My husband and I went on our first date in 1999, despite attending different colleges and moving to different cities upon graduation - he moved to Baltimore and I to New York City. The timing wasn’t right during our early twenties, but somehow, we always kept coming back to each other and were finally married in May 2007.
We knew we wanted a family right away and started trying to conceive during our honeymoon in Italy. We didn’t get pregnant on our honeymoon, despite all the wine and romance, but didn’t have to wait long. We found out we were pregnant that September.
My husband loves surprises – he’s the type that doesn’t peek at his Christmas gifts – and insisted we let the gender of our baby be a surprise. I grudgingly agreed (I hate surprises and always hunt for my Christmas gifts!), but joked on a whim that if they were twins that we would find out their genders. Twins would be surprise enough! My husband responded “watch, we’ll have twins and they’ll both be girls!” Famous last words...
Twins?!?
I was never someone who dreamed of having twins. Honestly, the thought never, ever crossed my mind as a possibility. So, when we went to the OB for our 8-week ultrasound, no one was more shocked than I when the technician started the ultrasound and immediately said “It’s twins!” Shocked in disbelief, I demanded evidence and asked her to show it to me on the screen – there it was, two tiny heartbeats! My mom was with us at the ultrasound, screaming and jumping around the room in joy. During all the chaos, I had to stop and ask “Where’s Ron???” My husband was sitting down in the back, stunned silent. After our initial shock, it didn’t take us long to be overjoyed by our shocking news – the best surprise ever!
We told most of our friends and family the news immediately. I’m terrible at keeping secrets and felt that if something bad did happen that we would need the support of our family and friends. Funny enough, I never worried about the complications of carrying twins, despite the warnings from my doctors.
Gratefully, our girls were delivered via scheduled c-section at 38 weeks on April 30, 2008 without the complications that so many multiples pregnancies face (bed rest, pre-term labor, etc) and were completely healthy. Abigail Frances was 19 ¼ inches long and weighed 6lb 11oz and Liliana Ellis was 18 inches long and weighed 5lb 13oz.The girls are 4 months old now and thriving.
Abby is the outgoing, mouthy one with a personality all her own. She loves to babble away and "talks" our ears off! 
Lily is our sweet girl. She smiles with her whole face, squinches up her nose and has dimples.
We can’t imagine not having twins and there are so many benefits to having them. Our girls learned patience from the get-go and as parents, we’ve learned to go with the flow. The girls will always have each other throughout their lives and that thought just warms our hearts.Multiples Community
One thing I never expected in my pregnancy was to find such an incredibly supportive thoughtful group of women as I found on the nest. I see so many daily displays of support and concern that go so far beyond what a friend would provide, that it’s amazing to think we are ‘strangers’!
The deluge of recent celebrity twin births makes pregnancy and infancy look idyllic and glamorous. But in so many cases, this just isn’t the real world and I think the public would be interested in an honest take on what being a MoM (Mother of Multiples) is like - the joys and the tears. The incredible strength exhibited by the women on this board is inspirational to all.
-Aimee (coffee bean)
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