Twiniversity Podcast with Natalie Diaz

In this episode of the Twiniversity Podcast, Nat talks with Amanda – mom of fraternal twin boys who are now grown men, one of whom is autistic – about what twin parenting looks like from the far side of it. Amanda found out at 23, in college and on birth control, that the two heartbeats on the ultrasound meant twins, and she raised them with almost no internet, no twin-mom circle, and no mother of her own to call.
She and Nat go straight at the things twin parents rarely say out loud: the colicky 3 a.m. thought that she could not do this, the fear of being judged in the Target parking lot, and the one decision she would make differently if she could go back.
What is left after 24 years is not a system or a hack – it is patience, presence, and the kind of consistency that still has her son heading to bed at 9:00 on New Year’s Eve.

A QUICK SHOUTOUT 📣
This series is brought to you by CordBlood.com — and since July is Cord Blood Awareness Month, there's no better time to talk about it. Your babies' umbilical cord blood is a one-time source of precious newborn stem cells, and once the cord is cut, it's usually thrown away. Banking it lets you collect and preserve those cells right at birth — and with twins, that's two once-in-a-lifetime chances you only get on delivery day. 👉 https://cordblood.com Use code DUO2 for special twin-family pricing. 💙
This episode’s break is brought to you by the Twiniversity Virtual Twins Meeting – because the one thing Amanda never had was a room full of other twin parents. Meet Nat and Lauren each month and bring them your biggest twin life challenges, whether your twins are two weeks old or twenty-two. 👇
https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/MKse3EVR/checkout

EPISODE THEMES 📝
⦿ Finding out at 23, in college and on birth control, that there were two heartbeats
⦿ “I have a baby with two hearts?” – the first reaction so many twin parents have
⦿ Dropping out of school, getting married, and rebuilding the whole plan around two babies
⦿ Raising twins before the internet, when the library was the only twin resource there was
⦿ Fraternal boys who look nothing alike – and the classmates who never knew they were brothers
⦿ Separating the cribs early because one twin was a wiggler, and trusting that instinct
⦿ Noticing a difference in one boy and pushing her pediatrician until someone listened
⦿ An autism diagnosis 24 years ago, back when almost nobody knew what that meant
⦿ The colicky middle-of-the-night thought she was terrified to say out loud – and why it is more common than anyone admits
⦿ Parenting through it without her mom, without a twin-mom circle, and without a break
⦿ Toddler leashes, a Target runaway, and letting go of what strangers think of you
⦿ The one thing she would do differently: giving the boys more time apart
⦿ How the brothers look out for each other now, and the “would you take care of him?” conversation
⦿ Routine as comfort – why her son still puts himself to bed at 9:00
⦿ Labels and diagnoses keep changing; the kid in front of you does not
⦿ What she thinks she got right: patience, presence, and a face-to-face world

GIVEAWAYS 💰
🎉 YOU’RE INVITED: Need more support? Join us each month for our Twiniversity Virtual Meeting. Meet Nat and Lauren and bring them your biggest twin life challenges each month of the year. For dates and more details visit:
https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/MKse3EVR/checkout

✔️ Subscribe to the Twiniversity Email Newsletter! https://www.twiniversity.com/subscribe/
Expecting twins? Twiniversity has you COVERED with online classes! ⬇️
Breastfeeding Twins: https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/HTaVcGhH/checkout
Twins After Singletons: https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/hegrd8Ez/checkout
Baby Safety (CPR, First Aid, Car Seat Safety, Childproofing): https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/AccFMLk8/checkout

CONNECT WITH AMANDA 💬
Amanda does not have public social accounts to share, but she said yes to hearing from parents who are where she was. If her story sounds like your life, reach out through us and we will pass it along: community@twiniversity.com

CONNECT WITH US 🎙️
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Twiniversity
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/twiniversity/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Twiniversity/
Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@twiniversity
X: http://twitter.com/Twiniversity
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/60TDcDJoEtQHwqLzZ8L9rX?si=9734d507f23845e6
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/twiniversity
Email: community@twiniversity.com

In this episode of the Twiniversity Podcast, Nat talks with Connie Rutherford — a Wall Street–turned–tech mom, author of Searching for Tadpoles, and a solo mom by choice raising twin girls she was told she had almost no odds of having. Connie walks through the whole road: freezing her eggs at 38, choosing a sperm donor in secret from her traditional family, three IUIs, a failed transfer, and a fresh cycle at 40 where she skipped genetic testing, transferred two embryos at less than 1% odds, and got both.

From there it is a twin pregnancy in a boiler-room career, a 17-hour flight home from Taiwan in a face mask as COVID hit, and a book written almost entirely while pregnant. It is a funny, unfiltered, deeply reassuring conversation about building the family you want without waiting for anyone else to show up.

