Author: Tracy Benge
Feeling queasy and nauseous, I took that test and waited for the two lines to appear on the stick, ok that’s a lie it was my 5th test after 4 negatives but I just couldn’t shake the feeling I was pregnant.
We had finally started out on our actual “trip” we had been waiting forever for, well the last 3 years anyways. You see we live in a 40ft converted bus roughly 11 x 2.3 metres of living space. Two adults, a 13-year-old boy, 4-year-old girl and now expecting twin girls. After a few months on the road our 16-year-old son returned to our hometown to live with family.
Finding out we were pregnant
So we were 29 days – 1049 kms into our trip when the pregnancy was confirmed. Once our pregnancy was confirmed by doctor’s life continued as normal, well our new normal of exploring everything this amazing country has to offer. We were still making our way slowly down the east coast, thankfully the bus is completely set up to have as little pack down and set up time as possible, so moving to new locations was an easy process which is why we ultimately chose to travel in a bus.
Thankfully as if fate would have it the bus was completely fitted out for 7. Seven travelling seats; 4 with baby seat bolts, a queen bed, triple bunks, a fold out sofa lounge. We also have a kitchen, toilet and shower, lounge and tv, washing machine so life’s pretty comfy in here.
Travelling Australia in a bus
Life on the road is relaxed and laid back without all the worries and stress of everyday life living in a house. We haven’t paid an electricity bill in over 18 months, our overheads have shrunk significantly (obviously not just from electricity bills), which means hubby doesn’t have to work as much and we get a lot more family time. Prior to leaving he was always working 12-hour shifts, rotating rosters or FIFO to provide for us. He now has the freedom to have more time off once our twins are born as well.
Thankfully morning sickness didn’t last too long, I did have hot flushes and extreme fatigue and I did struggle with living in such a little area that I couldn’t escape from anyone or just have my own time to just feel yuck as pregnancy can make you feel.
Finding out we were pregnant with twins while travelling Australia in a bus
Finding out it was twins was a major shock to both of us and threw a massive spanner in the works, well in my head anyways as soon as the sonographer said twins my head started the how, when, why, were we actually going to be able to keep this lifestyle up.
My mind was in complete overdrive. Mainly for doctors, hospital appointments, ultrasounds. I’d done this before with singles but was it the same for twins? Would people disapprove of me and our lifestyle, was I putting the babies in danger by not having one constant carer someone who knew the ins and outs of my pregnancy and every little detail of the babies.
Dealing with the medical side of being pregnant with twins while travelling Australia in a bus.
However, I was surprised to find that it was easy to find doctors, make appointments and have ultrasounds scheduled, I only ran into one obstacle which was a doctor who wanted my whole medical history before treating me, I just went somewhere else. I did book into a hospital in Tasmania a little later than a normal twin pregnancy, but both the babies and I were in good health.
Explaining upfront that we were a traveling family and wouldn’t be birthing there made the whole process a lot easier and just as the previous doctors I had seen had done, they gave me a copy of all my records and information to pass on to the next doctors that I would see, I stayed with the Hobart hospital until 23 weeks. Then made time to travel in between to make it to Adelaide for my next hospital appointment. Carrying all my information with me made all transitions smooth and easy and the medical teams much appreciated having that information on hand.
My twin pregnancy while living on the road
The only thing that was really affected by being pregnant and more so being pregnant with twins while travelling Australia in a bus was my active level. I was not the fittest I have ever been before I feel pregnant but not the most unfit, I have ever been either. But the breathlessness was nothing like I had ever felt before I felt like I had run a marathon just walking a simple hike.
I still managed to climb to the top of the nut in Stanley Tasmania and I was proud of that, I also managed to hike to the bottom of waterfalls and dam walls, through the Tarkine Rainforest, I could keep up, I just needed more rest time and after a couple of active days I would need a whole day recovery.
I tried not to push my body too much but I also didn’t want to miss out, which I feel I did with a fair few things as the pregnancy progressed, but I figured my babies health and safety and my comfort were a lot more important and now that this is our lifestyle for the foreseeable future I will have plenty of time to explore these places again.
The last part of this journey before parking up waiting for these two little cherubs was also hard, the boat ride home without seasick tablets was horrendous then exploring the great ocean road was also difficult with plenty of steps and walks that I physically felt like I couldn’t do, lucky we had already had our honeymoon doing this trip I didn’t feel like I missed out, so the rest of the fam explored what I couldn’t, I mainly didn’t want to hold them back.
Thinking ahead to when the twins are born
As the weeks go on and the impending birth comes closer, I think a lot more about how this is going to work, but I believe this is what we are meant to be doing and we will all do anything to make it work. Like my husband needing to get me some steps to climb up on our bed ASAP because climbing up and down 20 times a night is not fun when it is 3 feet off the ground and you’re 32 weeks pregnant and will only be worse after, as I will be having an elective c-section.
Living in such confined space is hard I really want to stock up on nappies and wipes and everything necessary for the first few months of their lives though I’m having trouble just fitting clothes and blankets somewhere for them, we are currently brainstorming some space saving ideas, while we make over our bedroom which includes adding two hanging bassinets in our room for the girls, so hopefully by the time the room is finished we will have it all sorted. It may not be easy living on the road 100% of the time but it is definitely worth it.
Our biggest dilemma with the twins pending arrival
And the biggest dilemma of all we need a new name for the bus it is currently ZESTE destination unknown which is using the first letter of each of our names but once these two come along we haven’t been able to come up with anything that sounds remotely as clever.
You can follow our journey while we travel around Australia via our Facebook Page – zestedestinationunknown
Check out this blog as well to read about her journey of finding out she was pregnant with twins after a miscarriage a few years earlier HERE.
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