Training with Twins!

Hello!

This is my first time writing a blog, ever, it feels a bit intimidating almost as intimidating as entering the Taupo Cycling Challenge!

My name is Nicola. I am part of the relay team and very proud and nervous to be part of the challenge.

After a reasonably straight forward albeit uncomfortable pregnancy I woke suddenly one night to my waters breaking. I was 29 weeks pregnant. About 12 hours later our daughters Sophie and Holly were welcomed into the world. They weighed 1.29kg and 1.3kg respectively (about 3pounds each) and were rushed to the awaiting incubators and provided with oxygen. The days that followed we watched our little babies, clutching the incubators and willing them to grow.

Those first days we were reassured that our babies were doing ok but cautioned to take each day at a time. We were still in shock and having trouble adjusting to our situation. It wasn’t until I started talking to other mums that I realised just how easy a journey we were having (comparably) and my mood changed from feeling poor me – to wonderment and respect for the amazing mums and parents in the unit. I am sure the following blogs will attest to that.

We spent 8 weeks in neonatal care – and when we brought the girls home they weighed 2.4 kg each and were completely free of oxygen. The first year especially we were very careful and managed to keep out of hospital bar one 10-day stint back on oxygen and feeding tubes. Apart from that, we have experienced as near to normal first few years as you can hope for with twins born more than 2 months early.

In December this year Sophie and Holly turn 3. Everyday we feel gratitude for the wonderful care they received in their first few months at Wellington Hospital and the amazing supportive community of fellow premmie mums that I admire and respect more and more as time goes by.

My training for the challenge is haphazard to say the least. Now that the weather is better I am hoping to get out more regularly on the bike. I am generally pretty active but 40km of Taupo hills is rather daunting! Today I pushed our girls up and around some Wellington hills for a couple of hours. Does that count? They weigh quite a lot these days!! (har har) And tomorrow morning I am off to yoga at 6am. Really though I am going to have to bite the bullet soon and realise that cross training is not what I should be focusing on right now.
Im going to put it out there so I stick to it. By next blog I will have gone on at least three 40km rides in anticipation of November 27th.

Nicola