I am the proud mama of twin 19 year old girls who were born 3 months premature and weighed in at 1lb 14oz and 2lbs. They are the joy of my life, though I too was overwhelmed when I found out and then when they first came into the world. The first piece of advice I would give you is that most twins are not born as early as mine – I had a placenta previa which could not be stopped and so they came very early. They are now 5″6″ tall and just great girls. So I know about having premies 19 years ago, I know about the worry of affording them, and I know how it is when they first come home. The first piece of advice I will tell you is do not overbuy just because you are having two – you can get away with a lot less that the books or other people may tell you. Do take good care of yourself and follow the doctors advice – my doctors were super and I was on bedrest for a while but I was an older mum as well which made my case a bit more complex. There is a national organization over here for mothers of multiples
http://www.nomotc.org/ – I do not know what their worldview is but I have heard from friends they have good information. There are many books on Amazon about twins and raising them look at this link…
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_15?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=expecting+twins&sprefix=expecting+twins
– these books I have no experience with as they are new and obviously my pregnancy was 19 years ago.
Try and get some good rest before the babies come home – they can be extremely demanding and hard work and sometimes you get so exhausted, but then you look at them and see two little teeny faces that need you in every way and God gives you the strength to continue. Warn your husband that you may be a bit overwhelmed at first and very tired, mine was shocked at how little energy I had at the end of the day – but that passed as well once we got into a routine. Your 7 year old will likely be a helper, the 3 year old in a different way – you may also have saved some clothes and baby items so you will have a head start. Trust me, they don’t need much and they grow so fast as you already know. Make sure you take videos, we did not have a video camera back then and that is a big regret of mine, so be sure to have a video camera and lots of discs to record those fantastic moments that otherwise you might be too busy to remember. I know there are other twin mums on this forum, who have much younger twins – but if you ever have any worries, concerns, or just want to reach out – just post on here or pm me, and I will do my best. It is a shock, there were no twins in our family either – but nearly 20 years on, I would not change a thing, well except to have kept them in a bit longer – but it has all worked out and they are as precious today as they were then. Hugs to you. Linda
