DocAndersen
I was in Toronto Canada for training. That is when it started. I have news my wife said. Are you sitting down? I wasn’t by the way. I was in a hurry and had work to do, I should have sat down. “twins” my wife said and the world went black for a moment. “Are you ok?” she asked. I guess I blacked out for a moment. You prepare for things in life, but that isn’t something you can prepare for. I promise you. Two heartbeats instead of one is a big difference. Yes, there are people with triplets, quadruplets and more. They are even more unprepared for the announcement. The moment when you realize that you are suddenly not the parents of a child, but the parents of twins.
What was next would be a difficult period for my wife and daughter? My daughter, who was a year away from kindergarten, was suddenly going to be a big sister. She announced, “I am going to be the best big sister, ever.” On the 12th week appointment with the Doctor, my wife was informed that she was going to be on bed rest. What that meant, for the next 23 weeks was that during the day my daughter was bringing my wife snacks, drinks and taking care of her. A five-year-old stepping up like that is impressive. It shows great compassion, caring and a willingness to do anything. But then again, she was the best big sister ever even before they were born.
Everything bought had to be done in twos. Everything had to be the same but always different colors. We realized seven months into this process that two cribs in our tiny master bedroom weren’t going to work. We decided to build a house right around the 7th month. We didn’t talk to the builder until the boys were three months old. We didn’t leave the house much until they were old enough, and we survived the crisis. For the first two weeks after they were born, they were both in the NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit) of the hospital. Then they came home, and then one of the twins was sick. They were back in the NICU for what was to be the worst week of my life. I was running between the hospital, the house, and work. The entire week was a blur. Well, most of that first year was a blur.
I cannot imagine having twins, and so glad everything turned out ok both for them and your wife. What great memories once again.
Well maybe not all of the memories were great. The NICU had to have been a nightmare, glad that is behind you all.
We actually became friends with one of the nurses and her husband. We lost touch over the years, but still, are connected via Facebook!
IT seems so long ago now. I guess the passage of time really does help!