Boston: Mothers of Multiples

Boston,

An unspoken sisterhood exists between mothers of multiples. The instant they meet, they are bonded by a shared understanding of the joys and challenges of parenting multiples. They want to encourage each other. They freely admit their mistakes as they relate their experience for the sake of the other mother. Novice mothers attentively seek advice while more veteran mothers graciously impart it.

This spirit of sisterhood and sharing provided the inspiration for writing this book. My personal journey with twins began with two unusually solid blue lines on a pregnancy test strip. Two stripes, you are pregnant. One stripe, you are not. I knew the routine from my prior pregnancy with my then two-year-old daughter. What made this test different was an unusual clarity to the blue stripes considering that the test was done at least a week before my period would have arrived. I remember with my first daughter that we could barely tell if there was a second line.

But with this test, the two blue lines emerged quickly and solidly, indicating that my pregnancy hormone level was surging. In retrospect, my hormone level was unusually high because I was pregnant with twins. Seven weeks into my pregnancy, I started spotting. An ultrasound to evaluate the bleeding surprised both me and my obstetrician when two little bodies appeared on the screen. I could not believe I was pregnant with twins! As the weeks passed, I continued to have regular ultrasounds to monitor the health of the twins.

With amazement, I saw the babies transform from two tiny white masses on the screen into two fully formed babies. Th ere were many challenges along the way, but before I knew it, I was on the laboring table giving birth. What started out as two beautiful blue stripes on a pregnancy test culminated in the birth of two beautiful girls, Faith and Hope. Parenting them has been a learning and rewarding experience. From the day I found out I was pregnant with twins, I knew I was embarking on a special journey. Mothers of multiples openly share what they have learned from their experiences because they understand that parenting twins can be very different from rearing singletons.

Source by Laura Hampton-Burke

Mothers of Multiples