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Centrelink for twins and multiples explained

Centrelink and twins

Author:  Vanessa Cartledge

As a multi mum, I fully understand that Centrelink for twins and multiples can often seem complicated and overwhelming. So I thought I would share my knowledge to help other multi-parents navigate Centrelink’s system. As multi-parents, there are payments that we may be entitled too, but the Centrelink website can be confusing. If you know what you’re entitled to and how to apply, it makes everything easier and much less stressful. Please note that I do not work for Centrelink, and I am just sharing this information as a guide only.  Please check all the information for yourself.

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Dads of Twins and Multiples – The Rise of the Stay at Home Dad

dads of twins

This is not the title of a bad horror movie (Dads of Twins and Multiples – The Rise of the Stay at Home Dad! Oohh, scary!) but the start of a very welcome trend.

When there are twin newborns there is double the work of one baby, and when there are triplets or more the parents are seriously outnumbered. More Dads of twins and multiples are choosing to stay home from work for a period of paternity leave to get the family through that exhausting and crucial first year.

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Multi Mums who drink: is it a problem?

Mums who drink

All those Facebook memes about motherhood and parenting are very funny, mostly because they are completely true. But we’ve noticed a bit of a regular pattern when it comes to the familiar ‘mothers and wine’ memes; they are getting more and more common. Are all these memes just harmless fun, or should we be a bit more concerned about this increase in mums who drink?

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Flying with twins or triplets or more – Tips to make your flight easier

Flying with triplets

Are you planning a holiday within Australia?  Or perhaps you need to fly to attend a family event.  Don’t worry, the trip won’t be as bad as you think.  Here are some tips to ensure a smooth flight when you are flying with twins or triplets within Australia.

Consider your routine and the timing of the flights when flying with twins or triplets

Look at your routine and try to choose a flight time that suits your routine the best.  Stick to their usual routine as much as possible i.e if you feed, wrap, sleep, then do the same on the plane.  Hopefully the white noise of the aircraft hum may help them sleep.

ID for under twos

For babies under two, you may be asked for proof of their age.   Consider carrying their government issued baby book a certified copy of their birth certificates.  The airline check in staff may request proof of their date of birth and can even deny boarding, which you don’t want.

Child Restraints

Car seats may be taken on-board if they are approved for air travel (check with your airline for more information).  An airline seat must be purchased in order to be able to use a car seat on-board.   Another option is a CARES harnesses. The Child Aviation Restraint System (CARES) is an approved alternative to car seats.

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Twin relationship – Seven year old twins

twin relationship at 7 years old

Our girl/boy twins are our only children, and they have always had a close twin relationship.  Sure they fight and annoy each other occasionally (and we had the odd biting incidents which you can read about HERE), but it’s never serious, or lasts long.  I’ve got friends whose twins fight ALL THE TIME, so I am grateful that ours enjoy being together. And let’s be honest, it’s not like they have much choice!!

They are now 7 years old, and are in year one at school.    And we have got to the point where it is starting to drive me a bit batty!

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Giving birth to twins. The miracle of birth. 

Giving birth to twins

(Note from Twinfo:  This is the final part of a five part series, where we will follow Nissa’s journey.   The links to the other four parts of her story can be found at the end of this post.)

Author: Nissa Vagg

Giving birth to twins

The Miracle of Birth

Two days after being discharged, I went to visit my childhood best friend Zoe. I probably shouldn’t have because I could barely touch the steering wheel, only the very tips of my fingers could reach, but she was cooking me dinner and was going to help me decide which rentals to apply for in Tassie. Dinner was lovely, we found a few houses that looked good, and as I stood up from the couch to leave something popped…. I guess that was the pop I had been expecting, but it still took me by surprise. Water started pouring out from between my legs, and I gasped and ran to the toilet to check what was going on. It was happening – my waters must have broken; the babies were coming. Thankfully we were only 10 minutes from the hospital, and in a blur of apprehension and excitement, Zoe drove me in.

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Twin pregnancy third trimester – The first labour

Twin pregnancy third trimester

(Note from Twinfo:  This is the fourth part of a five part series, where we will follow Nissa’s journey.   The links to the other four parts of her story can be found at the end of this post).

Author: Nissa Vagg

Twin pregnancy third trimester

The Move

After that day at the hospital, Ross didn’t feel comfortable leaving me in NSW while he started his course because the nearest ‘real’ hospital with a birthing suite and obstetrician was over an hour away. So, over the next few days he moved all our belongings back into storage, loaded up the trailer and the dog, and we drove back to Victoria. My mother and her husband lived much closer to a big university hospital, so I went to stay with them while Ross went off to Tassie to start his training. If all went according to plan, when Ross finished his course he would come back to Victoria for the birth, we’d spend a few weeks learning the ropes of parenthood with family around to help, then we would all head over to Tassie together and start our amazing new life.

It sounded perfect in theory.

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Twin pregnancy second trimester – Our big scare

twin pregnancy second trimester

(Note from Twinfo: This is the third part of a five part series, where we will follow Nissa’s journey. The links to the other parts of her story can be found at the end of this post).

Author: Nissa Vagg

The Scare

Apart from being super sick, my pregnancy in the beginning was fairly uneventful, as I imagined a pregnancy should be. Until at 16 weeks, I started bleeding. It was a normal day at work, but feeling strangely wet, I rushed off to the bathroom – there was so much blood. Panic instantly consumed me, and my heart was breaking for my babies, was I losing them? Oh God not my beautiful babies, were they already gone?  I didn’t see how there could be this much blood if that weren’t the case, but I also couldn’t believe they were gone. I had pictured us together, I was going to hold them and name them and live happily ever after… they were meant to live… this wasn’t supposed to happen.

twin pregnancy second trimester bleeding
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Twin pregnancy first trimester – The Waiting Game

Twin pregnancy first trimester

(Note from Twinfo:  This is the second part of a five part series, where we will follow Nissa’s journey.   The links to the other parts of her story can be found at the end of this post.)

Author: Nissa Vagg

Twin pregnancy first trimester

The Waiting Game

Twins… two babies, at the same time! My whole body was buzzing with the excitement of it. It was like every hair on my body was tingling and I was so bummed that I had to wait seven and a half months before I could meet them. Of course, I would have been incredibly excited to be having one baby, but to be given TWO, the excitement was genuinely like we had won Tattslotto – I knew the odds were probably about the same and never in a million years could I have imagined that it would happen to us. The news might have been amazing but unfortunately my pregnancy was not. It was horrible. Seriously – it was a truly unpleasant experience. Not that I expected it to be a walk in the park, but I was surprised by how little I enjoyed the process of creating life.

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Finding out we were pregnant with twins

pregnancy test twins

(Note from Twinfo:  This is part one of a five part series, where we will follow Nissa’s journey from when she found out she was pregnant with twins to their birth.  Links to the other parts of her story will be at the end of this post)

Author: Nissa Vagg

Introduction

I was 29 when I found out I was pregnant. It was a hot summer day in 2017, not long after New Year’s, and not a single thing following that day was as I imagined it would be. Not that I had spent my life dreaming of exactly how this pregnancy, birth and our life would go, but I just thought things would be different. The image in my mind was a bit like the filtered photos you see on social media: setting up the nursery in a stable home that we own…

Me lying on a beach with my cute little tummy sticking up at the sun… My husband holding my hand and watching with awe as our baby comes into the world… And delightful (although sleepless) early days full off baby gazing and cute outfits. But it wasn’t like that at all, instead it was real life. It was hard, and scary and full of ups and downs. At times I really struggled to cope with my reality and my emotions and I mourned the loss of the way (I thought) it was meant to be.

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