I realize a post about adding to your family when you already have multiples is probably better suited for the toddler section, and not ‘Twinfant Tuesday.’ I happen to agree that, if you’re smarter than I, you would probably not even dream of adding another baby to the mix anytime after surviving the first year with twin babies. Enough’s enough, amIright?
Ah, but what good comes with predictability? As twin moms, we all learned at one point or another to just give in, surrender, let the chips fall where they may and just try our best. So, when I stood in my bathroom looking at a positive pregnancy test over lunchtime, having left my husband downstairs feeding our twin 7-month-old identical girls and older 3-year-old, I was somewhat…gobsmacked. I felt a little like an irresponsible teenager: how did this HAPPEN? I was still pumping breastmilk five, six times a day! For two babies! Who just started sleeping through the night?
The numbers continued to perplex me: Three under three, four carseats, four little bodies growing and eating from my body at once (two nurselings, a fetus and my own). I was 26 years old, scared, overwhelmed and experiencing a new level of humble pie, faced with the prospect of another baby already.
That baby is two and a half now, and from the other side of that craziness (it was, no doubt about it, a chaotic time), I have some thoughts for moms of twins who are expecting another or thinking about it.
- Savour it. Chances are, your twin pregnancy was coloured in themes of panic, concern, fear, amazement and a sooner-than-expected delivery. This time, if it’s just one bean in there, slow down and take it all in.
- The guilt is real. Twins require so much of us from the very beginning. More than we felt they ever got, and not nearly as much as they deserve. Bringing another baby into the picture can spur guilt from the onset (it did for me!). Que cera cera. Your babies will know love from you, whether there are two of them, six of them, spaced apart or all born close together.
- You have veteran status. You have successfully brought two babies from birth to wherever they are now, and that was no easy feat. This is just one! You can do this! What’s one baby waking up hungry? Pssht, child’s play.
I promise, you’ve got this, mama. Now, if you’re the planner type, my advice is: Don’t rush to have a baby 16 months after twins! I mean, it’s doable, but oh, I still feel that time period aged me five years.
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Now that my daughters are nearly 10 and still my only kids, there’s a part of me that wishes I’d gone ahead and had more kids right away… although adoption is still an option.
Sadia recently posted Twins and another, and another
Twins are always special. They have had to share space since conception. Some times when we welcome them into the world we forget they are individuals. Even as we speak of them, often we just say “the twins”. It’s true, every parent of twins need to have pictures where they are dressed alike. It’s part of the tradition. But the tradition can end as soon as they are able to pick out something to wear (or sooner). Multiples are often seen on television rolling their eyes because they had to come in costume. NO one want their child to feel like they are always wearing a costume. You may have noticed a reoccurring theme. Twins treated as individuals are more likely to get along better. Not only with each other but with the outside world as well. Chances are they will still be best friends and have many of the same interests.
Cheerio
Isabelle Clover recently posted Thyromegaly: definition | causes | symptoms | treatment | prevention