Say Hello to the Werner Family!! Amy and her husband have their hands full raising 3 kids! Joesph, 8 and twins Robert and Katelyn, 5 1/2!
Tell me a little about your family!
My name is Amy Werner and I am a 34 year old mother of 3. My huband and I have been together since high school and we got married after I graduated from Penn State. He's a couple years younger so it wasn't until he graduated that we got pregnant with our 1st son Joseph. At the time I was a 1st grade teacher. We were living in Northern Virginia, about 4 hours away from family. When Joey was about to turn two we found out we were pregnant again. We joked about it being twins since I was experiencing heartburn early on (a sign of a twin pregnancy). At 12 weeks we discovered we were having twins. Two days after Christmas, Katelyn and Robert joined our family. When the twins were 3 and Joey was in Kindergarten, we moved closer to family about an 1 hour away. We know live outside of Reading, PA. I have been a stay at home mom with all 3 of my kids. Joseph just turned 8 and Robert and Katelyn are 5 1/2 and ready to start kindergarten in the fall.
You have a singleton and twins...How did the pregnancies differ?
My singleton pregnancy was very easy. About 2 weeks of morning sickness before work and then it was over. I was able to keep doing everything I needed to do for work and still do everything around the house. I never felt I needed to limit my activities and I had a great appetite. During the twin pregnancy I felt tired and nauseated for the 1st three months. Prior to knowing it was twins, I was sure it was a girl because my little boy never made me feel that way. I was growing out of my non-pregnancy clothes much faster with the twin pregnancy. I always felt tired and never very hungry. I had ultrasounds more frequently and the closer we got to term I had to go for stress tests every week to monitor the babies. I was never put on strict bedrest, but was told to limit my activities to going out once a day in the 8th month. My twin pregnancy was more interesting because I already had a two year old to take care of. Robert and Katelyn were born at 36 weeks and 4 days, while Joseph was born at exactly 40 weeks, on his due date. Although I weighed the same at the end of both pregnancies I looked so much bigger with the twins.
What is your "normal" day to day routine?
We wake up about 7:30 a.m. and get breakfast for all of us. I usually have outfits chosen for that day so we can make sure that Joseph will not miss the school bus. While everyone is eating I make Joey's lunch for school, since he never buys school lunches. After they are finished with eating they get themselves dressed. We all get in the van and take Joseph to the bus stop or school depending if we made it there before the bus. The morning time the twins and I play with toys, the Wii, read books, and play outside. Monday, Wednesday and Friday they are in Preschool in the afternoon and Thursday, Robert has speech class. Tuesdays are the only day we don't have to be out of the house so we try and take it easy and do the things that need to be done around the house or go food shopping. After picking up the twins from preschool it is time to get Joseph from the bus stop. After school we do homework and then head outside until my husband gets home from work. We eat dinner as a family most every night. After dinner we play with the kids, watch some televsion and do any of the errands we didn't get done during the day. The kids are in bed by 8:30 p.m. and all three can get themselves ready for bed. We go up and check on them and give them kisses. We have about 2 hours of time alone.
When your twins were born, did your oldest have a hard time adjusting to the changes around the house?
When the twins were first born we were nervous about our oldest, Joseph tripping and falling on them when we had them on the floor. He enjoyed having a new brother and sister. Joseph deals with change like a champ, whether it was a new baby, new school, or new house. The babies slept very well through the night and the nights they didn't, Joseph slept through the crying. He was only 2 1/2 when the twins were born, so I don't think now he remembers a time when they weren't around. He plays with both of the twins, but gets more frustrated with his brother because he wants to be with him constantly. I think the change in the house was more difficult on my husband and I than it was on Joseph. Family was a big help, coming down for weeks at a time to help. My younger sister moved in for a few months to help out.
After having your twins, did it seem that caring for your singleton as a baby was "easy" compared to caring for multiples as newborns?
I know people will think I am crazy, but I felt caring for the twins was easier than caring for my 1st son. When I had Joseph I had no idea what I was suppose to be doing. I had no idea why he would cry, that different cries meant different things. I even struggled at first with getting him to drink a bottle. By the time I had the twins I had a few tricks up my sleeve. I wrote down everytime they ate or when I changed a diaper on a chalkboard. We already had a schedule that worked well with Joseph so instead of trying to figure out a schedule, we had one in place. The twins were very good and fit right into our family. My sister was a big help the first 3 months when they were getting up to eat at night, because I was able to sleep even though Joey was up. The twins started sleeping through the night when it was time for her to leave us, so then I was able to do the day alone.
How did you go about potty training then twins?
What advice would you give to those who are starting to potty train their little ones? I struggled potty training my son Joseph. Do you see an ungoing theme here? He started sitting on the potty but then I got pregnant and couldn't get down on the floor as easily anymore, the potty training stopped. I would say once you decide to start potty training don't stop. It's not easy but you have to stick with it. The twins were very easy to potty train. I didn't push them to start trying. They would go in the bathroom with their older brother and wanted to try what he was doing. I first noticed Robert being very interested in the potty, so we tried with him first. He got it right away. I remember saying "Oh so this is what people mean when they say potty training is easy." Once Katelyn saw Robert going on the potty she wanted to try too. She got peeing on the potty right away too, but struggled a month longer with pooping. We bought a potty seat that went over the big potty so we didn't have to reteach going on the big potty, which is a mistake we made the 1st time. The twins' diaper was never really wet at night so after they were potty trained during the day, they were able to go through the night as well.
What is a question you would like to ask the other "Twindom Kingdom" readers about caring and raising multiples?
What is a question you would like to ask the other "Twindom Kingdom" readers about caring and raising multiples?
How do you handle having birthday parties for your twins once they are in school and different classes with different friends? Do you have one big party or give them each a party with friends?
