The girls' green school bus

We've gotten lots of hand me down toy vehicles... all of which are the worst emitters on the road: buses, dump trucks, tractors. I figure we're trying to raise the girls so they're aware of the environment. Besides, my husband works in energy policy. So I scavenged the internet and I finally found these toy sized biodiesel stickers - you have to scroll down to the second product and choose the right size (4 inches). Smallest I could find.

Twinsight #4: WHAT TO BUY NEW

I'm a big proponent of buying things used - good for $$ and for the earth. But these are the things we decided to get new, or else were given and really appreciated. So if people are asking what they can buy you, here are the new items that were really handy for us.

• Convertible carseats - Big ticket item and these will probably be used for long enough that getting these new is a fine idea. We chose the Britax Roundabouts because we have a sedan and couldn't fit two bigger seats in the rear facing position (something to think about when you're looking at those seats)
  
• Personalized towels - Initially I got towels in two different colors and just said I would remember who was which color. Yeah, right, not in those first sleep deprived weeks/months (though it may work for you if you're color coding other things in their lives). And then we got these personalized towels as a gift. No more mixing up the towels. I highly recommend it, plus these from Company Kids are adorable and soft. I can't believe I'm recommending monogrammed towels!
• Soothie pacifier – perfect for tiny faces, they don’t smush noses on preemies/small babies the way that standard pacifiers do - and there's always a good chance twins will be born little. Seems like online is the easiest place to find them.
  
• Crib sheets - We just got a three pack to start with and that has been all right so far.
  
• Crib mattress - We got a Colgate II mattress recommended by a baby shopping bargains book and we've been very happy with it!
• 2 baby calendars – Ours is this one (pictured right), but there are lots of options. It's easier to keep up than baby books, and with twins, time is everything.
  
• Ergo baby carrier - (unless you get lucky and find a good deal on one used. But I've found they tend to sell for almost as much as a new one). While I loved how the babies can face out in the Baby Bjorns, at around 6 months they just got TOO heavy. And these are good on your back as promised. They're great for travel, too. It's really key with twins to have one good carrier because there will be times you have to carry both and putting one in a carrier while holding the other is much more secure than doing both freestyle.
  

• Two other items to ask for from people who want to get you something: 1) a session with a baby/family photographer around 6 or 7 months when the babies start sitting up, but before they can crawl away. Great to look forward to because with twins there usually isn’t a parent free to take pictures; 2) gift cards to places with food To Go in your area

I'd love to hear other peoples' suggestions on this, too!

Twinsight #3: WHAT TO BUY USED

I'm a big proponent of getting infant items used. Now on top of the old fashioned resale shops and loaners from friends, craigslist, eBay and freecycle are great resources. It's good for your wallet and the environment. I KNOW I'm not the only twin parent who is a big fan of used stuff because more than 50% of the families I meet when buying and selling through craigslist have twins.

Also, multiple groups (like the San Francisco Parents of Multiples Club) and local parents groups (like the Berkeley Parents Network) are great places to find used stuff posted for free. Jump on that bandwagon!

Here is my list of great items to try to get used as you prepare for your twins' arrival:

• Infant carseats - I know the industry always says buy carseats new, but you use these for such a short period. I found a twins family I trusted who said theirs hadn't been in an accident and I was very happy to go with that.
• A double snap n go stroller - If you do a lot of walking on not great sidewalks or uphills, I highly recommend scavenging for a used Double Decker stroller (see pic). Otherwise a straight ahead double snap n go should be fine for the few months this item is useful.

• A single snap n go stroller - I loved putting one baby in a Bjorn and the other in a single snap n go for strolls around the neighborhood. Also, good way to go into places like cafes where there isn't much room.
• Nursing pillow - if you're planning to try tandem nursing. I tried two and the best one in the beginning was the EZ-2-Nurse-Twins. Definitely try to get this from the multiple club's loaner library or another mother.
  
• Futon and/or glider. I found it much easier to tandem nurse on a futon at first. For the first 7 months or so it was really helpful to have the room on either side of my nursing pillow to arrange the girls. Now that they're bigger I use a glider without a nursing pillow. And don't forget the nursing stool!! (and I don't mean the gliding ottoman which just doesn't do you much good with twins I think)
• Full-size Co-sleeper or bassinet
• Crib - perfect thing to find used. Just make sure the slats are the regulation distance apart, but otherwise it's a piece of solid furniture that should be able to go through lots of families.
  
