charting ?

[mrsf0831]

Hi ladies when you have twins are you suppose to chart when they eat and use the bathroom ? I remember seeing it be done on a baby story for multiples when I watched a year ago, so it had me wondering. Is this a must w multiples ?

[carrotcake]

I only logged feedings and I did it for my singleton, too. I used an app that then let me download the info into an excel spreadsheet that I could analyze bc I'm crazy like that.

So for me, yes it's crucial. Others may prefer not to, but I really enjoy data gathering and synthesizing information.

I also tandem nursed and switched boobs each feeding so knowing which baby has which boob last was crucial and I barely remembered.

I did not track diapers bc I knew they were having enough wet/dirty ones and none of my kids ever had weight gain problems.

I tracked sleep for like a week and then I gave up.

I ended up tracking feedings for 3-4months, until they got predictable.

[quinncat]

I only tracked which side I had breastfed from. We had plenty of wet diapers and naps were unpredictable.

[mymorningcoffee]

I charted when and how much they ate when they were small, but they had some feeding issues. It was helpful to chart because it is pretty easy to forget who had a wet diaper and who ate well and who didn't last time when you are sleep deprived.

[kels09]

I charted when they ate and when they had diaper changes. The first few weeks they were home was a blur I would forget who did what when and that helped keep me on track while we established a routine. I was also able to answer questions the doctor had more easily during visits because I had everything written down.

Also with the boys being in the NICU for so long it was a habit by the time they came home.

[mrsf0831]

Thanks for your input its greatly appreciated.

[anotherdreamer]

I did for the first month with my singleton and my twins. It helped me keep track of if they were nursing enough, making good diapers, everything was such a fog that without my charts I never would have known. I only did it until they were gaining weight well and I felt more comfortable with things.

[anakah]

I did it for the first month or so because they were on the small side and I wanted to see how much they were eating. I also couldn't remember for the life of me when they last ate so it was helpful when trying to figure out why they were crying.

[macchiatto]

I logged both. For me it was helpful because for me at least, with twins it could be harder to remember who had pooped or who ate what, especially when I was sleep-deprived. We ended up logging for most of the first year but we also had meds and food allergy reactions to keep track of. It only took a few seconds and I found it helpful. I wouldn't say it's a "must," but a matter of personal preference and what works for you ... and how good your memory is when you're sleep-deprived.

[ashb62]

They had us chart feeding and diapers at the hospital with my singleton and the twins. I didn't really keep it up with DD, but it was a necessity for the twins.

It was hard to remember who had nursed on which side and who had been changed when. I just kept it up for a few weeks using an app on my phone.

[Deleted]

Does anyone mind sharing how you tracked the feedings/diaper changes? Did you use an app? Regular old chart/paper?

I'm thinking keeping the information in my phone would probably be easiest?

[ashb62]

In the hospital I used a paper chart they gave me.

At home I used an app called Eat Sleep: Simple Baby Tracking. It was free and allowed me to add more than one baby, which is a feature many of the tracking apps lack.

[Deleted]

We logged feedings and diapers in the hospital on a printed out sheet they gave us. Our doctor said not to bother anymore at their first check up. We always fed and changed the girls together, so we never felt the need to continue charting for our own purposes.

[aladynevertells]

We did for about 8 months after they came home. But we have three and two had trouble with bowel movements, and we were also giving a few meds. It helped us keep track of everything. We gradually tracked less info over time.

[rayray007]

I only logged diapers for the first week or so, and at 3 months I'm still logging feedings for them. I didn't with DD, but I do with the boys because I'm supplementing and want to get away from it, so I feel like I need to know how much formula they're getting. Also I'm watching DS2s weight like a hawk so I want to also watch what he's eating. I was just using paper but have now found an app called Baby Connect where you can log all sorts of information and it is highly customizable. It synthesizes all the information and gives you totals and averages and visual representations- it's pretty neat.

[anotherdreamer]

I used a sheet the hospital gave me with DS and the twins.

[twinmomma]

Just as alternative view... I tracked nothing. We had a little sheet in the hospital that I gave up on instantly at home. For me, it was an added level of stress to remember the chart that I didn't need.