Finally! A long overdue and highly requested post.
FEEDING TWINS.
Today I’m sharing what has worked for me – and most importantly, what worked in those early months when feedings were every 3 hours and sleep was minimal!

If you’re reading this with newborn twins and trying to juggle all 9,000 things at once, know this: Things will get easier.  Things will get better.  They will figure it out and so will you. (and that you will miss all of the stuff that is hard right now, because going through pics on my phone for this post made me SO SAD how they aren’t tiny little nuggets anymore.)

If you also have an older child to handle – all I can say is BLESS YOU and you are SUPERWOMAN because I have no idea how people have older kids and tackle twins, but I have friends that are doing it so it. can. be. done. I believe in you and send prayers your way (and thank you for reminding me that twins are easy compared to twins WITH older kids)

I only nursed in the NICU.  They shockingly latched very, very early on despite their preemie age and size, but when we came home it became apparent REAL quick that nursing one, then bottle feeding one, then nursing baby 2, bottle feeding baby 2, and then pumping was *not* going to happen. (I had to follow every nursing with a bottle to ensure they were getting enough).

So I pumped exclusively.  Everything was bottle and yes, it’s a lot of bottles to prep and clean, but being able to just pump and go back to sleep for one feeding during the middle of the night when my husband fed was amazing, and being able to pump while I bottle fed them saved so much time.

The Newborn Days : Feeding every 3 Hours, 30 Minutes Apart, one and then the other.

The girls came home from the NICU when they were 1 month old.  (38 weeks gestational age).
In the NICU they fed every 3 hours, 30 minutes apart.  Hadley first (Baby A) and then Collins (Baby B).
Coming home on a schedule was *amazing*, and even better was that when I looked at Moms on Call, it was exactly the same schedule just 1 hour off.  So over the course of the first week I transitioned the clock in 10 minute increments until we were perfectly on the Moms on Call schedule and feeding every 3 hours.  I also slowly switched who was fed 1st so that I could hold Hadley upright for 30 minutes after her feeding due to her reflux.  These were easy little changes.  Again, “easy” because the NICU had them already perfectly used to eating every 3 hours.  I was and am *very* lucky to have babies who were very happy and never seemed upset with the 3 hour feeding schedule.

PAH – REACH! 

I would feed and burp Collins then lay her in the boppy next to me, then feed Hadley while I was pumping.
editors note: I know it was *exhausting* getting zero sleep, but I miss these days for a million reasons.  It was just nonstop cuddles and lounging… I know at the time it wasn’t easy…. but it was?! If you know what I mean?
…..and I was able to have the TV on too…. and you all know I really miss being able to do that haha……

I miss eating lactation cookies all day long….
I also miss babies that slept most of the day but I digress…..

Next: Tandem Feeding Every 3 hours with the Twin Z Pillow.

Once the girls were a little bit older and easier to feed, I was able to transition into
tandem feeding them in the Twin Z Pillow.
It took time to be able to tandem feed, especially for middle of the night feedings, but it. will. happen.
This pillow doubles as a twin nursing pillow and a twin boppy lounger.
My girls *LIVED* in this thing for the first months at home.
Truly. LIVED.

They slept in this in the living room until they transitioned into their crib – which I did transition them to very early.
Don’t come for me about it, people – YEAH, THEY SLEPT IN THE PILLOW.  I slept next to them and they were so tiny they literally barely lifted an arm, plus Hadley had a breathing monitor for 4 months strapped to her.  Once they were squirmy enough to move and shift, I moved them into their cribs.  But yes, at night, I slept on the couch with our ottoman pushed up against the couch and they slept in this next to me.  You do you. They didn’t like anything else but this to sleep in.
also, we live in a ranch, so the transition to crib was easy because it was two feet away. I slept in the guest bedroom next to them when they were in the crib or on the couch, and eventually moved back to sleeping in my bedroom on the other side of the house.

But back to the Twin Z Pillow.
It’s truly the #1 gift for newborn days as a twin mom.  This pillow is life.
(oh, and keep it covered with a towel or swaddles to avoid having to wash the cover and get it back on.  Ours was in pristine condition despite all the reflux and spit up because we always had it covered with something we could easily wash.)

