Breastfeeding Twins.

The girls made their two week mark yesterday :) They are doing very well. However, what I have found to be the most challenging thing about having twins is breastfeeding.

This struggle started in the hospital when the girls were born with low blood sugars. The pediatrician gave them formula to get their sugars up - before I ever had a chance to breastfeed them. Soon they got attached to the bottle and breastfeeding was a huge chore and they'd just scream throughout the entire experience and I'd end up in tears thinking I was a horrible mother and they hated me. They were fine when I'd pump and loved drinking breast milk as long as it came from a bottle. 

They have had some good experiences actually breastfeeding, but those are rare. Since leaving the hospital, we've been supplementing with formula since I don't quite produce enough for both babies yet. Most of the time, it's enough for one baby and about half for the other. 

Talking to the lactation specialist at WIC, she suggested that I spend an hour with each baby at every feeding to get them used to the breast. She also suggested I up their feedings to every two hours. With twins, that means I'll be breast feeding 24/7! Um, no thanks. 

For now, my goal is just to get as much breast milk in them as I can. If this means pumping every two hours (or more) and feeding from a bottle then that's fine. As much as I dreamed throughout my entire pregnancy of the special moments I'd get to share with each daughter as we bond over breast feeding, I have to be realistic. 

In many ways, bottle feeding has been great. It takes 10 minutes to pump, and Kurt gets to bond with them as well. The dish-washing is kind of a hassle, and we still have yet to find the perfect bottle that doesn't leak all over their faces. Overall, I'm happy that they are still getting a lot of breast milk. The more I pump, the more I produce, so I should be catching up with their appetites soon. Hopefully they will be weaned off of formula in the next few weeks. 

In other news, the girls have grown! At their 2 week appointments, Aria is now 6 pounds and Cadence is 5 pounds 7 ounces. They are very healthy and are getting bigger by the day!

We just love our little girls so, so much!!