Alison Perry - OMG Its Twins!: Get Your Twins to Their First Birthday Without Losing Your Mind

WRITE-ON PAGES
Any references to writing or drawing in this book, or spaces left blank for this purpose, refer to the original printed version. Readers should use their own journal or paper in these instances..

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First published by Vermilion in 2021

Copyright Alison Perry 2021
Design Nikki Dupin at Studio Nic&Lou 2021
Illustrations Veronica Dearly 2021

The moral right of the author has been asserted

Cover design by Studio Nic&Lou

ISBN: 978-1-473-57657-5

Commissioning Editor: Samantha Jackson
Editors: Emma Owen, Leah Feltham, Justine Taylor & Lindsay Kaubi
Designer: Nikki Dupin at Studio Nic&Lou
Illustrator: Veronica Dearly

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Ive got a whole bunch of questions for you. How are you feeling? Was it a shock when you found out there are TWO humans growing inside you? Have you had any morning sickness? Have you been extra tired? OK, Ill stop with the questions because lets face it, theres a good chance youve been getting a lot of those from friends and family if this is news youve already shared with them. And you dont need to hear them from me!

Im Alison and as a mum of twin girls (they are somewhere between the baby and toddler stage as Im writing this) Ive learned a thing or two about giving birth to and raising twins. In this book Im going to share my experiences and Im also going to speak to lots of people who are experts from midwives and doulas to psychotherapists and nutritionists who will impart their amazing wisdom. And Im going to ask lots of twin mums to share their experiences with you, because if theres one thing Ive learned about motherhood, its that there is no one right way to do anything. Anyone who says Guys! Ive cracked this mum stuff, and if you follow my step-by-step plan, youll crack it too! should be swiftly avoided. There are lots of approaches, lots of ways to tackle a problem, lots of solutions, and what works for one baby might not work for another. (Which makes having twins even more fun because working out what they need from you is double the fun!)

So whats the point of this book, then? When I was pregnant with my twins, I asked around the twin mums I knew: OK, whats the twin book that I need to buy? and the response involved tumbleweed, a shrug of the shoulders and a few suggestions of this book or that book, but most of them came back to say they didnt think a brilliant twin book existed. How can this be? I wondered. We need a book that guides us through all of the emotional ups and downs of twin pregnancy, preparing for the birth, going through the birth, and then preparing for the fourth trimester (thats the first three months after giving birth!) because its a total roller coaster!

We need a book that holds our hand through it all, offers emotional support and gives us practical answers in a non-judgemental way. We need to hear stories from the mums who have been there and advice from the experts who know their stuff. We need a book that will put your mind at ease and help you with that feeling of overwhelm.

So, here is that book!OMG Its Twins! is designed to be dipped in and out of (because were busy people, right? And once you have those babies, you probably wont want to sit down to wade through a wordy book). There are tips, ideas, some interactive pages for you to complete in your journal or on a separate piece of paper, and above all else, lots of supportive and helpful stuff to guide you through the next few months.

You can totally nail this twin thing, and this is the start of a big adventure

Love,

ALISON

To my three daughters.

Without you all, this book wouldnt be possible.

Its easy to think that the challenges of being a twin mum start when you give birth but a twin pregnancy can be as demanding as a Hollywood film star. You might sail through the next few months feeling fine or you might find yourself experiencing some major pregnancy symptoms (see for those).

Whatever your twin pregnancy is like, this section should answer any questions youve got and give you an insight into some of the things that other pregnant twins mums have experienced.

IM FEELING:

IM WEARING:

IM EATING:

IM EXCITED ABOUT:

IM NERVOUS ABOUT:

Ill never forget the day we were told we were having twins. We were at our 12-week scan and as I popped (hoisted) myself up onto the hospital bed, the sonographer asked if this was our first scan. I explained that no wed had a scan at six weeks. This pregnancy was the result of IVF after years of secondary infertility, so when we saw those two blue lines on the pregnancy test, our fertility clinic had booked us in for a six-week viability scan.

At the six-week scan, like so many couples, we were hoping and praying for a heartbeat, and for everything to look as it should. When the consultant scanning me pointed out the sac and the heartbeat of the one baby in my uterus and told me everything looked good, we left the clinic feeling utter relief.

And we spent the next six weeks planning for our one baby.

At the 12-week scan, the sonographer squeezed the cold ultrasound gel onto my tummy. Great! Youve had a scan already, so you know its just the one baby then? she chatted away.

We laughed. Yes! Just the one baby.

The sonographer started scanning me and very quickly looked confused before sharing the news that we were, in fact, having