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Friday, December 28, 2012

QuadFeed: Revisited!

Tyler, Tanner, Hannah & Lauren

Feeding four babies at a time is a little daunting, but out of necessity I was doing it...until they grew out of the system I was using!  In a nutshell:  it got way too frustrating!  
The babies went from feeding in a side-lying position to sitting up so that was different; they needed to be burped more often and spit-ups (um, like... major) were becoming very common with all feeds; they started wiggling around more; & the bottle props got un-propped too easily causing the bottles to slip.  With the holidays around the corner, I put the QuadFeed on hold until I could figure out a new system.
In the meantime, we fed only 2 at a time, and our babies grew!

Look at smiley Tyler!
 We went to the doctor today to get shots (to help prevent RSV), and they weighed:
Lauren:13# 3 oz
Hannah: 12# 12 oz
Tanner: 12# 12 oz
Tyler: 11# 4 oz
Biggest Baby on the top!

Tummy Time!




OK, back to the QuadFeed... I bought bottle props recommended by a fellow quad mom, and waited for a night when Andy was at work and all was quiet.  I put the babies in bouncers (but tried to stifle the "bounce"), got all set-up... and it was a success!



I certainly don't like feeding all four if I can help it: feeding 2 at a time is much easier.  They all need to be burped regularly, the boys definitely have a VERY sensitive gag reflex and spit-up and choke often, it's stressful coordinating 4 bottle feeds at a time, and I also don't get as much "quality time" with them... but it trims down the feeds from an hour (or more depending on spittiness) to only 20-30 minutes start to finish!  WhooHoo!  So for that reason the QuadFeed needed and has been officially revisited.  And hopefully we all will get better at it as time goes on!
Silly Tyler with a bottle prop propped in front of his face!
Lauren resting after a satisfying QuadFeed
RaisingQuads: it ain't easy, but it's extremely rewarding!

Hugs!
Becky

1 comment:

  1. I know! I think we passed the "sweet spot" for quad feeds. The babies are now squirmy so they make their bottles roll or they grab them and pull them out of their mouths but can't get them back in. Argh about the spits! We've gotten better about that part, but our pedi says they may return before it's all said and done. What do you think of your new props??? I didn't order those because I don't like the idea of bottles being attached. I experiment pretty much every time. Sometimes blankets, sometimes BaBa bottle holders, sometimes the ducks. It's all trial and error! I try to feed two at a time, but most of the time they all cue right on schedule every three hours!

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