When Will Mommy Learn?

So, as parents we are totally just learning on the fly. And even if you already have one kid, it doesn't matter. Because the subsequent children will act completely different and have totally different needs. Or, in our case, be so totally alike it throws you off guard. Case in point:

Jack was rocked to sleep, swaddled until 7 months and there was no "schedule" or "routine" until about 7-8 months. Rocking him wasn't an issue because he stayed asleep, he was sleeping though the night at 3 months. In only became an issue as he got older and I will never regret those precious times of rocking...but they eventually just made things worse and I knew it was time to stop. So, I swore I wouldn't rock these boys to sleep, mostly because I couldn't do both of them at once!! And I swore we wouldn't swaddle because I didn't want to "break the habit" again.

 And while we never really rocked these guys to sleep (they just didn't need it like Jack did...only Christian for a bit) they were swaddled because they slept so much better.

I also swore I would get them on a schedule immediately because everyone said my sanity depended on it and "there was no other option". Seriously, every twin blog or twin website I went to.  And so I pushed. And pushed. And I blogged. My most favorite go-to book on this issue was read over and over, and I consulted friends etc. Everything was saying that they "should" be doing this or that sleep wise. The times and amounts of sleep and all that.

Well, wouldn't ya know....without any help of mine they started finding their own pattern. Getting into their own schedule. We did separate them for naptime, because one will usually take longer to fall asleep and one will usually wake up before the other. But they are pretty much in sync now, eating at the same times, going down at nearly the exact same time. Waking within 30-45 minutes of one another if not at the exact same time.

And you know what....I didn't do a thing.

Oh, wait....I did. I stressed over the whole blasted issue (even when my sweet husband told me not to) 

And in the end, they let me know when they were ready.

Hello?! When am I gonna learn! Ha!

Camden still needs "re-plugging" a few times before he drifts off, and Christian still cries for a bit before going down. They aren't marathon nappers, with naps between 30 minutes to 90 minutes. But they are happy when they wake up and that is all that matters!

Almost 7 months and we got a little routine down. This preschool schedule of Jack's has helped immensely already! It gives us a schedule and they are totally adapting and I am LOVING it!!! Guess what I did today?! I dropped Jack off, came home and fed the boys, put them down for a nap and then I sat. At the table and did devotions. Oh my goodness!!! It was amazing. They woke up, ate a bit again, played and then we left to get Jack. We came home, played a bit, fed Jack lunch and now....they are all down for a nap! ALL 3!!

(Insert Hallelujah chorus.)

Anyway. Lessons learned:

1) Don't push your kids into anything.

2) They are smarter than you.

I sure hope someone learns from my repeated mistakes :)