sorry it took so long...

[Smidget]

but i'm here!!! just announcing my presence! hehehe. i'm finally getting caught up with you guys...things have been CRAZY around here and i've been sick (explanation in my post i'm gonna put in health class...), but here i am. and i'm SO PROUD TO BE HERE!!!!

No bottles or formula yet, and they'll be a week old tomorrow! I was trying to hold out on the pacifiers too, but then we had a night where all they wanted to do was suck, but not eat. boy that hurt! and they will suck on their fists but not keep them in their mouths (well they wouldn't, they're getting better at finding their mouths with their fists). and they almost sucked the skin right off my fingers, too! so after being so mad at the nurses in the nursery for giving them a paci, i have now done it. it hasn't caused any probs though. they wouldn't even take em at first! and they'll only take NUKs, no other brand...and they're figuring out how to keep em in their mouths too. so now they don't hurt me anymore...yay! lol. and no nipple confusion either, so im happy.

now i gotta learn to pump...my poor mom and sister were home with them for 2 hours yesterday while i went to the dr and had nothing to feed them when they woke up (we didn't expect to be gone so long). my mom's gonna help me get the hang of pumping tonight, and we're gonna do those home handprint kits tonite too...i'm still leary of giving them bottles, even for breastmilk. so for now it'll just be for dire emergencies, but at least it'll be there!

[Smidget]

o and i forgot to add that they eat GREAT during the day, but at about 3 am they decide it's snack/buffet time. they'll each eat for like 2 mins, fall asleep and then wake right up, or just stay awake, and then cry for like 15 minutes and want to eat again. and they do this for HOURS!!! last night it was till 6, and devonne was up again at 7:30, and again at 10:30. i fall asleep nursing them when they do this...UGH!!! and poor DH has to get up and help cuz i'm sick, so he doesnt' sleep much either...at least he lets me sleep during the day when he's up with them downstairs!

so is this normal? probably is. i just wish they'd do it at 3:00 in the afternoon rather than the morning! during the day they'll sleep like 5 hours between feedings!

[Kebsy]

Smidge, you're doing great! :wub

I'm sure Ring, Min or MamaBirdie will be along soon to help ya out :)

[Ringlette]

This is very common! Babies this young have no concept of day or night yet. They eat, cry, and sleep whenever they want to. A lot of times babies will cry and cry for hours at some point during the day. Usually it is in the afternoon or evening. It's called periodic crying. It can happen for different reasons. I was a periodic cryer. Every evening from about 5-8pm, I would just scream and be unconsolable (my mom loved it:lol ). It was my way of working out my frustrations and over stimulation from the day. I'm surprised your girls do it at night though. At a week old, you are still supposed to be nursing on demand (which it sounds like you are). I wouldn't try putting them on a schedule until they are at least 2 months old.

To get a little better idea of what is going on with them, tell me what their schedule is like during a 24 hour period.

[Smidget]

they really don't have a set schedule. me and DH usually are trying to go to bed somewhere between 10 and 11 and then sleeping till about 10 am (waking up in between of course) with only about 5-6 hours of sleep in total. then we get up around 10 (sometimes earlier depending on what time we got up and how long we've been up), and take the girls downstairs (well, he does). then i feed them when they are hungry. and if its been like 4 hours since they ate and they haven't woken up, we wake them up and feed them anyway. they told me at the hospital no longer than 3 hours, but then i only get like an hour to nap if i need to and that's not long enough. plus they eat TONS, and its obviously not hurting them if they're not waking up on their own. so no real set schedule to the feeding. but during the day they'll sleep the day away, wake up and eat, and fall right back asleep while still on the boob. especially Alanna. that girl LOVES to sleep. and a tornado wouldn't wake her up!

sometimes they'll stay awake a little longer and just look around, or fuss a little and joe has to walk around with em. during the day they LOVE the swing and papasan bouncy chair, too. even at night they do this. till about 3 am. then it's not playtime, but cry for no reason time. but they don't wanna eat. i mean, they'll latch on, suck three times, and then purse their lips and not let a drop in. they even spit milk out at me. but take em away from the boob, and they fuss like crazy, root, and aren't happy with ANYTHING but a boob in their face. last night devonne fell asleep with her face stuffed in my boob, but it wasn't in her mouth. and that's the only way i could get her to sleep. this lasts about 3-4 hours, with both of em, and then they finally go to sleep. it's awful! me and DH are constantly nodding off the entire time.

hope that helps! thanks for the help ring!

