For those of you who don't know, in Jamaica, the last born child in the family is referred to as the "washbelly". When we found out that we were expecting twins when I was just 7 weeks pregnant we both looked at each other and said..."these are the washbellies!" We were both in a deep state of shock and that was absolutely the first thought that came to mind and then followed with - what are we gonna do with TWO babies??!!
I still remember looking over them as they would sleep thinking, "wow, there really are two of them." I think other parents of twins will agree that it's very surreal and even once your babies have arrived it's still hard to believe. After all, for me, twins was something other people had. Not me.
It used to really bother me when people would see us out and about with our twosome and say things like "double trouble". How dare you call my babies trouble!! And then they weren't babies anymore and they started raising holy heck around the house. Twins are definitely double trouble and twice as much work. They work as a little team and conspire against the parents. Those little stinkers can have my tidied up house torn apart in no time. And I won't even bother to talk about trying to get twins to sleep - I think the only full night's sleep I've had in the last 3 years was the weekend I spent at Kristie's house by myself.
It's all worth it. It's amazing to see my little girls as best friends. It's incredible to watch them communicate with each other in ways that completely exclude the rest of the world. Their bond is one that none other can touch and I am truly blessed to have been chosen to raise them and watch them learn and grow. No, it's not easy and yes, there are days when I think I'm going to lose my mind, but I wouldn't have it any other way. I wouldn't trade them for anything.
When they were born it was very important to me that Brett video tape the birth. It was really just a video for my eyes only. After all, it kind of sucks to hear everybody "ooohing and ahhhing" and you can't see anything that's going on...and it's your body. So, I wanted to see. Heather was born first, at 4:19pm and Hannah was breech and she put up a good fight for the following 21 minutes. I won't bother to give you the gorey details, but I decided to watch the video today and I'm glad I did. I don't think I've ever seen it. I'm not going to even lie to you...I'm a total badass and had a human being pulled/pushed out of my body by her feet...and yes, I'm damn proud of that. It was another "if I can do that, I can do this" moment for me.
I have been blessed with these precious gifts and I am eternally grateful to be their mother.
I totally agree! It's still surreal to me that I am the mother of twins. And I love the way they play together...and apart...but not for long. They are best buds and absolutely miss each other even when they are apart for only 30 mins after a nap or an hour or two when one goes out with mom or dad. I didn't realize it would be like that for them. And I love their differences and I love their similarities. But its still really a lot of work to take care of them...yes, they destroy a tidy room in the time it takes me to nuke a few chicken nuggets ...and I hear you on the full nights rest. When exactly is that going to happen again????
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