A Meeting Place For Moms Of Multiples

By Susan Coney

Once a month, the social hall of Newtown United Methodist Church in Sandy Hook is filled with the squeals, screams, giggles, and chatter of babies and their mothers. This is no ordinary parent support group, however; to become a part of this elite team you must be a mom of multiples.

Newtown Youth Services sponsors the group, which meets once a month. NYS counselor Laurie Petrasanta organizes and heads up the group of mothers.

 “Newtown is the only town in the area that has such a group. It is a large group, with moms from all over getting together to meet,” Ms Petrasanta said. The group currently has 12 sets of twins and one set of triplets that accompany their moms for some social time.

Ms Petrasanta explained that it is an opportunity for moms of multiples to share information and feelings about caring for more than one infant at a time. It gives the mothers a chance to discuss issues such as nutrition, health concerns, potty training, and the most important concern of all, tips on getting them into a sleep routine.

She emphasized the need for the moms and their children to have the opportunity to socialize with others.

“It can be very lonely to be home alone with more than one infant,” she said. “It’s nice to have other moms who know what it is like to juggle and be flexible.”

Celeste Vodola, a mother of five, brings her twins Veronica and Angela every month to the meeting.

“I went to a meeting for moms of multiples in Westport, but you weren’t allowed to bring your children; it was just for the moms,” she said. “It was too far to go and too big. They spent a lot of time on other things.”

The other mothers of the group agreed that it was crucial for them to be able to bring their children with them, not only for the socialization it provided for the babies, but because it is sometimes hard to find child care and was just too difficult to leave them.

For more information about the Moms of Multiples group, contact Laurie Petrasanta at Newtown Youth Services, 270-4335.