Under 1s twin post-natal group? Should we have one? Who's in?!

[PeelingmyselfofftheCeiling]

The antenatal group is nearly full, any graduates fancy joining forces to compare

Funny you should mention the no help from staff, I'm on southeastern and none of the staff offered - just lots of nice people.

I've got a meeting next wed about going back - hoping to negotiate pt or job share but really not sure how that's going to go. If I go back full time I'll a) never see the children and b) would spend my salary on childcare! I do want to go back in some capacity though, I can't imagine bing a full time SAHM long term. If I go back pt mum and mil will look after the babies which is brilliant and we're lucky to have, also DH is a teacher so he has the holidays.

I thought I could never afford to go back- I only do 2 days anyway. I'll have 3 under 3 so no childcare vouchers etc, will need to fully pay for them all for 8-9 months (as my mat leave started at 30 weeks). Plus one would always be ill and not in childcare from my experience going back with one child for a whole 3.5 months as i was already pg again We can just about afford a nanny though, so I need to decide too. And if i resign, it'd be unlikely for me to go back as I'd lose my registration, need to show I was up to date plus not many jobs round here in my field. Hmm. It's hard.

Yes, I think a nanny will be the best option, and I also want to try an negotiate part time hours but not sure whether my employer will go for it. When I went on mat leave they replaced me with two people, doing total of 6 days between them, so I should be able to argue the case hopefully - if I went back full time I would never see the DTs during the week.

Oh dear, are we talking the end of maternity leave already ?
Re. Help, ours were in hospital for 7 weeks too, then dh had 2 weeks paternity leave, and 2 weeks part time, although we were on the middle of massive late-running building work so he was dealing with that a lot. Then since I have had paid help 3 mornings a week, which to begin with was about just keeping me sane and is now about enabling me to actually DO stuff - paperwork, shopping, gym etc
I have a cleaner once a week and don't fp any housework in between either !

Think we will go for part time nanny when I return to work, but I'm freelance and my work is usually very erratic so no idea how that will work!

I'm already back at work but I am able to work from home 3/4 days a week and in London the other 1/2. Although we are in the middle of a massive takeover which will put an end to it so I'm going to have to negotiate set office and set home days moving forward otherwise i too will never see the kids. Although having said that i'm toying with the idea of resigning and taking the summer months off before deciding what i want to do.

We have a live in nanny (who also happens to be my sister), she used to run a nursery before and I'd be lost without her. We also live next door to my parents so I have two very willing babysitters there too!

Hello everyone, can I join please?

I have 12 week old ID girls.

Also have 9yrds, 6yrdd and a 14 month old

My twins are hard work!!! I was directed Over here by another lovely twin mum after nearly having a break down withy girls!!! There screamers!!!!

But they are ok at night we have ok nights and fab nights so I can't complain there at all.

But day time is a constant blur of feeding, changing and crying.

Love my girls to bits they really are so cute, I think there beautiful smiles are what's keeping me sane :)

I'm like you peeling, kind of freelance, even though I still work for a company (but I am not employed by them), and my hours are very erratic, I can do a lot from home, but also have to go to places, and often I dont know from one week to the next, so arranging chikdcare is not easy at all!
Where I live nurseries are not too expensive, still I might end up paying for lots of time I dont need...
Not easy solutions...

Hi katy! Good to see you. Can't imagine how you cope with 5 kids - I am in total awe!! You say you are near breaking point though, what help do you have?

Interesting most have had or do have paid help - DH wanted us to get a night nurse and I refused to entertain idea. Was too proud and tight I think. Just kept thinking of what else we could do with the money we spent on help if I could just push on through and cope with looking after my own babies myself... The pressure I put on myself and the guilt is terrible sometimes!!

Re work, I plan to go back after a year off. Hope to do reduced hrs to 4 days per week - I know work will agree to this. We need my income to contribute to meet our costs having taken on a huge mortgage a year ago. Nursery fees for me will be abt £90 per day. Hope to get 1 day a week cover from my mum - so will need 3 days at nursery. Am actually off to see the nursery tomorrow.

Katyx, I break out into a cold sweat thinking about what you deal with !!

Any of you with more experience of weaning - what sort of quantities should they br taking in the first few weeks? I know it's important not to fill them up so much thru don't have milk but it's so hard to judge how much gets swallowed!

Hello all - I'm officially a graduate now. My boys arrived Tuesday morning, drug free vaginal delivery, no trauma to anyone - they were 6lbs5oz and 6lbs7oz. They're bf well and we're home from hospital - I'm loving it, them, but haven't slept much and my milk's just coming in so the crying will begin shortly. And DD seems to think they're alright too!

