An article in Wednesday’s U.K. Daily Telegraph reported on a 34-year-old Tunisian woman claiming to be pregnant with 12 babies – six boys and six girls. The woman, it said, conceived 12 babies after fertility treatments following multiple miscarriages.

A few days later, the Telegraph reported that an investigation by the Tunisian Health Ministry revealed that not only is the woman not pregnant with duodecaplets – she’s probably not even pregnant at all.

The article quoted a government spokesperson saying: “She’s claiming to be nine months pregnant with six boys and six girls, but there’s absolutely nothing about her appearance which indicates this.”

A doctor at the only hospital in her town said the woman had never been in their care. The woman refused a physical examination and has now disappeared.

The hoax comes on the heels of Nadya Suleman earning hundreds of thousands of dollars in media deals following her birth of octuplets. The Bellflower, California mom of 14 holds the record for the most live births at any one time.

Why Would She Do It?

While the Tunisian woman’s hoax was most likely financially motivated, there is a rare psychological disorder in which women believe they are pregnant. Women suffering from the disorder, pseudocyesis (false pregnancy), often show symptoms of pregnancy, such as amennorrhoea, morning sickness, tender breasts and a distended abdomen. Some women may feel quickening, or fetal movement. (This article gives a more broad description of the signs of pregnancy).

“Can’t Fool Science”

The incidence of false pregnancy has decreased dramatically in the U.S. since the 1940s, when there was 1 false pregnancy for every 250 actual pregnancies. Now, the incidence is approximately one to six cases of pseudocyesis for every 22,000 births.

More advanced diagnostic techniques for pregnancy make it harder for a woman’s body to “fool itself” into believing she is pregnant. Most cases of pseudocyesis are cured by using an ultrasound to prove to the woman she is not pregnant. In the face of such irrefutable medical proof, most women will become convinced and the symptoms will subside.

However, the underlying cause of the disorder still exists and the woman should be treated by psychotherapy. Doctors aren’t sure what causes the disorder, but an intense desire for a baby or, alternatively, a profound fear of pregnancy, may create the symptoms.

Pseudocyesis, while rare, makes for good drama and has been featured on a number of T.V. shows, including CSI: Crime Scene. Approximately 18 % of women suffering pseudocyesis are actually diagnosed by a doctor as pregnant.

In the absence of any symptoms in the Tunisian woman, known as AF, it would seem her “pregnancy” was a poorly-contrived hoax rather than an actual psychological disorder. Very sad.

What happens when you are down to your last embryo and your chances of producing more are slim? This is a question facing many parents who are undergoing IVF. And this Greek fertility expert seems to have found a solution – artificially split up the embryo. In the process, Karl Illmensee, laboratory director at the Genesis Fertility Center in Patras, Greece, is creating twins and multiples in the lab.

Monozygotic (identical) twins and multiples are produced when an embryo spontaneously splits to produce several identical embryos. Illmensee does this manually. He claims that by splitting high quality embryos at the 6-to-8 cell stage, viable twins can be produced.

The success of an IVF cycle can depend largely on the number of embryos implanted. This technique can give couples who have a short supply of embryos higher chances of getting pregnant.

As expected, this technique is embroiled in controversy. Two main questions crop up: Is it ethical? Is it safe?

Is it ethical? After claims of human cloning, or performance of IVF on a 70-year-old woman, the ethical question in this issue seems pretty tame.

I am more concerned about the safety of the technique. Would the babies be healthy? Multiple pregnancies as such as associated with a high potential for genetic aberrations plus pregnancy complications that can threaten both the mother and the unborn children.

Illmensee counters objections by saying “splitting one embryo into two or more embryos could serve the needs of infertile couples in several ways. As long as a couple is fully informed of the risk of such an outcome, there would appear to be no major ethical objection.”