• Long dresser that can double as a changing table if you throw a changing pad on it
• Changing pad
• Swing – love the Papasan swing by Fisher Price but anything that has both side to side and front to back action is good

• Two Slings and two Baby Bjorns - We used the slings for only a few weeks in the beginning. But they were very useful. Especially when the babes are small and vulnerable people won't go sticking their hands all over the kiddos if you take them out in slings. And as for Bjorns, I can't say enough good things about Bjorns. I was very sad when I had to switch to a backpack because the girls just got too heavy.
• Miracle blankets, size small, very helpful for all the swaddling you do in the beginning, good to find on eBay
• Halo sleep sacks, most useful sizes would be M and L, since you’ll likely be swaddling in the beginning, good to find on eBay
• Zutano booties, size 0-6 months - These are simply the best things ever if you have twins born in the fall or winter. You'll be worried about keeping their feet warm, but I'm SURE will not have time to keep running after socks that constantly fall off. These booties stay on and are nice and fleecy. And since babies aren't walking yet, these are the perfect thing to find used.
  
• Hanna Andersson moccasins, size 6-12 months - I know Robeez are really cute and hip, but don't underestimate the work that putting on socks and then another layer of shoes takes. Especially with two wriggling, giggling beings. These moccasins are perfect for when babies need a non-slip tread but you don't want to deal with separate socks. Again that sounds like no big deal, but simplify!
  

And for later on (months 6-12) here are a few useful things to keep an eye out for:

• Exersaucer and jumperoo - anything that will help contain one while you attend to the other is key
• Double stroller - we chose an older Maclaren Twin Traveller. You can often find used MacLarens in great condition from people with two different aged kids whose toddler outgrew the stroller quickly. So far the Maclaren has been perfect for hopping in and out of the car and for airplanes. On travel it's been great for having them sleep, eat and, of course, stroll in.
• Foam puzzle mat - so they can fall all that they need to as they learn to sit up, stand up, crawl and walk and you get a little more peace of mind.

Tomorrow... some items to buy new.

Boggle for the baby-locked

Tandem breastfeeding means you can't move around too easily. Frequently I find myself baby-locked, making mental lists but otherwise at odds for something to do as they chug their meals. But then along came this colorful foam mat...


We put it down to absorb the babies' falls. But it doubles as a glorified Boggle mat while I'm nursing the chicas. And it's addictive. So far the longest word I found in the mat was "Intruding" (yes I allow myself to reuse letters). The mat configuration above hasn't been the most fruitful for word hunting, but it gives you an idea of what I'm talking about. My fave word I found in the pic above is "queued."

If you have a foam mat and the same nursing dilemma I described, give it a try!

Speaking of "baby footprints"...

On the subject of "baby footprints" (below), this is a new game to evaluate the consequences of your consumer habits. Full disclosure: it was created by my frequent employer. It takes about 10 minutes. It's fun and interesting, though not specifically related to twins. The only tangential connection I can come up with is that a parent of infant twins probably shouldn't be spending his/her time in the world of e-games and avatars!

http://sustainability.publicradio.org/consumerconsequences/

I learned that the areas I really need to concentrate on are improving my transportation use and food consumption. You can also compare your habits to others in various categories. Another twin tangent... you can compare yourself to others instead of trying to avoid making comparisons between your kids.

Sew sew

I've started doing a little sewing for the girls and a friend passed on these pics of easy kid sewing which I really liked...


















Also, she gave me a heads up on these two websites which have fabulous vintage-style fabrics. Very hip, and happily not the bright, mod, hit-you-over-the-head prints that are really popular these days. It's the traditionalist in me speaking, but those clothes just don't seem baby friendly to me. I'm all for color and patterns, I just like my a little more toned down and, apparently (gasp!) cutesy. The e-stores are Reprodepot and Purl Soho.

Reducing my "baby footprint"

"The Expedition"






VERSUS

"the Escort"

So there's a lot of talk about reducing our carbon footprint, but I spend even more time these days focused on my baby footprint.

