On Nursing Twins, Sleep Camp, and Finding Freedom

I was a sleep fanatic with Silas. His personality lends itself to being a good sleeper, but I sure did all I could to foster good sleep. I have been so different with Simeon and Lieren. But our entire situation has been different so far: two babies, moving, babes still rooming-in with mom and dad at 9 weeks...

I have been lax about their daytime naps, too. So this week we're starting Sleep Camp. I had several Sleep Camps with Silas whenever I felt that we were getting too far out of routine and needed to get ourselves back in order and sleeping well. He always did great and began sleeping better within a day or two of strict naptimes, bedtimes, and extended sleep. We will see how my current little ones do. We're not far enough in for me to make a call on how they will respond.

We started yesterday afternoon, took a break this morning for a trip to the zoo, and have picked it right back up this afternoon. Lieren gets a star all around so far. Simeon needs a bit more coddling and attention in the Falling Asleep In Bed By Yourself category. He did make me proud in Extended Nighttime Sleep last night, though, which gets him bonus points.

A lot of people have asked how I keep routine nursing twins. Well, I just feed them at the same time no matter what. When one wakes to eat, I feed the other as well. I just couldn't feed them separately. It would be all I did all day long.

Simeon's tummy issues have made me be less strict on his sleep. I've allowed lots of sleep in swings and in arms. It has also made nursing the two together a strain at times (imagine trying to get one hungry baby set up to eat while the other screams at the top of his lungs for minutes on end and you'll get the picture).

When the babies turned 8 weeks I decided it was time for some freedom. I nursed Simeon and Lieren exclusively for 2 months. Silas went way longer than that. But every situation is different and I had to let something go to keep being a good mom for all the children. So now I'm giving the babies a bottle at their evening 7/7:30ish feeding. It's that crazy post-dinner, everyone-is-tired-and-needs-a-bath time of day. It is so nice to get to sit and chat with the family as we do bottles or spend time with Silas while others feed. And I'm supplementing at that feeding with formula as I need to, which has brought quite a bit of freedom in itself.

After feeling spread so thin the past few weeks, it has been refreshing to let some things go that will not matter in the long run. The Lord has been gracious to give us unforgettable gifts in this season and I'm grateful for the freedom to enjoy it.