multiple realities

reflections from mamas of multiples: when did you feel "over the hump"?

For this month's Reflections from Mamas of Multiples feature, I asked:  When did you feel like you were "over the hump" with your twins/triplets/twins + singletons?  When did you start really enjoying them vs. feeling utterly exhausted by them? When did the scales tip in favor of really enjoying your children?

**********************************

Response from Farrah (mom of twins + 1, and whose blog I love over at The Three Under):

My fraternal boys are now just over 2.  Personally, I feel like things are much, much more manageable now (not easier -- never easier!).  Their independence and ability to play with each other and their brother doesn't make me feel as immobile -- crawling, helpless babies did.  They're also good travelers too, which I think is what pushed us over the hump so to speak.  We gave them no choice.

**********************************

Response from Megan (mom of twin babies + 1):

Around seven months we started to notice things were getting easier.  They would play on their own and together.  The boys are 11 months now and so much fun!

**********************************

Response from Laura (mom of twin toddlers):

I think this answer changes from day to day, second to second!  There was that sweet spot around 6 months where they were sitting and eating but not moving, that was pretty fun.  Then between 18 months and 2 that was pretty groovy because they were playing and romping around but not yet having strong opinions or questions about authority.  But, pretty much after 6 months the total survival mode started to lessen.  After a year, it became more of an occasional thing with more resilience to bounce back.

**********************************

Response from Juliet (mom of twins + younger baby):

My twins are 2.5 and we are definitely still waiting to get "over the hump."  Tantrums, whining, fighting, potty training, difficulty expressing themselves, pickiness in what they will eat, refusing to nap, etc.  I find this all much tougher than anything I encountered during the first year.  I'm hoping as their speech improves, so will a lot of these issues.

**********************************

Response from Becky (mom of twin toddlers + 1):

In general, every month is better!  People said it would be harder when they were talking, walking, running, etc.  But Andy and I feel like it just keeps getting easier as the language continues to develop and explode!  Our twins turned two in December and our daughter will be 6 in July and we keep remarking how great things have been these past few weeks.  Loving to laugh and play with our three in new ways!

**********************************

Do any of these responses resonate with you?  Please, add your experiences or feedback in the comments below.  As you can see, there's no "right answer" to this question!

To weigh in on future questions for Reflections from Mamas of Multiples, be sure to "like" Multiple Realities on Facebook and/or follow me on twitter.  I will post the questions for May there soon. 

I'd also love to hear what questions *you* think would be good to ask mamas of multiples!  Feel free to email me at dearlizacreations (at) gmail (dot) com with your suggestions.  Or shoot me a note on Facebook or Twitter.  Thanks, everyone!

toddler window washing that will save you the misery of listening to Wonder Pets

I know this is not rocket science, people.

But I have a confession.

Lately, we've been sliding down that slippery slope of too much TV at our house.  It usually starts about 6:30am, before I've made my coffee, with a request for Dora the Explorer from Buddy who *ADORES* Dora.  And Boots.  And Backpack.  Then, since the children have been sitting so quietly and attentively for 20 minutes, and I've had time to make my coffee and check email and... "What's that?  What's that you say, Bee?  Dora's over?  You want to watch Wonder Pets now?  Okay."

I'll be the first to admit that I'm down with a bit of TV watching.  I'll not say more because Jamie over at Steady Mom already wrote this great post about how (& why) she uses TV as a babysitter.  I think she's spot on.

But for me anyway, it's all too easy to let a little TV watching become too much... just one more show, and then one more...  So, I've started looking for a few new morning activities that can keep my kids engaged and focused while I make coffee/wake up/unload the dishwasher/cook breakfast/pack Junebug's lunch/flip the laundry.

This one -- the window-washing -- has turned out to be pretty brilliant.  I bought a few plastic spray bottles at Rite Aid, filled them with a bit of water, gave Buddy and Bee each a towel and the squeegie from our shower, and showed them how to "help Mommy wash the windows."  It was 20-minutes of happy playtime bliss!  (And I did not have to listen to any high-pitched cartoon character voices piping in from the living room.)

