Thread: *~*~ Jules' (kiwi_babe) Birth Lodge~*~*

Originally Posted by rmacburn

Wow! What an awesome birth. From how you described the doctor showing off "his" natural twins, etc. I thought he must have actually delivered them... so hilarious that he did almost nothing. Thank you for sharing, I really enjoyed reading!

Originally Posted by melloyellochelle

Your OB was pretty great in letting things happen as they did and being hands off for your MW. That says a lot about him. Too funny how he was showing you off! It is something to be proud of!

Yep, it was my request that my midwife caught both babies.....I knew that she would not do any other interventions (the obs 'can' be a little episiotomy happy but I don't think he would have dared to try anything with me). He was there just in case and to make sure that baby B presented head first only and I can vaguely remember him leaning back against the wall as I was pushing. Normally at this hospital, the midwife delivers twin A and then the Obs does Twin B but in my case, he just stepped back and watched!

While I have some time, I just thought I would update on how things are going.

The girls are now one week old. They both did lose quite a bit of body weight, almost 1lb each....I guess your body only makes enough colostrum for one baby and until my milk came in I was struggling to keep up with demand. It was pretty cool that my midwife just encouraged me to keep feeding, all the time....no mention of supplementing.

Tessa did pass urates (uric acid crystals) in her urine which I gather is a sign of dehydration so I did feel really bad about that. All I could do was feed, feed, feed and my milk has come in with a vengeance. They have both started gaining now although they are still below their birth weights....that will come soon though!

Sleep....that's an issue. We're feeding two hourly with the occasional 3.5-4 hour stretch...just surviving each day but that's all I need to do?

Still despite feeding non-stop and a complete lack of sleep, I still feel better than I did when I was pregnant .

I am glad you are feeling well. I can't imagine the lack of sleep and the feeling of being attached to 2 babies. I admit, I didn't hancle the first 6months or so with my 1 baby, kudos to you girl for doing it with 2!

Thank you for taking the time to post your amazing birth story. It was wonderful to read and you should be proud!

I'm glad you are feeling good and everything is going well!

Your birth story is incredible! It would be very hard to have a birth like that here in Texas. I'm glad your milk is in...it must have been rough, especially with little Tessa being a bit dehydrated.

Awww hugs to you. You are doing great! Trust your instincts and you will be fine. I think that is great that your midwife got to help with both babies.

Thought I would update

Things are going well here. Surprisingly well. It's amazing how you can function with limited sleep, and we're settling into some kind of routine. You know, I kinda like having twins

I was concerned that I wouldn't bond with both babies....yeah, guess what? I LOVE them both...and think I'll keep them

Breastfeeding is going great. I don't like tandem feeding so much, it's tough to juggle and ensure that both babies stay latched and then I can't wind them easily as they feed at different rates. Sophie in particular has trouble keeping up with my milk as I seem to blast breastmilk at them with a fast letdown and flow. I end up trying to balance a floppy, windy child with one hand while holding the other babies head which is still latched - DH is great at burping both babies, especially overnight! We have a system at night where I manage the input, and DH manages the output ! I imagine it will get easier to tandem feed as they get older and can latch and feed with less assistance. So most of the time I am feeding individually....this also means that they sometimes get carried around doing other stuff during feeds or entertained by their older sisters! However, the toughest time is the afternoon when they do the ULTIMATE cluster feeding session and I am more or less confined to the sofa with continuous feeds or a rotation system. But hey, at least the cluster feeds have meant that we have a four hour stretch at night so I will take that!!!

Both girls have nearly regained their birth weights. Tessa is 2ozs off and Sophie 4ozs...and they have got a couple of days until they reach 2 weeks old so I have no doubt that they will be at the 'goal' by then! Sophie is starting to look less "scrappy" but she's still got a way to go to catch up with her sister...

I have been really bad at downloading my photos...but I will put some up in the next post, I have also got a video which I will share of my youngest two....

I'm glad things are going well for you and your two newest little ones.

So, some photos....

My girls on their first meeting at hospital:



The babies (Sophie in front and Tessa behind):



I am certain that the girls are not identical. I know that they had one placenta (which according to the books means that they 'have' to be identical) but I am sure that it was separate placentas that fused at some point during the pregnancy. Tessa has been a little jaundiced but the two girls just look different (above Tessa being yellow and bigger than Sophie)...

adorable