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  1. #11
    twowhat? is offline Red Diamond level (10,000+ posts)
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    LOL. My OB has twins followed by singletons and he told me how singletons are "easy as pie" once you have twins. I believe him.

    My fraternal girls just turned 1 year. Not walking yet but they're cruising and crawling. I found out it was twins at 8 weeks (first time I ever remember being speechless). I was very very very fortunate to have an uneventful and enjoyable pregnancy (I have to give credit to Barbara Luke's book for a lot of this). Delivered at 38 weeks c-section (unfortunately) because both were breech. I would not wish a c-section on anyone...it was a VERY rough recovery, with nurses commenting on how often I hit the button for a dose of narcotics. It was so rough that after 4 days in the hospital, I wanted to STAY in the hospital and my husband was ready to LEAVE the hospital. Nothing was wrong, everything was normal and fine in terms of recovery...it was just painful, exhausting, emotionally draining, YUCK! I was also very very very fortunate to have breastfeeding go well (thank you, lactation consultants!). I think in the end it helped me manage because I didn't have all the "extras" to do that are attached to pumping, mixing formula, washing bottles, etc. Now I'm stuck in the "how the hell do I wean" boat.

    I also feel like each milestone made things easier even though everyone (with singletons lol) kept telling me "oh it will get harder when they crawl...etc.) I think it has to do with less baby frustration with each milestone met. Baby can get more of what she wants, can get to where she wants, doesn't want to be held all the time, etc. I dunno if it will get easier or harder when they walk though!!

    I'm a SAHM. It's hard but I wouldn't trade it for anything. We're financially crunched right now, but I think it's better for the family than both my husband and I scrambling around in the mornings to get to work, scrambling in the evenings to get routines down, and dealing with missing work due to sick babies. I think I'd like to go back to work, but don't know how to choose a good time.

    OK, now I want to see if I can squeeze in a nap for myself

  2. #12
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
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    Hello to all.
    My daughters are fraternal. We used IVF to make our kids, and knew we were having twins at just over 4 weeks along. I had a very large implantation bleed that left me on bed rest for almost 2 months at the beginning. It never got better, but never got worse. I stayed pregnant until 37w1d, and while my cervix was holding tight with very few contractions, the babies had popped a few of my ribs out of place and squished a kidney that left me in a state of constant pain. My OB took pity on me and scheduled my c-section earlier than the 38 week goal. C was born at 6lbs 6 oz, R was 5lbs 5oz and both were completely healthy with no need for the NICU. I chose to exclusively pump, and did so for 4 months. I was very lucky to make an abundance of milk for twins with hearty appetites. They have been consistently in the 75-90% for height & weight since they were 2 months old. We are very, very, very fortunate to have happy kids that rarely cry. I think what set us up for success overall was that we used a schedule from the very beginning, changing it as needed when necessary. They have slept through the night since 4 months.
    They just had their first birthday a couple of days ago. Both crawl all over, but no attempts have been made at walking. R self feeds like a champ, but C prefers to hand us food so that we can put it in her mouth for her.
    As for more kids, we are done. We were hoping for one child but through the wonders of medical science we got two at the same time.
    I am a SAHM with a part time job (I only work on Sundays when DH can stay with them). We live many states away from our families after moving away for DH's current job in the video game industry.
    I look forward to reading (and trying to participate more often) in this multiples chat.
    DD1 & DD2 9/2008

  3. #13
    caheinz is offline Platinum level (1000+ posts)
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    Hi!

    My oldest is a 5.5yo boy and in kindy. Our twins will be one next week, and are identical boys. We're definitely done, with 3 boys in the house!

    I can't believe that it's already their birthday!

    When they were born, one was in the NICU for 8 days. The other wasn't in the NICU at all. They were born 1 day shy of 36 weeks, when my water broke.

    They're already walking... One for over 2 weeks, and the other just under a week.

    I have successfully breastfed them for the year. (The one in the NICU had some formula there, but neither has had any since.) I work out of the house, so I've been able to pump as well -- getting enough by renting a Medela classic for a long time, and taking More Mothers Milk herbs for about the same. Now I'm looking forward to weaning off of the pump (only), and I'm not sure how to do that when I'm producing for two!
    mommy to three boys: A, 3/04
    and identical twins B and D, arrived 9/08

  4. #14
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    Smile twins mommy

