As soon as people find out I’m having twins, they inevitably have the same questions. Coming from close friends it’s fine, but some of them feel weird when coming from strangers. I’m starting to realize that these are questions every twin mom and/or twin gets, and I better get used to answering them because they won’t stop after the twins are born! Apparently a double stroller is a magnet for questions like these. So to save us both the trouble, I went ahead and answered them all here for you ;)…

Are they natural?  This is hands down the question we get the most! It’s funny that this is such a common question because I don’t think I would have asked it myself, but SO many people assume that we are having twins as a result of fertility treatments. While I think IVF is an amazing thing for people struggling to get pregnant, that was not the case with us. Our’s are called “spontaneous twins,” or natural. As I mentioned in my post about how we found out, we got pregnant right away – like the first month we tried! I think this made the shock of finding out we had twins even greater, because it wasn’t something that had really ever crossed my mind as a possibility.

Do you have twins in your family?  Another reason I hadn’t considered that I’d have twins was because it doesn’t run in my family genetically. So we just got randomly lucky! I do have twin cousins on both sides of my family, but it comes from the Mom and I’m not related to their moms (their dads are my uncles, hope that makes sense!) That being said, my best memories growing up are from running around with my twin cousins, so in a way I hadn’t thought of before, having twins myself now seems like a special, full-circle moment for me.

My sister and I with our twin cousins, Jesse and Lee (I’m the one on the far right!)

Are they identical or fraternal?  Our twins are fraternal. Some people are surprised that we already know that, but it’s easy to tell from that first ultrasound. Fraternal twins happen when there are two separate eggs that both get fertilized, and identical twins happen when one egg that was fertilized by one sperm ends up splitting into two. Fraternal twins are considered lower risk, as the babies both have their own placentas and sacs. In my case, where my twins are fraternal and natural, my doctor said it’s the best case scenario for having twins.  She said, “It’s like your body was just meant to have twins!” I don’t know about that, but I’m excited that our twins will be fraternal and different! Fraternal twins can be any combination of gender – two girls, two boys, or one of each – are just as much alike as any other siblings because they only share about half of their DNA.

Are you going to have a C-Section?  Ugh. I don’t know. I’ve never wanted a C-Section, and for some reason have always been really freaked out by them. I really wanted the experience of a “natural” birth (with an epidural most likely – I meant natural as in vaginal but am trying not to use the word vagina too much in these posts!) but with twins I’ll have to take it as it comes. It really depends on how the twins are doing, and how they are positioned. My doctor told me that these days about 50% of twin births are C-Sections. Whether I want to try to do it naturally, I have to get an epidural and I have to deliver in the operating room, just in case they end up having to do a C-Section. Hope that wasn’t too much detail for ya but hey, you asked…kind of ;).

How far along are you?  I’m 14 weeks right now!

Are you showing yet?  YES. And I can feel everything moving, so I’ll be showing a lot more very soon! I’m sure you’ll start to notice in pictures, and my jeans are so uncomfortable (and some pairs impossible) to button. But I’m not quite ready for maternity clothes, so I’m keeping things as comfortable and as flowy as possible in dresses and comfy flats. This striped dress (it has pockets guys!) and these leather slides from Beek have been a go-to for me this week.

Striped Tank Dress | Faux Leather JacketBlack Leather Slides | Blue Nylon Tote Bag | Sunnies

When are you due?  I’m due November 15th, which would be 40 weeks. However, on average twins usually come around 35-36 weeks, and my doctor won’t let me go past 38.  So by November 1st, these babies will be here!

Are you going to breastfeed?  I’m going to really, really try! But I am totally aware that it’s hard enough with one, and that it’s going to be really hard with two. One thing I’m learning already with twins (and I think possibly the reason God gave me two!) is that I’m going to have to be laid back about things that I used to think I could be a stickler on. But I plan to take a class on breastfeeding, as well as a class specifically geared towards multiples, and I’ll give it my best shot!

Are you worried about how big you’re going to get?  Uh, duh. And thanks for reminding me! One woman who found out I was having twins said, “Oh my, your body is never going to be the same!”  Geez, thanks ;). Of course I worry about that, and of course the day I found out I was having twins I went home and did a Google image search on “women pregnant with twins, third trimester.” But you know what? There’s really nothing I can do about it except try to keep myself and the babies healthy during pregnancy, and for now I’m banking on what every mom tells me – that it’s all worth it once they’re here!

Are you going to move “home”?  We don’t have any family in Southern California, so a lot of people just assume that with twins on the way we’ll move back to Utah or Seattle. But no, we love Costa Mesa! It’s become our home, it’s where we work, we have a great and supportive group of friends, and we aren’t going to run home just because there are two babies coming instead of one! (Read more about our recent move within Costa Mesa here.) That being said, of course I wish we were closer to family. I miss them every single day, and I’m sure having the babies will make me wish even more that they were closer to share in all that comes with that. But for now, we are staying put, and we are so lucky to have family (especially Moms and a sister) that are willing to come help when we need them.

Are you still going to work?  Yes! I worked during the first trimester of my pregnancy, but recently started showing and had to take a little break. Now I’m just waiting for my belly to grow a little more so that I can do some pregnancy modeling! Lucky for me I have the blog to work on, our recent move to deal with, and lots of visitors staying with us to keep me busy! Right before I took my work hiatus, I shot a campaign for Lee Jeans that will come out in the fall.  And the very last job I shot was one for Narie Clothing – a couple of the images below!  Can you tell I’m pregnant yet? I sure could!

Are you going to get rid of Lo?  Ok seriously people, stop asking us this! Lo is part of our family, and she’s not going anywhere! There might be an adjustment period for her, and she may get less attention and less walks for a while, but I think in the end she will love having two playmates. I’m also very certain that she’ll like them way more than she likes me when they start sitting in high chairs and dropping food down to her! Also, could you get rid of THIS face?!

 Any other questions?  Let me know and I’ll probably add them in here, even if they’re weird! 😉

xx

Jen

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