I live in an urban baby haven and so there's lots of stroller action on the street. At a certain point the sidewalks get pretty filled up. Unfortunately our apartment is on a hill with crappy sidewalks, so it's pretty tempting to take the double jog stroller out for hitting the grocery store and cafe just to make getting home easier (getting home is the uphill slog). But ease of pushing is outweighed these days by wanting to streamline.

I don't think I'm the only one in this mindset. I have one friend who just traded her Mountain Buggy for a Cosco umbrella stroller (which she calls her ford escort). In a way it makes sense. Mirrors the cultural shift of the cool cars from SUVs to the Honda Fit.

With twins it just means carrying one in a pack and putting the other in a single umbrella stroller.

I actually don't think that the outsized baby footprint has a ton to do with good old fashioned American materialism... or even keeping up with the Joneses. My guess it's more people who get baby-geared up while the kiddo(s) are still cooking. We're part of a society that thankfully gives you a bit of control over most aspects of your life. When pregnant - especially with the first - you really have very little control over what's to come and what to expect, so researching equipment to buy becomes a substitute.

Twinsight #2: Whether or not to hire help

Gimmee your ear!

So someone on the twins list serve just posted asking a very common twins-parent-to-be question: should they hire help with their newborns? This woman followed up with: if not, how did those without hired help do it? I responded and found myself typing more and more and more. Thought I'd post it here in case it's useful to someone else.

MY TAKE ON HOW WE MANAGED WITHOUT HIRED HELP

Hi there,
Before our girls arrived 7-1/2 months ago, we thought about the help question a lot and even collected some names and numbers. But in the end for financial reasons didn't hire help and we didn't regret that decision at all. In fact I think we were really happy looking back on the first month or two that it was such an intimate experience, i.e. without anyone we didn't really know well around. It's also empowering to just know that you can do it, and I think it helped us get back to normalcy more quickly (normalcy is the wrong word, but at least back at some of the things we enjoy doing... travel, exploring, visiting with friends, etc.)

To address the practical side of how we did it, I think the biggest key was that we had an amazing support network we could mobilize for various tasks. My parents and brother and sister-in-law live about 30 minutes away and I can't diminish the importance of that. Though even if you don't have family, but have been established here for a while with a few close, understanding friends, that could potentially serve the same function. This was sort of how our division of labor broke down and how people helped us:
+ my husband took off of work for the first month, so we both just powered through our sleep deprivation together, waking up together for feedings and changings
+ our friends created a food tree, so people would drop homemade food off every 2-3 days and stay to chat and hold the babies for maybe 30 minutes max (they were warned not to pay an extended social call!)
+ Having close friends and family who can come by to hold the babies for an hour or so every other day will allow you to take a nap, or send emails, etc.
+ we have family in the area so one of them would come by to help with shopping for the first few months (grocery shopping, dropping off nursing bras I'd requested, etc). Having people who can run shopping errands for you is key.
+ And I had a friend whose baby was 3 months ahead of the girls stop by to act as something of a breastfeeding coach in the beginning. She was able to help me get them latched on and just offer encouragement and relaxing words.
+ Our family and some very close friends also helped out with kitchen cleaning during some of their visits.
+ Around the twins' 2 month birthday we had 2 professional house cleaners come through and give the house a top to bottom cleaning. That really took care of all the accumulated grunge and at that point we were able to start taking better care of sweeping, toilet cleaning, on a more regular (but still infrequent) basis

I know it's a tough decision during a tough period of not knowing what's ahead, how you'll feel after their delivery, etc. I did have vaginal delivery but had tearing and so it wasn't an easy recovery (having someone who could make trips to the drugstore for painkillers, pads, etc. who wasn't my husband was key). Still we got through it all without night help which some people had suggested we just had to have. Parenting twins in the beginning is not easy, but as their personalities emerge around 3 months everything gets so much better.

