause for a refill for at least one of them.) Then if one of them is gassy or pooping during a feeding (which is often), they'll sometimes be pulling away, refusing the bottle, randomly fussing, etc., and trying to figure out what's going on with them without disturbing their brother can also lead to frustration for all.

DH has the first half of the night shift (generally 7:30pm-2am) and he hates feeding them at the same time. He thinks it's more stressful and that they both get upset and just want to be held while they eat (which may explain some of the random feeding-time fussiness), so he usually feeds one and then the other unless, of course, they wake at the same time. I sometimes find that easier but since they take anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour or more--each--to eat--I find it takes way too long if I feed them separately ... yet I agree things can get crazy if we feed them at the same time. Just wondering if anyone else struggles with this and what you've found that helps.
(We generally have them propped in Boppys to eat and we sit between them holding both bottles. We've been experimenting with the fast-flow nipples and sometimes they seem to do OK with them but most of the time they struggle and we end up with formula all over the place if we're not really vigilant--which is harder to be when feeding both at once.)

One word BOPPY.....OMG!!! What lifesavers!!My wife has had to feed them at the same time when I work late nights.As have I had to double-feed them when my wife runs errands and I('ve) taken them and put the Boppy to my left and one to my right and sit right in the middle (Lord forbid Mom Nature strikes!!).But invest in a pair of Boppy pillows if u havent already.

 

QUOTE(d0ubledutydaddy @ Mar 3 2009, 11:38 PM) [snapback]1213598[/snapback]
One word BOPPY.....OMG!!! What lifesavers!!My wife has had to feed them at the same time when I work late nights.As have I had to double-feed them when my wife runs errands and I('ve) taken them and put the Boppy to my left and one to my right and sit right in the middle (Lord forbid Mom Nature strikes!!).But invest in a pair of Boppy pillows if u havent already.

Yep, we feed them propped in Boppys. They definitely help ... but often it's still a struggle.

Kristy: I've experimented with a bunch of positions but hadn't tried the recliner method yet. I'll have to try that! Thanks! They don't often eat 7.5 oz but occasionally. It is usually more like 4-5 oz, but they each usually have one or two feedings a day where they eat 6 oz or more. They do eat about every 3 hours during the day (give or take 20 mins), the past week they've been doing sometimes 4-hr stretches during the day again, and then at night they'll usually eat about 3 times (something like 8:30 pm, 1 am, 4 am, and then 7 am; sometimes they'll do two longer stretches, maybe 6:30 pm, 12am, 4am, 6:30am--it varies somewhat randomly but b/c they are starting to sleep longer stretches at night, we've been trying to just feed each when he wakes up naturally to encourage those longer stretches rather than waking to feed them together).

 

When mine were that young, I usually did one at a time. Or else I'd lay the one who needed to be burped over my knee while I kept feeding the other one. It wasn't easy but I just kept saying... "At least there aren't 3.. or 4.. or EIGHT........."

It is tricky but DOES get MUCH MUCH MUCH easier to feed them both at once in a few more months. In the beginning they are controlled by their guts so it's a desperate NEED for food so I'd just do one at a time or whatever worked at that time. AND I always had enough formula IN THE BOTTLE cuz there was no way anyone was giving me time to REFILL.

Good luck honey, it will get easier. Not all of it, but the feeding part certainly will

 

I fed them separately too. When they got a bit bigger we started using the bouncies to feed them both at the same time if nec. If I was alone, I tried to time it for them to be fed about 20 min apart. The seemed to sync back up in the evening when DH and I could each feed one.

I wish I had known about the boppie newborn loungers. We never had much use for boppies, but we used pillows all the time to lay them on and prop them. By the time the boppies seemed reasonable to use to prop them they were big enough for the bouncies and we used them constantly.

Mine were small/preemie too, so that had an impact I suppose.

BTW - where are you in SC? I'm in Rock Hill and have family in other parts of the state as well.

 

Sully, I just noticed your question! I am just north of Columbia so only about an hour from Rock Hill. Fun that you are close by!

 

Podee bottles saved my life. I'm totally serious.

They would completely melt down if I stopped feeding one in order to burp the other. Very stressful. I also found it difficult to feed in the Boppies due to a very bad upper back. It was more helpful to put them in their carseats b/c then I could balance my arm on the side and it wasn't as hard on my back. Still the burping was an issue.

I searched the web for an alternative (this was before I knew about this site) and found the Podees. I know some did not have good luck with them but for me they were a life-saver. My girls took to them right away at 6 weeks of age. I would have one in the bouncie seat with the Podee and hold the other (also with a Podee). Half way through I'd burp the one I was holding, then switch places and burp the other and hold her for the rest of the bottle. This way I was able to hold them for bottles but still feed them at the same time. When they were a little older I put them both in their seats with the Podees and fold laundry or something until they were done. They also worked great for feeding while running errands or at a restaurant. A little more trouble to clean but well worth it in my opinion.

Good luck! It can be a frustrating time but you will learn a new trick every day and pretty soon you will have a great little schedule going.

 

I always fed mine one at a time. The only time they both got a bottle at the same time, was once Jon started holding his own bottle. The general rule in our house, was "he who cried first, at first". If they both wanted to eat at the same exact time--rarely happened though--I would feed Jon first because he would down his bottle quicker.

 

QUOTE(*Sully* @ Mar 4 2009, 05:48 PM) [snapback]1214172[/snapback]
BTW - where are you in SC? I'm in Rock Hill and have family in other parts of the state as well.



QUOTE(SC_Amy @ Mar 15 2009, 03:36 AM) [snapback]1228629[/snapback]
Sully, I just noticed your question! I am just north of Columbia so only about an hour from Rock Hill. Fun that you are close by!


No way!! I'm in Fort Mill so just a few minutes north of Rock Hill (I go to YTC for nursing) and about an hour north of Columbia! We'll have to do a midupstate get together!

As for feeding them together, I used the car seats. They felt snuggled in (I put blankets around them when they were tiny) and because of the high sides I could easily use a larger blanket to prop the one that wasn't being burped. It really is hit or miss at first until they and you get the hang of what works for all three of you. It really does get easier, promise!