If you have ever struggled with breastfeeding, you can sympathize with 33-year old actress Angelina Jolie. The star, most recently in The Changeling, discussed nursing four-month old twins (and other mum wisdom) with British talk show GMTV.

To put it simply, “It’s very hard,” she said. That didn’t stop her from appearing on the cover of W magazine, breastfeeding one of her twins. The picture, shot by boyfriend, Brad Pitt, was one of many featured photos.

Despite her impression that the so-called football hold is “a lot harder than it looks in the books,” Miss Jolie still managed to nurse both babies for three months, sometimes doubling up in the football hold, and sometimes taking turns. But, as many moms have discovered, she claims it just took a lot of time, and three months was as long as she could go.

Jolie became pregnant with babies 5 and 6 while shooting the film The Changeling. Kudos to Miss Jolie for being a role model in several respects. I commend any mom who takes the effort and time to breastfeed any baby, let alone multiples. A good friend of mine has twins and she barely eeked out 6 weeks breastfeeding them. I also think nursing is especially challenging for moms who work outside their homes, and Miss Jolie is certainly a busy working mom. Finally, she also has several other children vying for her attention. I struggled for several weeks with my second child, and she was just a singleton, with an 11-year old brother, and I am working at home.? It would be tempting for me (if I were in her shoes) to take the easy road and hire a wetnurse, or at least someone to bottle feed for her.

If YOU have breastfed your multiples, you are my hero, too! Way to go! How did you manage?

Canadian fertility experts have released guidelines regarding the number of embryos to be transferred during an in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycle. The guidelines were jointly published by the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada and the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society.

IVF is a very tricky process. In order to increase the likelihood of success, several embryos are transferred to a woman’s uterus. However, this also increases the chances of having a multifetal pregnancy.

The purpose of the guideline is to minimize multiple, especially high-order multiple pregnancies without necessarily lowering the success rate of IVF. The experts based their recommendations on a thorough study of medical articles published between 1990 and April 2006.

In recent years, the rates of multiple births have risen. I am not one to complain. I feel lucky to have had twins. However, multiple pregnancies, especially high-order multiples (e.g. 3 babies or more) can pose risks both for the mothers and the babies.

Here are some of the recommendations:

• 1 fresh embryo for women under 35 years old with “excellent” prognoses and 2 fresh embryos for those with less than excellent prognoses.
• A maximum of 3 embryos for women 29 to 38 years old
• A maximum of 4 embryos for women 39 years old and older.

The guidelines are published in the September 2008 issue of the International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics.

An unnamed 59 year old Frenchwoman, of Vietnamese origin, gave birth to triplets on Saturday night. After seeking in vitro fertilization (IVF) in Vietnam, the woman delivered two boys and a girl by cesarean at a Paris hospital. According to a spokesman, ‘everything went smoothly.’ The babies are healthy, weighing between 4 lbs 9 oz and 5 lbs 5 oz. No further details have been released yet.

There is obvious controversy surrounding this announcement. In France, the maximum age set by most clinics for a woman to participate in IVF is 42. In Vietnam it is 45. According to French media, it is illegal to provide fertility treatment to a woman past natural childbearing age. And according to at least one spokesman for the Catholic church, it is wrong. Archbishop Andre Vingt-Trois said, ‘On this particular point, scientific progress is not good for mankind.’ But she is not the first, nor the oldest, Frenchwoman to have accomplished this.

A baby was born in 2001 to a 62-year-old. And a 70 year old Indian woman gave birth to twins after receiving IVF treatment.

I’m still on the fence about this. But I’m leaning toward thinking if a woman wants a child this badly, I believe she’ll probably do her best to be a good mother. The life expectancy for a Frenchwoman, according to the CIA World Factbook, is 84. So it’s not like she won’t be able to see the children grow up. And I have had several close friends and a family member go through the pain of infertility, so I understand why couples pursue IVF, though I don’t think I’d do it myself. I’m not sure why a country would even have laws about how young you have to be to get pregnant. I also don’t agree with the Archbishop who thinks it’s bad for mankind.