I think also because we didn't have help, feeling comfortable getting out with the girls early was important. Just walking to the coffee shop in the early weeks and writing thank you notes there until the girls woke up and we had to scoot home, was important social contact. Though I was ready to bonk all the people who saw me out with the girls on the street and said, "enjoy this time, it goes so quickly." For me every day felt like an eternity. But now I actually understand what those people meant... though I think I'm still close enough to that period that I wouldn't use the imperative "enjoy it", I'd say "get through it in as good spirits as you can." Oh, and if you do decide against night help, always agree with your partner before you go to sleep who is handling night feedings and how... you don't want to have those discussions in the middle of the night. In our experience that was when we were most likely to get cross.

Also, and this is totally apart from the help question, something I've come to feel strongly is that the whole parenting twins thing is walking a tightrope. It's important to cut yourself slack because you have twins, but at the same time you can't use having twins as an excuse for some decision. Of course only you can decide what parenting issues fall into which category, but for me just remembering that distinction is important.

I hope some of this has been helpful. I wish you all the best on your coming babies. Don't hesitate to call if you have any follow up questions...

More nostalgia...

So I just found a computer diary entry from a few days before the girls were born. It's funny to look back on now...

36 weeks: t-????
At this point the girls will be considered full term if I go into labor, so there will be no stopping them.

A. and I are having a heated discussion about, of all the things, whether to replace the batteries in the hand me down baby equipment we've received. A. is an eclectic music freak and says he doesn’t want his daughters brainwashed into thinking Mozart is the only gig out there. So he wants to leave the old run down batteries in the bouncy chair. They make its "Circus medley" song sound like a DJ Screw piece - he's the H-town artist famous for making SLOOOOOW, drawn out music while sippin' syrup (ie Robitussin). I think I may prevail on this one.

So it was also around that time we were practicing all the things we'd been learning in clases, from breathing techniques to infant CPR. And...

A. is practicing cloth diaper techniques on Elvis Satan Bear. If you could see this red teddy bear with two white fangs, you'd notice one of the pearly whites was chewed off. That dental work came courtesy of our cat Max Power. Which brings up another subject. I’ve had a hard time finding practical info on cats with babies so I’ll post at some point about how it goes getting him used to the twins. Our vet has suggested he could prescribe Max an anti-anxiety drug. We’ll see if it comes to that. I just worry if we start down that road it won’t be long before A. and I jump on that bandwagon.

What a difference 7 months makes

(yes, they did swap sides in these photos)

Public transport with twins

So the best way I could figure out to get around NYC with twins was to stick one in a baby carrier and push the other in a small umbrella stroller. It worked great on the subway. But on the bus they actually do make you fold up the stroller. So you are dependent on the kindness of strangers. But that's all good. It's part of the zen immersion experience that is twins. You can't plan anything, you just have to be in the moment.

In fact it turned out the hardest part of the whole experience was letting my guard down and letting people help me. Not at all what I would have expected. But as a vanity (?!) licence plate I recently saw read, this is all about INRWORK.

Walking down the street

Things change when you walk down the street with twins.

"Twins?"
I nod yes.
"Oh my god!"
"That's what we said."
Everybody laughs and I walk on.

That's the best case scenario.

It's really strange the questions people choose to ask given the opportunity. It's often pretty straight forward, like "two boys? two girls?" But occasionally that one question burning at the front of their mind is "Do they wake each other up with their crying?", "Do you ever use a babysitter?" or 'Can they read each others' thoughts?"

Even walking the streets of Manhattan is different with the 2 A's. Andy is much better at extricating himself from random strangers, but I had 2 10 minute conversations with older women. One had twins of her own and wanted to tell me all about their acocmplishments. The second lectured me about my responsibility to raise the girls with good manners and kindness in their hearts towards all people. Now how am I supposed to just walk off in the middle of that? Even if I did have somewhere to go...

Twinsight #1: Twin Vaginal Birth Stories

Gimmee your ear!

So one of the main reasons I started this blog was because I could find no resources on-line (or on the bookshelf) that I felt addressed some of the things I wanted to know as an expectant twin mom...
Is it realistic to try for a natural vaginal birth?
How does breastfeeding practically work with twins (and I'd gotten enough of the two extremes: 1) don't even attempt it, and 2) of course only breast feed until the kids are two)

In an effort to get out info on the first, here are some stories I got by asking around for peoples' twin vaginal birth stories. Turns out I was able to have natural twin delivery (though it wasn't totally by choice... my platelet count fell when I went into labor, so they wouldn't place an epidural because of the bleeding risk -- but now I know it can be done!).

