Baby Faith passed away on Christmas Day. She survived for a month after the surgery that separated her from her sister Hope, who passed away immediately following the separation.
My thoughts are with the family.
Sincerely,
Alison
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
On Sharing
Ah. The gift giving time is upon us. And I'm having flashbacks to holidays past and two little girls who very, very often would put the gift between them and work on unwrapping one side...
Every pair of twins, I'm sure, has gotten a gift to share. I'm guessing when the two are the same gender, that happens even more. Baby A and I, in fact, just got a couple gifts to share a few days ago, and we definitely unwrapped them collaboratively.
Sometimes it was a little ridiculous, but I totally get that getting two of the same board game, movie, etc. doesn't make sense. And we feel extra lucky at the holidays and our birthday because we often get the same thing but in different colors. And since we have gotten so good at sharing, it's almost like double the presents. Almost.
Wishing you all a very happy holiday season!
Cheers,
Alison
Every pair of twins, I'm sure, has gotten a gift to share. I'm guessing when the two are the same gender, that happens even more. Baby A and I, in fact, just got a couple gifts to share a few days ago, and we definitely unwrapped them collaboratively.
Sometimes it was a little ridiculous, but I totally get that getting two of the same board game, movie, etc. doesn't make sense. And we feel extra lucky at the holidays and our birthday because we often get the same thing but in different colors. And since we have gotten so good at sharing, it's almost like double the presents. Almost.
Wishing you all a very happy holiday season!
Cheers,
Alison
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Blech, Blech, Gag
Baby A and I were driving, and a commercial came on the radio. It was for the new "G1rls Nex7 D0or." Blech, blech, gag.
And then at dinner, our stepmom brought it up too. Blech, blech, gag.
I cannot tell you how many comments and questions Baby A and I have fielded revolving around situations such as these. I know I bitched about this earlier but seriously? I. Don't. Get. It.
Apparently we're just not going to get over this identical-twins-semi-naked-thing any time soon. Coors twins, anyone?
Cheers,
Alison
And then at dinner, our stepmom brought it up too. Blech, blech, gag.
I cannot tell you how many comments and questions Baby A and I have fielded revolving around situations such as these. I know I bitched about this earlier but seriously? I. Don't. Get. It.
Apparently we're just not going to get over this identical-twins-semi-naked-thing any time soon. Coors twins, anyone?
Cheers,
Alison
Friday, December 12, 2008
In Utero TOTALLY Counts
Yesterday marked one month till Baby A and I's birthday.
We like to do this thing where we calculate how long we shared womb space (9 months, because hell yeah we went to 40 weeks) and then how old we are. So yesterday marked approximately 20 years and 8 months of kicking it together, twinkie style. Yup, we're finishing up our second decade, if you don't count time in utero.
So, about the whole 40 weeks thing... The doctors were a little surprised. Well, a LOT surprised. Because in med school, they teach you that twins almost always come early. See that "almost" right there, between "twins" and "always"? That's us! Mom chose a Wednesday to be induced, if she didn't go into labor naturally. Which she didn't, of course, because that would be too easy, and we're all about doing things the hard way around here. She liked Wednesday because she likes the number 11. (There were probably also some swear words and tears involved too, because dammit, 13 pounds of baby is just not comfortable, apparently). We like the number 11 too. The ones match, 1 for her and 1 for me. I guess twenty-two would have been cool too, but 42 weeks with twins, that's getting out of hand.
Cheers,
Alison
We like to do this thing where we calculate how long we shared womb space (9 months, because hell yeah we went to 40 weeks) and then how old we are. So yesterday marked approximately 20 years and 8 months of kicking it together, twinkie style. Yup, we're finishing up our second decade, if you don't count time in utero.
So, about the whole 40 weeks thing... The doctors were a little surprised. Well, a LOT surprised. Because in med school, they teach you that twins almost always come early. See that "almost" right there, between "twins" and "always"? That's us! Mom chose a Wednesday to be induced, if she didn't go into labor naturally. Which she didn't, of course, because that would be too easy, and we're all about doing things the hard way around here. She liked Wednesday because she likes the number 11. (There were probably also some swear words and tears involved too, because dammit, 13 pounds of baby is just not comfortable, apparently). We like the number 11 too. The ones match, 1 for her and 1 for me. I guess twenty-two would have been cool too, but 42 weeks with twins, that's getting out of hand.
