Daily Schedules for Twins
When you have twins, it’s essential to get them onto the same schedule. Truly, it was the only chance you have to get any sleep yourself . While your schedule don’t need to be strict, the days my twins were on different schedules were definitely more exhausting – there’s just no down time. My first month with twins certainly showed me that.
These daily schedules for twins work whether you’re on three naps, two naps, or just one.
In these schedules, I’ve put 7:00 am as an average start time to the day, but feel free to adjust if your twins wake earlier or later (I’ll cross my fingers for “later”). Also, the number of feedings will adjust significantly during each age. A 7mo old’s eating habits will be very different than a 12mo old.
So, without further ado, let’s dive in!
The Newborn Phase (0-3 Months)
During the first three months, your twins likely won’t be only any semblance of a schedule – and that’s okay. Babies can sleep any hour of the day, and they may not start consolidating their sleep until they’re a few months old.
The focus during this time should be on helping them figure out the difference between night and day. Several ways you can do this include:
- Keeping nights dark – no bright lights for diaper changes, etc.
- Keeping days bright – no blackout blinds for naps
- Making nighttime a boring time, with no play
- Some go so far as to even limit eye contact during nighttime feedings
After a few months, their sleep should start to consolidate into three concrete naps. Until then, just ride it out and sleep as much as you can yourself.
3 Nap Schedule (3 – 6 Months)
Welcome to a 3-nap schedule, a.k.a. life in three-hour increments!
Around 3 months, your twins may start consolidating their daytime sleep into three solid naps, and you’ll notice a routine emerge. You’ll find there will be an early morning nap, a midday nap, and a catnap in the late afternoon.
You may be surprised at how early your twins tire after waking. By 8:30 am, they may already be ready for their first nap of the day. I used to laugh (okay, cry) and think “why didn’t you just stay in bed an extra hour??”. Instead, keep your PJs on, look at this as a brief awake period, and head for your morning nap when your twins go for theirs.
Once you’re all awake after nap #1, you’ll likely be far more refreshed. If, however, you notice their morning nap is their shortest, consider getting your nap in during their longer afternoon nap. It took me 30min to fall asleep, only to be woken a scant 15min later when our babies woke.
Notice as well that this budgets for an 11-hour overnight sleep. If you find your twins just can’t stay up until 8pm, you’re definitely welcome to put them down earlier. Many parents prefer a 7pm bedtime. I personally preferred to keep them awake when I had an extra set of hands to help in the evenings.
2 Nap Schedule (6-14 months)
Next up on daily schedules for twins is the two-nap schedule, which babies often switch to just over halfway through their first year. While it may feel hard to drop the third nap, it does usual increase the length of those two naps. The first time you realize your twins have had a 2.5 or 3-hour nap can be a glorious, glorious moment.
As your twins get close to a one-nap schedule, feel free to start capping their morning nap to ensure they still take their afternoon nap. If they sleep too long in the morning, they may be tempted to skip their afternoon nap. This causes them to try to stay up until 7-8pm, resulting in two very cranky babies on your hands (been there!)
1 Nap Schedule (1-3+ Years)
The last of the daily schedules for twins is a one-nap routine. Once this happens (usually just after the one year mark), your twins’ day will essentially be broken up into two sections: morning and evening, each around an equal period of time, each separated by an early afternoon nap.
Babies, toddlers, and even preschoolers can stick to this schedule for years. They gradually decrease the amount of time slept, until they consistently skip it altogether.
Even then, some parents choose to use this as an afternoon rest time (even if they don’t fall asleep). It can give the whole family a chance to recharge.
You’ll Find Your Routine
A big thing to keep in mind is that your daily schedules for twins will likely emerge naturally, even if you do nothing to encourage them. Babies naturally consolidate to three naps, then two, then one, and eventually drop napping altogether.
What you’ll need to do is to help them get onto the same schedule – that’s where the extra step for twins comes in.
While we’re here, I wanted to share another big time-saving tip when scheduling twins: to do things for both of your twins at the same time. Lumping tasks together is the other big way to maximize your chance of having any time to yourself and not waking every hour to feed.
- If you change one diaper, change them both
- When one twin wakes, wake the other
- If you feed one, scoop up and feed the other twin
If you get your twins on the same schedule and do things for both twins at the same time you have a chance of getting rest yourself, and you’ll survive the first six months and beyond with twins.
And on a rare day you may get a quiet moment to drink a hot coffee on the couch alone. Ahhhhh.
Read Next:
What the First Month with Twins Is Really Like
How to Survive Twins: the First Six Months
Follow Along on Social @TwinWinning
