Feedings - and grazing!

My twins are often still drinking only 2oz or even less at multiple feedings duing the day. I can't even count how many feedings happen during the day because they seem to ping-pong back and forth. They'll doze for 20 minutes after eating and then wake up and want another couple ounces. At night they sometimes do the same thing. I am breastfeeding them as much as possible so it's only when they get bottles that I actually know how much they eat. How can I get them to eat more and... sleep longer at night?

 

My girls did EXACTLY the same thing and it was sooooo frustrating so I feel your pain...unfortunately for me it didn't stop until I put them on feeding "schedule" at 4 months. I felt like all I did was feed them, day and night (they are bottle fed) and this made things very difficult on the days I also had my older one home with me.

What I eventually ended up doing was "holding them off" for 3 hours between feedings...obviously I would feed them if they were crying and hungry but once I started stretching the time out between bottles they would take more at each feed and then last longer until the next. It took a little while for them to adjust but eventually they got the hang of it. Your LO's are still very young so they might just not be able to take anymore than what they are taking.

Hang in there...I feel your pain...probably not what you want to hear but it's still very early, eventually they will sleep longer. :hug:

 

How long has this been going on? There is a 3 month growth spurt that is well-documented among most babies. What you are describing sounds like that could be it and it can last between 48 hours and a week. I hope you are on the cusp of them elongating their feeds. This is the age where they start making a push towards figuring out their own rhythm. I would bet this won't last long. That being said, hopefully you get some great responses. No tricks really worked for my girls at this age...they fed a lot but it only lasted a short while before we were on a schedule of sorts by about 4 months. Can you try feeding them at the same time to give yourself more of a break? Are you ready for tandem feeding? I tandem fed for a 2 month spurt and then I went back to single feeding when I had a better idea of schedule. I liked the individual time.

 

The "experts" say to not try and get your little ones on a routine or anything until they are at least 3 to 4 months old. That being said, I would suggest that once they finish the 2 oz. Burp them, wake them up, strip them down and see if you can get them to take a little more. Chances are if you are breast feeding they are getting more than 2 oz when you nurse them. As long as their weight gain is good I really wouldn't try and force them. Babies listen to their bodies and stop eating when they are full, trying to force them to take more can make them ignore that internal voice. My girls are just over 3 months old (adjusted age of about 2 months) and they eat every 2-3 hours all day long but have recently started sleeping longer during the evenings. Perhaps your babies will be doing the same thing soon