Ready or Not...Here We Come! The Real Experts' Cannot-Live-Without Guide to the First Year with Twins [Paperback]

Elizabeth Lyons (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 2003

Uncertain where to start, how to coordinate endless double feedings, or how to control the whirlwind? Don’t worry -Elizabeth Lyons and her "multiples sorority" will get you through.

In her first humor-filled, solution-packed, tell-it-like-it-is guide to raising twins, Elizabeth Lyons highlights the experiences and strategies of a group of friends who met in a multiples birthing class, and survived their pregnancies and first year with twins together.

Topics include:
-Preparing the Lair: Mandatory Gear for Babies AND Mom
-Getting Organized: The Key to Success
-Getting Those Babies on a Schedule - Preferably the Same One!
-Out and About with Twins: Methods of Appearing As Though You’ve Got It (and Them) Under Control

Lyons provides the all-important feeling of camaraderie that will keep expectant and new parents of twins smiling, remaining optimistic, and remembering how much they are blessed through it all.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...the advice you need in the short, funny format your sleep-deprived mind can absorb. An absolute must-have." -- Lisa Earle McLeod, columnist for Lifetime Magazine and author of Forget Perfect

"Elizabeth Lyons captures the universal discourse of sisterhood while guiding new mothers of twins through the first year." -- Kathy Voit, RNC, Labor and Delivery RN

"Elizabeth Lyons' humorous yet realistic perspective provides new parents of twins with a great starting point..." -- Dr. Bob Covert, Leading Chicagoland Neonatologist

"Finally...a humor-filled, solution-packed, tell-it-like-it-is guide for mothers of twins!" -- Betty Jean Young, BSN

About the Author

Elizabeth Lyons is a parenting twins expert, syndicated columnist, and freelance writer. Along with strategizing and coordinating, she consumes vast amounts of chocolate with a multi-vitamin chaser daily.

Product Details

• Paperback: 168 pages
• Publisher: Xlibris Corp (July 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1413401759
• ISBN-13: 978-1413401752
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (61 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,512,929 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A requisite for new parents of twins!, January 19, 2006

By 

Susan "Susan" (Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ready or Not... Here We Come! The Real Experts' Cannot-Live-Without Guide to the First Year with Twins (Paperback)

Anyone who reads this book and doesn't absolutely love it is nuts!

I have a 2-year-old son and 4-month-old boy/girl twins. Admittedly, before my twins were born, I might have thought Elizabeth's take on the amount of work involved with newborn twins was a bit exaggerated. But now that they are here, it's become clear that she's right on! The reality of twins is that you probably won't sleep very well for the first few months, your house won't be immaculate, and you might eat more cereal for dinner than you did previously. If you have older children, you might occasionally feel torn early on regarding the amount of quality one-on-one time you are able to give them versus the amount you could give them before the twins arrived. But that's reality. The other reality, which Elizabeth makes quite clear, is that twins (as well as their older siblings) are an amazing blessing, and each challenge that presents itself has a strategy or two that can be employed to address it. In the end, more than worrying about the state of her house, the state of her diet, or the state of her hair, what's most important is that parents work their way through this time with a sense of humor, an appreciation of the blessings they've been given, and the knowledge that it gets easier and more fun with each passing day.

I highly recommend this book for anyone expecting twins --- or anyone who's given birth to them in the last year. I also recommend a few more medically based books on raising babies, such as The Baby Book by William Sears, M.D., and Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child by Marc Weissbluth (which Lyons also recommends) to help you understand the more medical aspects of raising children (these books provide detailed information on babies' sleep patterns and getting them on a sleep schedule, and ways to address medical challenges such as reflux and colic), but Lyons' book provides the hysterical girlfriend-to-girlfriend approach (much like Vicki Iovine) that most expectant and new moms of twins welcome with open arms!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Definate Must-Have for Twin Moms!!!, January 19, 2006

By 

L. Stanton "The Boys' Mom" (Naperville, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ready or Not... Here We Come! The Real Experts' Cannot-Live-Without Guide to the First Year with Twins (Paperback)

When my twin boys were born, I was so overwhelmed. My first thoughts after reading this book were "THANK GOD someone gets it". What mom doesn't need to be reminded that it is not only OK not to be perfect, but normal. This book also gave me solutions for issues such as how to leave the house with twins, and how to feed two crying babies at once. Most importantly, I learned to approach the tougher times with a sense of humor, be creative in problem-solving, its ok to ask for help, and to remember every day what a true wonderful blessing twins are! I so look forward to Liz's next book as I am venturing into year two!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A fun, reassuring, helpful read, March 9, 2005

By 

J. Cook "twinmom" (Northport, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ready or Not... Here We Come! The Real Experts' Cannot-Live-Without Guide to the First Year with Twins (Paperback)

After reading many, maybe all, books on parenting twins, I was beginning to wonder where the fun was in the process of twin rearing. I was particularly dissappointed with "The Joy of Twins" and thought it should have been called "The Misery of Twins" for all the joy it communicated.

Reading "Ready or Not" felt like talking to a good freind; reassuring, funny and full of practical advice.