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Hi! Karriearm, I'm 26 weeks with twins.I think you would benefit from the belt also. Find a local healthcare store and look there. You can even try it on in the store. I don't sleep in it, but I do wear it all day. Once you try it on, you should feel instantly better! (the store is like a medical supply store, not a walgreens)

Karen, I meant to IM you about the belt. With your back pain it should really help. Especially when you get big, and with twins, you will! At 6 months i look like 9 months with a singleton!

PJ, thank you for your kind words. I am always thinking of the struggle going on upstairs and I hope more of you will join us down here soon. cassandra

Karriearm - I'm 10 weeks and 1 day. That's why I won't use the belt yet - just too big at this point. But I have Arthritis and giving up my medication was the hardest thing I had to do through all this. So my back pain is sometimes unbearable already. I think the belt will be a lifesaver later in my pregnancy. If you go on line and type maternity belt or pregnancy belt, you'll get a bunch of choices. Good luck! Karen

Hi ladies! At work yesterday, my boss gave me a copy of my new hours. 23 hours a week!!!! Yipee! Tue-4-9 Wed.4-8 Thurs.4-8 Fri. 11-4 and Sat.4-8!!!!!! Sun and Mon. off. What am I going to do with this time until the children come? I suppose I'll have the cleanest house on the street. Maybe start cooking again. Hmmm. :)

Last night my girlfriend came over and we made some cookies for our cookie swap on Sun. I didn't realize how long it has been since I had a friend come over to hang out with! I told her I missed it and she promised to come over once a week to visit.

Karen, your heartbeat monitor sounds awesome! I got a cheapie and I guess you get what you pay for! :)

Tomorrow is my first class. Breastfeeding 2 hours. I am very curious to what they are gonna say. My dh doesn't want to go to this one so I called to make sure I wasn't the only one missing my other half! She said that was fine. I do plan on asking about renting the hospital grade pump. I have heard they are the best! With my hours cut and classes starting, I am really starting to feel nervous and excited! cassandra

Hi girls,
Cassandra I am so happy that your hours have been cut back. I get really bad hip pain, and I feel like my leg can fall off at any minute. It is so strange. I bought a belly belt on a shopping trip in July, and it has been so helpful. Good for you! Maybe your clean house will motivate me. I thought with all of my free time, I would get so many projects done, but I find myself sleeping in to 9:00 and then having a four hour nap after lunch. So so lazy....but I figure this is the only time I will have in the next few years to take care of me. Although, I am getting a little stressed out that I haven't cleaned/organized enough. If I had to go into the hospital, I would be so embarrassed. ;D

I'm off to a 13 hour sale. Must find something cute and cheap for my shower next weekend.

Take care

Hi Elizabeth! So good to hear from you! My shower is Oct3 and I still need to shop for it. What I really need though is to buy a good bra!
Anyways, yesterday dh and I opened up the stroller that came to my house. It's a jeep wagoneer duo. The thing is nicer than my car! Jim and I could only expain it as a stretch limo. :)It is a beauty!
Today is the breastfeeding class and I'm a little nervous. I wonder if I'll be the only one with twins? I hope not. Maybe I can make friends there.
Glad you are doing well. We're on the final stretch now!
Take care...cassandra

Hi! Had the breast feeding class yesterday. Come to find out it was for multiples. It is a bit overwhelming. You would think that you put your baby/babies to your breast and magic happens, but it is going to be a slow and tedious process. Certain positioning of baby, nipple and timing. I really wish I had dh come with me. The nurse could see I was getting upset and gave me her email address. Before I left I checked again to make sure she or someone would be at the hospital to help and she promised me yes. Reality is sinking in.

Yesterday after class I went to a friends house for a cookie swap or so i thought, it was a surprise shower from my girls at work! I think because I was fresh from the meeting and emotional I really cried. A lot. Had a great time, got 2 carseats, 2 bouncers an activity mat and tons of clothes, mostly onesies, and diapers! They had drawing for everyone who brought a package of diapers and a box of wipes. I think I have like 1,000 diapers and 15 packs of wipes, one box of 800 refills!
Mom is coming over today to help me put away the stuff!
Take care all...cassandra

Cassandra, What great stories! I'm so glad your hours have been cut and that is SO awesome that you had a surprise shower!! Where I work, it's nothing like that. No one is friendly except for one girl I work with. But I'm so glad you had that great experience!

Elizabeth, I think it's great that you are resting and hope you don't worry too much about your house. You are so right in saying that taking care of you will go away soon. But while taking care of yourself you are probably doing a lot of good for those sweet babies! So keep up the resting! If I could take a nap every day I would. And I'm only 10 1/2 weeks! ::) Karen

Cassandra - what a jerk. I am glad you are feeling better. Take care.

cassandra
i hope your breastfeeding class didn't leave you with any lasting trauma. the lactation consultants are usually very good at answering your questions and guiding you through everything you need to know. take heart. there will be help if you need it.
as for the shower, how great!? i'm so glad people were thinking of you and organized this event on your behalf. what a wonderful way to show their care and concern. and try not to worry about the emotional overload. everyone gets a break when they're pregnant. ;-)
-pj

Cassandra - wow, that is so exciting a surprise shower. It sounds like you really banked! What thoughtful friends and coworkers you have.