Can't wait to join in more soon.

Congratulations rednellie, now the fun begins!! :). Glad everything went well for all of you, and so nice to be home already to try to get things back to normal (sort of!) for you DD!

Congratulations Rednellie :) Super news!

I'm like some of you in that i am a freelancer. I'm a classical musician and do freelance concert work/tours and also do some teaching at uni. I have extra unpaid leave from uni until next October but am already back doing some other teaching and some freelancing. Like some of you i need to keep in the loop if i want to continue my work!

not sure how we will work it out next year when i'm working more. I don't think i'll travel as much now as it would make family life too difficult for DH (even though he is brilliant with them) I think we will have a nanny or perhaps an aupair. At the moment my mum and sister help out when we need someone.

In the early days i just had my mum and my two sisters helping. We thought about hiring a night nanny at times but then my sister offered to do some night feeds with one of us to give the other a break. She was/is amazing!! We owe her bigtime!

I was on my own with them quite quickly after about 2weeks - that is why i really tried to get tandem bfeeding, i couldn't stand the screaming anymore! I did, however, try to schedule peoples visits around feed times so they could help me!

Those of you starting solids- how is it all going? :)

Congratulation Red!!

Hi Katy - I have nothing but admiration for you dealing with 5, I've just got the twins and its enough to keep me more than busy! Hang in there it will get easier. When I look back to the early days it's all a blur, never mind losing days, I've lost a good few weeks! Do you have any help?

Peeling I re quantities, I'm completely guessing. The Annabel Karmel book says they'll only take a few teaspoons in the beginning - er no, I clearly have piglets! Now they have Ready Brek - two desert spoons mixed with milk and a squeeze of fruit puree (shared) and then half a piece of toast - pretty sure none of the toast goes in but its practice. Lunch is about six desert spoons (shared) of whatever they're having and half a pouch of ellas fruit and the same again for tea. I give them home made rusks too but again, don't think any of that goes in! Sometimes (fish pie!) they don't finish it, other times they eat it all. They haven't dropped their milk at all and have 4x7oz a day. On another note, I CANNOT get water into them - any ideas anyone?

Congratulation Red!!

Hi Katy - I have nothing but admiration for you dealing with 5, I've just got the twins and its enough to keep me more than busy! Hang in there it will get easier. When I look back to the early days it's all a blur, never mind losing days, I've lost a good few weeks! Do you have any help?

Peeling I re quantities, I'm completely guessing. The Annabel Karmel book says they'll only take a few teaspoons in the beginning - er no, I clearly have piglets! Now they have Ready Brek - two desert spoons mixed with milk and a squeeze of fruit puree (shared) and then half a piece of toast - pretty sure none of the toast goes in but its practice. Lunch is about six desert spoons (shared) of whatever they're having and half a pouch of ellas fruit and the same again for tea. I give them home made rusks too but again, don't think any of that goes in! Sometimes (fish pie!) they don't finish it, other times they eat it all. They haven't dropped their milk at all and have 4x7oz a day. On another note, I CANNOT get water into them - any ideas anyone?

Thank you everyone, I'm sure it will get easier fingers crossed it will.

I do have my dh but he works so hard, also my mum is fab she will come round between 3-4:30 help me with dinner etc when dh is working. Also my mum does school run if this working, so s huge help.

Congratulations red, amazing hope you are all well and everything is going well.
I can't actually remember the first week at all, just flew by.

Peeling I must admit the thought of it is actually alot worse believe it or not :)
Everything has to be organized though otherwise it all goes to pot.
My day cinsist of
7am- wake, get older kids up for school, do lunche boxes , do there breakfast, make sure they brush teeth etc .. There done!!
8am- babies wake feed and change them - put them on there play mat.
8:30am - older two go to school - 14 month old wakes has her breakfast, then in her play pen whilst I dress and wash babies.
9:30am- babies go for a nap!
9:30-10:30 - wash dress 14 month old and we have a play
11:00 babies get fed and changed, then cuddles play on there gym.
12:00 - 14 month old lunch.
12:30- all go for nap
12:30- 3:00 consists of cleaning washing , praying babies stay asleep so in an out with dummy's , also cooking dinner. (if we are not out)
3:00 feed babies
3:30 elder kids come home
4:00- dinner for all 3 sit at table with kids and in ms out to screaming babies
5:00 - 14 month in bath, elder 2 have showers.
5:30 - 14 month bedtime - babies bath time.
6:00- babies milk and bed.
6:30-7:30 - doing home work with kids / spending time reason with them etc.
7:30- elder kids betime.
Then I clean up, wash kitchen down after having something to eat, put more washing on have a bath then collapse ha ha.