Once I started tandem feeding I would pump while I tandem fed them.
It takes some practice and getting used to, but keep trying.  I promise you will figure it out and it will save you so so so much time (and even more sanity) to be able to knock both out at once!
The #2 must for a twin mom…….and my other lifeline…. The Table for 2.

Then : Tandem Feeding Every (X) Hours with the Table for 2.

someone must have come over this day because I have real clothes on….. 

Ah, the Table for 2.  To think that when I saw this thing (first on Meghan King Edmonds instagram funnily enough) I thought “No, I won’t need that.  I don’t want a lot of stuff and that’s huge and I want as little as possible”.  And then I went to their website and saw it cost $279 and I thought “ABSOLUTELY. NOT.”

pro tip : when needing to adjust your pump settings,
just hold one bottle with your foot. not kidding. you will be amazed what those toes can do when you need a third hand and don’t have it. #thisistwinlife

Well….. luckily someone slapped some sense into me before their arrival that I DO IN FACT NEED IT and it will become the ONLY way I can feed my children at the same time.
So I joined a local Moms of Multiple Resale Group on FB and found a used one for a great price and bought a new base cover and seat covers for it.  *Definitely* join a facebook multiples group and find one on there.
And if you can’t, JUST BUY IT NEW.  You’ll want it.  You’ll love it.  You will be oh so glad all day everyday that you have it.  And you can sell it when you are done for the next twin mom that cannot live without it.

I can’t remember exactly what age we switched, but it was based on their neck control.
I would try moving to the Table for 2 but they weren’t able to support their necks well enough so then I would wait and try it again the next week for a feeding until it clicked.  So just transition when your babies are ready!

Also…. when I finished weaning right before 7 months,
and in the weeks leading up to being done when I was supplementing,
the Baby Brezza is a GODSEND.
My #3 Twin Favorite hands down is the Baby Brezza.
It’s basically a Keurig for baby bottles.  If you are using formula, you need this.
A perfect temp bottle in seconds?! Yassssss.

ESPECIALLY in the middle of the night when desperate to get the milk
warmed in the bottle warmer for *both* bottles at the right temperature.

I still at 8 months old can’t get them to hold their own bottles….
so hopefully that is next.

Hadley will hold hers but treats it like a toy and likes to see the milk flying all over the place….so…. not quite there yet.
So we are still doing all bottles in the Table for 2
and will be for quite some time is my guess.

Now: Baby Food Feedings 1 hour after bottles.
At 6 months I started introducing baby foods.
(With the Moms on Call schedule they have you do it 1 hour after the bottle.)
I still can’t do tandem baby food feedings… but I try occasionally.
I feed one at a time or else Hadley will grab Collins spoon and put it her own mouth and wants to play with her the whole time.
Every time I try feeding them both tandem by myself I regret it.

I use the Bumbo seats to feed them in because they seem to be the easiest to wipe down and put away.

And an update on making my own Baby Food:
I meannnnnn I’m not going to lie….. it’s not happening too much haha.
It was very easy to do the sweet potatoes.  And they loved them.  The carrots I spent FOREVER making and they hated them. (But love jarred carrots)

But it was “easy” to do…….
I used a food processor to make it and poured it into silicone molds to freeze.

I would love to have the Baby Brezza Baby Food Maker but
I know they won’t be on purees for much longer so I just didn’t do it.
When we went on vacation to the beach I realized how easy it was to buy jarred organic baby food and it’s been difficult to go back.

When I first started making the baby food they weren’t nearly as active as they are now, so it’s just harder to get things done.  Come 7:15 when they’re asleep, MAMA’S TIRED.  I want to make my own food and watch some Bravo in bed, not spend an hour making food.  But I do think it’s worth trying out because it really isn’t that difficult I’m just TIRED. and lazy at this moment.

Per usual this post is written between naps or late at night when I have no brain cells, so hopefully it makes sense?! Let me know any questions you have! I know nothing about nothing, but this is what has worked for us!

You can see more of my newborn essentials here and 0-6 month favorite baby items here.