[NewBirdie]

congrats to you for those beautiful babies, and for giving them such a great gift by bf them! :cowdance :cowdance :cowdance (not saying we are cows..i just like that dance she does)

anyway, it is really common as ring said for them to get days and nights mixed up, and it will get better. i would keep your house lighter days and of course dark at night, and not turn lights on to change them or feed of course at night. during the day if they sleep leet it be in a lighter room if you can, so their little clocks will reset themselves.

amanda isn't napping, so i gotta get her..sigh. i will post more later. sounds as if you are doing a wonderful job with them...it will get better, really!!!! :hugs

[Smidget]

i've heard that light and dark thing. we were keeping the hall light on so i could see a bit when i got up, but that the room wasn't bright at all. then DH banned the cats from the room b/c we moved the girls from our bed to the bassinet, so that doesn't work anymore cuz we have to keep the door closed. so i've been keeping my bedside light on (because i've been sick and can't move around well nevermind turn around to turn the light on and off). that probably doesn't help. i'll have to figure out something else, like a really dim lamp or something...

[Min]

Smidge :luv I'm so happy for you and the girls! You are doing a great job :hyper Ring and Ruth Ann have said pretty much everything I was. I would really try to hold off on bottles for a bit longer. I realize sometimes you have no choice, though. The older they are before they get a bottle, the less risk of nipple confusion. On the other hand, it sounds like they are having no problem with the Nuks. But it sometimes makes a difference when they are getting food from the nipple, not just the sucking comfort. Does that make any sense?!

What kind of pump do you have? I started out with a Pump In Style. One I got my supply established, I switched to a hand pump. It was way easier for me to take with me on cases. I pumped for the boys, and also for Abby once I went back to work. Let me know if you have any questions!!

[Korena]

we are so glad to have you here with us:drool :friends2

[Duck]

I'm no help with the bf part of it. But I recommend the light days and dark nights. Do you have any tap lights? I used to use them for middle of the night feedings. I still have it for when I have to sneak in their room at night. I don't attach it to anything so that I can put it where I want. If the girls are sleeping during the day right now, you and DH should be trying to get the bulk of your sleep then(you might be I don't know). I know it's hard, but yall are gonna get really tired fast. I'm so glad the girls are doing so well!

[Smidget]

thanks, min! that's exactly why i'm trying to hold off on bottles and didn't want to use pacifiers. a nurse in the nursery of the hospital gave one of em a pacifier and i almost threw a fit! there was a reason i hadn't opened the pacifiers yet, DUH!!! and i agree that since they don't get food from the paci its not so confusing. we also got the ones that are shaped the most like nipples, prob the reason its the only one they'll take!

i don't know what pump i have. i think its the pump in style actually. i also have two manual ones: one double, one single. i got em from the hospital. the electric one was from someone DH works with...she GAVE it to us! boy that saved some money! but i'm only pumping so if anything ever keeps me from my girls for an extended period there's some food for them. i'd rather breast milk than formula (although we have some of that, too).

duck, those lights are a great idea! maybe i'll get some of those rather than a dim lamp. i just liked having the hall light on because i didn't have to wake one by turning on a light when the other one wants to eat. and i can peek at them as i get up to pee without turning on lights and waking DH. maybe i'll start leaving the bathroom light on with the door open. only thing is the fan is on the same switch :( so i dunno. i'll look for those lights next time i'm at walmart, though. they're good to have either way, esp here in hurricaine country!

[Iggy]

I'm so proud of you, smidgie :pinkheart Breastfeeding is tough and you're a champ already!

[zakity]

Mine has pacies from the start and never had a problem with nipple confusion.

[Min]

I was bound to never give Abby a paci either. That went down the tubes on night # 2 in the hospital :lol They also had to give her glucose water since my milk hadn't come in yet :( I bawld :cry But you what? She had no nipple confusion. And after 3 months, when I went back to work, she was nursing at night and bottle feeding EBM all day. She did great :luv God I miss nursing :(

[Bella~*]

Way to go smidge
Im proud of you. Im still nursing my baby girl also, she's 10 weeks wed.

lorien and mamabirdy

are great support!

[Bella~*]

and the rest of ya'll lol hehe

[Smidget]

OMG, if i make it to 10 weeks, im giving myself a medal! great job! i'm going crazy because i refuse to let them have bottles - even of breastmilk. just until about 6 weeks, but then i think about it, and that's still more than FOUR MORE weeks away!!! OMG. it's so rewarding, but so taxing at the same time. especially when all you wanna do is fricken sleep!