Oscar and Caitlin in one shot

The general advice is not to work with animals or children and as an amateur photographer I can't help agreeing. Trouble is, they move around a lot.

This is as close as I have got to a picture of Oscar and Caitlin in the same frame. Daddy is clearly oblivious to my efforts.

It's surprising the amount of parents/grandparents/siblings of twins you meet. And it always supplies a reliable source of conversation.

Buying food in Barnes the other Sunday, on the way to Richmond Park, a lovely lady not only gave me free samples of banoffi pie but also explained that twins ran in her family. Her brother, a twin, had just had twins of his own.

Later that day in the park Oscar crawled over to the next picnic rug - clearly a better choice of sandwich over there - where there too were boy-girl twins, but aged 3. This, I've been reassured by many a passing twin parent, is a golden age when things get better. But no, sadly Richmond Park twins mummy didn't agree. And in one brief moment she wiped out the hope that I'd been clinging onto that, in 2 years time, I'll 'reap the rewards' of having twins. Dream on.

But, of course, there are already rewards (admittedly, ones I can only see if I have a nap during the day). Things like they way they giggle, especially with excessive tickling; they way they interact with each other (when they're not fighting over the favourite walker toy); and, increasingly, the arms outstretched, requests for picking up and cuddling. Awww.