    Hi,

    This is great! I am the mom of twin boys who are almost 5 months old. They are fraternal and I went into natural labor at 34 weeks 3 days. Had them vaginally (as I told my doctor I would ) and feel so blessed. They are terrific little boys who look and act a lot like their brothers. We have two older sons as well. One almost 6 (as he keeps reminding me) and a 3 yr old who thinks he is 6. Four boys in the household so to say I am out numbered is an understatement! We also have a boy cat but a female dog although she is such a tomboy. Life here can be very hectic at times like now when I am battling a respiratory infection and not feeling so hot. Little patience makes everything harder. But I know things will get better. I am mostly pumping now and having to work really hard at keeping up my milk supply. I almost have enough for one but not enough for two so I get frustrated with myself and do feel guilty although I know I shouldn't.
    I too love to hear moms of singletons complaining. Makes me laugh and makes me realize how strong I really am. I have had the best of both worlds. A close friend of mine had twin boys and then a few years later had a singleton girl. She said she had absolutely no problem bringing her into their lives as having 2 at a time was a learning experience and the third was just so easy after having two. I feel that way too but the other way around. Having had two singletons and then twins, the new mom part just isn't there. So the hardest thing is time management. I do worry about when they get mobile as that will be 4 kids under 6 mobile and doing their own thing. I might be really writing then pulling my hair out. But for now w are managing and feel so happy anyway everything else just doesn't matter. People always ask me, "what do you do when you just can't take it anymore?" I say that, that time comes at least once a day and I just walk away for a while. Thank God for swings and a basement and the TV!
    Best wishes to all the other twin mommies! You are not alone!!!!
    B
    DS 03, 06, twins 09

  5. #15
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
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    Smile

    Hi ladies!
    My b/g twins are almost 16 weeks old. I also have 2 DD's that are 4 & 6 years old. The twins were born at 34 weeks. I went in for my weekly check up and was sent to the hospital b/c I was already dilated to 5 cm. It was crazy. I had my DD's with me, no DH and no hospital bag. DH came and got the girls and took them to our friends house. I am so thankful that DH thought ahead and went home and grabbed some stuff as well as the cameras b/c at 6:30 pm when I was checked I was at 8 cm and the decision was made to do a c-section. Twin A (my little guy) was breach. I kept thinking, I just went in for a check-up...I wasn't planning to have the babies today...but I guess my body had a different idea. Babies were born at 8:12 and 8:13 pm. DS weighed 5 lbs. 3 oz and DD#3 weighed 5 lbs. 2 oz. DS stayed in the hospital for 10 days...his only issue was maintaining temperature. DD#3 stayed for 2 weeks...poor thing got all the respiratory stuff. She was on a CPAP and all that fun stuff. They are doing great now and making their way up the growth chart. They now weigh a little over 11 and 12 lbs. Breastfeeding was hard and we had a lot of issues...so for my sanity I pump and we feed via bottle. It was sad for me...but I am thankful that I have a good supply and it only takes me a few minutes to pump. Life is definitely crazy with 4 kiddos under the age of 6...but we are having a lot of fun. I have a good support system from friends and I am taking people up on their offers of help. I am looking forward to hearing from other twin mommies especially those with other kiddos.
    Melissa

    Mom to Emma (4/03), Kate (7/05), Sam and Claire (6/09)

  6. #16
    gatorsmom is offline Pink Diamond level (15,000+ posts)
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    BeachBum, this was a great idea. I've really enjoyed reading everyone's posts.

    I post around here alot because so I feel like I already know many of you. We had 2 boys and decided to try to have another baby. When I was having my 8week u/s just as the tech slid the wand across my belly we said at the same time, "I see 2 sacs." And I was in shock for 2 months after that. My DH didn't come to the u/s because it was just the first trimester u/s and he had been to so many before that I told him I was just going in to make sure that everything was ok. When I called him from the clinic and told him about the twins he was so totally in disbelief that I had to come home with the u/s pictures to prove it!

    I had an uneventful pregnancy, luckily for me. I delivered at 36w 6days. I had had 2 previous c/s so I knew what to expect. It was a planned c/s and it went well. It was a harder recovery than the first two. Much harder. Seriously I thought my insides were going to fall out the first time I stood up post c/s. And the second and third time. I wore a binder for about a week after I got home from the hospital. And unlike the first 2 c/s recoveries I had my pain pills REFILLED. We had boy/girl twins who were were 6lbs and 6.5lbs at delivery. They came home with us from the hospital.

    The first 6 months were really hard. I breast fed and had trouble with Sisi's latch on at first. Also, they just weren't gaining enough weight so I supplemented at first. Then just when it seemed like they were gaining weight and bfing really well, Greenbean showed signs of colic. But reflux meds didn't help. WE realized he had sensory issues and just couldn't calm down, especially after spending his days with 2 older brothers running around. The only things that would make him stop were me holding him and walking him for hours, putting him in the MOby Wrap for hours before bed, or the Graco Sweetpeace. I could be Graco's spokesperson for that swing. Things got MUCH easier when I stopped bfing at 6months. I had bfed my first 2 babies til 11months so it I struggled with stopping ebfing but it was taking a toll on my family and other children. Since then the twins have been getting easier.

