Life with twins (help!)

[serejane]

Ok so my twins are almost 12 wks old and have been home for two months. How do you other twin moms get stuff done? Or do you at this stage? My house is an absolute wreck. I am barely able to keep bottles washed and clothes clean-neither ever gets put away at this point. I hate living in a messy house but I also don't know how to get things done without feeling like I'm not giving the girls enough interaction.

What was your day like with young twins? Any pointers?

[harti09]

My two aren't itty bitty anymore, but I'll chime in with how I did things.

A carrier was a huge saving grace for me. DS was/is really needy. He spent a lot of time in the carrier (he napped in one for a bit too). That allowed me to have hands free to care for DD or do a few things around the house.

When they were both needy, I could still get minor things done by rotating them. I could wear one and have the other in a bouncy seat or swing. It'd last about 15 minutes or so and then I'd switch. It extended the task out, but I could still get it done.

At that stage, I had a white board on the fridge that was my to-do list for the day. I'd give myself one major task for morning, afternoon, and evening. That managed to get us through the week for the most part. DH and I started doing a big clean on the weekend then too. We still do, because it is hard to get done while dealing with multiple kids solo.

You do have to learn to let things go some too. Gosh, it's tough. I still struggle with it, but yeah, other things suffer when kids come into the picture. I have three laundry baskets that have yet to be put away. Odds are they'll just pile up some more until Saturday when I can tackle them.

Do you have them synced up with feedings and sleeping somewhat? I found that to be huge in making my time more efficient.

[SassyPants150]

My twins aren't here yet, but I know how much I struggled with just one. In fact, I found it only got more challenging with each subset of new milestones and finally at 3 years old I feel like I can really have just an ear out while getting things done. Just in time to start over and double the process!

I finally had to realize that I just couldn't do it all myself. DH had to pitch in and will have to even more. If I can ever get things organized, I'm hiring someone to clean. I think we start learning to adjust better as we go along too. It's nowhere close to perfect here and clean laundry might stay in hampers for a month. I'm just trying to survive a lot.

[ndracer]

My twins aren't here yet but after talking to a few friends and my cousins who are twin mommies I've decided to try to find someone to come in at least once a week and help with cleaning. I'm also not going to turn down any help that's offered to me. I'm sure my house will still be crazy but maybe having someone come in and do a few big things will help keep sane. If that's possible.

[ashb62]

Honestly, that first year is pure survival. It does get a little easier after the first 6 months or so once babies can sit up and entertain themselves a bit.

I've really had to learn how to let things go, which has been difficult for this control freak. We ate way too much takeout that first year and my house is still never as clean as I'd like. DH helped a lot after work and on the weekends, but beyond the everyday necessities like laundry and dishes, housework is still pretty much always behind.

My boys are 16 months old and I feel like I'm just now able to catch up a little. I'm considering having someone come in to deep clean with the hopes that maybe I can get ahead of the housework instead of feeling like I'm always playing catch up.

There really isn't a one size fits all answer here. You'll figure out what works for your family. You'll decide which things you can let slide and which things you need to make a priority.

I often remind myself that this is only a season. Before I know it, my house will be clean and I'll be longing for messy floors and sticky handprints.

[anotherdreamer]

I have a 3y old and my twins are almost 7m- still in survival mode here. I am working on making myself a schedule and to-do list for the day/week though. I'm getting more sleep but I am exhausted all the time and all the kids are very jealous/needy still at this stage. It's hard. I also remind myself that this won't last forever... DS turned 3 in what seems a blink of my eyes, this too shall pass. Just get through today! And good luck.

[minirella]

Ours are about the same age. I don't get much done during the day when I'm home alone but once the hubs comes home one of us tackles what needs to be done. I can get a little done when they nap and I'm not holding. I go back to work in 2 weeks so we will see how that goes.

[mymorningcoffee]

Unfortunately, ashb62 hit the nail on the head. The beginning is pure survival.
When my girls were that small, I did something similar to what harti09 did. I had a cleaning schedule on a white board.

Also, crock pot meals were life savers.
I wish I had better advice about managing the house and your sanity with young twins, but I was never able to do it. Changing my expectations helped me be kinder to myself though.

The big thing to remember as you go through this is that it is temporary. I think the new baby phase was by far the hardest. Hang in there.

[carrotcake]

Agree completely w ashb62. It's all survival.

MH does more housework than I do. We have someone come clean once every 3-4 weeks. We don't cook much during the week - we make a ton over the weekend and reinvent leftovers during the week. It takes a lot longer to do everything. But it's not forever.

[quinncat]

Twins are 7 months old and ds is 3. Clean dishes and clean clothes are my priorities when it comes to cleaning. I have also bought cleaning products that are the easiest and quickest for me to use. Every bathroom and the kitchen has cleaning wipes, I buy Costco size packages of sponges, I have Clorox toilet bowl wands in each bathroom, swifter sweeper, etc. You really have to let a lot of stuff go.

[kels09]

My boys are 16 months and I'm still in survival mode. My DH has a chronic illness so I can't rely on him to pick up the slack. I work from home and that helps but my house is still very messy. I have 1 chore that has to get done every day. It might be the bathroom, mopping the floor or cleaning the fridge. Whatever it is I have to get it done even if it's at midnight. The rest gets done as needed. So my house is messy but livable. As for laundry that is a never ending task I'm constantly washing and folding.

On a good day they will play together in baby jail while I get stuff done in the main living area. Now that they are a little older as long as they see us and they know we are there we can get a good 30 mins to do stuff. I can also put them in their room and close the door while I'm in there putting clothes away. They run around and play while I put it away. All in all I call it a good day as long as I keep my head above water.

[serejane]

Harti09 yes they are pretty much in sync as far as sleeping/eating go.
Thanks for the tips ladies. It is reassuring to know others have been there and made it through!
I won't beat myself up over the takeout. I was telling my mom I can't even do crock pot freezer meals every day because I can't always have the crock pot washed and ready the next morning! Ha!