I didn't sign up for a breastfeeding class, because I thought it would be tailored to singleton pregnancies. I am starting to regret this decision...did they have any good advice for multiples? It just seems like I would never be able to supply enough milk or get enough sleep. If they feed every three hours and one "good" session takes 30-45 minutes...then, that leaves me very little time between feedings. I really want to give my babies breast milk, not to mention the fact that formula is so expensive. Right now my solution is to pump and supplement, but I am really clueless in this area. Any advice????

Hi Elizabeth! I won't lie to you...it is going to be hard at first. The first few days you feed each one separately. The more you feed the more milk you make. We should have enough for our twins and triplets. Sometimes it doesn't work for all. You can feed 2 at once and rock the bouncer with your foot. You feed approxomately one on each breast for 10 min. then, burp and switch. The consultant said it would keep the milk even on both sides. You may have one that latches well and one that doesn't. You may have to supplement, but try not to. Easier said than done I say! I think this is going to be a wait and see kind of thing. I know I will pump as much as poss. and to be honest, I am still wary of the whole thing. I am going to give it my best shot. Look into your insurance..mine gives me a free pump. Hand expressing is not an option for us. Make sure the pump has double suction thingy so you can do both sides at once. You and I are gonna need help. Is someone going to be able to be with you during the day? I don't want to breastfeed in front of anyone so I am going to pump a lot and have it bottle fed to whomever. Elisabeth, if it takes too much out of you and you aren't getting sleep, that is no good either. Do what you can. if it doesn't work out don't feel guilty. The only thing we can do is try. I know it isn't going to be easy at first but there will be a lactation consultant who will come to your room after you deliver to help us. If our babies are in the nicu we will pump our colostrum to be fed to them. I am sure you have heard all of the benefits to bfing not too mention the cost effectiveness, but walk a mile in our shoes! I'm sorry this is long-winded, you know what? Let's ask Meg! :)cassandra

Cassandra and Elizabeth,

I did not take any breastfeeding classes, as I didn't seem to have to much extra time before the babies arrived. I figured I would give it my best shot at breastfeeding them, but pretty much had it in my head that I would mostly pump. They came at exactly 32 wks. and were 3 lbs. 5 oz. and 3 lbs. 11 oz. They spent 32 days in the NICU. They were fed by feeding tubes for about a week and a half and then were weaned to bottles. The hospital was a 45 minute drive for us, so I was only able to breastfeed them once a day.

It was very difficult at first b/c they both had a difficult time latching on. I pumped from day 2 of having them and was very lucky that my milk came in well and with full force. Your body will just make enough to feed 2-3 babies provided you pump on a regular schedule. Even when they were in the NICU I would set the alarm to get up and pump to keep up my supply like I was actually feeding a baby. I rented a hospital grade pump for about $38 a month. I still had to supplement my milk w/ 22 calorie formula b/c the kids were underweight. After a time I could empty both breasts b/w 10-15 minutes :)

When they arrived home I breastfeed each about an average of 2-3 times a day and bottlefed them w/ breastmilk. It worked out to bottlefeed them mostly b/c my husband and I would each feed them at the same time, especially in the middle of the night. It was also nice b/c relatives were able to feed them. The breastfeeding was kind of nice to fall back on though especially if it felt like we were being bombarded w/ visitors. It was my down time w/ the babies. I could never feed them together like the class suggested. Both would get scared and cry terribly, so that never worked for me.

I breastfed our daughter until about 3 months b/c she seemed to having weird reactions to my milk. (blood in her stool and breathing issues) They thought she was having a reaction to dairy products. I was not willing to cut dairy out of my diet, so I stopped nursiing her. We then gave her soy formula and all problems cleared up. I continued to feed our son breastmilk until about 6 months. I stopped for selfish reasons... I wanted to be able to have wine and some frozen drinks since it was summer.

Formula ran us about $55 a week. We bought the large cans at Costco. I also used name brands (Enfamil and Similac) I know people who used generic and saved $$. The only thing is once you introduce a formula to the baby it is wise to keep them on the same formula for the duration provided the formula agrees w/ them.

I was happy with myself for having pumped and breastfed for as long as I did. Don't get me wrong it was a pain a lot of the time. Trying to get two babies out of the house and make sure I pumped was extremely difficult. I had to bring the pump w/ me whenever I went anywhere for longer than 4-5 hours. I remember we went to a wedding and before the reception I was pumping in the back seat, just so I would be comfortable!!!

Whatever you decide, it will be right for you and your babies. I plan to exclusively breastfeed this baby and probably pump again, but as always we shall see what life holds. As long as I give it my best shot that is all I can ask of myself.

Keep trying to go as long as possible and keep those babies in there:) Even if it means being stuck on a couch for the next 2 months - it can mean such a difference in development :)

Meg

Meg, thanks for responding to the post! It is so good to hear from someone who has actually been through it! Pumping is the way to go. Time is getting closer now and I really find myself thinking a lot about everything. I have been taking it easy and so far so good. I make myself nap every afternoon before work. My health is good. i measured my waist and around it is 49 inches! That's 4 feet! :) My next OB is in 5 days. I hope you are well. You don't have much longer than me Meg! Time flies! Take care..cassandra