    Well, until they started climbing. Now my life is crazy. I have lowered my standards considerably and yet I am constantly amazed at the state of my house and the things I let my children do. But they seem very happy and confident so I must be doing something right. I love my life and think it is better than anything I could have planned for myself. But I never could have imagined that I'd be working so hard and such long hours. It is really, really draining.
    Last edited by gatorsmom; 09-19-2009 at 05:09 PM.
    " I object to violence because when it appears to do good, the good is only temporary; the evil it does is permanent." Mahatma Gandhi

    "This is the ultimate weakness of violence: It multiplies evil and violence in the universe. It doesn't solve any problems." Martin Luther King, Jr.

  7. #17
    Momof3Labs is offline Pink Diamond level (15,000+ posts)
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    Our (most likely) fraternal twin girls will be 8 weeks old on Monday! DS1 will be 7yo in a week, and DS2 is 3.5yo. DS1 is in second grade, so is gone for school most of the day. DS2 just started 3yo preschool.

    Our twins are the result of IVF, so most people assume that we should have expected (known?) that twins would happen. But we were given a low prob of getting pregnant, and even a lower prob of having twins (after putting back two 3 day embryos), that it was still a shock. We actually suspected twins as early as 1 week post-transfer, when I was in and out of the clinic over a week with hyperstimulation, but found out for sure around 5.5w or so along.

    My pregnancy was uneventful; not even a single trip to L&D. I worked up until a few days before they were born, though the last 2 months I worked exclusively at home (vs. my 1.25hr commute each way to the office). They were born via c-section at 37w5d because baby A was breech. We tried Webster to turn her but there just wasn't enough room. E was 7lbs 3oz and M was 7lbs even. I had really hoped for a non-medicated vaginal delivery with a midwife like DS2's, but admit that I was pleasantly surprised by the c-section experience and recovery. My OB was terrific, as was the rest of the staff, and I was surprised at how fast I bounced back from the surgery.

    The girls are really, really good babies. Our biggest single challenge has been feeding. They nursed exclusively (except for 1oz of formula each in the hospital) for the first two weeks but gained no weight from their discharge weights (which were 10% below birthweight) over those two weeks. Output was good, and no jaundice, but no weight gain. First, I figured out that they were working so hard to get what they got - nursing 1hr+ per feeding - that they were probably burning off too much energy eating. So we started topping them off with bottles, first of formula, then of EBM as I pumped enough. Then, after visits with two different lactation consultants, we determined that they had suck issues. They could latch but would then push the nipple (mine or the bottle) out of their mouth. So they weren't stimulating letdowns. We moved to bottles exclusively. We saw a speech pathologist who gave us some exercises but they haven't seemed to change their suck yet. I've pumped enough to cover their needs plus build a freezer stash, but really hope to get them back on the breast sometime soon. Recent attempts have shown that they have the same issue (not a surprise given that they still push the bottle nipple out of their mouth, too) so hopefully this will resolve sometime soon.

    They eat every 3hrs during the night (more frequently during the day) so between feeding and pumping, sleep is limited these days. DH has been stepping up to the plate (moreso than he did with the boys) and will take a nighttime feeding on the nights he is home so that I can sleep. He works every third night, so my mom has been staying here those nights to help out.

    I work part time out of the house and go back to work in mid-November. To add to our stress, our current nanny is flaking out on us, so we are starting to actively look for a new nanny. I'd like someone who can stay with all the kids (DS1 is only around during the summer) but may have to put DS2 in daycare and settle for someone who can stay with the girls, as our priority is to keep them home (vs. in a facility day care) for the first 2-3 years, if possible.

    I spend a lot of time lurking these days as typing is hard when holding a baby or pumping, so I'm reading everything that you gals are saying, even if I don't join in too often! A special thanks for the extra hugs on my thread in the lounge. I'm still on that roller coaster, and will be looking into meds when I talk to my dr next week.
    Single mom to

    DS ("twice exceptional") - September 2002
    DS - February 2006
    DD - July 2009
    DD - July 2009

  8. #18
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
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    Default Thanks for starting the conversation BeachBum

    It's so nice to meet all of you and I'm really enjoying hearing everyone's different stories.

    I have b/g twins that will be 1 in six days. September '08 was a busy time for twins on this board! I have no other children. My husband and I tried for 6 years to get pregnant. On what was to be our last attempt at IVF, we transferred two day 3 embryos and were over the moon to learn that at long last we were pregnant. I suspected immediately that there were two when my blood hormone levels were through the roof. It was confirmed at 6 six weeks. My pregnancy was relatively uneventful until I went for a checkup at 35 weeks and learned that I had pre-eclampsia. I was admitted to the hospital for bedrest and my c-section was scheduled for 36 weeks (Baby B was breach and I didn't have the courage to try vaginally).

