have had less ‘cooking’ time, their
birth weight will generally be lower. The
average birth weight for singletons is 7lb
7oz, but the average for twins is 5lb 5oz,
and for triplets it is 4lb. But just because
twins are generally delivered earlier and
smaller, it doesn’t necessarily mean that
this is always the case. Fiona’s identical
twin daughters were born (in Belgium)
at 39 weeks, one at 7lb 11oz, and one
at 6lb 7oz. She says, “I was HUGE, but
still walking, and felt great right up until
the end.”
Once the babies are delivered and
back home, looking after two or more
newborns simultaneously is obviously
going to present plenty of challenges,
especially if there are older siblings to
add to the mix. Nicola’s advice is, “Take
help from anyone that offers as the first
three months are tough (but amazing!)”
Just keeping the babies topped
up with milk can be a full-time job.
Fiona (who already had a five-year-old
and a three-year-old at home) was up
feeding the babies every two hours at
night in the early days, and Meg was
breastfeeding and expressing milk
constantly, with one baby in the ICU
ward and one at home.
Mandy adds, “I seemed to be
constantly feeding. I breastfed exclusively
for the first few months, and my midwife
was quite disapproving when I introduced
a bottle for Ben (Polly wouldn’t take one).
Other people kept telling me I was doing
it wrong as I didn’t feed both babies
together – that just didn’t work for me. The
best advice I can give anyone is to ignore
what everyone else says and just find a
way of doing things that works for you.”
Getting out and about
As many Hongkongers rely on public
transport, getting around with multiples
can seem like a bit of an obstacle
course challenge. Hong Kong’s packed
pavements can be uninviting to the
pram-pusher, and MTRs, ferries, buses
and taxis can be an equally daunting
prospect when you only have one pair of
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