One Woman Circus

Ever since we welcomed our twins into the world I have been determined to do everything that other moms can do. I’ve refused to miss out on park visits and swimming pools just because the twins outnumber me.

Needless to say if you see someone who looks like a one woman circus, it’s probably me (or any other mom with multiple children who haven’t yet learned to walk on their own).

From park visits involving swings and rides down the slide to cooling down in a swimming pool, the girls haven’t missed out on much.

I want the girls to enjoy the park just as much as any other little kids so I somehow juggle them both very carefully over to the swings, plop them in the bucket seats and proceed to push one, then the other, then back to the first, repeat, repeat, repeat.

The hard part is waiting until there are two swings available side by side. On a busy day you can be waiting for a very long time for this to happen. Have you ever tried running back and forth between swings that aren’t directly beside each other? I have, it’s not fun, likely comical to watch and just exhausting.

When it comes to swimming, last summer was much easier. Then they were only five months old and less than 10 pounds each. Not to mention they didn’t really squirm back then so holding them both at the same time while cooling off in the pool was very easy…and much safer. Now it takes two of us, one for each baby.

I think I like to test myself too because many times when we go out I feel bad leaving our three-year old golden retriever at home when he could be out enjoying the fresh air with us. So there I am; two babies, a dog, a double stroller and plenty of additional accessories ranging from snacks to sunscreen…and I manage to juggle it all.

When it comes to walks I’ve got those down pat. I’ve been walking the girls with the dog since they were newborns so we all know what to expect. Doug (our dog) always walks on our left side. I pack water for all of us, poop bags for Doug and his ball and we head to the park. The girls love watching him chase the ball and egg him on yelling “Daaa” (translation: “Doug” or so I’m convinced).

Going to the mall or shopping of any kind is easy. My double stroller is narrow enough to go anywhere a regular stroller can…well except those incredibly un-user friendly stores where I bump and bash into everything. I find myself constantly apologizing to the staff for knocking over displays meanwhile cursing in my head that the isles should be wider. The key to longer shopping trips…snacks…and lots of them.

Now that one of our little girls is walking and at times full on running, I’m sure that our outings will become adventurous in different ways. Rather than juggling two babies in my arms I will be chasing them in a full on sprint.

So if you see someone running around like a chicken with her head cut off, don’t mind me, I’m just a mom of twins…and I wouldn’t change it for the world.