Hi All,
   Have been sitting back for a while, but am jumping in now. On the
triplets, Nikki's post brought out two items, I firmly believe in. Not
being a multiple mom myself, I was however, a foster mom to identical
twins and have to say some sort of - schedule, routine, organization,
charting - whatever you want to call it or do is somewhat necessary,
especially in the beginning. Granted I did not have these babies and had
not had them for their first five months, so that may have added to my
confusion (and the fact that I have almost no short term memory wasn't a
big help either). But as they were identical, just about 1 pound
difference, and every outfit in indentical pairs, I found I had to
arrange them left to right (Jessica left, Jennifer right) when giving
bottles, solids and meds. Otherwise, I was never sure who I just fed,
medicated or even held
    But also explain that this routine won't continue for ever. Once
breastfeeding is established, once she knows her babies and babies'
eating patterns and once she gains confidence, the adherence to routines
isn't so vital, this is true even for singleton moms.
    I also firmly believe that a mom with multiples (any number) be put
in touch with another mom who has been in the situation, with
breastfeeding that maybe harder to do, but they need to know someone who
has been through it, and some concrete personal information. Not just
reassurance from someone that 'yes, other moms have done it
successfully.'  That was the biggest complaint I had that no one,
prenatally or while I had the girls, put this 19 yo mom in touch with
another twin mom.
  I tell all moms I work with, babies thrive on routine (consistancy)
but do not do well under rigid patterns. It's just getting moms to
understand the difference between organization/routine and rigid
inflexibility. This holds true, no matter how many babies mom has.

Leslie Ward
Vine Grove, KY
"I don't do great things, I do small things with great love." Mother
Theresa