Mamas with MultiplesDo you do double or triple duty through every baby stage? Having multiples has its own parenting difficulties- especially when you are trying to parent gently and naturally... please share your thoughts and questions here in your special multiples forum
Rachel's teetering on the edge of crawling!!! Which means Sara's not far behind. Rachel's still not getting her belly up off the floor, but she is pushing herself across the floor with her feet, pretty much anywhere she wants to go. My world as I know it is about to end... I am about to have 3 kids in 15 different directions.
To all you mamas with 3 or more... HOW DO YOU COPE?!?!?
I envision myself being bald or white-headed n about a month.
(((hugs))) - I only have two, but my advice is : childproof, childproof, childproof!!! Put gates up (I recommend The First Years Simple & Secure gate: http://www.thefirstyears.com/search/...?search1=Gates), it's easy to use, swings shut and locks by itself, and is very sturdy) .
And create at least one room (we have 4 - our room, their room, the living room, and now their playroom) that is fully childproofed so you have a safe place to leave them if you have to walk out for a minute or two. And a playyard so if you have to walk out and leave them in there you can put at least one in a safe place away from the other two .
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Christine
Proud mom of Daniel and Abigail 6/21/02
Loving wife to Hugo 9/20/98
We already have a gate in the laundry room door to keep Owen from eating the cat food. Most of the house is still baby-proofed from Owen, and we can close my bedroom door which just leaves the kids' room, living room, & kitchen. Yes, there's five of us in a 2-bedroom house. It could be a lot tighter... in high school I knew a family of 7 who lived in a 2-bedroom trailer.
I thought Owen was a pretty active baby. If the signs so far are right, Sara and Rachel will make him look lethargic! They're already into EVERYTHING!!!
Oh, I almost forgot, we went scrounging in my grandmother's attic a while back and got my playpen down.
Rebekah, as a mother of five, let me tell you it is not easy. I agree with the PP that said for you to childproof to the hilt. When my twins first started crawling, I kept the front room completely free of anything dangerous and knew that, if I had my back turned for a few minutes (i.e. going to the restroom, etc) they would be okay. It's tough, but hang in there. You sound like such a great mama....
It's hard - esp with older kids that aren't old enough to really understand the concept of babyproofing. Megan and Maribeth have been crawlign for a while now - but they go really fast, can climb up on the kids beds, on the futon, in and out of the little rocking chair, pull up to standing and cruise along the couch or bathtub, pull up onto the toilet I can't believe it's this soon because they aren't 10 months yet and they were 2 months early - so this is not even 8 months adjusted.
It HAS gotton a lot harder. I am constantly pulling things out of their mouths, taking things away and re-directing babies. I try to child-proof as much as possible - but my older ones are climbers also - so even things put up on top of the fridge or the top shelf tend to sometimes end up on the floor, under chairs, in the toy box. Also I can't put up gates like I did when my older ones were younger - because the older kids can't do the gates and they need to be able to get in/out of their room/the bathroom etc. 3 bedrooms, small, 1 level and one bedroom is closed off to the kids (our room/office/storage room - though I sleep on a futon in the "twins" room). So I'm never out of hearing range.
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Cheryl single mama to
Melissa (8), Michael (7), Madeleine (6)
twins Megan & Maribeth (4)
We emptied the living room of everything but the couch and gated off both entrances to the room. Then, we moved a few buckets of toys in there (for all three boys) and lived in there most of the time.
If the twins were in the kitchen, it was because I put them there and was prepared to do nothing but watch them -- or put them in high chairs to feed them.
In their room we also emptied the room of everything but their beds. I put their clothes in wicker baskets in the closets. If they emptied them, they could be tossed back in the baskets in just a few seconds.
I knew a mom who got rid of her dining room table and chairs and they ate Japanese style for a year until she could be sure the worst of the climbing stage was over
I think Sara's going to actually crawl first... Rachel's got the creeping pretty well, but last night Sara actually crawled a foot or so... she's still trying to work out the mechanics of knees vs. feet, and I think it'll happen today!
Hi - I just wanted to add that your old playpen is probably VERY unsafe and shouldn't be used. Most older playpens collapse easily and babies used to get entrapped in them all the time. The only truly "safe" playpen (although theyr'e all better now) is the SuperYard type of encosure, but if you want something more mobile there is the J. Mason playyard - the sides don't fold in, it's like 2 big rectangles that you add legs between. It was the only one that didn't collapse during Consumer Reports' testing.
Originally posted by PoetMom We emptied the living room of everything but the couch and gated off both entrances to the room. Then, we moved a few buckets of toys in there (for all three boys) and lived in there most of the time.
If the twins were in the kitchen, it was because I put them there and was prepared to do nothing but watch them -- or put them in high chairs to feed them.
...
That's pretty much what we did! They are still essentially banned from the kitchen. I'm dreading what we will do when Evie starts crawling (and she was up on all fours today!). We're working on making part of our basement a playroom so all the teeny tiny toys can go down there. In the meantime I just watch everyone as well as I can and make sure all the little toys are put away before I let her loose on the floor. The girls don't like it. When they start to fuss about it I ask them if they want Evie to eat their barrettes/legos/books etc and they say "NO!!" and start helping me.
Originally posted by DanAbimytwomira Hi - I just wanted to add that your old playpen is probably VERY unsafe and shouldn't be used. Most older playpens collapse easily and babies used to get entrapped in them all the time. The only truly "safe" playpen (although theyr'e all better now) is the SuperYard type of encosure, but if you want something more mobile there is the J. Mason playyard - the sides don't fold in, it's like 2 big rectangles that you add legs between. It was the only one that didn't collapse during Consumer Reports' testing.
Hey, please don't think I was disregarding you... we've been having computer problems and ended up replacing our CPU yesterday.
As for the playpen, on the rare occasion it gets used for more than a doorstop, it keeps things safe from kids rather than confining the kids, for example my computer lived in it for a little while when I was desk-less. My DS hated confinement of any kind, so that helped us get used to the concept of keeping stuff out of reach. Thank you for your concern, though.
That's OK. I really appreciate your concern. I really hadn't stopped long enough to think how safe/unsafe it might be. Guess I figured it kept my brothers and me w/out problems, so it must still be fine even though it's been 2+ decades. Thanks for making me actually stop and think about it.
COPE? I think I just barely survived. I had an 18 mo boy and a 4 yo girl when the twins were born and absolutely NO help. It was a wonderful and really difficult time.
I have lots to say but I'll pair it down to a few things.
I put away anything that I was concerned about. China getting broken, markers getting used on furniture, knick-knacks, etc... I just packed it up. I still haven't unpacked a lot of things.
I forced myself to care for myself. I'd put a basket of goodies (just for me) in the bathroom and linger as long as I could during bathroom stops. My basket included things like lotion, nail creme, nail file, essential oils, hairbrush, my journal and a pen, pretty hair clips, burt bees lip gloss, an some fun magazines when I could swing it.
I learned not to always say what I thought but what I could to encourage and distract my children.
I learned that my heart is enough for my children and that I am best for them. I know that you are the best mama for your children and I hope you can rest in your heart for them amidst all the chaos.
.
They're already into EVERYTHING!!!
and nervous
all at the same time.
, Olivia 3, Eva 20 months
Thanks for making me actually stop and think about it.
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