"The one main piece of advice I would give is make sure you have lots of support in the first few days and weeks. And not just friends popping round with a meal, but proper hands-on support, preferably staying with you at home.

I moved in with my mum and it made all the difference. Although she did not get up with me to do the night feeds, she would watch the boys for an hour or two every day so I could get a nap. The lack of sleep is unimaginable and crippling...it makes everything so much harder when you are not sleeping. I thought I was well prepared for parenthood having been a very hands-on aunt to my 2 nieces, now 6 and 3, and my nephew, 4, but the reality of twins is completely different and I found myself struggling in those earliest days.

Even if you are naturally a very organized person (and especially if you are not!) don't think you will have time to cook, clean, wash, shop etc for the first few weeks. Make sure you have plenty of meals frozen or delivered, get a cleaner, or resign yourself to living with a bit of mess for a while. See if you can get a rotation of friends/family to do washing/shopping etc for you.

Essentially understand that for at least the first few weeks you will need to devote yourself entirely to the babies, especially if you want to breast feed.

On the tricky and emotive subject of breast feeding - it is entirely possible to exclusively breast feed twins, but it demands total dedication for many weeks at first. If you do want to breast feed exclusively, be wary of pediatricians and midwives advising formula top ups - breast feeding is very much about supply and demand. As soon as you introduce any formula, your supply slows down and it's hard work getting it back up again. Of course you need to take professional advice if your babies lose a lot of weight, but just be aware of the implications of introducing formula.

And don't put too much pressure on yourself. I started with breast feeding, went to breast + formula when they lost weight, and then exclusively formula at 6 weeks. I spent a good few days in tears over this decision, but looking back it was the best thing for me and for the boys. Breast feeding was making me miserable and that's no good for anyone. Do what's right for you and your family, not what the books/midwives or any well meaning friends and family tell you to do!

In fact, not putting pressure on yourself applies to everything, not just breast feeding. Don't compare yourself and your babies to people with one child. It's not the same at all. Sometimes you have to leave one baby crying whilst you tend to the other, and that's OK. You simply can't lavish the same amount of attention to one of our babies as mums can with only one child, and you have to accept that.

It made me a little sad at first, but the boys don't seem to be suffering for it and in the long run I guess it means they'll learn about waiting/sharing/taking turns sooner than most children, which can only be a good thing.

They say the secret to managing twins/multiples is routine and organization, which I would agree with to an extent, but don't worry too much about routines in the first few weeks, just concentrate on survival!
Do think about introducing a bedtime routine at 6-8 weeks. This made all the difference for me. Bath at about 5.30-5.45pm, followed by bottle/breast, and then into bed by 7pm. Initially when I did this they would wake at 10pm, 1am, 4am but at least I got a bit of an evening, and gradually they started to wake less often and later...giving me some much needed time to myself. I felt like I was much more in control from this point onwards too :-)

A few other practical tips:

• Make sure you have at least one, and preferably two swinging chairs -- the type which are battery operated and swing without you needing to stand and push them. Guaranteed to send the babies to sleep and just what you need when one is crying/needing attention and you need somewhere to put the other.
  
• Don't buy too many early baby/newborn clothes, as they grow out of them really quickly, and up to three months I found you don’t need ‘clothes’ as such, just babygrows/sleepsuits and vests.
• Make full use of websites, twins clubs and local networks etc. to exchange clothes and goods. Twin mums tend to stick together so take advantage of that.
• In the UK, join TAMBA for advice, information and great discounts. Also find your local twins club, go along when pregnant to meet some people and gather their experiences firsthand and then join up when you have the babies.
• For me Fertility Friends forum (www.fertilityfriends.co.uk) has been a fantastic place to get advice, support and to meet other single mums (both to multiples and otherwise) and twin mums. In the UK we meet up regularly and exchange advice, stories and clothes!