HELP! HOW DO YOU BOTTLE FEED TWO AT ONCE?

my mother is staying with us, but she's a hostage in my house until i can successfully feed my twins by myself....i need to be able to feed them at the same time! i ordered the podee multiples hands-free feeding bottles but the boys are only a month old and they can't suck hard enough yet to get the milk out?

SOMEBODY HELP ME! i really need to figure out how to feed them by myself or i will never get my life back and my mom will never be able to leave!

please share how you did it! i'm so frustrated, i cry all day long!

 

You could put them both in their carseats / or bouncy chairs and hold both their bottles (sitting in-between them). You could also get a boppy pillow/nursing pillow and prop them both on your lap and hold their bottles.
You could consider staggering their feedings 15 minutes too. Feed one baby while bouncy another with your foot then switch ?

 

I never fed the boys at the same time unless someone was here with me. I always fed Riley first, because Reese was always more patient. It meant that I was in the chair for an hour, but thanks to DVR lol it was never too terrible. One would swing while I fed the other and then we'd switch. I also like that I got some one on one time with each of them. It took a little while for them to get used to it, but not too long. It worked out well for us.

If you don't want to do it that way, you could always consider using bouncers or Boppy's as the PP suggested.

 

Sorry, but we never could or can feed them together. We have to very active squirmers. We try to keep them on a 20 to 30 minute difference feeding schedule, so if one of us is home alone we can handle feeding them separately. Yes, it does take longer, but it is the only thing that works for us.

 

We started by using 2 boppy pillows - and I would either hold pr prop their bottles. Sometimes I would hold one (bottle feed or nurse) and put the other in a boppy. Later we moved to using bouncy chairs. I put them both in there, and again, either hold or prop the bottles. Don't worry, things will get easier!!! GL! :hug:

eta: you CAN do this! I've been doing it since they were 7 weeks by myself. You will figure something out that works for you.

 

QUOTE(E&Msmom @ Jan 14 2009, 01:17 PM) [snapback]1146974[/snapback]
You could put them both in their carseats / or bouncy chairs and hold both their bottles (sitting in-between them). You could also get a boppy pillow/nursing pillow and prop them both on your lap and hold their bottles.
You could consider staggering their feedings 15 minutes too. Feed one baby while bouncy another with your foot then switch ?


This is exactly what I would suggest. I know many people who have done exactly this! GL :hug:.

 

E&M's mom does or did what we did. We fed them at the same time, I was in between them. They were propped on boppies and then I either held the bottles or DH took a blanket (receiving) and wound it tight so we could lay that on their chest while they took the bottle. This way you could hold one and the other can still have their bottle. I made it sound like I did it all but I didn't, my DH was on nightshift the first few months. It sounds scary and daunting but as with any new task once you do it it will seem so easy. Don't be frightened or worried, you can do it.

 

I used the EZ-2-nurse pillow. It definitely was easier for me to keep them on the same schedule. We did breast and bottle-feeding. The boppy really helped, too, especially when they were smaller.

Another way I would do it was to sit cross-legged with one across my lap, and the other with his or head propped up against one of my thighs. Another way to do it (and this takes a little manuevering) is to hold both of them in your arms, using your hand to hold the bottle of the baby in the other arm (like an x). Use pillows or a couch arm rest to support your arms.

I would say, and this is just my humble opinion, is to find a way that's comfortable for you, and gives them the most physical contact with you as possible. They still need that contact with you, even skin-to-skin when possible.

 

I agree w/ all pp. I would either put them both on a bobby pillow or I would hold one and put one on the boppy, and I was able to hold both of their bottles, or sometimes, (as they got older) I was able to prop one of them w/ a diaper/spit cloth.
It can be done! I just never had the mindset that I cant or i dont know how. It wasnt an option. Maybe if your mother leaves, it will help you realize how much you CAN do it, rather than thinking how hard it might be.?

 

I heard a lot of stories about feeding both at once. I tried it a few times. The last time I did [they were about 2.5 mos old], I fed them in their car seats and they BOTH vomited during feeding. I felt so bad.

Now I feed them one right after the other. The one that's waiting sits in the bouncy seat. I give them some toys or put a cloth on them so they have something to play with to make the time go by faster. I keep the bouncy seat right next to me and bounce with my foot if necessary. There are times where they want their bottle NOW and are a bit cranky, but it takes what, 10 mins to feed a baby and then a few mins to burp them afterwards?

They've done well with that method thus far. During the night is a different story. If they're both awake during the night, DH wakes up and feeds one. That doesn't happen too often now cause I try to get the 'awake' baby before she gets too noisey ^_^

 

I'm sorry but mine never liked being fed at the same time... They moved too much or didn't latch right unless I was holding them. I tried to put them in boppies or bouncers to feed them and they just ended crying. Hope you find something that works out.

