Wonder Woman #3

It is my pleasure to introduce Wonder Woman #3, my friend Blair.  She just moved back to Texas, got settle into a new house, and worked full time all while being in her third trimester with twins!  I ran into her in the grocery store in the middle of all this chaos and she was so calm and collected.  For all of these reasons and more, I see her as a super hero.  

Blair was kind enough to send me her "can't live without" product recommendations from the first couple months with her new girls.

Noise Machine

"My girls are still sleeping in the same crib, so I put it right between them and when one cries, the other doesn’t wake up.  Everybody told me to get the Sleep Sheep, but it simply doesn’t cut it for twins b/c it has a timer.  We leave our noise machine on all night.  The one we bought by Conair has a 'white noise' setting, so it’s the very basic, original sound machine."

Crib Wedge

"With two screamers in the middle of the night, we don’t have time to hold them and rock them until their milk fully digests.  The wedge props them up slightly so that (in theory) there is a lower chance the milk will come back up.  Since we feed one after the other at night, I feel better knowing that they are slightly raised for digestion."

Baby Bjorn
(As seen in Up in the Air 2)

"I like strapping one of the girls onto me (head facing outward) while I do chores around the house.  Inevitably, one is awake at all times and it’s nice to have them near me, but still have both of my hands free.  Also, I feel like it gives them a good chance to look around the house.  With twins in the middle of August, it’s very difficult to leave the house, so I feel like walking them around the house helps get them exposed to different sites."  (You may recall the use of the bjorn in Up in the Air)

True Womb Swaddle 

"It’s Velcro and amazing." (Keeping it Simple side note:  Many of my mom friends LOVE the True Womb.  I tried it one night, but L didn't like her arms swaddled.  I just learned that they make one that doesn't swaddle the arms.  I will have to try this the next go round.   As suggested in Swaddle Meltdown, you will have trial and error in this department before you find your perfect swaddle formula.  Definitely add this one to your list to try with or without twins)  Here is a short video clip on how the swaddle works.  

Thank you Blair for all of your suggestions!!!  See other Wonder Woman posts for more twin suggestions.

Wonder Woman # 2

To continue my Wonder Woman series, I have asked my friend, Wynne, for her product recommendations for twins.

Wynne has 4 children (that's right, I said FOUR) under the age of 4 and makes it look like a breeze.  I am not sure where she found the time to email me this, but she did!  Her twins are her youngest and here is what she had to say...

JJ Cole Body Support  

Wynne says "I put the JJ Cole Body Support into the BOB (double) seats so I could walk with the babies when they were newborns. Tip: do that instead of adding the car seat adapter that has a 70 page instruction manual to install!"

Portable Swing

Wynne says, "I just got a portable swing that folds into nothing for when we travel. This is key because if 1 baby wakes up in the night on vacation they will wake up the other one, solution = swing. We don't leave home without it." ***Keeping it Simple Side Note***  These run around $50-$65 and there are multiple different kinds.

The Boppy Lounger

Wynne says, "A friend gave me those little boppy seats and I love them!" (You know Keeping it Simple agrees with this one)

A general nursing tip from her for twins:  "Rent a pump from the hospital. It is so much stronger and faster and with twins you need every minute and every drop of milk you can get!"

Thank you so much for your input, Wynne!  You are the best!

***Keeping it Simple side note*** I read this great story about implementing Babywise (my fave) for twins that you multiple mom's might find useful. 

Wonder Woman # 1

My husband and I were married 4 years before I got pregnant with L.  My in-laws were very patient the first few years and hardly ever pressured us to have children, but we knew they were MORE than ready for grandkids.  Well, my father-in-law had a few cocktails one night and couldn't hold it in any longer.  He told me, "I want you to take some of those fertility drugs and pop out 8 at once.  I want some grandchildren!"  He proceeded to call me the "ocoto-mom" the rest of the night. While I always longed to be Nadya (kidding), I decided not to go through with my father-in-law's plan.

His dream of 8 at once did not come true.  I can offer no advice for those of you execting 2 or more babies.  I reached out to my friends with twins for some baby product advice.  I am going to peridocally feature these multiple moms. 

Wonder Woman # 1 (this is what I have named them because they are so remarkable and have the best outlook) is Gibbs.

Gibbs had twins, went back to work after 3 months, nursed for 8 months, and makes it all look way too easy!  She recommends the following three products:

"Juggling Twins: The Best Tips, Tricks, and Strategies from Pregnancy to the Toddler Years"

Gibbs says, "The best book I read for scheduling and helping with other stuff too"

Zip Front Sprots Bra

Gibbs says, "There are also sports bras that zip in the front for easy access (especially tandem nursing twins if anyone is expecting multiples) and comfortable to sleep in too!"  ***Keeping it Simple side note*** You can find these anywhere between $15-$50.  Look at sporting goods store near you.

My Brest Friend for Twins nursing pillow

Gibbs says, "I definitely recommend the My Brest Friend Twin nursing pillow for tandem nursing"

General twin advice from Gibbs:  "I think the most important thing for moms who are expecting multiples is to remember it is what you make of it- you will have people telling you it is going to be crazy, but especially if they are your first children, then you don't know the difference. If you think it will be crazy, it will be, but if you go into it knowing it will be challenging, but go with the flow, it will be so much more enjoyable (and this is coming from one of the most OCD people when it comes to planning and organizing)! That being said, you have to have them on a schedule from day one. You feed them both at the same time- even if that means waking up one of them to eat. All of the normal rules you follow for a singleton go out the window- never wake a sleeping baby, feeding on demand, don't bottle feed if you are breast feeding, etc. It is totally different with twins."

If you would like to participate in the Wonder Woman series, please email me.