National Twins Day!

Today is National Twins Day! Of course it is...there's a silly holiday for just about everything :)

So because we have twins, I thought it would be fun to "celebrate" and do a little post about my favorite twins! I thought I would answer some of the most commonly asked questions. No joke...I get many of these questions almost every single time we're out. Twins fascinate people, and people asking about twins fascinate me haha.

Are they twins? Yes, they are! 

I think I get asked this a lot, because clearly they look the same age, but Maddie is slightly bigger than Eli. It's funny to watch people look back and forth between the two and try to figure that out :)

What is the age difference? Well, they're twins, so about 30 minutes; 31 to be exact.

I usually get this question if people don't want to ask if they are twins. Of course, people immediately realize they are twins, and there are usually follow up questions. It's almost like people were trying to be polite, but then learning their suspicions were correct, the floodgates are open to ask all they ever wanted about twins haha.

Are they identical? No, they are boy/girl fraternal twins.

This one drives me crazy. Ok, so admittedly, there is a tiny, TINY chance that boy/girl twins can be identical {in some weird scientific way}, but most people don't even know that. So when they ask, they are not thinking about the fact that one is a boy and one is a girl...a clear indicator that they are, in fact, NOT identical :)

Who is older? He is. Really? Yes, really.

Eli is my Twin A {the first baby born}. Which throws people off because Maddie is slightly bigger than he is right now. Poor baby girl...I have to start thinking now how to best respond to that question as she gets older, because I don't want her feeling self-conscious about that. 

Do twins run in your family? No, actually, they do not.

I usually try to leave it at that, but sometimes end up having to explain more if they have follow up questions {see next question}. Which leads to all kinds of other questions. I don't mind sharing their story, but it also feels strange to be having an intimate discussion about infertility, embryo adoption, and what all that is in the grocery store check out line. But with strangers, at least most of the time, a simple polite "no" is sufficient for this question.

Oh, then that must have been such a surprise to find out there were 2! Well, actually they were not a surprise. We transferred 2 embryos, so we were hoping for twins.

I try to be concise and to the point. Again, I don't mind sharing their story, but I also feel like there are appropriate times and places to do that. When I tell people we transferred 2 embryos, they assume fertility treatments {which is fine}, and when I tell them we were actually hoping for twins, they {I'm sure} assume I'm crazy :)

Did you have them "naturally"? I was very blessed to be able to avoid a C-section.

Yes, people ask this question. I don't mind answering it, I really don't. But it never ceases to amaze me what people will ask a complete stranger. If they have pestered me with other questions, then I will answer with "I was able to have them vaginally, yes." Which is what they mean anyway, but somehow that word makes them more uncomfortable and the questions usually stop :)

Do you ever dress them alike? Sometimes I try to coordinate them, but we were gifted a lot of clothes, so they wear what they have that fits!

I guess people assume that since they're twins, they should automatically dress alike. I'm sure parents of identical twins get this question more often than I do, but I still get it pretty often. Don't get me wrong...I LOVE coordinating them, especially for holidays and special occasions. But it's not something I worry about on a regular basis. More power to the mamas who do this all the time.

I can't imagine 2 babies at once. How do you do it? {Awkward laugh} Well, they are our first, so we have the advantage of not knowing any different. It's hard for sure, but such an incredible blessing and adventure!

IT. WAS. HARD. haha. But we survived! And we really have no other choice! We do what we have to do, just like any other family does. I look back over the last couple of years and wonder myself how we did it. But somehow, by God's grace, we did! All the twin parents say that it gets easier, and after the first year it did. So we know that after the toddler years, it will get easier again. There are definitely hard days; having twins is no walk in the park. There are unique challenges to raising 2 kids who are the same age, particularly newborns. And unless you have ever experienced it, it's hard to understand. Heck, even experiencing it, it's hard to explain! But I am thankful that we have the perspective of only having twins {so far}, because it's just LIFE for us. We don't know any different. 

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So happy National Twins Day to my most favorite set of twins :)