Malachy Picken has spunk in the genes, from both parents, hilarious

[BornInDroopSt'54]

I posted this in the father son's thread but it got backwatered so here it is:

See the link for great pics:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...e-critics.html

A Melbourne mum has made international headlines after creating signs to ward off rude questions from strangers about her twin daughters.

Annie Nolan, the wife of Western Bulldogs player Liam Picken, created two signs last Thursday after becoming increasingly frustrated with having to repeatedly answer the same questions about their two-year-old daughters, Delphine and Cheska.

She placed the signs - made with two large envelopes - on her daughters' pram and snapped a photo which she posted on Facebook.

"Yes, they are mine. Yes, they are twins. Yes, both girls. No, not identical. Yes, I know they look alike though. Yes, I'm sure they aren't identical," the first sign read.

The second sign read: "Conceived by f---ing. Born via c-section. You have twins in your family? *Great*. They don't run in my family...until now. Yes, my hands are full (sometimes with two glasses of wine just to get through). Yes, triplets would be harder."

Ms Nolan said she created the signs to share a laugh among friends, without any inclination they would be so widely received.

"I really wanted to leave these signs on the pram today," the mother-of-three and blogger wrote on Facebook.

"As a twin mum, you get asked a series of questions/hear a series of statements every time you go out.

"I know most people are coming from a great place and are just curious however many can be quite intrusive and after a while it's just plain exhausting. And since I was heading into the city, I knew the questions would be coming thick and fast...but I chickened out on the train and took them off! P.S - it is a joke people."

The post resonated with parents of twins worldwide and by Tuesday night had been shared more than 7500 times and received more than 22,000 "likes".

It also caught the eye of Hollywood celebrity blogger Perez Hilton, who praised Ms Nolan's honesty.

"Good for you, girl!" Hilton's website reads.

However, not all of the attention has been positive for Ms Nolan, who has found herself having to fend off harsh criticism about her language and attitude.

"I absolutely never meant to hurt a single soul with this photo," she wrote on Monday.

"It was intended mostly for 4 specific friends who have twins, for a laugh. I could hardly predict the reaction it was going to have.

"So the comments made by people who can't conceive a child or have lost a child telling me I should 'be happy that I even have kids' really affected me. I am sorry to anyone that took it this way. It wasn't how I intended it to come across."

Nolan is incredibly candid in her blog, Uncanny Annie, in which she recounts the sudden death of her brother in a car accident in 2011 and the premature birth of her twins two years later.

Ms Nolan also has four-year-old son Malachy with husband Picken.

The 26-year-old mother has insisted she is happy to answer the questions of curious strangers, despite airing her frustrations on Facebook.

"It gets tiring answering the questions all of the time," she told Channel Seven's Sunrise.

"But most people are really lovely."

This story was found at: http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/me...14-giccxv.html

[F'scary]

Thanks for that, BIDS. Best read of the evening.

[merantau]

Loved it. Good on her ... and to those who reacted negatively - lighten up, life's meant to be enjoyed, not endured.

[Twodogs]

Yeah love it. Very funny stuff.

[westdog54]

I read it too. I loved it even before I realised she was Liam's partner. I reckon its brilliant.

People really need to lighten up.

[AndrewP6]

I've taken up Annie's cause on FB. I thought, like most with a sense of humour, it was funny. There are so many righteous, uptight, sanctimonious people in the world, I really am stunned. I have seen the story posted in at least 4 different places, and I'd estimate 75% of the comments are negative. The world is so stuffed now, that people almost seem obliged to become outraged, so I've gone into bat for Annie (and everyone with a sense of humour)

Good on her, I say.

[stefoid]

Good on the wowsers - best publicity her blog could have!

[Murphy'sLore]

Heard her speak on 774 with Jon Faine yesterday (just before Peter Gordon came on) and she was terrific. Definitely good genes on both sides for young Malachy.

[AndrewP6]

Had a look at her blog, there's some interesting stuff there. Annie was studying law when the accident that led to her vision impairment happened.

[Twodogs]

Had a look at her blog, there's some interesting stuff there. Annie was studying law when the accident that led to her vision impairment happened.

Wow. Hopefully it can be possible for her to go back and finish one day. Annie strikes me as exactly the sort of person we should be encouraging into the legal profession.