The Ins and Outs of Twins

In the early months of (twin) parenthood my husband I were so over tired that we were running on fumes. With our every three hour feeding schedule day and night I felt like all we did was change diapers and feed babies. At that point Tanner and Abigail would nurse for 30-45 minutes so I had about two hours in between feedings to use the bathroom, eat, shower.

Shhhh...Mommy and Daddy are sleeping.

In the early months you have frequent doctors visits and the pediatrician always asks about your baby's bowel movements and wet diaper production. I couldn't even remember if I ate breakfast or put on clean underwear that morning. How was I supposed to remember if Tanner pooped that morning or (on average) how many wet diapers Abigail produced each day? I was so tired at that point, half the time I didn't even know which baby I was changing let alone what was in the diaper. Once in a while (wonderful) family members came to watch the twins for a few hours so that we could take naps. They changed a few diapers while they were on duty and I never thought to get a "doodie" report from them. Maybe Tanner wasn't constipated for three days...perhaps Grammy changed a messy diaper while Mommy and/or Daddy were unconscious on the bed upstairs.

Abigail and Tanner (one month old)

I created a spreadsheet in order to keep track of Thing 1 and Thing 2's feeding schedule and diaper activity for our pediatrician Dr. Russ (and myself). This idea was mentioned to me while I was pregnant by a "seasoned" twin mom whom I worked with.

Everyone who watched Tanner and Abigail filled it out so we knew what was in each of their diapers, when they were fed, how much they ate or how long they nursed, and if they spit up or had any issues as a result of feeding. When Tanner and Abigail had an appointment I took the pages along to show the doctors. The spreadsheet eliminated one worry off my "new mommy" list. We used the spreadsheet for a month or two...until Tanner and Abigail stopped having frequent doctor's visits and I wasn't constantly asked about their #1 and #2 production.

Abigail and Tanner in a breastmilk induced coma.

I have since offered this morsel of knowledge to other expectant twin moms. I am not sure if they used it (or plan to use it) but it helped Matt and I out a lot.