Raising Twins - 9781935666776

One of every thirty babies born today is a twin—close to double the percentage of twins born just a quarter-century ago. Raising two children born on the same day presents special challenges to parents, and offers unusual rewards. In Raising Twins poet Freya Bly offers a unique perspective on the experience, based on weekly notes she kept from the time of her pregnancy until her sons, Rowan and Bly, were in college. Raising Twins isn't a “how to” book, however, or a manual full of bullet points. It's a recount of twenty years of improvisation and adventure. Freya and her husband found that many theories about raising twins were cultural fairy tales inadequate to the task at hand. She describes the parenting ordeal with a poet's graphic touch—sleep deprivation, the need for superhuman energy, choosing schools, managing sibling spats honestly and diplomatically, while striving to bring out her sons latent gifts and nurture their creativity.I was far from a “tiger mother.” I was more like a dolphin mother, swimming beside our sons, letting two souls who happened to be born on the same day explore the depths and heights of their surroundings. Perhaps the extra energy level of twins puts a parent in the position of being an avid follower and facilitator; it takes too much energy to steer them or control them...If you're a twin, if you know a twin, or even if you just care about parenting and the passages from infancy to adulthood, this book is for you.