Ever wonder what it takes to feed two, five month old twin boys? The last little while, it’s taken 20 cans each month.
As soon as the boys were born, I began pumping every three hours, for 20 minutes straight. The result: I was lucky to produce 2 ounces every time I pumped. I worked, and worked with the lactation consultant, but for whatever reason, this time around, I struggled producing milk. After a few months, Pat sat me down and told me to stop stressing, and we decided it just wasn’t working. So, formula it was.
Maybe it’s because one of the first questions I’m usually asked is, “Are you breastfeeding BOTH of them?” I started feeling a little guilty about it. While explaining this to another twin mom, she replied, “Oh, don’t look at it that way, instead, think about how lucky we are to have an alternative.”
You know what, I think I’ll have to agree.
Too bad it just isn’t a little cheaper 
I am a formula feeding mom and boy oh boy do I hate that question. I love that I can get help with feeding her even if it means I'm not breastfeeding. I cant' imagine two! I too am grateful for the alternative.
ReplyDeleteI went through something similar with my daughter. She was in the NICU for a week so I had to start "breastfeeding" using a pump. I never quite produced enough, had to supplement and stopped nursing her at nine months. It's disappointing, but it is awesome we have other options!
ReplyDeleteI had my twins 9 years ago, but I had emailed Similac stating I was a mother of twins and thanking them for the great formula. They sent me a lot of coupons every month! I don't think I ever had to buy a can without one. I'm not sure if that's something they still do but its worth looking in to! All of your kids are adorable!
ReplyDeletebreastfeeding just doesn't work out for some people for a variety of reasons. we need to support each other and not place guilt on another mother for something so personal to each woman. i'm so glad the other mom helped to calm your guilty feelings. we all do the best we can for our sweet babies as you obviously did with your pumping. it is a blessing that we have such wonderful alternatives to nourish our babies! thank you as always for sharing your story....love your family!
ReplyDeleteI breastfed my son for the first 3 months and I would have probably stopped sooner had it not been for a lot of comments that made me feel like a terrible Mom if I wasn't breastfeeding. It's such a wonderful thing but after all the struggles my son and I went through (including low supply as well) I was also thankful for another alternative. I know we hear that "breast is best" but I believe "fed is best". As long as my son was healthy and getting fed and nutrition thats all that matters. I can't even imagine trying to breastfeed TWO! You are super woman and shouldn't worry about formula, your twins look like they are healthy and thriving five month olds, just like they should be. I think the fact that you're surviving raising two babies at once deserves recognition. :)
ReplyDeleteI went through the same situation. Mine was a little different, and we were moving while my daughter was both breastfeeding and using formula (she was 3 months old, I believe). During the move, my supply dropped and no matter how much I pumped I couldn't make any milk. Hopefully my next time around will be different and I'll be able to nurse more. Just look at it this way...in about 6 or 7 months they won't need formula anymore, hopefully :-)
ReplyDeleteI tried so, so hard to breastfeed 3 different times, even resorted to buying a $400 breast pump to help, so I would fall under that good mom catagory. From cracked and bleeding nipples to severe mastitus I just couldn't do it! I am so thankful for your post to let other moms know that it's okay!!
ReplyDeleteI tried so, so hard to breastfeed 3 different times, even resorted to buying a $400 breast pump to help, so I would fall under that good mom catagory. From cracked and bleeding nipples to severe mastitus I just couldn't do it! I am so thankful for your post to let other moms know that it's okay!!
ReplyDeleteYou should try Sams Club Gentle brand. It's so much cheaper! 48oz for $25, and you can order and ship online for free. If you want to try it, I'd be happy to let you use my membership to order a can. Just send me an email hollyanderson612@gmail.com
ReplyDeleteguilt should be reserved for sin...not for lack of milk production! I had a 32 week preemie and never got a decent milk supply. I think that pump just doesn't do the same thing as having a sweet baby eating. I had plenty of milk with my other kids, but not with him. As long as they are healthy and thriving...hello 95%!
ReplyDeleteOh my stars I know exactly what you mean! I stopped nursing my twins girls at one month. I honestly couldn't even talk about it for the longest time. I felt so guilty for not nursing but while I was nursing I felt so guilty I was spending so much time on the couch and not meeting the needs of my two older daughters. But at the end of the day when I was nursing nobody was happy. I also feel lucky that we have an alternative and my girls have developed into funny, very smart almost 2 year olds. It all works out. and golly I hear you on the expense! I didn't even have to have the expensive kind I just bought enfamil from costco but I certainly wouldn't want to add up what I spent on that that first year. Luckily they are worth it. ;) Now they are off formula and out of diapers its like we got a pay raise! :) you are a darling family and I enjoy reading your blog. Cheers!
ReplyDeleteI am one of those mom's that just got lucky and had tons of milk. One of my docs said I would make a good Jersey for a farmer:)
ReplyDeleteIf I was you, I would email them with a link to this exact blog post! See if they might send you coupons or possibly even sponsor a blog post, paid of course in formula? Hey, it's worth a shot! SO many mom's out there do it. You might as well try.
Ha! you got me beat! I'm all for breastfeeding, but I've always thought if i had twins 'THERES NO way i'd breastfeed!'
ReplyDeleteI breast fed my first two, and after having Noah I decided to bottle feed my last two right from the start, because I knew I would need to, to be able to cope with Noah's needs plus having a newborn. It was SO hard though because there is so much pressure put on you to breastfeed, but it was THE best decision I could've made. I LOVED it and I actually wished I bottle fed my first two as well, because I was just so exhausted all the time and didn't enjoy the baby stage at all.
ReplyDeleteWith Harri and Kobe I just loved the baby stage so much more because Aaron could help (and any visitors) and I had so much more energy. I think it's GREAT that you have another option and the only downside I found for sure was the cost, but it was so worth it for me. My bottle fed babies are even healthier than my other two breastfed boys.
I noticed that you have the spit-up special formula. My second had horrible reflux and I tried that for a while. Then, the doctor told me it was completely fine to put rice cereal in regular formula and just use a nipple with an extra large hole in it so it will come out easier. I started buying the generic brands at Costco for much cheaper and tried the dr's idea. It worked even better than the special formula I was using and it saved some good moolah. Also, not sure if you have a Kid to Kid up there in Idaho, but they sell unopened cans of all different kinds of formula at a discounted price. Just some thoughts. Hopefully this can help you a little.
ReplyDeleteOkay, so I just read the next post and realized you already knew about my suggestion, so...nevermind :)
ReplyDeleteWe had to formula feed our first boy and our insurance covered a lot of it. We were on Blue Cross Blue Shield at the time, and with a doctor's note they would mail us as many cans of formula that we needed for each month.
ReplyDeleteOh your post brings back memories! I think each baby is different, each mom is different, and each situation is different. One of my twins would not latch on. She was just a lazy nurser and got to the point where she was not eating and had to be hospitalized. After her discharge home, I pumped and bottle feed her then would nurse the other one. (Sometimes at the same time! I was quite the sight I'm sure!) I was lucky enought to produce enough milk for 3 babies, not sure how, but it was nice. I should have done it longer but couldn't so we began doing formula about 6 months old. Its amazing how much twins eat! Could you imagine the diapers and formula for triplets or more!!? Crazy! Keep up the good work Mama! ;)
ReplyDeleteYour boys are about a month and a half older than mine and I went through the exact same thing with the darn pump! Check out Target brand formula... It is actually the EXACT same as the name brand. We had some sensitive tummies that we tried 234577 types of formula and settled on Enfamil gentelease and a Target brand is identical...look into it!
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