Caring for Twins – Double Trouble or Twice as Nice
Looking after a baby is tough for all new parents at first but imagine how you would cope with having two babies to care for?
After the birth of twins, finding the time to juggle everything can feel like an uphill struggle most days but you will not be the only parents to feel that way believe me. Luckily there are plenty of things that you can do to make life easier and with that thought in mind, here are ten practical suggestions to help you find your feet:
- Allow plenty of time for every single little task and by plenty, I don’t mean double, I’m suggesting more like treble the time. It can take way longer to get your twins fed, bathed, changed, and even into their car seats than you can ever imagine. Often as you attend to one child, the other will demand your attention. A situation which can be tricky to manage with one pair of hands!
- Try to synchronise the baby’s schedules as much as possible otherwise you will never get a break. This can take a while to organise but persevere and eventually they will begin to sleep and feed more or less simultaneously.
- Have somewhere where you can put one baby for safe keeping whilst you are busy with the other. A playpen or travel cot is ideal because both babies can be in there together whilst you take care of any task you need to accomplish with both hands free.
- If you’re breastfeeding your twins there is absolutely no reason why you can’t feed them both at the same time. Once you have the hang of it this will save you lots of time and will help you increase your opportunity for rest. If you are bottle feeding it makes sense to prepare the feeds in advance so that you are not rushing trying to get them organised with two crying babies.
- If your home is on two floors it’s more practical to keep sets of everything both upstairs and downstairs to save yourself having to run up and down the stairs. A simple storage box with spare vests, nappies, wipes etc. will save you a lot of time.
- Keep your changing bag stocked with nappies, wipes, snacks and water, etc. in case you want to take a trip out. It will make getting ready to leave the house so much easier if you know you can just pick it up as you leave.
- Your twins can share a sleeping space. Many parents of multiples find that the babies being in close proximity is soothing for them because that’s how they spent their first nine months. It’s also more convenient than having two cribs/cots etc. taking up space.
- Bath your twins at the same time – bathing seats which can be used from birth will make this much easier if you have no extra pair of hands around at bath time. Before you even contemplate putting the babies in the water make sure you have everything from towels and nappies to clothes, laid out and close at hand.
- Teamwork is essential – with twins it’s more vital than ever to share the chores with your partner and if other people offer to give you a hand its wise to accept!
- Don’t ever feel guilty about those moments of anxiety when everything feels like it’s getting on top of you. It’s perfectly normal to feel overwhelmed with one baby, let alone two!
Having a baby should be a wonderful and exciting time in your life and having two in one go should never detract from that pleasure. It will be hard work but planning and teamwork is definitely the key to success when it comes to remaining calm and unruffled whilst managing multiples in the first weeks and months.
