Who got on schedule quickly?

I am just curious who was able to get their twins on a schedule (the same one) quickly and what their secret was...or what book the read? Any advice is appreciated since I will want to get their as soon as possible.

Thanks,
Lanie

 

We just stayed on the schedule that the hospital got us on. Naps were pretty much in the air but feedings were every 3 hours round the clock for about a week or two. After that we stayed at every 3 hours during the day and let them go at night. Everything else just kind of fell into place. Sure they fell asleep and woke a bit different but they found their groove I would let one wake the other. It just kind of happens. For the first 4-5 months I would call it a rigid "schedule"

 

I think if you look at it as a routine instead of a schedule, you will set yourself up for more success. We liked the routine from the Baby Whisperer. My kids were an anamoly, in comparison with my friends' kids, in that they ate first, then played, and then went to sleep. Everyone else fed their kids to sleep. I think that is the best advice I took from that book.

Anyways, we followed the routine suggested in The Baby Whisperer and they were pretty much on a three-hour feeding cycle/"schedule" right away.

 

I'm reading Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child and I like it so far. I can't really try anything until they are a bit older but in a month or so, I plan to get serious about a schedule/routine.

 

I tried as much as I could to follow the Baby Whisperer....the only problem was that we had 2 with reflux so activity after eating consisted of being propped up under the activity gym...we couldn't change them after eating b/c it was too much jostling. They ate every 3 hours but slept whenever they really wanted. We made sure we had a night routine down first then naps fell into place after a while.

 

QUOTE
think if you look at it as a routine instead of a schedule, you will set yourself up for more success.


Couldn't agree more! Eat/play/sleep works well for some babies, play/eat/sleep works well for others.

Getting twins in sync is a total sanity-saver. And it may be easier than you expect. From the beginning, I've just been feeding mine at the same time and putting them down for naps at the same time, and it works great. In the beginning, if one was hungry and the other was sleeping, I'd wake them up to eat at the same time or one right after the other.

There are books out there that will tell you to put your newborns on a rigid schedule from day one. Steer clear of them. Babies have actually died from malnourishment due to rigid scheduling. It is just plain unrealistic (not to mention cruel) to expect a tiny person with a stomach the size of a walnut to eat by the clock, especially when they're in the process of doubling their body weight!

So I'd say feed them whenever they're hungry, even if that means waking the other baby, and try to put them down to sleep at the same time - but don't worry about the clock too much.

 

At 2 months we had a routine... at least a noticeable one!! I was starting to learn their cues is what it was. they were up about 1.5-2 hours between naptimes.

 

We had a 3 hour feeding schedule after the first week on. Our naps didn't get regular until 4-5 months!

 

In the beginning, I just made sure to nurse them at least every 3 hours during the day and would nurse when they woke at night. When one would get up hungry, I would change him, and if the other hadn't woken during that time, I woke that one too, then fed both at the same time. That way they were always on the same feeding and sleeping schedule. You just kind of wing it for the first 3 months or so and then after that, you can start to figure out routines, when they get tired for naps, etc. There were times that they would get off schedule, where one would sleep and the other wouldn't or whatever, and sometimes I ended up taking them out for car drives to make them both fall asleep so they would get back on track. You do whatever you gotta do!

 

Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child. I started early bed times at 2-3 months (6 pm) and at 4 months they were on a 2 nap schedule and have been for the past months. They take naps at 9 am and 1 pm combined with an early bed time (6.30 pm, was 6 pm when they were younger). I has been my lifesaver.

 

HSHHC worked great for us. We were on 3 hour feedings and this fit in perfectly. It outlines very well the NEED that babies have for sleep, how to read sleepy cues, best environments for baby to sleep, etc. We wouldn't have been in a routine/schedule as quickly without this guide.

The author is a pedi and some folks here on TS use him.

 

I was able to get my boys into a decent groove a lot sooner than expected. I read The Baby Whisperer and used her "E.A.S.Y." routine and few of her other tips. I also read Healthy Sleep Habits Happy Child when the boys were about 5 weeks old and I got them napping and sleeping well at night with help from that book. It took a while for my "mother's instinct" to kick in so these books were helpful. An early bedtime has been great for us.