Lessons from my experience -

• Be flexible. You just never know what will happen. We didn't have a birth plan, but talked about what we wanted with my doc instead. That seemed to work out for the best.
• I didn't end up having an epidural, but I knew all along that the risk was I would have to be put under general anesthesia if either twin had a problem and they had to do an emergency C-Section. Both girls did come out vaginally, but then because the placenta didn't fully deliver I was put under for a D and C. So the risk for general is real and the epidural is a great backup to avoid that. I'm glad the way things worked out for their delivery, but I was groggy for the girls' first hours. Always a trade off...
• Try NOT to be induced. I know that's hard with twins, but it is really intense when those drugs start up. I ended up having just 4 hours of active labor because I was already dilated 4 cm when I went in and the drugs were super strong. But it was quite something. For the first hour or so I relied on a hypnobirthing CD I had practiced with at home. And then I switched to doing lamaze breathing with my husband that we had practiced from a library book for the final 4 weeks before the girls were born.
• Try to have your own doc there if you'd like to deliver vaginally and s/he is into that. While I would still try to do all I could to avoid being induced, I'm glad my doc was there advocating for what I wanted (she was leaving on a vacation the next day). As it happened, I overheard the OB assisting her ask why she delivered my twins vaginally instead of a C-Section, so it's possible another doc would have tried to convince me to just do the surgery.
• The recovery can be just as difficult, if not more so, than a C-Section depending on how much tearing you have. Just be prepared!
• If you are interested in no drugs, make sure you've talked about this with your doc beforehand and see how realistic this is and under what circumstances they would consider it. My doc wasn't encouraging about it which I found discouraging, but in the end she did all she could to have that happen. I think she was just trying to get me to be flexible going in...

Here's more info on having a vaginal delivery --

#1 – Our kids’ delivery was induced at 37 weeks. It was a vaginal birth, after the epidural all was alright, here is the situation: the drugs used to induce birth are very effective and your body gets out of control the epidural eased the pain and I was able to push the kids out more comfortably. Note that my kids were small 5.5lb., and 4.14lb. Due to the twins size I have to say that it may be easier for us to deliver two small babies than for a mother to deliver a 10 or 12 pounds baby.

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#2 We ended up with another OB doctor since mine was on vacation. If you have a preference on certain things tell the doctor at the hospital or have it in writting to give them. We told the doctor we wanted to exhaust all of our options to deliver vaginal before going c-section. He ended up using a vacum to help and I had my babies vaginally. My next step was a c-section since I had been in labor 24 hours and I was too tired to push.

Once my first baby came out I saw him just for a moment since the doctor said we had a very short time to get the second baby out. With mutiliples the risk is more on the second baby. I didn't get to hold my babies until about 1 1/2 hrs later. At XXXXXX you will deliver in the Operating Room as a policy. It is a cold room, bright and not cozy. But you will stay in a nice room until a baby is ready to come out. If you don't have a private room you may want to request one when you sign in. The standard rooms are really small with twins and their beds, etc.

Also, typically when a mother is in labor she cannot check in the hospital until she reaches 7 or 8 cm. But with twins you are monitored more closely and if you are early in the delivery you will probably stay. I wasn't sure if my water broke so they checked and it did and they kepted me eventhough I had no contractions yet.

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#3 regarding vag birth, the biggest shock for us (since we had had a midwife delivery in a quiet room the first birth) was the O.R. was so intense and crazy! it's a tiny room and it is stuffed with people. there was maybe 12 people in there. it was NUTS!!! they let you have one person with you, and 2 if you have a strong-spoken OB who can make that demand. but it's pretty crazy in there. just know that the O.R. part will be brief, and you'll be so jazzed to see your kids that it won't really matter.
we did manage to vaginally birth both girls without any drugs, but twin B (who is usually the more at risk) breathed in some blood, so it was life-saving that all those people were in the O.R.. the respiration specialists vacuumed her lungs out quickly before she could suck it down further, and that saved us about a month in the NICU. so as crazy as it is to have all those people, it's worth it! and afterwards, they wheel you back into the same room you labored in.