For my part, I just don’t know why anyone would want to have a baby at that age. I’m feeling too old sometimes for my 5-month old, and I’m ‘only’ 35. My OB told me there was still plenty of time to have babies, but I think he must be working on job security. Because, as long as I have a say about it, I’m done.

On July 11, a woman in Berlin gave birth to twins which are as unidentical as twins – or siblings for that matter – could get. One boy has fair skin while the one has dark skin. This was reported by The Local, Germany’s News in English. The mommy is from Ghana and the daddy is German.

In 2006, two girls with different skin and hair color were born in Australia to a Jamaican-English mother and a German father. In 2005, another set of fraternal twin girls with different skin tones was born in Britain.

According to BellaOnline (The Voice of Women), having twins of different skin tones is highly unusual. Usually, most mixed-race individuals carry both dark and light-skinned genes in theirs gametes (eggs or sperms). However, on rare occasions, some gametes may carry predominantly or totally genes for a certain type of skin/hair color only. For both egg and sperm to match their genes is a very rare occurrence indeed.

I am of Asian ethnicity, and my husband is German. It could have happened to us – but our twin boys are identical. To have twins that are so unlike in outward appearance would be weird – but also special.

“I imagine sitting at a playground where the other mothers will call me crazy when I tell them the boys are twins” said the mom of the African-German babies Ryan and Leo.

Switzerland, a country which has one of the best health care systems in the world, has a big problem. More and more babies are born premature and Swiss hospitals have no place to put them, according to the daily “20 Minuten.” These hospitals are overwhelmed with the increase in premature births in recent years. With serious consequences for the premature babies.

Babies are considered premature when they are born before the 37^th week of pregnancy. In recent years, the incidence of preterm births in Switzerland has risen drastically and is currently estimated as 9% of all births. The reasons of the rise in incidence include the tendency of women to put off pregnancy later in life and the increase in the rate of multiple births, again as a consequence of late pregnancies and the use of assisted reproductive technology.

Unfortunately, Swiss hospitals seem to have limited number of intensive bed spaces in their neonatal units and cannot cope with the increasing number of preemies. In many cases, the premature, low birth weight babies have to airlifted, transported by helicopters to other hospitals. In Zurich alone, it is estimated that about 3 preemies per week have to be transferred to other neonatal clinics.

This relocation can have some serious consequences for some babies. For one thing, those with very low birth weights may not survive the trip. These preemies are highly susceptible to stress and infection. In addition, with the transfer, these babies are separated from their moms who themselves are probably in need of medical care and cannot travel with the babies. This is a time when the babies need their mothers the most.

When I had my twins in Frankfurt, Germany 5 years ago, I opted for the hospital with the largest neonatal unit in the city because my babies were expected to be delivered preterm. Although they had to stay at the neonatal unit for 2 weeks, I was in the same hospital and could go and breastfed them 3 times a day.

Honestly, I wouldn’t have known what to do had I been separated from my babies then. For all those moms and babies affected by this problem, I feel for you.

The Swiss are trying to resolve this problem as fast as they can. I really hope the resolution will come soon.

When I had my 9lb 3oz son, I thought he was big! But these twin babies, born last week in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, weighed over 23lb together at birth. They are North Carolina’s heaviest twins ever, and probably the second heaviest ever born in the USA.

Sean William Maynard weighed 10lb, 14oz and Abigail Rose Maynard weighed 12lb 3oz. Super mom Erin Maynard delivered the babies by cesarean section after a trouble-free pregnancy.

Erin knew her babies were going to be big – her belly stretched two feet around – but everyone was surprised just how big the twins were. The average birth weight of a twin is around 5lb.

Both mom and babies are healthy and well, and Erin reports that they eat a lot. I’m not surprised! Sending many congratulations to the Maynard family, and good luck keeping them fed!

