Ask Jamie: Breastfeeding Twins

We are nearly 6 weeks in and still going strong with breastfeeding. Only 46 weeks to go! I will say that I feel like it is a lot easier this time as I knew what to expect. I think if I would have had twins with my first pregnancy it would have been much easier to give up, but since I had the experience of breastfeeding Bo I feel like this has been much easier. (It still blows my mind to think that I was still nursing him at this point last year...) The girls are doing great with their weight gain and the pediatrician was quite pleased and sees no reason to supplement with formula at this point.

I actually did not pump while I was at the college -- but by the time I returned home I couldn't wait to pump. My chest felt like it was going to explode!!

I've actually never pumped in a public place (well, unless you count in the car...). Since I returned to work part-time after Bo was born I was able to pump at different times to provide the bottles he needed and not pump at school. With Bo, I typically pumped after his morning feeding and then again at 10 pm before I went to bed after he started going down for the night consistently. Bo took two to three bottles each day -- one or two at my mom's house while I was at school and Mike gave him a bottle at bedtime. I also used pumped milk for babyfood -- and I ended up throwing some of the milk away. Let's just say I don't have a supply issue...

The girls are still eating at 10 pm so I am only pumping after a morning feeding. Some days I manage to pump before Bo wakes up. Other days, when Bo is up early or the girls are fussy - I wait until after Katie is here. Pumping just isn't something I feel a two-year-old little boy needs to be exposed to. There is nothing wrong with it obviously -- but it is a bit weird...

I also pump if I am gone and the girls take a bottle. When I subbed, Katie had given both girls a bottle right before I returned home and Bo was napping so I pumped immediately when I returned. On Tuesday, when Mike came home and let me "go out on the town", I fed both girls as soon as I arrived home and then pumped for the feeding I missed.

I am definitely not amassing the stockpile of milk that I had with Bo but I am also feeding two little ones this time. Hopefully once the girls are on a more consistent schedule (we're working on it!) then I will be able to pump and freeze more. Bo and I are planning a trip to Olney so it is important that I have at least enough milk frozen to cover their needs for that trip. I will have to pump every three hours while I am gone and since it will only be for about 24 hours, I hopefully will not lose much supply.

The girls currently eat approximately every three hours. It isn't an exact science yet (I went to Target today and Katie had to give Anna a bottle just two hours after her last feeding) but for the most part they can typically go about three hours. Mind you, this is three hours from the start of the feeding until the start of the next. For example, if I start feeding Anna at 7, then I will start feeding her again at 10. If I start feeding Clara at 7:20, then she'll probably be ready for her next feeding around 10:20.

Luckily, they really are pretty efficient nursers for their age. My pediatrician said that her son was still taking an hour per feeding to nurse when he was the girls' age, so I guess I should count my blessings -- but it still feels like I am attached to a baby for a large chunk of my day. Thank God for my Blackberry or I would totally lose my marbles - especially since we do not have TV on the main floor yet...

I alternate breasts so if Clara is on the right at the 7 am feeding she'll be on the left at the 10 am feeding and Anna will be on the opposite. I'll admit I don't always remember -- but I try hard to alternate with each feeding just to be sure that they are both getting what they need. Many times they will decide they both want to eat at once, but I tend to feed the one who is screaming the loudest first and rock the other in her carseat with my foot. I have not attempted tandem breastfeeding. Honestly, I don't think I have the coordination to do it by myself. I think I would need help placing the babies and 9 times out of 10 that just isn't an option.

Bo has been great about allowing me to feed the babies. When I feed them in their room he usually sits on the ottoman and brings me books to read to him. Sometimes he'll play cars and line them up on the ottoman or on the floor. Other times he'll drag some huge toy into the girls' room to entertain himself. He likes to be in the room with me though. For the afternoon feeding when Bo is awake and I am home alone with all three kids, I have been letting him watch either a clip off of YouTube (Lambert the Sheepish Lion, Cars Toons, Jetsons, etc.) or a Netflix instant play movie (Thomas, Blues Clues, etc.) on my computer. Today, when I woke him up from nap, he immediately said, "Feed babies. Want to watch Thomas." Hum... Then he ran out into the living room and said, "Hi, Anna." "Hi, Clara." I was quite worried about how he would respond to feeding times but he really has surprised me with how well he has adjusted to having sisters.

I do think that feeding two babies is good for my weight loss. Currently, I'm eating like a hog, consuming large quantities food, and I am wearing jeans that I bought before I became pregnant with Bo. My stomach still has a long way to go but I am less than 10 lbs from my pre -pregnancy weight at 5 1/2 weeks post- partum. Let's hope that trend continues and that my belly shrinks some more!

Honestly, breastfeeding twins isn't nearly as difficult as I'd made it out in my mind to be. Yes, it is time consuming. Yes, it is a lot of work. But it can be done. Like most things in life -- I feel like a large part of it is my mindset. I decided I was going to do it -- so I am. The worst part (besides the hormones) is listening to one of them cry while I'm feeding the other.