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#4 I delivered my twins vaginally and it wasn't perfect, but overall it was a fantastic experience. I have four pieces of advice:

1) be as flexible as you can and stay focused on bringing healthy little
girls into the world; try not to get attached to the way they come into the
world, because then you'll be disappointed if it doesn't work that way;

2) get the epidural as early as you want it; don't be a martyr - it does
help the pain and new research shows that it doesn't delay labor; mine
wasn't done perfectly so one side of my body did have some sensation, but it
was so much better than having hours of contrations without the epidural;

3) ask your nurses lots of questions -- really use their expertise and don't
feel like any question is dumb; and

4) give your partner or labor coach of being your advocate (e.g., getting a
new epidural if yours isn't done perfectly, getting you water, blankets,
whatever makes you more comfortable) and particularly giving him/her the job
of informing the labor & delivery nurse, the delivering Ob, and anyone in
the delivery room that you'd like to at least see Baby A and preferrably
have her on your chest for at least a few minutes (if she is healthy and not
in distress, of course) immediately after she is born and while you are
delivering Baby B.

Here's my story. I was induced at 36 weeks due to preeclampsia. They induced me at 8 p.m. with a small amount of pitocin so I would start dilating but not deliver in the middle of the night (Ob's like their sleep! :)). Unfortunately, they gave me too small a dose and so the next day, after about 16 hrs. of pitocin, they had to speed things along by breaking my water and increasing the pitocin. When nothing more happened after another hour, it looked like I was going to have a c-section. But suddenly, I dilated from 4 cm to 9 cm in 45 minutes - ouch! but I was able to deliver vaginally and it was a great experience.

Honestly, I did get sad when the dr said we might need to have a c-section, but our nurse kept us focused on the outcome - healthy babies. And then after I was all ready for a c-section, suddenly I found myself wheeled into the operating room pushing them out.

I was in 2 hrs. of active labor -- about 1.5 hrs. for my son, baby A, and 20 minutes later came my daughter. I had an episiotomy because over an hour of pushing out my son, I wasn't getting very far. As soon as she made the incision it only took a few more pushes for him to come. My daughter was sunnyside-up in the birth canal so I had some back labor until the dr turned her around. The turning around hurt, but she came out quickly after that. Although there was more pain than there should've been b/c my epidural only worked on one side of my body, the entire time I kept thinking about how amazing it was that these kids were going to come out of me and that made the experience really wonderful.

Our delivery nurse was an amazing coach. She told us everything we needed to do - when to breathe, when to push, how to push, how my husband could help me, etc. She was so incredible. The only thing I wasn't prepared for was that they did not give me baby A after he was born. I didn't even see him until after I was back in our room and I really wish that I'd been able to hold him immediately after. My husband held him in the room and carried him to the nursery so I don't feel so awful, but it really would've been great. I got to see my daughter right after, but she I only got to hold her for a second.

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#5 I delivered vaginal birth for both kids. It was a wonderful experience... just not your typical, singleton birth. Know you will have drugs (epidural) and that you will deliver in the OR with what may feel like an army of docs and nurses.... just in case. As for childbirth classes.... didn't really use the information, but it was good to get a tour of the hospital. At least that was my experience. But I don't know what your feelings on the whole birth process are. I think some moms want to have a real natural, maybe touchy feely experience.... I'm not that type of person, I did not write a "birth plan". I really trusted the docs to know what would be best and that the most important thing was the health of my babies and of myself, I did not expect to have a "natural, drug free" birth experience when I found out I was having twins. I sat on the bouncy ball a lot (the rocking chair sucked). That and my husband's hands got me through to the point when I decided to get an epidural. For me the epidural was magic. My body completely relaxed and I went from 4 to 8 cm in about 10 minutes (Not what you hear about an epidural, that it will slow your labor). I was in for only about 12 hours (they induced me at the end of 36 weeks, I was induced at 6pm on a Wed. night, my water broke at 1 am, I got an epidural at 12 pm and the kids were delivered at 2:35pm and 2:45pm on Thurs. (less than 24 hours)).

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#6 I delivered vaginally at 39 weeks. I am very glad that it turned out this way, that I did not need a c-section, as I think it would add another layer of exhaustion to the post-partum period. However I was always keeping in mind, Baby B could turn at the last minute, and whatever the babies required was what we would do.