CONNECT WITH CONNIE 📖

Grab her book, Searching for Tadpoles — her full solo-motherhood and fertility journey, written the way she wished someone had written it for her.

Website: https://www.connierutherford.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/searchingfortadpoles

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@searchingfortadpoles

Email: searchingfortadpoles@gmail.com

 

A QUICK SHOUTOUT 📣

This series is brought to you by CordBlood.com — and since July is Cord Blood Awareness Month, there's no better time to talk about it. Your babies' umbilical cord blood is a one-time source of precious newborn stem cells, and once the cord is cut, it's usually thrown away. Banking it lets you collect and preserve those cells right at birth — and with twins, that's two once-in-a-lifetime chances you only get on delivery day. 👉 https://cordblood.com Use code DUO2 for special twin-family pricing. 💙

This episode's break is brought to you by the Twiniversity Virtual Twins Meeting — the exact community Nat invites Nicole into. Meet Nat and Lauren, bring them your biggest twin-life challenge of the month (parent preference absolutely counts), and remember you are never doing this alone. 👇

https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/MKse3EVR/checkout

 

EPISODE THEMES 📝

⦿ Freezing your eggs at 38 as an insurance policy — and why it is okay to shop clinics

⦿ The wake-up call: a stage four diagnosis and the fear her kids would never meet their grandfather

⦿ Choosing a donor when the pool is small — ethnicity, CMV status, and the letter about his dad

⦿ Three IUIs, a hybrid cycle, and four embryos that came back abnormal

⦿ The PGS question: are we throwing away embryos that would have self-corrected?

⦿ Going old school at 40 — morphology, ranking, and “it only takes one”

⦿ Transferring two at less than 1% odds and getting both

⦿ Being pregnant with twins in a high-pressure, male-dominated career

⦿ A pandemic pregnancy, a 17-hour flight, and a face mask she never took off

⦿ Writing Searching for Tadpoles — 95% while pregnant, the last 5% over five years

GIVEAWAYS 💰

🎉 YOU’RE INVITED: Need more support? Join us each month for our Twiniversity Virtual Meeting. Meet Nat and Lauren and bring them your biggest twin life challenges each month of the year. For dates and more details visit:

https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/MKse3EVR/checkout

✔️ Subscribe to the Twiniversity Email Newsletter! https://www.twiniversity.com/subscribe/

Expecting twins? Twiniversity has you COVERED with online classes! ⬇️

Breastfeeding Twins: https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/HTaVcGhH/checkout

Twins After Singletons: https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/hegrd8Ez/checkout

Baby Safety (CPR, First Aid, Car Seat Safety, Childproofing): https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/AccFMLk8/checkout

 

CONNECT WITH US 🎙️

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Twiniversity

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/twiniversity/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Twiniversity/

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@twiniversity

X: http://twitter.com/Twiniversity

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/60TDcDJoEtQHwqLzZ8L9rX?si=9734d507f23845e6

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/twiniversity

Email: community@twiniversity.com

In this episode of the Twiniversity Podcast, Nat sits down with Nicole Kernan — mom to fraternal twin girls Ollie and Lou (two and a half) — to talk about the thing so many parents feel and rarely say out loud: parent preference. Nicole did everything as a team — exclusive pumping, a husband who took full paternity leave — and one twin still gravitated hard toward Dad, leaving her buried in guilt. Nat meets her in the eye of the storm with the reframe that changes everything: stop trying to be equal, start being fair, and shift the story from "them vs. me" to we — because a child with two parents they can fully depend on isn't a rejection, it's a gift.

A QUICK SHOUTOUT 📣

This series is brought to you by CordBlood.com — and since July is Cord Blood Awareness Month, there's no better time to talk about it. Your babies' umbilical cord blood is a one-time source of precious newborn stem cells, and once the cord is cut, it's usually thrown away. Banking it lets you collect and preserve those cells right at birth — and with twins, that's two once-in-a-lifetime chances you only get on delivery day. 👉 https://cordblood.com Use code DUO2 for special twin-family pricing. 💙

This episode's break is brought to you by the Twiniversity Virtual Twins Meeting — the exact community Nat invites Nicole into. Meet Nat and Lauren, bring them your biggest twin-life challenge of the month (parent preference absolutely counts), and remember you are never doing this alone. 👇

Join the next Twiniversity Virtual Twins Meeting

 

EPISODE THEMES 📝

⦿ Why "my twin prefers Dad" is far more common than you think — and often a person preference, not a snub

⦿ How the preferred parent can flip overnight (first Ollie, then Lou)

⦿ The guilt and shame nobody names — NICU guilt, pumping guilt, and "why not me?"

