Tips (and Gear!) to Make Parenting Multiples Easier

Divide and conquer

With our twins, my husband and I both got up for nighttime feedings. One of us would get the bottles ready while the other got the babies ready. Because we had to get them on the same schedule, we found that changing their diapers helped wake up the one who was still sleeping so she could also eat. Tag-teaming nighttime feedings meant the girls ate at the same time, which helped them adjust to the same schedule; it also meant that my husband and I could both go back to bed sooner.

We still use this method now that the girls are toddlers. We divide the work, and if we see a need, we get it done. For us, it works better than having set responsibilities for each parent. Parenting multiples is about establishing routine and schedules, but it’s also about finding the right level of fluidity.

Rub-a-dub-dub, two babes in a tub

Initially, we bathed our girls one at a time. My husband would be at the bathtub and I would be getting everything ready: next baby, towels, pajamas for after the bath and a warm bottle. When the first baby was done with her bath, we’d swap babies, and I would set to work drying, lotioning and dressing the first baby while he bathed the second one.

Once our twins were accustomed to bath time, we bathed both at once. While my husband bathed them, I prepped for after-bath ministrations. Sometimes I even got a minute to sit down and relax. Now that our twins are 2 years old, we still use this same method. Dad bathes them while I get everything else ready for bedtime. It all goes back to that idea of “divide and conquer.”

Dress for success

Picking and laying out clothes before getting my twins going in the morning moves everything forward without too much fuss. The same goes for making sure there are wipes ready for diaper changes and unfolding the diapers so all we have to do is slip them underneath a bum with one hand. This is a quick and efficient system, especially if you have a fussy or squirming baby.

Feeding twins on your own

If you’re on your own and only feed one twin at a time, start before they cry in hunger, which means you’ll need to know their general schedule or recognize the first signs that they’re getting hungry. I found that if I waited to feed my twins until they were at the point of hunger, the situation unraveled very quickly for that second newborn baby. My first week of being home by myself with the twins, I made the mistake of feeding the first baby halfway and then switching, thinking that if they both had some food in their bellies, they would be okay as I switched back and forth. Wrong! I learned that I needed to feed each one fully before tending to the second or mass chaos ensued, leaving everyone unhappy and in tears.