Hantie (35) and her husband has a five year old son and almost three year old twin girls. Hantie is a trained physiotherpist but since 2011 she's been working as a Real Estate agent at her husband's agency.
At how many weeks were your twins born?
Twins were born at 33 weeks, weighing 2.2 and 2.5 kg. Anika had a NICU stay of two weeks and Isabella of three weeks.
Did you breastfeed? If so, how did you manage to do that?
Yes I did, until six months exclusively and after that for another two months or so just mornings and evenings. I used a twin breastfeeding pillow to feed simultaneously but however found it worked better for us to feed separately if possible.
What was/is their routine for sleep?
I'm very strict on routine so bath time as babies was about 17:00 and then in bed at 18:00. I sleep trained them at 10 months after which they started sleeping through. Now, bath time is at around 18:00, story time at 18:30 and lights out at 19:00. They usually still sleep through with the occasional wakings for cold, toilet etc.
How do you handle a tantrum in public?
I'm lucky, my kids usually tantrums at home!! But if it does happen, I try to sit down with them and calm them down, even if that mean on the grocery shops floor. But all in all my kids are angels in public, it is at home were the fireworks happen.
What method of discipline works for your twins? Maybe give some advice for other moms.
Shucks, different for each kid but I found that going down on their level and first trying to talk to them works most of the time. Otherwise I would send them to their room and I must admit every now and then a good slap on the bum has done the trick as well. My advice is to not loose your temper. It is our job to teach them how to react and to control our emotions. This was very hard for me for a long time due to Post natal depression but I'm slowly starting to win the battle.
What advice do you have for other moms that have twins?
Accept any advice offered to you and if not offered then ask. Do not try to be superwoman. Also remember our kids needs less things and more of us, especially with twins where they are competing for your attention all the time.
What is the funniest question someone has asked you about having twins?
Funniest for me is if they ask me if they are twins when clearly they are identical - we still confuse them from time to time. I would also always dress them in girly colors as babies and still people would ask if they are boys.
How do you and your husband make time for each other?
This is very difficult at this stage. We do enjoy watching series together and we try to do the occasional night out. Luckily my kids get to bed early so we spend time together in the evenings. Also we work together so we get to do breakfasts and lunches together.