Bunchland

Rose Bianchini just had twins

Emmett Holden van Horne and Simon Clark van Horne have arrived!

Other parents warned us our lives will be forever altered, but I never understood what that meant till now. Everything is different; the world looks and feels different because now there are two small beings that depend on me for their food, love and survival. Wow! There isn’t really a way to fully prepare for that. I sort of had to just jump in feet first and I finally feel like maybe I am treading water and keeping afloat.

 Let’s recap from the very beginning. The labour. They call it labour for a reason. I have heard some moms say that they blank out all the pain once the baby is born. I haven’t had that experience. Being a small woman and having twins… well that just shouldn’t really happen so my labour of course resulted in a great deal of agony — and my terrorizing of the entire labour unit. In the end a c-section was performed. The recovery was rough and I ended up back in the hospital a few times with an infection.  Read more...

Rose Bianchini just had twins

It’s been a little while since we’ve had some great DIY ideas from Rose Bianchini, but we can hardly blame her — woman just had twins! In late December, Rose and Jason said hello to Emmett and Simon and no, we’re not sure which is which. We decided to give her a call and see how she’s adjusting to this whole motherhood thing.

Bunch: Are you getting any sleep?

Rose: When we get some help I do. Newborns don’t have any sort of schedule and they just want to eat all the time.

Do they act in synch, or is it too early?

They’re pretty in synch, even when they’re in different rooms. They sleep at the same time. They get the hiccups and sneeze at the same time. One time they both sneezed three times in a row, that was pretty cute.  Read more...

Rose Bianchini is pregnant with twins

It seems hard to believe I am so close to the end of my pregnancy, but the idea of being able to bend down and see my feet again is exciting. I wrapped up my final day of my job last week. There was a nice send off with fancy cupcakes and onesies with the company logo on them. And of course all the usual questions about how in the world we’re going to handle twins.

Information on raising multiples is definitely harder to come by. My husband, Jason and I signed up for a prenatal class. The hospital offered one on multiples but it was full, and was one of the only ones I could find in the entire city. How strange considering fertility treatments have caused the rates of having multiples to rise. It seems every second person knows someone having twins these days. So we diapered dolls and talked about labour with a room full of parents about to have one child. The nurse running the day workshop did go out of her way to make a point to speak to the differences of caring for twins.  Read more...

Rose Bianchini is pregnant with twins

I have a confession to make. I am a homebody sometimes bordering on hermit. Well not quite. But I am happiest when I am home watching flicks, reading, cooking, baking, dancing in my kitchen and hanging with my hubby.

I also love having friends over and feeding them a yummy brunch of pumpkin pancakes or whatever new recipe I want to try out. It is so much more fun and intimate than waiting in a long hostile line at a hip restaurant. Which is why creating a wonderful and comfortable space is so important.

My husband is exactly the same way. We spend a lot of time organizing, reorganizing, disagreeing and agreeing about what will make our home functional and beautiful. It is one of our ongoing projects – based on what is going on our lives at the time. Being a creative person to me has always been more than my output –which definitely fluctuates. It is about bringing creativity into my everyday life.  Read more...

Rose Bianchini is pregnant with twins

Before Hillary Clinton said it, there was an African proverb that it takes a village to raise a child. I definitely believe to be a happy functional family that one needs a community around them. I was reminded again of the importance of this when we recently had our baby shower with close friends and family. My parents made five lasagnas, my sister a cake and my girlfriends brought nibbles, salads, drinks and cupcakes. And a lovely afternoon party was had.

We didn’t spend hours opening presents in front of people and also men and children were invited. This isn’t the first or last shower that I’ve been to that is more inclusive. Men are taking a more active role as dads, as it should be. According to Christine Langlois, author of Raising Great Kids, children whose fathers are involved in their everyday lives have better social development, self-esteem and chances of academic success.  Read more...

Rose Bianchini is pregnant with twins

As my delivery date rapidly approaches we realize that it is time for the final sprint to prepare for our two bundles of joy. I am trying to read up on the basics of how to feed, diaper, wash and care for a tiny baby. Figure out where to buy diapers cheap, order some books about twins and of course there is the dilemma of where they should sleep so we have constant access for around-the-clock feedings and diaper changes. Think newborn x 2!

Of course with twins everything is just a little more complicated. If they sleep in bed with us there would be a serious lack of room, and hubby would be on the couch for about a year. That doesn’t seem like the best solution. We talked a lot and thought a lot about various options. We bought a wooden bassinet off Craigslist, because it seemed more solid than plastic and considered getting another or placing them both in it.  Read more...

Rose Bianchini is pregnant with twins

It’s not easy being round.

Being pregnant with twins, and starting to show at10 weeks, gets me a lot of attention from the general public. Strangers often ask me when I am due and they’re eyes widen with surprise when I tell them some date that is not tomorrow, so I explain “I am having twins, that is why my belly is so big.” When I went to vote the gentleman registering me looked at my belly with concern and asked, “That isn’t going to happen now is it?”

Or, I am showered with lovely comments such as: ‘You are huge.’ or ‘Wow are you showing.’ Now this may be particularly hard to hear when I have spent the majority of my life as small/petite. But I am not huge I am pregnant, with twins! So lay off and let me waddle through the rest of my pregnancy.  Read more...