I would say... you might not be able to walk around, I was induced and had 2 heart monitors on my belly. When I see my (unused) birth ball I just have to laugh. :)

I don't know how you feel about an epidural but I wish I had gotten one earlier, mine ended up not working well, basically delivered "naturally", ouch (that's an understatement).. not really a twin thing specifically though.

You will deliver in the OR (operating room).. my nurses were waiting, per doc's instructions, till I got to 10 cm dilated to move me from Labor room to OR. Well at 9.5 cm, the babies decided they wanted out, NOW, and it was a mad dash to the OR! Quite exciting. My OB told me pushing would take 1 - 2 hours.. but it ended up being only 15 minutes.. the girls were born at 11:54 and 11:57 pm.. just 3 minutes apart! (my advice would be, before you get too far underway, make it clear you want to be in the OR by 9 cm... just in case!!)

The nurses are great. They brought me extra lunch (after delivery) because I was ravenous.. one nurse taught me to double- breastfeed both babies in the middle of the night. Definitely ask for the lactation specialist to visit!

I don't know if you are planning on 'rooming in' with the babies (assuming they are born full term, and are not in the NICU). I decided not to, that is, I had them in the nursery both nights and had the nurses bring them to me to feed. I figured that was my last chance to sleep for a while and since we did not have n ight time help... I was right. :)

Also I could not believe how long it took for the nurses to leave us alone after the birth.. the weighing and monitoring of vital signs, back in the labor room, took forever. I think it was 4 am when I got to sleep. That's not particularly a twin thing either. :)

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#7 i found my doula invaluable. she was truly marvelous and, i think, the reason why i didn't have to have a c-section. otherwise, you'll have the epidural, so that's not a question. embrace it.

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#8 I was able to deliver vaginally at just over 39 weeks after being induced and then having 27+ hours of labor (not as bad as it sounds as far as I can remember, except towards the end). Your labor & delivery will depend on so many factors (and every woman/delivery can be so different) that it is hard to know what will happen until the moment they arrive so the main point of advice I have is be prepared for as much as you can, but know that anything can happen and try your best to go with the flow. Also, while I know now that it is possible to deliver twins vaginally I was completely ready to do c-section if that was necessary (and I think it's important to keep that in mind). So I took childbirthing classes and it helped me a tiny bit, but otherwise I was just breathing & pushing however I could remember. Three things that were "unexpected" for me were:

1) I had a lot of bad back labor. I don't think this is necessarily more common with twin deliveries, but I did not think about what back labor was beforehand and had no idea how tough it would be, and since delivering two kids can generally last longer (esp. if it's your first time delivering) it also prolongs the pain a bit and the epidural did not help as much
as I would have thought or liked(!);

2) length of time after the 1st birth -- my second baby came out 18 min later. I know it can be anywhere from a few min to upwards of 30 min(?) but I did not personally hear of too many that were more than 10 min apart so that longer wait in between was tough and you just need to stay strong. Luckily baby #1 paved the way (she was quite a bit bigger and has a large head) so at least that helped a bit; and finally

3) The biggest "I wish I had known" was actually postpartum experience. I think vaginal delivery recoveries can be very tough given what your body has undergone (it seemed like so many of my friends with c-sections had a far easier recovery than I did!), so be ready for that potentially (you may be just fine, but I had a tough time). Your recovery will depend on the degree of tearing (probably not too bad given that twin babies tend to be smaller on average so the likelihood of a major tear is generally lower, but I'm a small person who had pretty normal sized babies with the full-term pregnancy so I had a bit of tearing), the degree of difficulty with your labor, amount of blood loss, and generally speaking your body's ability to bounce back amongst other things.

Multitasking Hall of Fame

List is dedicated to twin moms everywhere (and to the twin kiddo enablers)

- Making valentines cards/nursing Aurora/rocking Amalia in her carseat with my foot
- Putting on socks/burping Aurora/going to the bathroom
- Editing a story over the phone/comforting Amalia/sending email
etc etc

I was very gung ho about keeping this list in the first month or two of the girls' life. But at six months, when carrying them both around is old hat, multitasking as a label is very passe. It's sort of now just life.