I found that before I gave birth, I tried to read anything and everything about twins, how to handle them, how to take care of them, how to get them on schedules - basically, I needed to be prepared for what I was about to face. Life with twins!
I can happily say that no amount of reading or preparation prior to giving birth is ever going to prepare you for taking care of babies - you will undoubtedly come home from the hospital with your new bundle filled with anxiety and baby blues. It's normal and those that say they didn't have the baby blues or difficulties when they came home from the hospital are lying. I even had help during my c-section recovery and I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed, helpless and ill-prepared.
When I first got home, I was frantic. I felt out of control. I'm a complete control-freak. I like everything to be on a schedule...yet I felt like I had no schedule and no way to control it. I started looking for college nannies or doulas that could come in and help me. Another big part of my stress was breast feeding. Finding time to pump and having issues with one of the babies latching on just added to my overall feeling of helplessness. I was not in a good place.
It wasn't until I started hearing from mothers of other twins that went through what I was going through did I start to feel better. There was one friend of a friend, in particular, that really helped me through the first two weeks - she had just returned to work after having her twins in December and so it wasn't long ago that she was in the exact same place. She gave me advice, shared what she did to get through and it really helped...you could say it brought me off the ledge. I ended up not getting a doula because I created a schedule for me and the boys. We're still living by the schedule now and it's working out well, for the most part. I spoke to another friend of a friend with twins and she also helped me a lot with my stresses with breast feeding because she felt the same exact way and was dealing with the same issues.
It was so great to hear from these women and know that I wasn't the only one feeling the way I did. Their advice and experiences really helped me make decisions that would make me a better mother to my children and to cope better in these 'newborn weeks.'
There was one mother of twins (another friend of a friend) that sent me an email BEFORE I gave birth (four days prior to giving birth) that completely overwhelmed me. She was talking about night doulas and getting a mini-fridge for the nursery and just provided me with a wealth of information that pertained to her experiences that completely turned me off. I can't really say if it turned me off so much as it just completely scared me. I didn't correspond with that woman very much after giving birth - her experience was not one that I wanted to follow....it was certainly appreciated, but I think there's a line that needs to be watched where you don't want to completely overwhelm/scare your audience.
In closing, I have to say that if you get a chance to share your pregnancy experiences and stories with others, especially those that are becoming first time mothers and are completely scared, definitely share them - especially the good stories. But don't go overboard - cause you can't give back your baby!
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Sunday, June 21, 2009
A Warm Butt = A Happy Butt
This is going to be a product-promotion posting and it's all about keeping your baby's butt warm during those difficult moments known as diaper changes.
I will add this caveat - a warm butt is not a happy butt when that butt is being warmed by the baby's own pee or poo. Nosiree. Then we do not have a happy baby, nor do we have a happy butt.
But what I do mean about warm butts is having warm wipes while cleaning your baby off during diaper changes.
In the four short weeks we have known our boys, it has become apparent that they are not fans of diaper changes. Not only are they not fans but they view the changing table as a sort of 'axis of evil'. The crazy part is that they're totally fine and calm when taking off the diaper - it's when you're about to fasten the new one on and wrap things up do they start to get all crazy. But I digress.
One of the items I registered for was the wipes warmer - available at Babies R Us, and other fine retailers. Boy am I glad I registered and got it. When setting up the nursery, I had put the wipes warmer on their changing table. I didn't initially plug it in after we brought the babies home because I thought 'it's summer, it's warm - maybe the warmer would be better left for the fall/winter months.' I was wrong. That warmer needs to be on 24/7/365. Placing a cold wipe against their tush was a big no-no. Within 24 hours of bringing them home, the wipes warmer was plugged in and on and there has been no turning back. Now, the diaper change experience only seems to get bad during the wrap up portion rather than the WHOLE ENTIRE PROCESS. And every little bit helps.
You definitely see the difference between having a warmer and not having a warmer. In the downstairs changing area, I don't have a wipes warmer so when I change them downstairs, it's an ordeal cause they don't like the cold dampness on their butt after having sat in their pee and poo. I also just googled wipes warmer and apparently they're not only available all over the place (Target, Wal-Mart, amazon, etc) but there's a travel warmer that I might have to invest in! HOT DOG!
So I'm giving two, enthusiastic thumbs up to the wipes warmer - the one I have is by 'Especially for Baby.' It's great - it even comes with a little window and 'oven light' so you can see when you're running low and need to refill.
I will add this caveat - a warm butt is not a happy butt when that butt is being warmed by the baby's own pee or poo. Nosiree. Then we do not have a happy baby, nor do we have a happy butt.
But what I do mean about warm butts is having warm wipes while cleaning your baby off during diaper changes.
In the four short weeks we have known our boys, it has become apparent that they are not fans of diaper changes. Not only are they not fans but they view the changing table as a sort of 'axis of evil'. The crazy part is that they're totally fine and calm when taking off the diaper - it's when you're about to fasten the new one on and wrap things up do they start to get all crazy. But I digress.
One of the items I registered for was the wipes warmer - available at Babies R Us, and other fine retailers. Boy am I glad I registered and got it. When setting up the nursery, I had put the wipes warmer on their changing table. I didn't initially plug it in after we brought the babies home because I thought 'it's summer, it's warm - maybe the warmer would be better left for the fall/winter months.' I was wrong. That warmer needs to be on 24/7/365. Placing a cold wipe against their tush was a big no-no. Within 24 hours of bringing them home, the wipes warmer was plugged in and on and there has been no turning back. Now, the diaper change experience only seems to get bad during the wrap up portion rather than the WHOLE ENTIRE PROCESS. And every little bit helps.You definitely see the difference between having a warmer and not having a warmer. In the downstairs changing area, I don't have a wipes warmer so when I change them downstairs, it's an ordeal cause they don't like the cold dampness on their butt after having sat in their pee and poo. I also just googled wipes warmer and apparently they're not only available all over the place (Target, Wal-Mart, amazon, etc) but there's a travel warmer that I might have to invest in! HOT DOG!
So I'm giving two, enthusiastic thumbs up to the wipes warmer - the one I have is by 'Especially for Baby.' It's great - it even comes with a little window and 'oven light' so you can see when you're running low and need to refill.
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