Anybody else pregnant with twins – or more?

[nh101andhertwinbeans]

My twins are due in May and it would be nice to have other multiple-mums-to-be to chat to!

Jenny I had a HB with my DD, so I thought quite hard about a HB for my twins but have decided against it. But you're looking for positive stories - you could speak to the lovely independent midwife I found who is only too happy to talk about twin HBs, she's attended four and numerous hospital ones and tried very hard to convince me! Her name's Jane Evans and her details should be easy to find if you google her - if not let me know and I'll dig out her number.

MM and Mel, I agree about being much more anxious. Now I'm worrying about how long I'll manage work, I'm so big already. And I can feel the pressure in my pelvic floor now, goodness know what I'll be like in 10 let alone 20 weeks. But MM, 26 weeks is the first major milestone, isn' it - they'd probably be OK if they came any time from now. Is that reassuring?!

i had a lovely single homebirth with my second baby and had already booked another before i discovered it was twins. i wouldnt consider it for twins because of the risks of complications. i am actually going to opt for a c-section because after reading 5 twins books, two c-section books and two premmie books, i personally believe it will be safer for them. having already had one natural birth at my local hospital i believe i will also get much better care with a planned c-section and at least i will not have the risk of being transfered to a hospital 65 miles away like some people are when the maternity unit is full, i have two other young children to think about. my local hospital has one of the best NICU in the country.
my consultant wouldnt consider a homebirth and said so when he saw it said homebirth on my notes. i did say that i would have had one for a single baby but not for twins.
i must admit i have bought almost everything but the car and car seats for the twins. we have decided on the citroen c8 or peugeot 807. we are negotiating a trade in price for the c-max at the moment for a citroen c8 with six leather captain seats and tripple sunroof, its lovely!!!! there are not many around our area and i dont fancy driving hundreds of miles to pick one up at the moment.

I'm pleased to hear that thanks Marslady. what is iirc mean?

thanks for advice mars. yeah if i do have diabetes i'm gonna have to drastically alter my diet! had my bottle of lucozade for breakfast in the blood testing room! it was yummy...and then a 'packed lunch' I'd taken to hospital at 10.15. It was lovey having 2 hours 'off' from ds, just sitting and reading in hospital. Bliss. I was so much less tired at lunchtime than I am usually!

iirc - If I remember correctly.

Hi ladies

Thought I would join in! I am 17 weeks tomorrow with non id twins due 17/01. I am now over the shock but still anxious about the journey ahead. I have 2 ds's aged 7 and 3. Its lovely reading about other mums due the same time!
Neenztwinz: twins born May 6 2008, Esther and Theo
GBB: twins due Dec 25
Merrymarigold: non id twins (girl and boy) due Nov 11th/12th/ 13th
MEL2005: twins due 10th jan 2009
accessorizequeen" non id g/b twins due Oct 2nd (induced at 38 wks though)
PazzaPlusTwo: twin girls born April 28th 2008 - Anais and Carmen
Nellstar: id twins due 18 Feb 2009 (well, that's 40 weeks)
Pheonixnights:Non ID twins due 17th Jan

congratulations Pheonix

Welcome Phoenix. Know what you mean about the shock!! How do you know they're non-ID? Are they boy/girl?

Just re-ordering the list and putting my twins as b/g (sorry, very Virgoan I realise).

PazzaPlusTwo: twin girls born April 28th 2008 - Anais and Carmen
Neenztwinz: twins born May 6 2008, Esther and Theo
Accessorizequeen non id g/b twins due Oct 2nd (induced at 38 wks though)
Merrymarigold: non id twins (girl and boy) due Nov 11th/12th/ 13th
GBB: b/g twins due Dec 25
MEL2005: twins due 10th jan 2009
Pheonixnights:Non ID twins due 17th Jan
Nellstar: id twins due 18 Feb 2009 (well, that's 40 weeks)

Welcome, Phoenix! I have two ds's too, 20 months and 4.8 years. Are you going to find out what you're having?

Merry, glad you 'enjoyed' your hospital stay! Hope the outcome is negative for GD.

Mel, it's quite a shift isn't it going from homebirth to elective section? Hard to get your head round, I would have thought but you've obviously given it much consideration.

Cots getting picked up tomorrow so I'll find out what they're like (bought from a friend via dp, men have no clue). Have just got a cabriofix for £80 from kiddicare (pls don't tell me they're £70 at JL, mel!) so feel good that's sorted. I'm being tempted by footmuff/blanket wrap-style thingies (I did have a bug in a rug for ds2 & it was fab!) but they'll be born in August or Sept so hardly likely to be freezing is it?