Other heavy twins…. The heaviest twins recorded in the USA were born in Arkansas in 1924 and weighed 27lb 12oz together.

In the UK, a mom gave birth to almost 20lbs of twins, and, give this woman a medal, she did it naturally. The babies are the heaviest twins not born by cesarean section in the UK.

As a mom of twins, I always try to keep myself updated on the latest news about multiples.

American researchers gathered data on multiple births in 2004 and reported in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology the following statistics:

• 139,494 babies were born of multiple pregnancies
• 132,219 babies were born as twins
• 6750 babies were born as triplets
• 439 babies were born as quadruplets
• 86 babies were born as quintuplets or higher order multiples.

The high rates of multiple births in the US are attributed to assisted reproductive therapies (ART). 35% of pregnancies and 34% of births made possible by ART resulted in multiple pregnancies in 2003. ART accounted for 44% of triplets and 16% of twins who were born in the US in 2003.

With multiple pregnancy comes risks to the mother and the babies. The main risks are preterm labor/delivery and low birth weights. The higher the order of multiplicity, the higher the risk. Compared to twins, triplets tend to be born on the average 3.5 weeks early. For quadruplets, it’s 5.4 weeks on the average. However, very premature births occur. In 2003, 5.6% of twins, 16.9% of triplet births and 28.3% of quadruplet births resulted in delivery before 29 weeks of pregnancy.

The health risks of very premature babies who survive are numerous and include:

• low birth weights
• congenital heart defects
• respiratory problems
• hearing and vision impairment
• cognitive impairment.

For the mothers of multiples, the following risks are significantly increased:

• gestational diabetes
• pregnancy-induced hypertension (preeclampsia)
• incompetent cervix
• premature rupture of membranes
• excessive bleeding during labor

When my son was born, I was so scared he’d be swapped for another baby, or stolen from the hospital, I insisted my husband stuck by his side at all times when the nurses took him to the nursery to wash him and weigh him and do the heel prick and all that stuff they do to newborns.

I even tried to get up with the epidural still stuck in my back (bad idea) to go with them, but sanity did prevail and my husband went with him. And yes he did come back, and we took the correct baby, the one I gave birth to, home.

It’s incredibly unlikely either will happen in the hospital, but it does happen. And to the most unlikely babies. You wouldn’t have though twins could be mixed up – even less so, one twin swapped from identical twins?

In this incredible case, 35 years ago, in a hospital in Las Palmas, Spain, a nurse took one baby from of a set of identical baby girl twins, and somehow replaced that baby with another baby girl. The twin’s mother took the twins home, and the other mother took her daughter home.

In 2001, one of the identical twins was working in a clothes store. While she was away from the store, her identical twin sister happened to walk in. The clerk in the store couldn’t understand why this identical-looking woman didn’t recognize her. And when the woman came by the store again, the clerk arranged for them both to meet.

After DNA testing proved they were identical, the twins, and the third woman in the mix-up, are all suing the government of Las Palmas for $4.7 million in damages.

Do you think they should sue? Is it the city’s fault? Do they deserve that amount of compensation?

The National Organization of Mother of Twins Clubs, Inc. (NOMOTC) will hold its 48^th Annual Convention on July 20-26, 2008 at Boston’s Park Plaza Hotel. NOMOTC is a non-profit corporation that was founded in 1960. It serves as a support group for parents of twins and high order multiples.

The organization is composed of a network of more than 450 local clubs representing over 25,000 individual parents of multiples – twins, triplets, quadruplets and more. Its mission is to support families of multiple birth children through education, research, and networking and work hand in hand local support groups, health care providers, researchers, and educators. This year’s convention is sponsored by the Massachusetts Mothers of Twins Association.

