THE 10 SUPERIOR SKILLS OF THE TWIN PARENT

I found this many moons ago on a blog written in response of things not to say to a twin parent. It is spot on and made me laugh, and I thought it was worthy of sharing. The original post no longer seems to exist so I'm not sure who to credit this to. 

1. Strength: Our constant lifting of heavy babies gives us superior muscle tone.
2. Endurance: We can endure sleep deprivation comparable to special-forces in training.
3. Speed: We can fly in and out of a baby’s bedroom at 2am like a flipping ninja. (You would too if you risked waking another screaming baby).
4. Sense: Our sense of smell is heightened to that of a top police tracker dog, being able not only to spot a dirty nappy, but locating it to within 6 inches from the other side of the room.
5. Humour: We laugh in the face of danger. (Mainly because we accept we can only tackle one danger at a time so the other one may as well be funny!).
6. Hustling: We have more grey hair than you would expect for our age, which is disarming and helps us hustle.
7. Gift of the Gab: We should all have PhD’s in Diplomacy and Negotiation (e.g. you get to pull the plug out tomorrow, the second hand shoes are magic, three divided by two is one each and one for me, etc)
8. Emotional Resilience: We can do all of the above while simultaneously crying without even smudging our mascara. (We have no time for makeup).
9. Lords of the Dance: We always have enough people for the hokey pokey.
10. Brute Force: Our prams are bigger than your prams. Move over, we’re coming through whether it suits you or not!

What are your qualifications/special skills?

Westmead NICU Twin Crib

We need your HELP! Please help us raise $2500 needed for a twin crib in honour of our daughters Aisha and Aaliyah for new multiple families to use at Westmead Public Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. 

3 years ago we were blessed with the early but safe arrival of Zachariah and Yasminah's little twin sisters Aisha Ann and Aaliyah Ann. Born at only 31+5 weeks old 

Aisha ~ 16/12/09 ~ 11:53pm~ 1554g ~ 41cms ~

 

Aaliyah ~ 16/12/09 ~ 11:55pm ~ 1730g ~ 41.5cms ~ 

 

 

We spent a very long 4 weeks in Neonatal Intensive Care at Westmead Hospital. We anxiously watched and waited for our girls to be reunited outside of the womb. It wasn't until week 3 that they happened to be in adjoining rooms in the NICU and one of our lovely nurses helped put them together for the very first time! She gently carried Aaliyah attached to all her wires and monitors through the adjoining room’s doorway and placed her next to Aisha. The moment they were next to each other they smiled and nuzzled into each other. This brief 30 seconds if forever etched into my heart. It was magical!

That was a turning point for Aaliyah, who up until that time was a little further behind than Aisha. Her condition improved and one week later both of our girls were discharged home 4 weeks earlier than predicted by their caregivers. I honestly believe it was from this single moment. 

Westmead at the time didn't have a twin crib in the NICU and ever since that moment we have wanted to get one for Westmead, but we need your help to make our dream a reality. 

We are asking for your support to make a donation towards purchasing this very valuable piece of equipment for the NICU. We want to help another multiple family have this same opportunity to capture their premmie twins reunited in the NICU.

A twin crib for use in the NICU encourages co-bedding. Cobedded multiples can see, touch, and smell each other at all times, just like they could before birth in the womb. It allows the babies to share space together and they can even have them positioned as they were in the womb. Feet to head, head to head, back to back - however they were placed. 

Research has shown that heart rate and other stress cues reduce. Cobedded twins seem less irritable than other twins. When twins sleep together, they coordinate their sleep/wake cycles and have less stress and they seem to gain weight better than multiples that aren’t co-bedded. 

Twins are used to being together - so when they are in a situation such as the NICU where holding time is limited - giving them the comfort of companionship of their sibling can increase their chances of survival and promote happiness. Cobedded twins seem to have happier parents, fewer episodes of bradycardia, better thermoregulation, and lower oxygen needs. 

Please make a donation, every amount big or small can make a huge difference. 

To learn more about Aisha and Aaliyah’s journey please watch

http://hopelightlovehappiness.blogspot.com.au/2011/12/aisha-and-aaliyah-our-rainbows-at.htm

Multiple Birth Awareness

Multiple Birth Awareness Week (MBAW) is a national event held annually to celebrate the joy of parenting multiples and also to educate communities and professionals about the joys and challenges of parenting twins, triplets and more.

The week extends from Sunday 10th to Sunday 17th March 2013 with events and celebrations happening throughout the week. I encourage you to join Australian Multiple Birth Association and Multiple Birth Parents - www.multiplebirthparents.com pages to join in the celebrations.

For further details please visit www.amba.org.au

Talk Much?

It's double the giggles and double the grins, and double the joy if you're blessed with twins.

My beautiful little identical twin girls, Aisha and Aaliyah with a whole lot to say!! 

Aged 26 months  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VN9CwJ9lwI0

Double the Joy

Aisha and Aaliyah ~ My beautiful identical twin girls

So many good things come in pairs
Like ears and socks and panda bears
But best of all are sets of twins
With twice the laughter and double the grins
There's so much fun in having two
With twice as many points of view
So much alike, forever linked
And yet they're also quite distinct
They share a birthday and a name
But moods and tempers aren't the same
Although at times they may dispute
Their loyalty is absolute
From days of youth till life is done
It's one for both and both for one
We're all quite novel and precise
But special folks
They were made twice

Author unknown

Strike a pose

Aisha and Aaliyah are featured in Issue 10, March 7, 2012 of That's Life Magazine, Page 56.

I originally submitted their photo in early January, along with a multitude of others! I was surprised to find out through a friend who happened to be reading it this week, that Aisha and Aaliyah's photo was selected for print. They were actually 4 weeks old when this photo was taken. It was the first week they were home from the NICU. It was summer in Australia and HOT!

They often strike the same pose

Or pull the same facial expression

They learnt to crawl and stand the same way....

Say cheeeeeese!!!! They even smile for the camera with the same cheesy grins :)

They have an amazing bond, are absolutely beautiful girls and I'm so lucky to be their mummy x x