    The babies' sizes were good: 5lbs5oz and 5 lbs14oz and I'm just 5'-0" tall. They were healthy but lost too much weight after two days in our room and were taken to the NICU for gavage feeding. I was heartbroken. We stayed with them for 18 days in the hospital. During that time, the lactation consultants worked with us daily and, although my daughter soon gained enough through nursing, my son would never nurse again. When I allowed him to be bottle fed, we were all discharged.

    Of course the first many months were brutal. My scar continued to weep blood for two months and eventually got infected. For that I had to take antibiotics which caused me to get mastitis which was even more painful than the c-section (and I had also refilled my pain meds though I didn't dare take any more). I was nursing one, pumping and supplementing for the other but they did start through the night at 3 months. My son had reflux and was just an extremely grumpy baby until only recently. He required constant bouncing, attention, much more than twice what my daughter required. I yearn for the experience to be able to dote on one baby, but at 42, feel like I am just too old to go through all this again. It has been so physically demanding.

    They are well now. My son is 95%-tile for height and weight and my daughter 75%-tile. They are a lot for me to lug around. They are crawling and just recently my daughter has started furniture walking. They eat like champs.

    The biggest surprise to me about (twin) motherhood has been the isolation. We only moved to this area about 2 years before the babies were born so I still don't know a lot of people, much less other mothers. I am an engineer but have stayed home with the babies since birth and plan to for as many years as we can financially swing it. We waited far too long to get to have this experience that I don't want to miss out on it. The hospital bills have been huge though! I have tried to meet up with the local twins club but have not had a lot of success in that regard. This board has been great because it provides the feedback that I've needed from other mothers and helps get the stuff I need to my door (because shopping at b&m stores just hasn't been an option for much of the past year).

    Such a pleasure to meet you all.

  9. #19
    dowlinal is offline Platinum level (1000+ posts)
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    Hi!

    My twins are 16 weeks today. They are fraternal boys who look nothing alike. One is blond haired blue eyed and fair and the other is brown haired, brown eyed, and has olive skin. Strangely, this doesn't stop people from asking me if they are identical.

    I also have two older girls. DD1 is 5 and just started Kindergarten and DD2 is 2 and just started pre-school. The girls love their brothers, but are both having some issues with the lack of attention. My 3 year old is just a disaster and she is really making life here tough.

    My pregnancy was fine. It was a lot harder mentally, and I had some issues, but none of them were particularly bad and they all resolved themselves as time went on. My boys were born at 37 weeks 3 days by emergency c-section when my water broke the day before my scheduled c-section. Baby A was 6 lbs, 3 oz and Baby B was 7lbs, 5 oz. Neither needed any NICU time, but I did have to give some formula in the hospital because they were dropping too much weight.

    Overall, the boys are really good babies. They don't really like their carseats, but otherwise they are generally happy and only really fuss if they need something. They have started to interact with each other and it's just adorable. They like to hold hands when I tandem nurse them and it always make my heart melt. They also now babble back and forth to each other

    My biggest challenge at the beginning was nursing. At first, my smaller baby had difficulty nursing. He had a good latch, but would get tired fast. It took two weeks to get him nursing as well as his brother. Then my next issue was my supply. I have a low supply and I tried to wean off of the supplemental formula but it was a disaster. The boys stopped gaining weight and they were so fussy and unhappy. I almost quit nursing entirely, but I found a system that seems to work for us. During the day, I alternate the boys btw nursing and bottles so that I am nursing one boy at each feeding. In reality, I usually nurse the second on a bit too, but when I run out of milk I give a bottle. At night I tandem nurse and supplement as needed. I was worried that the boys would start to prefer bottles, but they actually have a strong preference for nursing. So I am hoping that I can eliminate the bottles once they are eating solids.

    Now, my biggest challenge, besides my 3 year old, is taking care of all four on my own with a husband who does shift work and is currently working tons of mandatory overtime. Getting all four to bed on my own is just a nightmare and it's really tough to be on my own with them overnight. We're moving in a week and I'm hoping that it will make things a bit better. The girls will sleep upstairs and the boys will be next to the masterbed room downstairs so hopefully everyone will stop waking each other.
    A

    DD1 02/04
    DD2 01/06
    and twin boys 05/09

  10. #20
    Melaine is offline Blue Diamond level (20,000+ posts)
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    I'm so happy this thread is getting so many responses! I love hearing everyone's stories.

    I have a question/discussion for all of you. I found a a cute twin website that takes reader's submissions. http://www.twinstalk.com/ (You guys should check it out)

    Anyway, I have always loved writing and really would like to submit an article or two about twins (the author doesn't pay, but I don't care, I just want to be published; I'd be thrilled to have some clips for my resume). Anyway, so I'd love for your ideas on articles about twins or things that you wish an article would address. Even if you don't have any ideas, you should check out the website, it is cute.

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