Features

Double dose of happiness

By FRANCINE BLACK Staff Reporter

The Smith twins. - Contributed

FOR ANTHONETTE SYKES, October 25, 2002, was one of the happiest days of her life. This was the day her twin daughters, Aisha and Asha Smith, were born.

Sykes said her suspicion that she was pregnant with twins was confirmed in the eighth month of pregnancy when she visited the doctor.

"I went to the doctor and he said my womb was two big for me to have one baby, so we did an ultrasound and it was discovered that I was pregnant with twins," she said.

The twin girls are not the first in Sykes' family as she notes that her mother and aunt are twin sisters. She said her daughters are generally good behaving children, however, they always defend each other and both are somewhat 'fiesty'.

"When their cousin is playing with one and the other don't like it she will come and fight him," Sykes said.

She said although Aisha is older, Asha tends to behave as the older child. She also says when the two were younger it was a lot of responsibility involved.

"It was really hard. Most times both wanted to be breast-fed at the same time, but I had help to take care of them," she said.

Sykes says the twins are close and she expects that in September when they will begin school that they will have to be placed in the same class because they are always together.

She adds that although she loves having twins, she does not want another pair because of the responsibility and work involved in taking care of them.