Appt.

I have an appt. on Monday with a lactation consultant about 1 hr. from here. Apparently there are not very many of these people. Maybe I should look into this for my next career...

Continue to pray for us.

She told me to feed my saved milk instead of formula, which is what I wanted to do, but I just needed someone to back me up.

I have no solutions about this yet, but she made me feel better during our conversation. She gave me hope.

Worst Ever

Last night and this morning were horrible.

Henry will no longer attach at all. One day of supplementing with bottles and he's already done. So, he screams hysterically while I try to feed MC.

Then I supplement them with bottles.

Then I pump.

It took over 2 hours-twice. The girls helped me a little this morning but they don't really like feeding them b/c they spit up.

I am so spent.

If you know of a lactation consultant in my area, please email me with her name. painterse@hotmail.com or you can send it to me on FB or in the comments section here.

No Good...

We went for our two week check up today.

It was not good news.

Henry weighed 5 lbs 10 oz. He was 6 lbs 12 oz at birth. He was supposed to be back at that for this appointment.

Mary Catherine weighed 5 lbs 4 oz. She was 5 lbs 12 oz at birth.

The dr. wants me to supplement with formula after I nurse them and go in for a weight check on Tues.

I have mixed emotions about the supplementing.

After paying attention to things more closely today after our appointment, I believe the issue lies in the fact that for whatever reason, the twins cannot induce my 'let down'. I'm thinking that it might because their mouths are so small right now.

They nurse for about 20-40 mins and then I pump because I want to keep up my milk supply. Once I start pumping, I can feel my let down and I can get about 1 oz-2 oz and sometimes 3 oz per side in about 2-3 mins.

So, I am 'thinking' that I am going to pump a little first and then attach the twins.

I am going to supplement after I nurse them. I just don't know if it will be with formula or pumped milk. The dr. is concerned that my milk is not high enough in calories. I can see the fat in my milk separate to the top, so I do not share that concern. However, I am not so closed minded as to think that I could be wrong.

To add to the issue, I am a little put off by my dr. b/c I honestly do not think he took the time to listen to me. I am not fresh off the turnip truck. I have done this before and I wanted to discuss options and he just wants results. After all, he's "been doing this for 26 years and he knows what he's talking about!"

So, please pray for my babies. I want to be able to nurse them and I want them to fatten up.

More Sleep...

I fed the babies around 10:30 pm last night. They were back in their bed by 11:30 pm.

I ended up putting Henry in the bed with me around midnight, maybe a little later.

We all slept until after 4 am, almost 4:30 am. I woke up before they did b/c of the pain from not nursing.

We were all back in bed by 5:30 am. Henry in the crib and MC in the bed with me, I think. It's already a vague memory.

We got up and nursed again at 7:30 am. They had a horrible morning nap, which is why I'm writing this so late and I've already forgotten some things. I nursed them at 11 am b/c I was trying to get them some sleep, but MC just wasn't having anything to do with that at all. Henry was fussy too, but finally got about 30 mins of sleep.

The problem with no nap is that as soon as you have them nursing they fall asleep and it's a vicious cycle of bad feeding, no nap, bad feeding, etc... So, I try my hardest to get them to sleep for 2 hrs in between feedings.

Hopefully they will nap better this time.

Another Night...

So, last night went well but only because I shared my bed again...

I feed the babies at 11:00 pm. They were back in bed by midnight. Henry would not settle down at all, and had been difficult most of the night already before the 11 pm feeding. So after about 30 mins of trying to intervene, I put Henry in my bed.

Around 2 am, Mary Catherine woke up. I should've fed them both, but since I only had been sleeping a little over an hour, I pulled her in bed with us.

At 4:30 am I woke up. I was in pain from not nursing. So, I got set up to nurse, which takes some effort-pillows, waterproof pads for changing, pacis for after, diaper stuff, remote control, water bottle, use the bathroom, etc...

The babies nursed for over 45 mins. We were finished by 6 am. I slept until 7:30 am and then got up to get the big kids dressed for their day at the museums with my mom.

I fed the babies at 8 am and MC is waking up right now as I finish this sentence. Henry had a bad nap again this morning, so I was waiting as long as possible before waking him, but oh well. It's time to rise and shine!

Bedmates...

Well, the good news is that I got more sleep last night.

The bad news is that I slept with the twins in my bed. I know some of you co-sleep and that's fine for you, but this is not something I want to continue to do. I want to sleep with J, not two little bundles of baby.

Of course, J won't sleep with me yet b/c apparently I still snore. I'm not sure if it's the extra weight or the exhaustion, or maybe both.

So, this is what their schedule was like last night.

I fed them at 10ish. They woke me at 2:30ish. I had them back in the crib by 3:30ish, but Henry would not settle down. At 4 am, I pulled him into my bed. Around 5:15 am, Mary Catherine started to cry. I noticed I had only been sleeping for a little over an hour, so I decided to try to hold her off as well, so I pulled her in the bed between Henry and me.

I knew it had been 3 hrs and they should've eaten, but once again the need to sleep overcame.

I woke up around 6:30 am from the pain of not nursing, but dozed until 7 am and then woke them up. They were so hungry that they ate for 45 mins!

So, I got about 5.5 hrs of sleep! (and the babies missed a feeding...oops.)

Little Stinker

Last night went almost as well as the night before last. The babies ate at pretty much the same times and I was able to sleep in between for 1.5-2 hrs. It wasn't as much sleep because MC would not settle in the crib.

I got up one time each 'nap' and try to settle her and give her a paci, but when she fussed again I put her in the bed with me. Of course, she slept like a champ next to me. Sleep is more important to me at this point. I will do whatever it takes to get sleep.

I hate to be stereotypical, but MC seems more high maintenance to us already. :)

The latching on issues are mostly better, but MC had a hard time at the 5:30 am feeding today. I don't understand it. She fusses and fusses and then all of a sudden she decides she'll latch on ten minutes later.

During the day they do well. They are up about an hour or less before I put them back down for naps, this includes their feeding. Their feedings were taking about 40 mins, but now they are more like 20-30 since they are getting better at nursing.

I follow the rule that as soon as they fuss after feeding and a diaper change, they are down for a nap. It has worked very well with my other three children and it is working for the twins already.

I appreciate all the people praying for me. This is hard work, no doubt, but it is going as well as it can be going.

~thank you~