How Do You Do It?

Many people have asked us, "Twins! How do you do it? Twice the diapers and twice the feedings!" My first response was, "Twice the jelly kisses and twice the Mommy hugs (the ones that leave you reeling with aroma of Johnson's No More Tears shampoo and animal crackers)!" But they really wanted to know...how did we do it? Well, let me tell you. We did it the only way we knew how...we just managed. Scott was working second shift at the time. While it was hard on our relationship because we never saw each other, it was a lifesaver with the twins. I would feed the twins at 10:00 and go to bed. Scott would come home and since he was wired from his dispatching job, he would stay up until 1 or 2 am and feed the kiddos. Then he would come to bed, tap me on the shoulder and say, "Tag, you're it....zzzzz." I would get up at 6:00 and feed the kids and put them back down for a nap. I would then head off to work. Scott would get up around 9 and feed them again and then all three of them would take a nap. Since he worked Wednesday through Sunday with Monday and Tuesday off, we only needed a babysitter for 2 hours in the afternoon 3 days a week.

As for the diapers....there were a few "Windex" treatments, but the Diaper Genies were the true lifesavers. You cannot even begin to count how many toxic bombs were diffused in that thing. Once the kids were old enough to stand, I got pretty good at changing diapers as they stood on the changing table admiring themselves in the bathroom mirror.

It was remarkable to see two little chunky babies grow and develop. For two kids who started out so close, sharing a womb technically designed for one, these two could not be any more different. Heather was the planner; the boss, if you will. She was the first one to talk in complete sentences. One day, Scott was on the computer when the dog barked to come in from outside. Heather waddled up to her father and asked, "Daddy, aren't you gonna let the doggy in?" There is rarely a moment even now when she is not talking and planning some fantastical drama that she wants to act out with her brother. Michael was in charge of design and implementation. Even as a small child, teetering around the living room on his stubby little legs, he was designing innovative ways to use his toys. A blue Lego became a car...the red one criss-crossed with a yellow one was an airplane. Today his creations have become more elaborate. Again with the Legos....more and more advanced airplanes-- C-130s, Harriers, an X-Wing fighter...even his own inventions. An old cell phone became Iron Man soaring through the living room and kitchen; a pencil was a rocket ship blasting off to Planet Idontwannadomyhomework.

This all leads to the them scheming and planning elaborate skits or using subterfuge to plan a surprise attack on the poor dog. Picture this scenario: The adults are sitting in the living room watching TV. All of a sudden, it's too quiet; we wonder where the toddlers have gotten to. We hear incoherent whispering....two little voices. We quietly peek around the corner where the front door is. There, lying on the floor across the bottom of the LOCKED front door was Michael. Heather? She was standing on Michael's bottom on her tippy toes trying to UNLOCK the deadbolt. The planner and designer collaborated this elaborate scheme shortly after learning to walk.