Is anyone able to do this with twins?! Story routine

[sundayfishfinger]

I have twins after having had a singleton.

My first child used to love sitting down on my knee and we had story time before morning and lunchtime nap and also one before bed. This was established at an early age - as you do when you've got your hands free more!

My twins are nearly a year old and very sporadically have stories read to them. I want to have that experience of reading to them and them also associating it with a lovely nap/bedtime like with my first.

He just used to hear the first few words of one particular book and then start yawning as the routine was so settled.

I try and read to them individually, but then the other gets upset. Or have tried both on my knee which is a nightmare to juggle as I am on my own during the day. Inevitably one sits still and takes up more room so the other gets bored and crawls away.

Is there anyone out there who manages this and if so, how?!?!

[frankincenseandmur]

Can you all get in bed and read together? That’s what I do with mine

[sundayfishfinger]

I forgot to mention in my first post, but they are ten months old. Did u do it from an early age?

[frankincenseandmur]

I have 2 sets of twins all born in the same year so when my eldest were 10 months old I was just coasting through😂. But I think it could work, maybe wait until they’re a bit older?

[sundayfishfinger]

@frankincenseandmur

Two sets in the same year? You are an actual superhero!!!!

Any time I think I have it hard I will think of you and tell myself anything can be done.

[does Wayne's World "we're not worthy" worship in your direction]

[JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff]

Jeez frankie!!

OP I just sit mine on either side of me on the sofa or one on each knee in an armchair. It is fine. But tbh 10mos is a wriggly age anyhow! Mine are 22mos and will happily read one on each knee for some time. My mum used to read to us in a "nest" on the floor made from a throw and cushions. She still reads to mine like that.

[sundayfishfinger]

I love the idea of a nest.

I have two ring/nest inflatable pillows but they crawl straight out

[frankincenseandmur]

It’s bloody hard work😂. They were both conceived naturally as well so was a big shock!. The ring nest might work as they get a bit older, but I’d just persevere for now. 10 months can be a tricky age because they’re starting to become more mobile, in a few years they should both settle.

[JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff]

Yeah I would just lie down with some books and wait for them to come to you.

They are different children to your singleton, remember!

DD1 would from a young age listen to piles and piles of stories, I mean 12-15 books one after another. But she wasn't terribly physical.

DS (DT1) is really socially engaged and a scamp but physically a bit behind.

DD2 (DT2) is super co-ordinated physically but mostly likes to look at books on her own, upside-down.

They are just different and what worked for your dc1 might just not work for the twins

[sundayfishfinger]

Yes @JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff I think that's a little bit of what I'm struggling with in my head. Expecting it to be the same as with my first but quite right, they are all certainly different.

[tihsho]

I felt exactly the same as you a year ago. Mine are now 2 and much happier to both sit on my knee (without trying to push the other off!). One is more patient than the other so it's still not ideal but it's way easier than at 1 year old. My advice will be to just read a little when you can, even if one crawls off then carry on with other. Don't set big goals too soon such as trying to replicate what you did with your elder.

[sundayfishfinger]

Part of the prob is having the energy too. When it's bed time I just want to get them in their cots and I feel bad. I just need to persevere and hopefully eventually get their.

Your post gives me hope!

[sundayfishfinger]

*get THERE I mean! 🤦‍♀️

[MuchTooTired]

Mine are two now, and dd is massively interested in books, ds less so (probably because his sister doesn’t care to share story time). If I want them both to listen to a story, I read to them before they go to sleep when they’re safely in their cots and unable to escape!

[JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff]

Oh, you know another thing OP, we read their bedtime story to them IN their cots. Forgot that bit!

So their cots are in the same room, parallel to each other but far apart enough that they cannot reach through the bars and attack each other so I sit tailor-fashion between t he two cots and read to them at bedtime.

I know it's not the lovely cosy bedtime you are talking about but it works for us at a night-time thing!

[sundayfishfinger]

Yes I've been doing it in their cots so I hope that with perseverance they will eventually come to sit on my knee like yours!

[smemorata]

@frankincenseandmur wow! Hats off!

I actually gave up reading to mine as babies and started again at around 2 when they seemed to like it more. At that age I would suggest a cuddle and singing nursery rhymes instead.

[Merename]

Omg @frankincenseandmur that is unbelievable- you should do an AMA thread!! Amazing. I think lots of 10m olds struggle to be still and hope it will come for you soon OP, things change fast at that age!

[mammmamia]

At that age OP mine were still being carried, rocked or bounced to sleep

After a while we had many years of reading together in my bed. Me in the middle with one on either side. That was lovely and worked well. They’re 9 now and I think we did that until they were about 5/6.

[inwood]

We used to get in our bed together, whoever was reading in the middle and one twin on each side. I loved those days, miss them now. Mine are 9 too, we did it until they had to start proper school reading every night, so around 7.

[Zillaindie]

I do short board books each nap time and a longer book at night.
They were in cots to begin with so contained, I just sit on the floor and read.
They are 2 now and in toddler beds so I let them run round the room whilst I read the story.
We have a lot of books downstairs for them to play with during the day and they do tend to just bring them (throw them) at me to read now.

[sundayfishfinger]

I'm ashamed to say that for the bedtime story, it's such a relief most days to be nearly hands-free (well, I still have the older one to put to bed) that I don't do the story at all.

Starting from tonight I am going to try and commit to this otherwise they are missing out and it's not their fault.

They have both done an awful lot of crying for various reasons today (mainly when I am seeing to the needs of one so the other has to wait) and it feels like the most awful sound.

[Zillaindie]

Dont beat yourself up. There's a lifetime for stories.I only started doing it with mine when they were around 10months.

And they are twins....one of them will have to wait at some point.

[sundayfishfinger]

And they are twins....one of them will have to wait at some point.

Ah yes, I know this, but I just don't think they have worked it out yet! 😆

[m0therofdragons]

My eldest sat and we read story after story at 1 but twins were a nightmare and struggled to sit still. Even last night dh was reading them Harry Potter (he does all the voices, it's fab) one was sat on the bed and the other rolling round the floor. They're 8! I found flap books/interactive books were great and they'd take turns but a normal story time didn't work until they were 3 or even 4. They're good readers now but much more lively than dd1. They're like the Duracell bunny. Do twins come with an extra energy store?

[m0therofdragons]

I did have a phase of using a cd story at bedtime but I'm not convinced they listened. They weren't crying though so I took that as a win.