Last updated on August 21st, 2023 at 04:46 pm
Wild animals. This is the only description I feel can adequately describe my two busy little bees. From the moment I sit their feet on the ground, they are literally off and running. Between four of us — myself, my husband, and my two teenagers — we can barely keep up. It really does take ALL of us to moderately keep them corralled. (To all of you single parents out there, my hats off to you. I have no idea how you do it.)
I admit sometimes I wake up and cringe at how exhausting this day is probably going to be. I feel I am not alone in these thoughts so I don’t beat myself up too bad over it. We have our routine, our precious and invaluable schedule that I would not dare knock off kilter for ANY amount of money. And I get the snide remarks, “Oh, you’re just being overly sensitive about it, ONE night out late won’t hurt anything.” and I sigh inwardly because they have NO clue of just how wrong they are. Twin mamas and daddies out there say it with me…SCHEDULE IS EVERYTHING!
People say you eventually forget the sleepless nights. They are wrong. At least I haven’t. It’s been two years and I have NOT forgotten. I very vividly remember just how exhausted I was. And if you’ve ever been up ALL night long with two babies at the same time, you very likely won’t either. But there are those parents — you know them — the parents that have a couple of kids under their belt and think that because their kids are a year or so apart it’s the same thing. It’s those parents that can grate on my nerves. Before sleep training my twins I was a wreck. There were times I would blink and realize an entire day had passed me by and I couldn’t remember it. I’m not gonna lie, was concerned. If my day was such a blur, good grief, what did that say for me as a parent?
An answered prayer came in the form of a friend who had twin babies just 5 days older than mine. She convinced me, “Chick, you have GOT to sleep train those babies.” I balked at the idea. Cry it out seemed so mean…and heartbreaking. And it was. I cried for three nights straight right along with them. But on that fourth night, that LOVELY fourth night, I woke up and it was like I had been on a vacation. It’s amazing what ONE full night of sleep can do for you.
It took me no time at all to grasp the fact that schedule was going to be a HUGE part of this process. So we were and ARE very strict with where we go and when. If it’s around 3:00 pm you can bet your sweet bippy I am right here at my house so my babies can have that much-needed nap. At 8:00 pm my babies are no more than five steps away from their cribs. This is just the way it is and we’ve accepted that.
It’s not so easy to make others understand though. We get the eye roll…the awkward silence when we answer with “Well, the babies will be napping at that time, so maybe later?” I mean really, we let our babies decide when we leave the house? Yes. Yes and yes again. And I say again unless you have ever had to deal with two miserably cranky babies at the same time at 3:00 in the morning, don’t open your mouth with a snide comment because you are NOT going to like what comes out of mine.
I am sure I am not the only twin mama out there angry and upset at the insensitive and catty comments we get about our “crazy schedule” so my advice is this. Don’t sweat it. YOU know what is best for you and your family. After all YOU are the one who has to live in it!
Deanna Burkett (Twiniversity Pinterest and Forums Manager) is multi-tasking mama of two year old boy/girl twins and teens and a wife of 19 years to a very patient husband. On any given day you can find her pinning her heart away at Twiniversity’s Pinterest page, saying howdy to a new member of Twiniversity’s Message Board, working on school work while she earns her double degree of History and English at Ashford University, catering to her teenagers every beck and call or chasing one or two naked babies around the house! Look for her on Facebook, & Twitter!
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