Twin Mom Confessions: We Both Manifested This — My Interview on The Mama's Den Podcast

Before Codie Elaine Oliver ever had her twins, she had names picked out for the ones she didn't have yet — Mariah and Shania. Before I had mine, I used to joke that if I ever got pregnant again, I'd "pull a Beyoncé" and have twins. Neither of us believed it would actually happen. Then a doctor told me I likely couldn't have more kids at all. And then it was twins — for both of us.

This week I'm sharing my interview on the Mama's Den Podcast — a conversation recorded in person with Codie on the Disney Destiny, the first time we'd ever actually been in the same room after she'd already been a guest on my own show. By the time we sat down on the deck of that amazing cruise ship, we were deep into confessions: manifestation, motherhood, and the stuff twin moms don't usually say out loud.

We get into it: my doctor's exact words before the twins that changed everything, the "joke" that came true — for both of us — what it's really like going from one kid to three, and the stage of twin parenting nobody warns you about.

Normal episodes return in a couple of weeks. In the meantime, go check out the Mama's Den Podcast wherever you listen.

In this episode:

How Lauren became "That Twin Mama" — including being told by a doctor she likely couldn't have more kids, then finding out she was pregnant with twins

Manifesting twins — both hosts had jokingly "called" twins before it happened (Lauren's "pull a Beyoncé" bit; Codie's imaginary twin girls Mariah and Shania)

Going from one kid to three — navigating the 10-year age gap between Lauren's son Jackson and her twin girls

Being diagnosed/told you can't conceive — then defying the odds

The stages of twin parenting — what gets easier and when (holding their own bottles, independent eating, walking stairs, playing independently)

Protecting the older sibling's identity — not making Jackson a built-in babysitter; keeping him from being overshadowed

Postpartum mental health awareness — how the conversation has evolved since Lauren had Jackson in 2010