The keynote speakers for the convention are Jon and Kate Gosselin. Jon and Kate are the hosts of the TLC’s reality show “Jon and Kate plus 8“. This couple are parents to twins who wanted another baby but ended up with six more. Their show tells about the unedited story of their unique life as parents of seven-year old twins and three-year old sextuplets. Jon and Kate can be seen on Discovery Health or The Learning Channel.

The court (and the DNA test) has spoken. A set of triplets born 10 years ago in Cape Town, South Africa, was fathered by 2 different men. After a decade long legal battle and paternity tests, a cab driver finally found out that he fathered only 1 and not all the 3 babies of his then mistress. What started as legal battle for child support led to this intriguing revelation.

The article in the South African newspaper The Times, claims the triplets were conceived through superfecundation. Another possibility, however, is conception by superfetation.

They are defined from a previous post as:

1. Superfecundation – 2 or eggs are produced within 1 ovulation cycle are fertilized at different times (e.g. 2 or more sexual acts in close succession) to produce 2 or more babies.

2. Superfetation – 2 or more eggs are produced in 2 different ovulation cycles and are fertilized at different times (e.g. 2 or more sexual acts weeks apart) to produce 2 or more babies.

No details about the other Dad was given.

Multiple fatherhood is an uncommon occurrence and documented cases are rare.

In 1993 in the Netherlands, due to some mistakes in the lab during in vitro fertilization, two eggs from one mother were fertilized by sperms from two different men. The mistake was easily detectable because one sperm came from a man of African descent and the other (the real partner) was white. The mother gave birth to twins of different races.

The legalities of multiple fatherhood in case of multiple births can be complicated – even messy. Think about the consequences on child support, visiting rights, and inheritance.

Personally, I am happy that I am pretty sure my boys were fathered by one man, who is my husband. Makes thing simpler, don’t you think?

Only 17 and she has already brought 7 children into this world. Her name is Pamela Villarruel and she lives in Argentina.

Pamela delivered her first child, a boy, at 14. She got pregnant again a year later and delivered 3 girls. Another pregnancy followed and she again delivered 3 girls just days before her 17th birthday. Each pregnancy occurred with a different partner and both sets of triplets were non-identical. 7 kids in 3 pregnancies! And all these without IVF, hormone therapy or any other form of assisted reproduction.

She probably holds the record for having the most number of kids among girls of her age.
In addition, two times triplets which are fraternal or non-identical are a rarity. This means that she has produced 3 eggs which were all fertilized. It is not clear whether the triplets were conceived all at the same time or were conceived through superfecundation or superfetation.

After her second pregnancy, Pamela?s mother wanted her tubes cut but this was not allowed because she was (and still is) underaged. Instead, she received contraceptive injections. However, one missed shot and the second set of twins were conceived. It is not so clear what precautionary measures she is currently taking against further pregnancies since according to Argentine laws, she has to wait till she’s 21 to have her tubes cut.

Doctors call her a ?scientific rarity.? I say she is an extreme case of teenage pregnancy gone out of control. She is also a victim of failure of certain countries, cultures, and religions to face issues of teenage sex and contraception.

But I really wish her and her kids all the best.

Source:

Sunday Mirror UK, 30 March 2008

AOL News

Wow! Four babies in one go, three of them identical.

This is a very rare occurrence. Quadruplets as such are not that common. The chances of having spontaneous quadruplets amount to 1 in 729,000. The odds of having multiples have increased in recent years due to fertility treatment. In 2005, 485 quadruplet births were recorded, according to the National Organization of Mothers of Twins Clubs. But such a 3 plus 1 set of quadruplets is extremely rare. Less than 100 cases have been documented in the US since

The babies were born to a couple in Belcamp, Md last January 29 through assisted reproduction. Two embryos were implanted in the mother’s womb. Both were viable but one even went further and split to produce three more viable embryos, resulting in 4 babies.

As mom of twin boys, I have some idea of the amount of work involved with multiples. I’m sure that taking care of 4 babies seems like a daunting task for the parents. However, help is given to those who need it. Nowadays, there are many organizations and institutions who are there to provide assistance to parents of multiples.