⦿ Don't force it — but don't let the preferred parent "rescue" either

⦿ The crib standoff, the tantrum only Dad can calm, and the story-time lap meltdown

⦿ Trying to be fair instead of equal (you'll never hit exactly-equal, and that's okay)

⦿ The orange on the counter: how moms and dads carry the mental load differently

⦿ Shifting the whole story from "them versus me" to we

⦿ Why a parent preference can actually be a gift, not a rejection

⦿ Building your bench — twins are not a solo sport

⦿ Protecting your own time, friendships, and sense of self

⦿ It's a phase: your present, not your always — and awareness means you're already doing it right

 

GIVEAWAYS 💰

🎉 YOU'RE INVITED: Need more support? Join us each month for our Twiniversity Virtual Meeting. Meet Nat and Lauren and bring them your biggest twin life challenges each month of the year. For dates and more details visit:

https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/MKse3EVR/checkout

✔️ Subscribe to the Twiniversity Email Newsletter! https://www.twiniversity.com/subscribe/

Expecting twins? Twiniversity has you COVERED with online classes! ⬇️

Breastfeeding Twins: https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/HTaVcGhH/checkout

Twins After Singletons: https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/hegrd8Ez/checkout

Baby Safety (CPR, First Aid, Car Seat Safety, Childproofing): https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/AccFMLk8/checkout

CONNECT WITH US 🎙️

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Twiniversity

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/twiniversity/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Twiniversity/

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@twiniversity

X: http://twitter.com/Twiniversity

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/60TDcDJoEtQHwqLzZ8L9rX?si=9734d507f23845e6

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/twiniversity

Email: community@twiniversity.com

In this episode of the Twiniversity Podcast, Nat sits down with Zach Achatz - a small-business owner, woodworker, pie maker, and dad of six-month-old boy-girl twins - for the conversation she wishes more dads would have: how partners actually show up. After navigating his wife’s PCOS and a fertility journey that ended in a very big surprise (two little black dots on the ultrasound), Zach came ready to talk through every stage of the twin journey.

The heart of it is advocacy - his wife fired all her providers by 36 weeks to get the vaginal twin birth she wanted, and they found their yes at U of M with baby A head down and baby B breech. From there it turns practical: dividing the labor by "who’s fastest at what," home automation, honest talk about co-sleeping and sleep deprivation, the doula who steadied their birth, and Nat’s north star for every papa bear who thinks they can jump in later - there is no jumping in later. You jump in now.

 

A QUICK SHOUTOUT 📣

This episode is brought to you by Baby Brezza - a Twiniversity top pick for about eight years running. Their Formula Advanced Pro WiFi starts a warm, perfectly mixed bottle from bed, and their all-in-one Bottle Washer Pro washes, sterilizes, and dries in 88 minutes. 👉

babybrezza.com

This episode’s break is brought to you by Twiniversity’s Twins Delivery Day Bootcamp - the exact advocacy and birth-plan prep Zach and his wife lived out here, taught by Nat. 👇

https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/DeliveryDayBootcamp

 

EPISODE THEMES 📝

⦿ Why raising twins is a two-person sport - and why partners can’t "jump in later"

⦿ Firing every provider by 36 weeks to fight for the birth she wanted

⦿ Getting cleared for a vaginal twin birth when baby B is breech

⦿ Dad as the mouthpiece in the delivery room - the BRAIN approach

⦿ Dividing the newborn labor by "who’s fastest at what," not by gender

⦿ Co-sleeping honestly and safely, and modeling real partnership for your twins

 

RELATED VIDEO 🎥

⦿ Want more of the dad’s side of things? Watch Twins Twice with Twin Dad Josh Longmore on our channel:

https://youtu.be/YCFempGZeyM 

 

MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE 🔗

⦿ Astrid & Co Podcast - Zach’s wife’s show on finding her voice:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/astrid-co-podcast/id1866448311

 

GIVEAWAYS 💰

✔️ Subscribe to the Twiniversity Email Newsletter!

https://www.twiniversity.com/subscribe/

Expecting twins? Twiniversity has online classes! ⬇️

Breastfeeding Twins:

https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/HTaVcGhH/checkout

Twins After Singletons:

https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/hegrd8Ez/checkout

Baby Safety (CPR, First Aid, Car Seat Safety, Childproofing):

https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/AccFMLk8/checkout

 

CONNECT WITH US 🎙️

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Twiniversity

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/twiniversity

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/60TDcDJoEtQHwqLzZ8L9rX?si=9734d507f23845e6

Email: community@twiniversity.com

In this episode of the Twiniversity Podcast, Natalie talks with Laurie Donohue, a twin mom of boy-girl twins, about how often standard pregnancy education leaves twin parents out.

