1 Month

So, it's a little hard to remember all that went on the first month, but I'll give it a try...

I have to admit that the first month of parenthood was tough. It started the first night home with Oliver and Lucy. We were discharged around 3 pm and were home, unloaded and eating dinner and watching TV around 5 pm. We were smiling blissfully at our babies who were sleeping peacefully in their swings. I remember thinking...man this is going to be easy. I was so glad we decided to leave the hospital a day early. Ha! About an hour later, all hell broke loose! Oliver started crying, well screaming really, inconsolably. And about 30 minutes after that, Lucy joined him. We didn't know what they wanted, so we tried everything...rocking, nursing, swinging, nursing, shushing, nursing again and again and again! Finally at midnight I called my parents and said we needed some emergency help. They came to our rescue, holding and soothing the babies for awhile. After much persuasion, we tried giving the babies a little formula from a bottle...my milk hadn't come in. They sucked it down and fell asleep! Apparently the colostrum wasn't cutting it! Luckily the next day I woke up full of delicious and fulfilling milk! Whew!

A few days later Oliver was screaming and inconsolable again :( Poor little guy. I was thinking back on the last time he was fussy. I thought about my diet...both days that he was fussy, I had eaten lots of dairy (ie. hot ham and cheese, cottage cheese and yogurt the day we were discharged...taco bell, cheesy enchiladas and sour cream a few days later). Solution to Oliver's fussiness = no dairy for mom!!! So, for the next month I ate absolutely NO DAIRY. This was pretty tough and no fun and contributed to my very quick return to pre-pregnancy weight.

The first 2 weeks, I was trying to be "super mom". The babies were sleeping with us at that time. They couldn't seem to sleep unless they were being held. At night, I would wake up, feed Lucy, change her and get her back to sleep before returning her to Kyle. I would then feed Oliver, change him and get him back to sleep before returning to sleep myself. Repeat every 2-3 hours. Needless to say, I wasn't sleeping much...maybe 30 minutes to an hour at a time. At my 2 week OB post-operative check, I was a basketcase! My doc demanded that I relinquish some control and accept some help. She recommended pumping once before bed and letting Kyle feed the babies the expressed breastmilk once overnight so I could get a solid 4-5 hours of sleep. Boy did that help!!!

That first month I had two episodes of mastitis requiring two rounds of antibiotics. I also had major infected nipples. It was pretty horrible. I spent much of the day crying silently while nursing or pumping. After 5 weeks, I called it quits and we started formula. Major bummer. I still feel a little guilty, but my sanity was at stake...my doctor and my family were really worried about me. I do feel MUCH better and am much happier now. I feel like I am able to enjoy Oliver and Lucy more and that's really what matters the most. A happy momma is a good momma, right!!

Kyle went back to work after 2 weeks. That was SO hard! I really wish we were independently wealthy :)...don't we all, right!? It's just very tough being alone with the twins. I feel so guilty not being able to give my full attention to either baby. And it is really terrible and stressful when they are both crying. I never mastered tandem nursing, and until recently, I wasn't able to bottlefeed at the same time either. They were so "floppy" during those first 2 months and needed they're heads/necks supported. I couldn't hold 2 heads and 2 bottles! Major problem!! (sidenote: now that the twins are 2 months old and so much stronger, I'm a pro at bottlefeeding at the same time!)

By the end of the first month, we felt more comfortable in our new role and Oliver and Lucy were getting cuter every day...and still are :) No matter how stressful, at the end of everyday we are the happiest parents and are so thankful for our miracles! The twins are really the best babies...they are very happy and don't cry much. We LOVE them :)