D.K.
My son has asthma and one of his worst triggers is the common cold. So, our house is constantly on prevent getting sick mode. We gargle many times a day: when we wake up, after breakfast, after lunch, after dinner, whenever we come back home after being out, whenever someone rings the doorbell and we talked with that person, and before bed. We always wash our hands before eating, handling food, after blowing our noses, after using the toilet, after returning home from being out, and after touching our cat. If you own a cat, you need to be very careful to always wash your hands after touching them. Cats are carriers of the common cold virus. You want to make sure any cats get vaccinated so they won't get sick. Even though the vaccinations drastically reduce a cat's risk of getting sick, that doesn't mean that they still can't pass that virus unto you. Also any visitors to our house must wash their hands and gargle as soon as they arrive. Try to eat healthy meals and snacks, get enough sleep daily, get calming time (even when it is just a few minutes here and there), and regular exercise. Even doing all this, we still sometimes get sick.
If one person in our family gets sick, our family is on sick mode. That means nobody gets sugary sweets, everybody gets a full night's sleep (8 hours for me and hubby and 12 for our 5 year old son), and towels and wash cloths get washed daily. Clothing gets washed as quickly as possible. If the sick person has a fever, the sick person(s) must rest. That means no tv, no playing, nothing but sleeping in the bed. Masks are worn by everyone, sick or not. If you cough or sneeze, you cover your mouth with your elbow or shoulder and turn away from other people and pets. All tissues are to go straight into the garbage after used. As much as possible, the sick person must eat well to recover and regain their energy. (My husband never wants to eat anything when he gets sick, even if he doesn't have any upset stomach. When he doesn't eat, it always takes twice as long for him to recover. So I try hard to encourage him to eat something.) Drink lots of water. Eat lots of chicken soup. Drink ginger and honey for a sore throat. Don't forget to take medicine when necessary. Make sure the room temperature isn't too hot, too cold, too wet, or too dry. When brushing teeth, make sure you don't get the whole sink covered when rinsing your mouth. This goes for gargling too. We use the motto, "How low can you go?" in our house to get our son to spit closer to the sink. And continue doing all those things I mentioned on how to prevent getting sick so often. Get those flu shots!
Some people laugh when I tell them how we reduced getting sick this last year and shortened our recovery time when we do, but I really don't care because I am seeing results from our effort. Last year when we started seriously following all this, we drastically cut the times we got sick in half. It also has meant a week of recovering has turned into about 3 days max. I know that my family's way might be more challenging with more people in your family, but you might be able to use something from our method. Wishing a peacful birth for your twins. Good luck conquering your colds.
