On Monday 26th March 2013, after 33 days of “Normality”, Thomas John Brown (Twin 1) stopped breathing. Only for a moment but a moment none the less. I was busy upstairs getting dressed, Jo witnessed it all. With me due to start editing in exchange for money on Tuesday, the Browns were on our way to hospital again. Well timed son, bloody kids!

A week in hospital followed, poor thing had caught a cold and was too fragile to cope unaided. Somehow, as has become our lives, we muddled through. Jo camped out at the hospital, Lilly was despatched to Grandma’s (no6) and we played pass the parcel with Mia. I completed my 3 day edit, whilst Thomas was moved to HDU, tube fed and ventilated. Scary perhaps, but oddly routine for us, just a routine we had hoped we had outgrown.

6 months ago today to this very moment I was at home at Browntowers with the family, relaxing after a particularly average meal at The Latino Lounge. I had a full order book, Jo was a good 5 months pregnant, the kids were happy, the epic mezzanine wetroom building work was reaching completion and all was well with the world.

What a difference a day makes? 24 hours later, after the most extraordinary day off our lives we were sat in Bolton Hospitals NICU watching our severely premature children fighting for their lives, our world unfolding in front of our very eyes.

Suffering from severe bleeding to the brain, it looked as though Thomas wouldn’t make it through the first 48 hours. We assembled pretty much every living relative to say their goodbyes but he miraculously rallied, making fools out of our medically informed pessimism. 3 further times Thomas journeyed to the edge to play chicken with death. Each time God blinked.

The next 5 months stretched us to the very limits of our endurance. 5 lots of surgery, 3 months with the twins in separate and distant hospitals. My 40th birthday, Christmas, New year. All came and went barely celebrated.

Life soldiered belligerently on. Needing money and distraction, I returned to work making top class daytime entertainment for ITV. Lilly (age 4) never had so many sleepovers, party invites & days out. In-between she was a comforting presence at the twins bedside, nursing them, singing to them and generally being a top class big sister



After 139 days our ordeal was over and normality could finally begin.

A happy ending? With the benefit of hindsight it certainly seems that way but we are able to remember the journey from the wrong end. When it started this outcome was not guaranteed. It looked likely that one, maybe both of our twins, wouldn’t complete their impossible journey. Fortunately, as you all know, they did.

On Easter Monday, we were able to bring Thomas home after his 2nd much shorter stay in hospital. Exhaustion was met with a bombardment of health professionals. The outreach worker, the health worker, the audiologist, the dietician & the optometrist all either came to visit or engaged us in long telephone conversations.

We were already aware that Thomas had had an inconclusive hearing test on his right ear, meaning he may (or may not) be partial deaf. His eyes had been repeated tested in hospital and he had been signed off but we were getting increasingly concerned about his inability to fix on our faces when interacting, something that our reference baby, Mia, did easily and with pleasure.
The optometrist had a cancelation that afternoon and was quite forcefully persuasive that we should fill it. After a week suffering patient-line we just wanted to cuddle up and watch crap telly but Jo reluctantly wrapped Thomas up and set off for the appointment, we assumed it would be routine.



It would have been a miracle if Thomas had survived his incredible journey intact. Sadly he hadn’t. Although his eyes are functionally fine, his cabling is not in great shape. He has a condition called CVI and is possible severely visually impaired. We weren’t prepared for this news and if you are under any illusion that we are strong, the last few days would would proof that we are not. The mood has been black at Browntowers, the future is not how we planned.
Coupled with his shunt and a possibly dicky ear means life will be tough for Thomas John Brown. Just for good measure he is still on Oxygen too, making every journey outside Browntowers an exercise in military planning although in other news – Mia is perfect (touchwood) If we could clone her, we would be millionaires.

So thats our new life. The twins survived their epic journey but the price Thomas has paid is heavy. He is a child with substantial complex needs, what a jolly good piece of luck for him that his mother happens to be one of the finest special needs teachers in the land.

Life will not be easy for us going forward, the money has nearly run out and the editing world is barren at the moment. Jo returns to work in July and that is when the fun will really begin. Looking after a gaggle of children at home is hard but enjoyable, doing the same thing whilst both holding down jobs will be quite something else.

Thank you for all your continued love and support, it means so much to be in so many peoples thoughts x