Source:

AOL News, 18 April 2008

Allison Penn, of Manhasset, NY gave birth to identical triplet boys last Wednesday. The boys were conceived through in vitro fertilization. Dr. Victor Klein implanted only one embryo which split in two, followed by one half splitting again. This is the first instance of such an occurrence known in the history of American medicine, according to the doctor.

Another extremely noteworthy statistic is that the conception and birth of identical triplets occurs in just 1 in 200 million births-doctors are calling it ?a miracle?.

The babies? parents have painted a different finger nail maroon on each baby, in order to tell the identical three apart.

The hospital where the babies were born is donating a two years? supply of diapers to the family, as it is estimated that they will go through 10,000 diapers each year.

Two of the baby boys, Eli and Colin, are doing quite well. Sadly, the third baby, Logan, may have a non-functioning kidney but is expected to be okay.

In a separate story, another set of triplets was born last week in New Jersey, to Sharon Fontana and her husband, Rich. The couple conceived naturally, after conceiving and delivering their first set of triplets just two years ago, also naturally.

Their two-year old triplets consist of two boys and a girl. Sharon thought she?d ?try for a sister? for their daughter but instead conceived another 2-boy, 1-girl set of triplets. Although there is no specific data on this type of birth, doctors say it is highly unusual. An amazing fact is that Ms. Fontana was told by doctors, when she was younger, that she was unable to have children!

The babies will come home from the hospital in three weeks. Three two-year olds and three newborns?and I thought I was busy!

The BUZZ

The buzz going around tinseltown is that hot Mama Angelina Jolie is pregnant with her second child with Brad Pitt. The wagging tongues goes on to speculate that the duo, dubbed Brangelina, is expecting, gasp, twins!

Three different sources: photo agencies x17, Bauer-Griffin, and Star magazines, are fanning these rumors. More interestingly, there have no denials or confirmations from the Brangelina camp.

Last tidbit: Angelina showed up at the Screen Actors Guild Award last Sunday with overflowing cleavage, and a dressed which has been described as “tent-like”; presumably to hide her bulging tummy.

The BOOM

Congratulations to musical couple Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale (no cute moniker this time, thank goodness) who are expecting their second child. The reports have been confirmed by Gavin’s father. Gwen is apparently 13 weeks along. The rumors were at first denied by the couple, even at the comeback of a maternity shirt Gwen wore while pregnant with their first child, Kingston!

Personally, I’m so delighted for the couple. Not much drama surrounds them, but instead lots of love, and, oh yes, style.

There?s no more interesting conversation piece than babies. And having multiples actually put you in the limelight. Try it. Go to the mall or the park with a twin pram. Heads will turn and many will definitely ask to have a peek. Initially, I basked in the attention I got when I went out with my twins. After all, which mom wouldn?t want to show off her adorable babies? But then it got to the point when the attention got on my nerves. And then there are the questions. Some are quite normal questions but some are downright stupid and even offensive. Here are the 10 most common questions I encountered during the first 2 years of my twins? life:

1. Are they identical?
2. Who?s older/stronger/weaker?
3. Who`s your favorite?
4. Are they a lot of work?
5. When did you know?
6. Was it normal or CS delivery?
7. Why do you dress them alike/differently?
8. Which side of the family has twins? Yours or his?
9. Do they have ESP?
10. Are they IVF babies?

In the next posts, I?ll tell you how I answered each and every question.
But I`m curious: what are the most common questions that moms of singletons encounter?

CNN presenter Nancy Grace returns to our screens tonight after the birth of her twins. 47-year-old Nancy delivered Lucy Elizabeth and John David on November 4th, 2007.

CNN released a video of mom and babies today.