 

I'm in a similar situation where my babies have been fed for the first time since birth and are now 3 months old. I've been luck to have help so far, but do have days when I'm on my own. I puchased the "Extra Hand" to help with feedings while they sit in either a bouncy chair or their car seats. Makes it easy to feed. I've also staggered their feeding too when one is hungry earlier than the other. Good luck!!

 

thank you all for your suggestions and support.....i'll try the double boppy thing tonight! wish me luck!
b

 

I have always fed mine at the same time. It was just easier for me. This is how I did it:

You need a recliner or other big chair and a firm pillow. I use a memory foam pillow.
I get everything on the end table that I will need. Ready bottles, remote, phone, a drink for me and anything else I can think of. Then I get both boys ready, bibs, diaper changed,burp cloths, etc. Holding both and this is a feat now that they are about 16 lbs each. I carry them and sit in the recliner. I put the pillow across my lap and lay both boys down facing me. Their legs now extend over the arms of the chair. Their heads are raised and they get to look at me while feeding. This has worked from the beggining for us. Also when they were little and waking every 3 hrs to eat, night time feedings were done in our bed with them propped on same pillow.

Good luck.

 

I always fed mine at the same time-on the couch or bed, boppy pillow on each side, bottles propped with blankets. that way you have hands free to burp. Another thing I did was to have a spred sheet to write down what time they ate and how many ounces! Good luck-you can do it!!!

 

I tried feeding them at the same time, but they had so little head control that it was nearly impossible. So I would just stagger their feedings and do the best I could. Sometimes putting them in the boppy next to each other worked and I also used a bottle propper on occasion if they were both screaming. Once they got better head control I would double feed them in their bouncies. GL!

 

like this.

 

It just takes a little practice with the Podee bottles. My girls were 2 months premature and at 3 weeks old were using the Podee bottles like champs.

3 weeks old

We did the double bouncy seat and sat between them. It worked ok. We also sat on the floor against the couch or wall and placed a girl on either side of our legs (faced a bit towards our legs). We could prop the bottle on our legs when we needed to burp one of them so the other didn't have to stop eating. Worked great on the couch as well. You'll find your system. Good luck!

 

I always fed them at the same time also. When i first had them, my mom stayed with me the first 10 days and then after she left my husband took off work for a week, then my bff stayed 2 days with me, so I had to get it in my head that I could do it by myself and I didn't HAVE to have someone to help. After that, I did fine! I would get everything ready..bottles, bibs and 2 pillows, carry both of them and everything to my recliner, lay them across my lap, get the bottles, then one at a time put their head in the bend of my arm, I can't exactly tell you how I did it, I just know that after a while, I was a PRO!!LOL You will be too soon! :woohoo:

 

QUOTE(bebedoc @ Jan 14 2009, 06:06 PM) [snapback]1147470[/snapback]
It just takes a little practice with the Podee bottles. My girls were 2 months premature and at 3 weeks old were using the Podee bottles like champs.

3 weeks old

We did the double bouncy seat and sat between them. It worked ok. We also sat on the floor against the couch or wall and placed a girl on either side of our legs (faced a bit towards our legs). We could prop the bottle on our legs when we needed to burp one of them so the other didn't have to stop eating. Worked great on the couch as well. You'll find your system. Good luck!


Wow, that looks cool! :lol:

 

we LOVE our Podees! maybe if you "prime" them to get the milk started they would be able use them now.....They have a lot of small parts to clean, that's the only drawback! GL

 

My boys still don't have enough sucking power for the podees.

In the beginning, I propped each baby in his own boppy pillow andd held a bottle in each mouth, stopping both feedings to occasionally burp each baby and wipe mouths. If a baby needed individual feeding, I would try to accommodate him, or feed one in my lap and the other in a boppy.

At about 1 month old, I started using "elephant ears" bottle holders. I would prop the bottle in the holder, turn each baby's head to the side, and put the bottles in their mouths. Amazingly enough, this worked better even than me feeding each baby individually in my arms. There was less spillage out their mouths or otherwise.

Another method would be to use my EZ2 Nurse pillow, which I used for tandem breastfeeding until they were 3 months old. Now they just get too distracted on it and they are too big - they spill too much over the edges. You can use that pillow for bottle-feeding, too.

Now that they turn their heads often in feedings, I occasionally put the babies to my sides, one on each side, with their heads resting on my thighs, then hold a bottle in each mouth, again taking some breaks to wipe up and burp. Another method is I lay them side by side on a regular pillow and lean over them with a bottle in each mouth.

When out and about I have a tandem stroller that I prop them up in each bassinet and hold a bottle in each mouth. If one needs extra attention, I put him in a sling and feed him in that with one hand while holding a bottle in the mouth of the other in the stroller.

Hope that helps!

 

I use the Boppy pillows and just sit on the floor with them on the pillows and feed. You could do one in the pillow and one in a bouncy chair if you like as well, I did that quite a bit in the beginning. I have also seen a bottle propper that hangs from the carseat handle, you still need to keep a hand on the bottle and watch babe but it might give you a few seconds to repsoition the other babe. Hope this helps!!