When Laurie learned she was having twins, she went looking for real data and practical guidance. Instead, most pregnancy books gave twins little more than a passing mention. She eventually found a multiples-specific resource, leaned on family support, and asked her medical team detailed questions to advocate for the birth experience she wanted.

Natalie shares how that same information gap helped inspire Twiniversity. Even professional childbirth and lactation training often treats multiples as an afterthought, leaving parents and educators without the support they need.

The conversation also covers the fear that comes with the “high-risk” label, the challenge of finding trustworthy twin resources online, and why real support from local twin clubs and other multiples parents matters so much.

Most importantly, this episode reminds new twin parents that they do not have to do everything perfectly. Some days, success simply means everyone is fed, safe, and making it to bedtime. You can do this.

A QUICK SHOUTOUT 📣

This episode is brought to you by Baby Brezza – the maker of the Formula Pro Advanced, the automatic formula dispenser that makes a warm, perfectly mixed bottle in seconds. No measuring, no scooping, no lumps – just press start and it's ready. It works with virtually all formula brands and bottle sizes, which is a real sanity-saver when you're prepping bottles for two around the clock (some parents lovingly call it the "baby Keurig"). 👉 babybrezza.com/products/formula-pro-advanced

This episode is also brought to you by Twiniversity's FREE online Twins Delivery Day Bootcamp – the twin-specific birth prep. Nat walks you through twin birth plans, what to actually ask your medical team, and what to expect whether you deliver vaginally, by C-section, or both – so you head into delivery day feeling ready instead of winging it. 👇 https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/DeliveryDayBootcamp

NAT'S TWIN BOOKS 📚

Shop Nat's books and more Twiniversity resources: https://www.twiniversity.com/shop/

⦿ What to Do When You're Having Two: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1583335153?linkCode=sl2&tag=twpgemail-20&creativeASIN=1583335153&asc_item-id=amzn1.ideas.9EL8HFRXIDLU&ref_=aip_sf_list_spv_ofs_mixed_d_asin

⦿ The Newborn Twins Sleep Guide:  https://www.amazon.com/dp/1637744420?linkCode=sl2&tag=twpgemail-20&creativeASIN=1637744420&asc_item-id=amzn1.ideas.9EL8HFRXIDLU&ref_=aip_sf_list_spv_ofs_mixed_d_asin

 

EPISODE THEMES 📝

⦿ Why twin parents get left out of standard pregnancy books and classes

⦿ The hunt for real data (not "Chicken Soup") the moment you find out it's twins

⦿ Pushing your medical team with specific questions to protect the birth you want

⦿ How the "high-risk" label can send your brain straight to worst-case thinking

⦿ Why the resources you need already exist – but stay buried in internet white noise

⦿ Finding your people: local twin clubs, a multiples mom friend, even a triplet friend

⦿ Letting go of control when you're a type-A planner having twins

⦿ Combo feeding, dishes in the sink, and redefining "winning" as alive and fed

⦿ Why real humans beat the algorithm (and AI) for twin support

⦿ The reassurance every new twin parent needs: there's a way, and you can do it

 

RELATED VIDEO 🎥

⦿ Want more on advocating for yourself in a twin pregnancy? Watch Black Maternal Health and Twin Pregnancy - How One Mom Advocated for a Safer Birth with Tracey on our channel: https://youtu.be/ksRv-pgBnAI

⦿ Want the long-view reassurance of a twin dad who's been through it all? Watch He's a Twin Dad, a Doctor, and Proof That Fatherhood Changes Everything with Charles on our channel: https://youtu.be/6Tjxo_M5Mxg

 

GIVEAWAYS 💰

🎉 YOU'RE INVITED: Need more support? Join us each month for our Twiniversity Virtual Meeting. Meet Nat and Lauren and bring them your biggest twin life challenges each month of the year.

For dates and more details visit: https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/MKse3EVR/checkout

✔️ Subscribe to the Twiniversity Email Newsletter! https://www.twiniversity.com/subscribe/

Expecting twins? Twiniversity has you COVERED with online classes! ⬇️

Breastfeeding Twins: https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/HTaVcGhH/checkout

Twins After Singletons: https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/hegrd8Ez/checkout

Baby Safety (CPR, First Aid, Car Seat Safety, Childproofing): https://twiniversity.mykajabi.com/offers/AccFMLk8/checkout

 

CONNECT WITH US 🎙️

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Twiniversity

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/twiniversity/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Twiniversity/

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@twiniversity

X: twitter.com/Twiniversity

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/60TDcDJoEtQHwqLzZ8L9rX?si=9734d507f23845e6

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/twiniversity

Email: community@twiniversity.com