Nancy looks incredibly chic and well after a fraught pregnancy, delivery and post-partum period. She suffered many complications during the pregnancy, and was forced to deliver two months early because of a buildup of fluid in her lungs. She was hospitalized again after delivery with life-threatening blood clots in her lungs.

Her babies were tiny, John weighed 5 pounds, 1 ounce, and especially Lucy, who weighed 2 pounds, 15 ounces. Both spent time in the neonatal intensive care unit before coming home. They’ve both gained over two pounds each since, and Nancy says they are both doing well.

Nancy returns to work only two months after delivery. But with everything her and her babies have been through, is it too soon for her?

I’m wishing Nancy and her family the best. She certainly seems to be thrilled with motherhood, and hoping she has an easy transition to working motherhood.

Did you know …

• The number of twin births has increased by 50% in the last 20 years; the number of triplet births is up by over 400%; the birth rate for higher-order multiples (4 babies and more!!!) is also on the rise.

• In 1996, there were 50,000 twin births in the US (100,000 babies), 5298 babies were born as triplets, 560 babies were born as quadruplets, and 81 were born as quintuplets or higher-order multiples.

• In 1997, more twins were born to women aged 45 to 49 years of age than during the 10 years of the 80s.

• Moms of white, non-Hispanic ethnicity have the highest chance of having twins and multiple; Asian (especially Filipinos and Chinese!) have the lowest twinning rates.

• Of all the states, Nebraska and New Jersey have the highest triplet (+) birth rates ? their rates a twice that of the national average!

Sources:

P. Maxwell Malmstrom & Janet Poland, 1999. The Art of Parenting Twins. ISBN 0-345-42267-8

Martin et al. Trends in Twin and Triplet births, vol. 47, September 1999. National Vital Statistics Report.

I bet you didn’t know that about one in 25 births in the United States is a multiple birth. Did you also know that your risk of having a multiple birth goes up significantly after age 30. Yea, I know. Can you believe it? Well, I can. It happened to me.

I got pregnant with twins when I was 31. And I already had two single births at home already. We were alittle scared, but we thought, “What could possibly happen?” We already had two. How much work can two more be?

Let me tell you, one baby is alot of work. Any parent out there will attest to that. But twins, man-o-man, they are some serious baby work. But it can be done. And if you prepare for two, you will be ahead of the game when you bring them home and find out they are the work of 4 babies.

Before you even have those little blessings, there are some things you should do to make the first week home alittle easier.

• Get support. Family, friends, neighbors, everyone who offers help–take them up on it.
• Buy 4 of all clothes and bedding so you won’t run out. (laundry might get away from you the first week or two so just buy extra in the beginning)
• Stock up on diapers and wipes. You can never have enough, right?
• Have plenty of formula and bottles. You really don’t want to be going to the store at 4 o’clock in the morning. Click here for some places that will help with free stuff. Who can resist free stuff? No one!

If you have these things when you come home with the twins, it will be easier. Here are some things you can expect the first week home:

• No sleep. Now there is 2 crying babies. This is where the support comes in. Have them babysit your other kids so the twins are not so overwhelming. Have a few people come in and babysit the twins so you can take a nap. Work on getting them on a eating/sleeping schedule. It will be a lifesaver in the future.
• Bottles, pooping, more bottles and more dirty diapers. This is where the stocking up of diapers, wipes, and even clothing comes in. If you thought one new born pooped & ate all the time, just wait until you have two. You can do it, just be prepared to take your garbage out everyday.
• Second thoughts. I know you probably don’t want to hear about any second thoughts that you and your hubby have about bringing the twins home, but you will have them. It might be just for a second, but it will come. Just take it one day at a time, call all your loved ones to help, and get sleep whenever possible.

Just remember, you can do this. Yes, it is alot of work. Yes, it takes up most of your time the first week or so. But that is why I am telling you what to expect. That is why you prepared for bringing them home. Babies are always alot of work. But the payoff is amazing. But now you have a double payoff…it is almost like the lottery—except with more poop.