11 Things No One Tells You About Having Twins

From Redbook

Everyone’s talked about twins at the moment – not just because Amal Clooney finally gave birth to Ella and Alexander last week, but because Beyoncé could literally be in labor right now. And there are plenty of other celeb parents to twins that make raising multiples look easy – but any parent of a twin will tell you that there’s a lot no one shares. To keep things real on that twin life, these moms are getting really honest.

1.”Everyone always told me to put my girls in matching outfits because it requires zero effort. But I actually found that it’s easier to dress them in something different – that way, you can quickly tell them apart when you need to quickly call out to them. You know, like when one is pelting her sister with Cheerios. And, honestly it really doesn’t take much thought to put one in purple and the other in green.” –Jessica, 37, Westport, CT

2. “Babies in general attract a lot of attention, but the level of random cheek squeezes and belly poking that happens when you have twins is unreal. Not to mention, when your hands are full of kids, groceries, and a diaper bag, you can’t flee the scene as quickly. To prepare, you should practice your Don’t Touch My Kids line now. It can feel uncomfortable telling a stranger to back off, but if you know exactly what to say, it makes everything a lot less awkward.” –Stephanie, 40, Los Angeles, CA

3. “Everyone would always tell me about the special bond that twins share, so I was caught off guard when my boys would fight with each other from an early age. I felt like they were annoyed there was another person around who was so similar to them. However, as time went on -my boys are teens now – I realized it was just a part of the twin dynamic. It’s true that they love and support each other in a way that is uniquely special – but sometimes the intensity of their relationship involves competitiveness and arguing, too. Just remember it’s normal. At least they don’t bite each other anymore.” –Carol, 49, South Hills, PA

4. “I was probably the rare person who did not freak out when my doctor told me I was having twins. I was pumped, especially because one was a boy and one was a girl – a complete family in one pregnancy. And there’s no such thing as too much cute, right? But when my husband and I got home from the hospital, I realized that along with the double dose of cute, there’s also a double dose of pooping, feeding, and sleep deprivation. I completely lost it, and had a meltdown on the phone with my mom. I did compose myself – a good night’s rest and getting into a routine helped. So whenever I meet a mom pregnant with twins I always tell her: Get ready for your WTF moment. But it will pass. The cute, however, is permanent.” –Nikki, 37, Orlando, FL

5. “There are a lot of hard things about having multiples, and everyone will remind you of that – if I had a dollar for every time someone told me that I would have my hands full. But seeing two adorable little people motoring around my house is amazing. Actually, it’s kind of the best thing ever.” –Patrice, 32, Columbus, OH

6. “For some reason, with twins, everyone assumes that they can ask you about what it was like for you to conceive. I was constantly questioned about how my experience was with IVF. I mean, yes, a lot of women use IVF and may end up with twins, and that’s totally fine – and their business, by the way. But I got my twins the boring way – through a family history of multiples. It’s like your uterus is suddenly everyone’s business. I was totally prepared for strangers to ask me if my twins were identical, but I was not ready for how many questions I would get about how my girls were made.” –Chrissy, 28, Marietta, GA

7. “My basic survival tactic with twin girls was to be extremely regimented about everything. It was like we operated as one unit. But as my girls got older, they started developing likes and dislikes that were not the same. Underneath their identical appearances are entirely different personalities. One of my daughters loved going to music and art classes, while the other one had no interest and only wanted to play sports – she was on the tee-ball and pee-wee soccer team. I wish I would have prepared myself a little bit more on how to nurture each of them as individuals.” –Tanya, 35, Ft. Meyers, FL

8. “When I was expecting, I joined a group for moms expecting twins. It was a common joke that when our babies were born, they would basically be celebrities – everyone would want to talk to them, touch them, even ask for pictures of them. And while that has definitely been part of my experience, the other side of that is that judgmental stares are a thing, too. It happens the most when we walk into a restaurant and you can feel every eyeball on you and you know that people are wishing that you don’t plop down to them. I’ve become a pro and at ignoring that.” –Anna, 35, Richmond, VA

9. “My family went all out when I was expecting and made sure I had doubles of everything, but I realized that you actually don’t need that much stuff. It created more clutter and confusion than actually proving handy. So forget buying duplicates of everything, especially toys – I had a mound of stuffed animals that overwhelmed me on a daily basis.” Lanyin, 36, Riverhead, NY

10. “Life felt like a total mess after my twins arrived. There was stuff everywhere. I lived in stretchy pants. Many mornings I cried when my partner left for work. This was not my typical Type-A life. I know that social media gets a bad rap for only highlighting the positive things, but I started posting frequently on Facebook and Instagram about all of the mishaps around my house – it was like a social media comedy show. My friends and family found it funny, and their comments always made it seem like I wasn’t alone. So I would say getting real on social media made me feel better about managing the daily grind of juggling twins.” –Jo, 27, Edgewater, NJ

11. “Being pregnant with twins, and then taking care of them on a daily basis is a lot of work. But at the end of the day, when I realize how much I juggle, I feel like a total badass. It’s a really cool feeling to know you’re raising two humans at the same time.” –Kathy, 34, Greenville, SC

Follow Redbook on Facebook.

You Might Also Like

• 23 Things Your Wife Wishes You’d Do More Often
• 19 Jeans That Are Anything But Basic
• 24 Stylish Space Savers