This obviously changes of we go out in the day, but afternoon is usually like this.

I feel guilty trying to split myself between kids, it's so much easier when dh is off because we both can have more time with all kids.

Katy, I'm exhausted just reading that!

Katy, I'm exhausted just reading that!

Blimey Katy, I feel like a proper lazy lump after reading that , you're doing really well!

Welcome to the other side rednellie, enjoy your little boys xx

Re quantities, A couple of weaning spoonfuls is normally enough to start with and build up (although saying that DS ate quite a lot from the very beginning so I think you play it by ear - sorry that's not more helpful!)

Any mum with twins are def not lazy lumps!!
I like being busy I love my kiddies and wouldn't honestly have it any other way. But it's the crying (constant) that really gets to me!!!
But the last two days things have been ok :)
The whole routine does look mad but we have fun along the way :)

Re- weaning. I usually start off with baby rice till they get the jist of eating then I will add like a root veg to it .. I don't tend too offer fruit until few weeks as I like them to get used to savory first. Just go with there appetite .. I found a ice cubes worth of root veg plus a little baby rice perfect got first few weeks. Then gradually add more.

Congrats to Red, what great weights, and good to hear a nice straighforward birth story for once.

Katy, glad its been better recently. I got palpatations just looking at how much you have on your plate, you are a supermum!

I have my inlaws staying this weekend so am having a very easy time as they are so keen to help, have actually had my nails done today for first time in months.

I'm on an NCT weaning course next week, oh joy. Will pass on any handy hints although I prefer to hear from actual mums like you lot (also the cpurse is not twin specific so will probably not be very helpful).

Yay Red!
Twins rock. They are hard work but very special.
Thanks for all the help re schedules. My little angels are having a little nap now. We seem to have sorted our day time routine now. Because they were 7 weeks prem they still need a nap after their feeds.
I keep thinking I should start at least thinking about work. I'm not back til November but it will come around quickly!
If I don't get a chance to tomoz - Happy Mothers Day for tomoz esp to all the first timers!
Xxx

Thanks ceeveebee, I am ordering that same travel cot as you have right now! Just in case.

I know you're all looking forward to the arrival of my twins as much as me - 18 days and counting!!! (though some ? over twin 2's growth, more likely scan error, but if he wasn't growing on my scan on Thursday, I'll meet them sooner, maybe even next Friday!)

Happy Mother's Day everyone, I hope you're all being spoilt!

Trying to remember back to weaning and yeah, I think it was only a couple of teaspoonfuls to begin with. I think even up to a year they need hardly anything really, its more about getting their tummies used to other food. And they normally eat brilliantly and loads after they're one, then they turn 2 and wont eat a bloody thing. I was so smug...

Still going well with our little boys - one's reached his birth weight and the other's not far behind. We're having a lovely, if tired time, hibernating!

Wow Red, amazing weights and sounds like a fantastic birth, very jealous!

Hope everyone had a lovely mothers day, mine was a bit of a wash out as we were travelling, which made me sad as lots of our 'firsts' (coming home from hospital etc) were buggered up by the NICU experience BUT Ds kind of slept through last night and dtd just gave me her first giggles, which makes up for a lot !

Hi katy glad to hear things have improved a bit. I think you're doing an amazing job! I have two older ones and find dd1 is a great help (when shes not being a stroppy preteen ) but she is nearly 11, so more capable to lend a hand. Also having a 14 month old in the mix cant be easy at all! Dont blame you fir running duch a tight ship, would do the same in your shoes!

dream of course we're all waiting impatitently to have you join us!!

rednellie you sound amazing! I knew you'd have no prblems!

We celebrared the uk mothers day and italian dads day yesterday ( we live in italy, they have different dates), so i got an ecard from dd1 and helped dd2 bake a cake for dh. We ended the dsy with a takeaway mcdonalds and family movie.

Dtb has decided he is going to snack instead of having proper feeds and wanrs feeding every hour max 2, and be held a lot in between, which is driving me nuts as I also have to squeeze in his poor sisters feeds, as well as time for all the rest! Hope its just a short phase!

Can I ask when did everyone start to introduce a routine?

happy monday