60 years ago!

It was a late Wednesday evening when 28 year old Jeltje felt her first labour pains. Throughout that night she tried to rest and prepare for the arrival of a new baby. With the horrid war behind them, and Henk's two years of service for the Dutch Navy in Indonesia completed, they were looking forward to this new stage of their lives. They had been married for two years and were excited to start a family.

  Henk worked in a warehouse store on 11 Pelsterstraat in Groningen and they lived in a tiny apartment on the store's third floor. The store owner lived on the second floor and together they shared a small bathroom on the main level. Living conditions were tight but Henk and Jeltje were thankful they could find accommodations.

Early in the morning on November 11, 1954, Jeltje woke her husband up and told him it was time to call a taxi and make their way to the clinic. Her discomfort was increasing and her labour pains were longer and harder. The women's clinic was south of their apartment- just a few kilometers away.

A nurse at the clinic helped Jeltje settle into her room and then assessed her. This was true labour and she hoped the baby would make his or her appearance by supper time. 

A few hours later, at 12:00pm Henk and Jeltje became parents . They were delighted to meet their sweet little baby. A baby boy.

However, Jeltje continued to feel intense pain and experience strong contractions. The nurse quickly assessed her again and announced that another baby was on its way! What a shock! What a surprise! They'd never considered the possibility of twins. The nurse told Jeltje to try to relax while a specialist was called in. At 12:20 another red-faced baby boy was born. Breeched.

Overwhelmed and shocked, Henk and Jeltje marveled at their babies. Their family had just doubled! As Jeltje lay in her hospital bed, cradling a baby, Henk stood beside her holding the other baby and they talked about their surprise and imagined what reaction their family and friends would have when they learned of this exciting news. They talked about buying another crib, a bigger baby buggy, another set of diapers. The money they had carefully saved during the pregnancy was suddenly gobbled up! They talked about a new baby boy name. During the pregnancy they had chosen a boy's name and decided their little boy would be named after Henk's father and his youngest brother. Taeke Johan. 

Now Henk and Jeltje decided the second baby would be called Jilt Gerard, named after Jeltje's father and her youngest brother.

Henk left Jeltje's bedside in search of a phone to share their wonderful news. He was able to reach his sister who was working near by.She refused to believe they had twins and Henk had to work hard to convince her. His sister took the train to their parents'  home to tell them they were grandparents again. Times two! 

Jeltje's parents had recently immigrated to Canada where they lived with their daughter, son-in-law, grandson, and three teenaged children in a small two bedroom home. They did not own a phone but Henk managed to call their neighbour who was willing to pass along their message. When Jeltje's family found out twins were born, there was so much upheaval that their dinner burned on the stove.

A normal hospital stay during those times was eight days, but because Jeltje  had twins she stayed there for ten days. Friends and family took the train to visit them and Henk would ride his bike to visit in the evenings.

Soon their tiny apartment became even fuller with baby diapers hanging across the living room in front of the coal stove, cradles and a wooden playpen. 

Ted is on the left and Garry on the right. The photographer blew this picture up and hung it on his store front window. My grandma always said she put the boys in suspenders so she could grab them quicker if they would run in different directions.

Ted & Garry were baptized on December 26 in the Christian Reformed Church of Groningen

Sitting with their great -grandmother.

Living in apartment was challenging without a yard to play in. Jeltje would pack the twins in a buggy and walk around their town, often stopping at a near by park.

The twins started to walk at ten months.

Henk would take the twins on Saturday afternoons giving Jeltje a break.

And I think Ted is on the left of this picture and Garry is on the right, but I am not sure!

~A special happy 60th birthday uncle Ted and Dad!~