Staying sane when you are the food supply

Discussion in 'The First Year' started by Amycplus, Apr 24, 2012.

  1. Amycplus

    Amycplus Well-Known Member

    Hi everyone,

    My beautiful boys are now three months and the time has just flown by. Overall, things have been great considering the constant needs of newborns, as you all know. They are now usually getting up once to feed during the night and getting more efficient at feeding. All good things, for sure. However, as I posted in a previous post, their daytime sleeps have deteriorated and it means I get no change of pace (which their sleeps used to provide) because one or the other is up or I need to stroller them just to get in a sleep. As the days go by and it's hard to find time to eat, let alone shower, I find I am just wiped. While I am so grateful and happy to be exclusively breastfeeding, it means I am on all the time. I never dreamed that a shower would feel like a trip to the spa! So, how do you maintain your stamina and build in breaks or other boosts that keep/kept you going and a happy momma? Will this get easier? I guess I just need some light at the end of the tunnel or any words of wisdom to help me persevere.

    Thanks,

    Amy
     
  2. twinkler

    twinkler Well-Known Member

    Hang in there sweet! Yes it definitely gets easier! For one you will get used to being in your PJs at midday -half jokes because that is true for me at the moment during nap training.

    I'm glad to hear that the stroller trick is working a little, can you bring it half in the bathroom while you shower?

    at the most difficult times, I made my lunch the night before, while making my older DD's. One thing I have learnt about myself during this period (apart from the fact that I can carry two babies up and down stairs 8 times per day :) ), is that I do not like sandwiches from the previous day but hey sometimes I was just grateful to have something to eat. The other things I kept handy were breadsticks and trail mix (dried fruits and nuts= a great energy booster) and of course plenty of water bottles, in strategic places around the house. I also had leftovers for lunch also.

    You are almost there, you will start seeing a routine develop soon and things WILL bet easier. Do you have any help during the week, friends/relatives who can come watch them while you soak in the bath? My mum was a lifesaver, well she still is :)

    Keep up all the good work you'e doing, it'll pay off, for sure!
     
  3. Heathermomof5

    Heathermomof5 Well-Known Member

    That first year was tough. I felt like you, a shower was a trip to the spa!! It did get easier but honestly it wasn't until they could sit up and I could hand them a baby mummum or some finger food that kept them occupied.

    My two were nap haters and almost never Slept during the day I swear the minute we got home from the hospital they woke up forever!!! I hung around in pj bottoms and no shirt most of the time in my big chair that my older kids called my "nest" LOL!!! It was so bad that I looked forward to my older kids coming home like a kid looks forward to Santa coming and I would have let the mail man in to hold a baby if I could have gotten up out of the nest quick enough to catch him LOL!!!
     
  4. Dielle

    Dielle Well-Known Member

    Yes, that's rough! Sabrina would never nap unless she was actually on me, either in a sling or laying on my lap. Luckily, I did have kids who could help some (my oldest was 7) by holding babies when I needed a shower or whatever. Is there a pre-teen or young teen in your neighborhood that you could hire to come just hold a baby for an hour/day? If you timed it while one was napping and the other was held, you could even brush your teeth and put on some lip gloss, LOL. I laugh because I do remember those days, sort of. They're a bit of a blur because of my lack of sleep.

    The suggestions about easy snacks and strategically placed water bottles is a good one!
     
  5. Meximeli

    Meximeli Well-Known Member

    One thing you can do is schedule your shower with your partner. Like before he leaves the house for the day or right when he gets home at night or later in the evening. Try to choose a time that works everyday, so it's just part of the routine.

    I also stocked up on healthy snacks and grazed my way through the day rather than trying to eat 3 meals. I did eat one meal a day. In my case it was a late lunch 2:30 pm, because in Mexico that's the main meal of the day and my husband came home for it. Other than taking care of the babies, the one thing I had to do each day is get that meal ready. He did the after meal clean up.
    I think I said in your other thread, that I also slept my girls in the stroller. It was the only way I could rock two and get them to sleep together. Somedays between 3 and 6 months I took them on 3 walks a day! Great way to get back into shape. And when I did get to go anywhere or if we went to any event like a wedding, I was so glad that the girls were accustomed to sleeping in the stroller. It didn't matter where we were or what time of day it was--they could sleep in the stroller.
     
  6. twinkler

    twinkler Well-Known Member

    OMG Heather, have you been peeping in my window? That is so true for me too! lol!
     
    1 person likes this.
  7. jjanssen

    jjanssen New Member

    I exclusively BF 3 1/2 m.o. twins and I can totally relate. I sometimes feel like I'm living Groundhog Day--just the same, everyday, repeat...I live in a small town where everything is accessible by walking, so my means of sanity is to take the babies everywhere with me. They tag along to my pedicures, lunches, strolls, shopping, etc...I have a super awesome stroller they can comfortably nap in completely flat (Bumbleride Indie Twin--highly recommend!!) When they were itty bitty newborns, I'd load them up sometimes just for a 10 min walk to Starbucks for a drink. Somedays, that's all we did to break up the monotony, get fresh air + exercise and a little adult interaction. Are you in a walking community?
     
  8. cheezewhiz24

    cheezewhiz24 Well-Known Member TS Moderator

    1.) Shower at night when DH is home and can care for them. :)

    2.) Eat easy stuff that you can prep the night before and grab and go. Nothing should be more difficult to make than toast right now. :ibiggrin:

    3.) It was around 3 months that I started Michelle's Day O Fun. My BF and I go out every month for a whole day. I'd feed the boys and go. Then come back 2 hours later. Then DH would bring them to me wherever I was; 2 hours later. And repeat. It sucks but it only took a few months of that before they were doing some solids and my breaks got longer. It was totally worth it to get out of the house alone. Once a week I'd go out just once between the feeds as well.
     
  9. 2xjoy

    2xjoy Well-Known Member

    All good ideas!
    I exclusively bf my now 25m twin girls for 6 months then right up until a couple of weeks ago, and it can often be a love /hate thing!

    It can seem like groundhog day but I would tell myself when I was in the rocking chair for yet another feed, that it was one feed closer to when they would wean. I would say that every feed sometimes!

    I would tell myself that it was the best possible thing for them, that I was lucky that I could do it, that the connection it gave us was great, it was saving us money, etc. Also that in winter and through the middle of the night, it was much quicker and easier than mucking around with bottles - I'm too lazy for that! And, to be honest, I would also let myself feel a little superior as the fact that I was bf twins is a pretty good achievement!!

    I think you do what you have to do to get through those lonely and/or draining days & nights. Now that mine have self weaned, I do miss it a little. Its such a special time and they're only little for a while - even though at the time it seems to draaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaag on lol!
     
  10. 3under2!

    3under2! Well-Known Member

    Hey Amy,
    I'm fairly certain I started writing a reply to this about...last week or so, but got interrupted in the middle by a baby and...you know the rest lol. Hang in there!!! At three months I was ready to tear my hair out but we are at 4 months now and in the last month it's gotten SO much easier. My girls can go a good 3 hours between feeds during the day and life seems so much easier. I actually have about 15 minutes to breathe every day. I second the suggestions of showering on a schedule and doing everything you can to simplify, simplify, simplify. I keep telling myself this is short term craziness and things will get easier soon. Maybe I'm fooling myself but if it helps, it helps right? Good luck!!
     
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