Cheers,
Alison
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Mitosis Mistake
We have our bio final exam tomorrow.
I was just looking at the material on mitosis, and had one of those weird moments when it hit me: "A mistake in cytokinesis is why I'm here."
Back to our regularly scheduled silence till after finals are over.
Cheers,
Alison
I was just looking at the material on mitosis, and had one of those weird moments when it hit me: "A mistake in cytokinesis is why I'm here."
Back to our regularly scheduled silence till after finals are over.
Cheers,
Alison
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Sister, twin, heterosexual life partner?
I feel weird calling my sister "my twin" and calling my twin "my sister." I feel like neither of them are just right.
When I use "my sister" to people who don't know about Baby A, I usually get a weird look, sometimes followed up by a question. Like "You have a sister in the same grade as you?" or "Why do you live with your sister still/work with her/practically share a bank account?"
But I feel like calling her "my twin" makes me sound... I don't know. Like I am bragging maybe. Or like I want everyone to know how *special* I am because I have a twin. Which is not the case, I just don't want confusion sometimes.
So I walk a fine line between feeling like I advertise my twin-ness and getting awkward looks and questions. I feel like most twins usually use "sister" or "brother," like I do, right?
Cheers,
Alison
When I use "my sister" to people who don't know about Baby A, I usually get a weird look, sometimes followed up by a question. Like "You have a sister in the same grade as you?" or "Why do you live with your sister still/work with her/practically share a bank account?"
But I feel like calling her "my twin" makes me sound... I don't know. Like I am bragging maybe. Or like I want everyone to know how *special* I am because I have a twin. Which is not the case, I just don't want confusion sometimes.
So I walk a fine line between feeling like I advertise my twin-ness and getting awkward looks and questions. I feel like most twins usually use "sister" or "brother," like I do, right?
Cheers,
Alison
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Hope and Faith
Hope, one of the conjoined twins born to Laura and Aled Williams, passed away immediately following surgery, due to lung failure. Her parents were with her.
Faith will need more surgery and extensive healing. She has been given a 50% chance of survival.
The girls were omphalopagus twins, joined at the abdomen with separate hearts and a shared liver.
My thoughts are with the family.
Sincerely,
Alison
Faith will need more surgery and extensive healing. She has been given a 50% chance of survival.
The girls were omphalopagus twins, joined at the abdomen with separate hearts and a shared liver.
My thoughts are with the family.
Sincerely,
Alison
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Yet Another Conjoined Twins Story
I found this just yesterday. A case of conjoined twins who cannot be separated despite best efforts to find a way.
Romanian conjoined twins Anastasia and Tatiana will be five this coming January, and are conjoined at the head (craniopagus twins). Their heads face opposite directions, so as the news story puts it, "they have never been able to look each other in the eye."
It is too dangerous to separate the girls because their brains are growing together and their systems are very complexly intertwined. If the girls had been able to separated, Anastasia would still have needed dialysis and a kidney transplant, because she relies on Tatiana's kidneys.
They were brought the US in the hopes that they could be separated, much like the Ibrahim twins, Mohammed and Ahmed. They now live in the Chicago area.
Everyone was hoping for the best possible outcome, a healthy separation, so there has understandably been much disappointment. I hope for the best for the girls and their family.
Cheers,
Alison
Romanian conjoined twins Anastasia and Tatiana will be five this coming January, and are conjoined at the head (craniopagus twins). Their heads face opposite directions, so as the news story puts it, "they have never been able to look each other in the eye."
It is too dangerous to separate the girls because their brains are growing together and their systems are very complexly intertwined. If the girls had been able to separated, Anastasia would still have needed dialysis and a kidney transplant, because she relies on Tatiana's kidneys.
They were brought the US in the hopes that they could be separated, much like the Ibrahim twins, Mohammed and Ahmed. They now live in the Chicago area.
Everyone was hoping for the best possible outcome, a healthy separation, so there has understandably been much disappointment. I hope for the best for the girls and their family.
Cheers,
Alison
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
