In today's episode, Nat chats with twin mom and former pro snowboarder Tiffany Marshall. Tiffany is mom to mo di twin boys who are 2 1/2 years old, born at 32 weeks gestation, and had a NICU stay. Tiffany reveals she is miserable with her twins' sleep schedule, so Nat flips the script on Tiffany and gives her advice on how to get her twins to bed before 11 pm.
Tiffany Marshall is twin mom to mono-di twin boys living in Park City, Utah. Tiffany spent many years as a professional snowboarder. After several years competing on the World Cup circuit she decided to finish up college and earn an MBA. She is now a writer and is in the process of getting her first two novels published.
Tiffany's Top 3 Pieces of Advice for Twin Parents:
1. Learn to be the best advocate not only for yourself but for your babies. As a twin parent, you will most likely have to jump through more hoops than if you were only giving birth to a single baby. It only took me a few days to realize that I had to be bold. Not rude, but bold and transparent with my care team. If you think something is wrong, speak up and advocate for your babies. You are their only voice! I feel like a lot of us have this awe of doctors. We approach them as if they are gods (and some of them are) but you have to learn to think of them as part of your team; all trying to win at the same game. Use their expertise to help you succeed with the best possible outcome – healthy babies.
2. Create an environment at home that makes life easier for you. Moms go through a lot to bring life into this world. Take some time to set yourself up for success.
3. Being a parent of multiples is such an incredible journey and everyone will want to give you advice (because everyone knows someone with twins and they raised their kids to be absolutely perfect – please, sense my sarcasm here) Do what works for you. Breastfeed for one week or through toddlerhood, allow screen time or don’t, dress your kids the same or don’t, let your kids sleep with you or don’t…Do whatever works best for you and tune out all of the bad vibes. Being a twin parent is challenging enough!
What She Wishes She Had Done Differently:
1. I wish I would have allowed myself the opportunity to celebrate my pregnancy. Having a miscarriage definitely changes you and your perspective. I was terrified. Looking back, I wish I had those bump pictures and I allowed myself to celebrate those small milestones.
2. Because I was on bedrest for pretty much my entire pregnancy, I wish I hadn’t left so many balls up-in-the-air. My Jeep was fourteen years old and I meant to really take some time to look at cars before the boys arrived but being on bed rest didn’t allow me to check that off my list. Once the boys arrived, I was so preoccupied with recovering from my C-section, traveling back-and-forth to the NICU, and pumping every three hours, I didn’t have the time or energy to tackle buying a car. So long story short, check off big tasks on your to-do list at the very beginning of your pregnancy if you are able to.
3. I wish I would have purchased my Willow pumps sooner. I bought them four months after my boys were born and they would have been amazing to have on the drive to and from the NICU every three hours.
Know a twin parent who'd like to be a guest? Have them apply at Twiniversity.com/podcast.
SUBSCRIBE
Make sure to SUBSCRIBE to A Twins Tale for more awesome stories of twins at ages and stages from birth to college, from the creators of Twiniversity.
If you liked this podcast, check out the Twiniversity Podcast with Natalie Diaz!
CLASSES
Expecting twins? Check out our twin pregnancy and breastfeeding twins classes here!
MEMBERSHIP
Sign up today for a Twiniversity Membership! Choose from 2 levels starting at $6.99/month to connect with other parents of twins in a monthly Zoom twin club, build your twin parenting community in our private Facebook group, and expand your twin parent knowledge with our video learner library. Click here for details.
FIRST YEAR WITH TWINS
Are your twins in their first year? Check out our free First Year with Twins resource to learn tips, advice, and ideas for getting through your first year with twins!
BABY SAFETY COURSE
Offered on-demand, the Complete Baby Safety Course includes 30 instructional videos on infant, toddler, and child CPR, a variety of first aid techniques you may need with kids, a full explanation about different kinds of car seats and how to install them, and a room-by-room description of how to best childproof your home. Click here for details.
CONTACT US
VISIT Twiniversity.com for tons of free twin tips!
FOLLOW us on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, and Twitter.
SUBSCRIBE to our email newsletter!
Visit the Twiniversity Etsy Shop