While they sprayed, wiped and squeegied, I even had time to make this Big Apple Pancake for breakfast, a recipe passed on to me from my dear friend Anastasia.  It's delicious!  And easy (and quick!) to make!  I substituted Sucant for the sugar, organic Spelt flour for the all-purpose flour, and a dab of maple syrup for the powdered sugar on top.  My kids (and the grown-ups) loved it!

And in case it's not obvious, my windows did not actually get clean.  In fact, they are now quite smudgey.  But the whole morning was waaay better without having listened to this:

 

 

ignoring the laundry

It's amazing how much laundry can pile up after two weeks of sickness. 

Lots and lots and LOTS of laundry.

But who cares?

in like a lion, out like a lamb

Dare I say it?  Spring is in the air.

Each day the patches of snow disappear, one by one, and a few more songbirds peek out from the shadows.

And yet:  here in Casa Multiple Realities, we've been holed up with Junebug, our four-year-old, who is now going on day 4 of a nasty stomach bug.  Long nights and days have left dirty dishes piled high, barfy towels and sheets lined up for the washer, and a sweet, lethargic girl with her flushed cheek pressed to my lap.  Poor sweet bear.

Meanwhile, Buddy and Bee are ready for some sunshine.

My Aunt Shirley, also a mother of a toddler + twins (though she did it back in the 1950's, bless her!), told me once that life would start to get awesome again once the twins turned two.  Well, maybe she didn't actually say the word "awesome," but she might have... she's quite hip for being almost 80 years old.

Anyway, she was the one who kept telling me how much easier and more fun things would get after they turned two.  And she was right! 

I must admit that the 1-year mark in the life of toddler + twins was anti-climactic.  So many other twin parents told me that we just needed to put our noses down and get through the first year, and then things would get better.  So we did, and true, things got a bit better after the babies turned one.  But not *THAT* much better.  Sleep was still a major issue, they still couldn't walk or talk, they still needed us all the freakin' time. 

But now that they are two, I admit to experiencing whole multi-hour stretches where I find my twin children fun. 

Have faith, other parents of twin babies!  IT GETS SO MUCH BETTER!

They are such characters, Buddy and Bee.  Empathetic, joyful, curious, loving, and completely into cracking each other up.  In particular, Bee is into cracking Buddy up.

For instance, yesterday, after I stripped yet another barfy set of sheets from Junebug's bed and set her in the bathtub to soak, I heard Buddy and Bee talking in their room. 

I'll be honest.  It was 2:15pm and my first thought was, "They are supposed to be napping still!  Somebody please shoot me."

But as I leaned in closer to the door, I could hear Bee singing, "Hello, Everybody!  So glad to see you!" Which is the Hello Song they learned in their Music Together class.  After Bee finished singing this line, I heard the two of them collapse in their cribs, in fits of hysterical laughter.  Squeals, shrieks, uncontrollable giggles.  Bee sang the song line, and the laughter repeated, again and again.

So I cracked the door to watch.  There, standing in her crib, with her shirt pulled up to her armpits, was Bee.  As she sang, "Hello, Everybody!  So glad to see you!", she was moving, with her two little hands, her belly button!  Opening and closing the hole of her belly button like a mouth, as if her belly button were singing the tune.  This absolutely cracked her brother up.  He thought it was THE.  FUNNIEST.  THING.  EVER.  Again and again and again. 

So you see, I could hardly stay mad at them for thwarting their naps.  I decided, on this particular day, with the smell of vomit on my hands and Junebug, at last, peaceful in the tub, to join my twin two-year-olds. 

I threw open the door, lifted up my shirt, and moved my own belly button to the words as I sang:  "Hello, Buddy and Bee, so glad to see you!"  The laughter that ensued was the highlight of my week.

Spring is on its way.