Eating for two

I've delayed posting this until at least the first trimester has passed, but if you haven't already guessed by the title and the photo, I am expecting (again).  This time around has already proven to be quite different than my first pregnancy.  To start with, anytime I ate for at least the first few weeks my stomach knotted up and pretty much hated me.  By comparison, I didn't encounter much by way of morning sickness or stomach issues with Jayson.  This go around I was super cranky initially, so much so that I actually felt bad for my husband.  I also needed to pee for what felt like a zillion times a day and had to get up at least once a night from very early on to relieve myself.  Throughout my whole pregnancy with Jayson, I never had to pee so much.  I also don't remember having a baby bump start so soon.  I was wearing (snugly) my normal work pants and such at least through 14 weeks I'm pretty sure. With this one, at only about six weeks normal clothes were already uncomfortable.   And, let's just talk about everything having a lack for flavor.  So far I've have cravings for Velveeta Mac and Cheese, french fries, and a McDonald's Fish Filet.  All of which ended up tasting blah.  Not the knock-your-socks-off craving fulfilled sort of flavor I was expecting. So far this one is shaping up to be quite different.

I can say that the mix of fear and excitement was about the same while taking the home pregnancy test.  It wasn't like we weren't trying.  It was exciting because it meant we'd be bringing another member of the family into this world.  It was scary though because it meant two in daycare and two to care for at home.  Jayson does fairly well with other children at daycare but he isn't accustomed to sharing his Mommy/Daddy at home. Not to mention while we were in Jamaica, a worker named Elsa told me I was going to have two boys (and this was before we knew we were pregnant).  I was hoping that just meant two, including Jayson.  However, twins do run in the family. 

Already this little one, who Jayson has dubbed "Kyle,"  has given us a scare (Jayson says "Kyle's my brother.")  We were only about six weeks along when I encountered some spotting.  I was of course beside myself with worry.  I'd called my doctor's office and they encouraged me to go to the ER.  Bloodwork and urine confirmed the pregnancy and that my hormone levels were on par, and an internal and external ultrasound confirmed the pregnancy was not ectopic.  The heartbeat was at 102 which was also good, apparently at that stage in the game the heartbeat should be over 80.  So, with much relief I went home with a very early ultrasound photo and some peace of mind.  Apparently spotting is quite common early on... who knew?  Chalk this up to another thing I never experienced while pregnant with Jayson.  While we were hoping for another ultrasound photo at my 12 week appointment, instead we got an update on my blood work - no Zika and low iron, big surprise! But we did get to listen to the heartbeat which is now charting around 140.  My next appointment will have more blood work and then the following appointment will be the gender revealing ultrasound. I'm counting down the days...

Parents with multiples - specifically toddlers and an infant simultaneously - any tips or tricks to share?  Any pearls of wisdom to alleviate some of my worries and possibly save me some headaches for when the new baby arrives in January?