GBB - I was told at my 12 week scan when they discovered I was expecting twins that there were 2 seperate sacs. There is also 1 day between them. Twin A was measuring 12 weeks and 2 days and twin B 12 weeks and 1 day.

I am hoping to be strong and not find out the sex this time. The thing is having scans every 4 weeks means its so easy to give in!

Trying not to think about the birth yet, I had 2 natuural births with my boys and the thought of a C section is terrifying! I am going to wait until nearer the time and find out what my options are.

having read two books on c-sections, it really isnt as bad as you probably imagine. people will tell you horror stories (and i have heard quite a few recently) but if its planned its much more relaxed. i would rather plan my section knowing that it is the safest thing to do for the babies than thinking about the possiblity of having one naturally then having a c-section as an emergency. i might change my mind if later on they are in a good position and both head down.

welcome phoenix, our list is growing.

accessorize, not long to go for you! i am getting excited for you!! congrats on your purchases. i ordered 2 blankets from a lady on my antenatal thread who makes them, my first 'new' purchase for the babies (everything else is secondhand), so made me feel better.

we've got our girl's name but still can't decide on a boy's. accessorize, did you get a girl's name yet? is it naff to have both names starting with the same letter?! i quite like the idea. i think as non id, g/b twins they will have a lot of individuality anyway, but don't want to get strange looks at every twin club i attend!

as for c-section vs. vaginal birth. well, the jury's still out for me. am opposite of you, phoenix, petrified of the vb! (had one last time and not nice) but also slightly apprehensive about c-section healing period. mel, everyone i speak to who has had elective c-sections is a big fan (check my thread out on TAMBA message board)!!

feeling low the past couple of days. just finding it so hard to do things, and so incapable. i mopped kitchen floor yesterday (it was pretty disgusting) and was shattered for the rest of the day. made me feel so useless (and i am hardly a very active person at the best of times). even putting a wash in the machine requires a rest afterwards. i think i need to look at some very prem babies so i feel a bit more excited about the fact these ones are still inside! not sure i can manage 11 more weeks though...

I wouldn't read the TAMBA message boards about birth. Not too much positive there. Don't spend your pregnancy being scared of the birth.

Mars, they were very positive on my thread (though I did avoid other threads) and someone told me that TAMBA recently published a stat that only 5% of vaginal births end up with a c-section on the second twin (for you, mel as you are worrying and so was I!). And the people who had had c-sections were also v. positive about it. But yes, some of the threads are best avoided I think.

I think I'm spending this pregnancy being scared of everything, not just the birth!

Very different to last pregnancy (really loved being pregnant), but maybe because it was my first and I didn't know what giving birth or looking after a small baby/ a bigger baby/ a toddler was all about. And now I do - and there's TWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO of them .

[I have gone through the excitement (that was a long phase - I am a bit slow!) and denial phases and am now in the shock phase ast 26 weeks +5. Looking forward to 'acceptance' phase - it'd better hurry up].

Funny that you've already gone through the excitement stage, merry, I only hit that the first time a few weeks ago. Until then it was shock, upset, denial, anger, worry....I'm sure you'll get back to excitement again v.soon. We don't have a girl's name, no, nada! Well, I do, but dp's not even discussing it yet. He's not in the excitement stage right now . I think if you like the names, then doesn't matter what people think about whether they start with same letter or whatever. They're your children, you'll be calling their names for years to come!

I got a basic book about labour and birth from the library (nothing about twins!) just to jig my memory. I'd like to know more about breathing and hypnotherapy but definitely don't want to read birth stories! I've had everything go wrong for one birth and everything go right for another so there can't be that many surprises left (although it was useful to know that sometimes they want you to deliver in the operating theatre, I'm going to ask about that on Mon.).

Phoenix, I agree v.hard not to ask the sex! I'm having fortnightly scans now btw, but they're feeding scans rather than full ultrasounds so not sure if they could tell you the sex anyway as the picture's a lot more blurry.

Was told to come on here by accessorizequeen as am due id twins at end of January. My big question at the moment is which double buggy is best which has car seats that attach? I would rather have a tandem style but any ideas would be welcome. Apart from that today is my 2nd day not vomiting so hopefully I'm past the worst in that department.

hi ewemoo and welcome to this thread! Accessorize is the expert on this question as she wanted the same thing. I think the Jane Powertwin can attach carseats and the icandy pear. Best to go and try them out as they are not cheap!

The Jane isn't as bad looking (or as long) as it used to be. I really would have liked the i-candy pear but that wasn't produced until I'd thrown my DTs out of their buggy and made them walk!

