Finding out you're pregnant can be overwhelming. Finding out you're pregnant with twins can double your emotions. In this Pregnancy 101 report, find out how classes are helping moms with multiples to prepare.
Michele Michaelsen is the mother of 4-month-old twins: Wyatt and Quinn. Many days this is the norm: one sleeps, the other is wide awake. And at night, they're both up.
"It is a kind of tired that we have never experienced before," Michele said. "And we weren't able to take shifts at night like a lot of parents.
Michele admits, when she found out she was having twins, she had two times the questions.
"Logistically, how are we going to manage everything? How are we going to feed them, take them out places, you know? How are we going to handle two babies crying at the same time?" said Michaelsen.
Cathy DelSenno, a mother of twins herself, helped Michele get answers. She teaches two multiples classes at Methodist Women's Center in Omaha.
DelSenno says, "We kind of walk you through, you know, this is how to survive. This is how you can feasibly go to the grocery store. This is how to breast-feed two babies."
The classes give moms a chance to get out of the house, be around other moms with similar challenges and even the rare time to focus on just one baby.
"Probably one of the most important things was having somebody tell us it's going to be okay; it's going to be fun," Michaelsen said. "Most people, when they found out we were having twins, were either shocked or 'Oh gosh you're going to be so busy, you're going to be so exhausted.' At the multiples class, it was 'Yeah, you are going to be busy. You are going to be tired. But it is going to be so wonderful.'"
One of the most important things moms tell us they learn from this class is how to handle finances. They've learned that just because you have twins doesn't mean you'll have to buy two of everything.
So Michele doubles up on the essentials but receives twice the love.