Being an organized mama is a must for any new twin mom!
I am one of those people who lay in bed at 3 a.m. and make to-do lists. I need to check things off so I can see that I am being productive.
After only a few weeks of being a twin mom, I have come to realize is that there is no such thing as “super mom”.
She doesn’t exist.
Don’t try to be her, don’t try to find her, she is not real.
When we found out we were having twins, I knew that getting our house and our lives organized would help ease the chaotic transition to parenthood.
Before I became a new twin mom, the teacher side of me decided to create a few organizational systems that would streamline our lives when we had additional people filtering in and out of our house to help out with our new babies:
3 Organizational Systems every New Twin Mom MUST HAVE:
1. A laundry system inclusive of laminated labels —
You might be laughing as you read this, but I really thought that once two babies arrived, our lives would be busy and unpredictable.
If people came over and asked to help out (i.e do laundry), I knew I would worry about how
things were separated and washed.
My routine is specific and I don’t want my clothes shrunk. I created pre-made labels (download PDF here) and attached them to baskets, specifying how to sort, wash and dry all of our clothing.
I created several baskets for the nursery, baskets in our closet for mom and dad’s clothes, as well as baskets for our towels and sheets.
A little OCD right?!
Well, this one little system was a way for me, as a new twin mom, to try to feel settled with so many hands stirring the pot.
When we brought the boys home from the hospital, my in-laws came to stay with us for a week. AMAZING!
The laundry system was a SUCCESS!
My mother-in-law did laundry all week and I didn’t have to worry about shrinking clothes or what detergent was used.
Now, if only I could get my husband to sort into the correct baskets!
2. The Giant Whiteboard —
In the first week of being a new twin mom, I would wake up (sore and on pain killers) and try to run around collecting bottles and restocking diapers, all the while trying to nurse two kids and still find time to have a moment to myself, rest, or connect with friends.
Guess what…that version of me quickly burnt out! With sleep deprivation starting to kick in and my hormones raging, I knew that I needed to do something fast in order to stay sane, which is what inspired the giant whiteboard.
My husband reminded me that part of the reason I am successful as a teacher is because I can plan an extremely structured day down to the minute.
I know this is not always possible with newborn twins, however, I needed to manage my day with somewhat of a structured schedule.
I mapped out each hour (7 a.m. – 6 p.m. Monday-Friday) on a whiteboard so that I could look at my days across the week and visualize what I could realistically get done on a daily basis, what needed to happen only occasionally, and what items on my to do list needed to take a backseat.
One of the things I learned is that there are things that will have to wait; they just aren’t as urgent as they may seem.
It will be ok if the laundry sits all day, and know that it’s not that big of a deal if the floor isn’t vacuumed or the house isn’t as neat as you once kept it.
This system will help you see that you are being productive and getting things accomplished (even if it feels like there isn’t much to show for it), plan out some errands, and most importantly, ensure that you get some rest and “me” time.
What is most crucial is that you begin to reestablish some feeling of normalcy, all the while being a good twin mom.
You may be existing on minimal sleep, trying to grasp the feeding and sleeping schedules of two very dependent, yet wildly different individuals, and easily forget which way is up.
And yes, you may leave the house without brushing your teeth or wear your slippers to your doctors’ appointments (both of these have happened to each of us).
That is precisely why it is completely normal that you may struggle to remember when you last fed, who ate what, and whose diaper welcomed you with a lovely surprise. This visual planner will help you keep track of your babies’ minute to minute needs as well as all the other tasks you want or need to accomplish during your days as a new twin mom!
3. Baby’s Necessity Tracker —
In the spirit of creating visuals to keep me organized and on top of each baby’s needs, we created this Baby’s Necessity Tracker.
I printed one for each baby, framed them and put them in the nursery with a few dry erase markers. Join Two Came True’s village of confident mom’s (enter your email below) to download this helpful tracker AND gain access to our FREE RESOURCE library.
You could laminate it or put into page protectors and leave copies all over the house as well.
Each time I fed or changed a diaper, I tracked the information for each baby.
The giant whiteboard created a big picture visual for each day and week, but this tracker will help you keep track of the important details you need to remember for each of your babies.
It is helpful as for others who may be around helping out with your new babies.
These few and simple tricks helped to make life seem more manageable as a new twin mama! I was able to feel organized, productive AND a little sane.
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So mama….try out our tips and let us know how they work for you! And if you have creative organizational tricks that were life-changing for you, we’d love for you to share them in the comments so all new twin mamas can try out your ideas.
Chat with us in the comments below…..we’d love everything you have to say!