Welcome Ewemoo and congratulations!

Oh, good, Ewemoo, glad you could pop along. I think Mel might be the only one who's decided on a buggy (MB double) but perhaps GBB has too?

The Jane Twin Too and the Powertwin will both take car seats & I believe the Powertwin now takes the newer, flatter Strata seat. They're both tandems. Twin Too also has seats that recline from birth whereas Powertwin only has one seat that fully reclines. Powertwin by all accounts is a great deal easier to push and manoevre being a 3 wheeler with air tyres. They both only take Jane car seats. I looked at the icandy pear last week, it takes maxi cosi seats (possibly others?) I posted my mini review on this thread if you want to look for it? The only other ones I've found that takes 2 car seats are the Mamas & Papas Aria and the Duette which is a tandem (they both take the Primo Viaggio car seat). The new Zoom twin also takes car seats including maxi cosi I think, but as it's only been out for a few months very little known about it! It again is a tandem. A couple of twin mumsnetters have bought one but I haven't seen a full summary of it yet. Mel will correct me I think if I've missed one?

i have had a powertwin and the twin two. the powertwin is the best as the twintwo is really huge, heavy and hard to use. i found that the powertwin had a tendancy to tip with a wriggling toddler in the front seat and a baby in the back BUT with twins it will not be a problem. there have been some really cheap ones on e-bay recently £85?? ish.
i have had an aira twin and it was not well made, i had a couple of friends who had them as well and kept them alot longer than i kept mine. the brake bar broke on one of my friends several times and the wheels buckle and bend outwards. the mamas and papas warranty is not very good and doesnt cover much and they take ages to mend things. the mamas and papas car seat is heavy and isnt as safe as the maxi-cosi. my local baby shop and john lewis have now stopped selling them.

i am sorry i dont know about the others, i had a single icandy apple which was good but i have heard about problems with quality and the seats are rather small. i was tempted to try and get a pear chassis for the car seats as i am having maxi cosi ones but the pears are such alot of money.
i have the mountain buggy with the twin carrycot but you cant get car seat fittings for it. to be honest with my last baby, i didnt take the car seat out of the car much as i prefered to use the carrycot but with twins and two car trips to the nursery a day it might be a pain.

i am desperate to find out the sexes, my husband thinks they are both girls and at my last scan the lady called the top one a she. but from the heartrate it could be one boy and one girl. i have been keeping clothes from both my two children (girl and boy) since we started trying for another baby until i know for sure.
i had better go and wash the car as i am putting it on e-bay today. only problem is my sciatica is playing up and i am going to regret it later. i will get the kids to help as they love washing the wheels and jet washing the foam off.

accessorize, i think if you have one breach they deliver you in the operating room and get you ready for a c-section if needed. apparently some doctors will refuse to deliver a breach baby if they dont have enough experience so you have to have the c-section if they cant turn them.

i am afraid to say i am a recovering buggyholic
have a lovely sunday ladies

PazzaPlusTwo: twin girls born April 28th 2008 - Anais and Carmen
Neenztwinz: twins born May 6 2008, Esther and Theo
Accessorizequeen non id g/b twins due Oct 2nd (induced at 38 wks though)
Merrymarigold: non id twins (girl and boy) due Nov 11th/12th/ 13th
jennyroper: id girl twins dur dec 15th
GBB: b/g twins due Dec 25
MEL2005: twins due 10th jan 2009
Pheonixnights:Non ID twins due 17th Jan
Nellstar: id twins due 18 Feb 2009 (well, that's 40 weeks)

I have now found a midwife who will do a homebirth am very excited. she has lots and lots of twin experience. I will look up Jane Evans she sounds like a good person to talj to, thanks gettingbiggerbird. my midwife is in new zealand as that's where i live (am in england for a blissful 4 months). she lives on te next street to me so all very cosy.

Jenny... how wonderful!

Guess what? Someone has given me a maclaren double! It's quite old though (maybe 6 years), and is very heavy, but it's great to have a 'spare'.

Good news,jenny, that it's all coming together so well. You sound like you're very much in control and 'sorted' about it all and !

We are FINALLY going car hunting tomorrow for the first time.

I seem to be returning to 1st trimester pg symptoms (I never threw up, but had very 'bad' bowel/ stomach). Is that normal? Anyone else experienced this in 3rd trimester? I get loads of pain, but I think it's all just 'tummy aches'/ cramps/ tightness from bloating and not prem labour - bit hard to tell at times though. Drinking loads and loads (of water)!

Have good weeks y'all.