8am to 8pm

It amazing to have gone from being completely exhausted to feeling human again in just 4 short months. Thanks to Babywise the twins go down around 7pm, I sneak in and feed them at 8pm and the don't make a peep until 8am! What a blessing. So many people say I am lucky. Yes, I know I am, but I do think it's not just luck. I put a lot of time into sleep training my kids. In the beginning it was round the clock every 3 hours for the first 6-8 weeks. I did what everyone thought was foolish, I woke not one but two sleeping babies! The Babywise premise is it to get the infant on a schedule. So you get them fed before they get too hungry, too agitated and too hard to calm down. For me it worked, but you have to be dedicated and disciplined. So it is not for everyone. My daughter is a perfect example that Babywise works. The first time around I may have chalked it up to "luck" but now that the twins are here and they are sleeping well I have to believe it was my diligence to follow a schedule. So, this evening I am looking forward to laying on the couch and watching a movie with my husband by 8:30! Wow, even I am amazed!!!!!

And they laughed at me...

I remember when the twins were born I did a posting saying that I had the boys on a 3hr schedule. Several people laughed when I wrote that and were way too happy to tell me that it wouldn't last and I was in la la land. Well, I am happy to say it lasted and that the boys are now feeding every 3hrs during the day and go from 11pm all the way to 8am. Yes, blissful sleep is almost happening. That doesn't mean that I am sleeping solidly though, I still go in to check on them because sometimes they are just too quite and at other times they are very loud. The other night my baby monitor bars were solid red, when I turned the volume up, I didn't hear crying. So I went into the boys room to investigate and what I found made me smile ear to ear. The two of them cooing up a storm talking to each other:) Let the fun begin!!!
Thank you Babywise for a good night sleep!

Just too smart...

As I was playing with my daughter and the twins were in their cribs for the evening, I heard one of the baby's crying. My daughter looked up at me and said "don't you know if you leave them alone, they'll cry for a minute and then they'll stop"! I stopped in my tracks and looked at her, when she continued and said "really mom, you just fed & changed them, they'll be fine". Now when did my 3 year old get so smart?

The things I love!

Overnight I went from having one child to suddenly having three children. I have found that there have been certain things that have made each day more & more manageable.

I am grateful for the friends who have brought me meals. It is such a small thing but it has touched me in such a profound way. Every few days I "hit a wall". As if someone is looking out for me, it always seems that those are the days that someone kindly rings the bell with a wonderful meal for me & my family.

The gifts of diapers have been another one of my favorite things to receive. If you would have asked me what the best gift ever would be, I highly doubt in the past I would have responded "Pampers Swaddlers". But at this point in my life, diapers are better then diamonds! I just can't get enough:)

Whom ever invented the premade swaddle blankets, I salute you! Those swaddle blankets have helped ensure many good night sleeps or at least decent sleep in 3hr intervals. To me the swaddle blankets are a must have.

I love the Wubbanub. What is a Wubbanub? Well, it's a pacifier attached to a small stuffed animal. The stuffed animal adds just enough weight so if the twins spit out the pacifier, it just doesn't go very far. Another life saver, especially in the middle of the night!

So these are just a few of my favorite things...at least for today!

How much help is really needed?!?

So now that I am expecting twins, I am inundated with questions about how much help I will need. I have found that there are two camps; those that think it will be impossible without a full-time staff, and those who think it will be difficult, but doable. Call me naive... but I am leaning towards the doable. Am I crazy? Well yes, just slightly! I have read and studied most of the twin books available on the market and have come up with a plan. My plan is to get both boy's on the same schedule. Is this possible? Well I don't know, but I am hopeful.

When my daughter was born, I read a great book called Babywise. It became my bible. I read this book over and over, highlighted pages, and made notes in the margins. I truly tribute my daughter's great sleep habits to the information I gained from the book. At 6 months old, she consistently slept from 5:45pm until 7:30am. Yes, I was the envy of many and probably the target on someone's dartboard. As hectic as my days were, I knew it would be over by 5:45pm. That brought me much sanity, well needed down time, and plenty of time to spend with my husband.

I am hopeful that the Babywise program will work for the boys. So, I have ordered a new copy (Don't ever loan it out because you'll never get it back). Now that I have my copy in hand, I am studying up a storm.

In my opinion it should be on every new parent's nightstand. It is a must read!