sanity saving tips for raising twinss”

  By Troy White - father of Hailey and Katrina

MONEY:  My wife works with a father of triplets and his advice to us on money and multiples is as basic as it gets.  It’s expensive.  You have to be prepared for all the stuff twice over.  You might think that dual income is essential but really with twins it sometimes makes sense for someone to be at home with them instead of childcare.  When my wife was to return back to work, we were shocked at the price of daycare and when we factored it all together most of her paycheck would go to daycare.  It didn’t make any sense.  She is lucky though to have a position where she can work out of the house so we still have some of that income.  You might also qualify for country or state assistance.  To keep some of the costs down, look into local twin and triplets club, they sometimes have huge garage sales where you can find discounted items (and two of them too!!).

MUSIC:  Play some music!  Babies love music and if played to them from a young age (like still in the womb) they will grow up with an appreciation for the art, the beat and the sheer enjoyment of good music.  I am not getting into all the reports out there about classical music for infants. There has been many studies on this and the benefits are huge to your kids if they listen to classical music.  But I also agree (and so does our girls) that all kinds of music can be enjoyable and have a good beat for dancing.  They bop and groove to Bethovan so it cant be that bad can it?

NO:  No no no no no – a word that has to be said but does not have much effect until a certain age.  We tried no too early and it became a game for the girls to say no no no to everything.  We had to limit the no’s until they had a better understanding of what the word meant.

PATIENCE: If anything you will learn – it is patience with twins.  They can be very trying but find your inner blessing of patience and it won’t seem that bad.  Realize that a lot of what you are going through is just stages.  This stage will end and a new one will arise.  I am amazed how easily my wife and I get bewildered when one stage ends and a new one arises.  But, we realize that we are just in a new stage and have to get use to it.

PERSISTENCE:  Persistence pays – very applicable to both the childrens play habits and a lesson to every grown up out there.  Have you ever noticed that children are masters at getting what they want ?  Why is that ?  Most of the reasons I have seen is that they do not give up !  I notice this with the girls playing together – if ones wants what the other has they either fight over it or wait till it gets dropped or bored. 

PERSONALITIES:  One of the coolest things about twins is their personalities.  It always amazes me how two little people born at the same time, same place, same parents and the same upbringing…can be so different!  It is like light and day sometimes.  And not only that but they seem to switch personalities constantly.  One month Hailey is the bully, next month Katrina.  Onc month Katrina is the daredevil, next month it is Hailey.  One month it is Hailey that is a mommy suck the next month it is Katrina.  You get the point here…get ready for this.  Our girls are identical (at least they still seem to look alike at 2.5 years old…we never had the opportunity to have them tested) so some people rely on their personalities to tell them apart…sorry…that won’t work.  Then you try the clothing…dress Katrina in pink all the time etc…wont work.  Maybe your twins will be different but ours are always stripping off clothing…they don’t care where they are. So the clothing idea won’t work…well it can…you can use that duct tape to keep the clothing on.  But, they are starting to figure out that duct tape???

QUIET TIME: Quiet time or time outs should be mandatory in business!  Think about it – every time you get upset or stressed about something – take a personal time out – walk away – close your eyes and find something fun to do for 5 or 10 m9inutes. 

RELATIONSHIPS:  I remember reading somewhere that 50% of twin parent’s divorce.  Every sad.  But, I can see the effects of how raising twins can be a daunting task.  Sometimes, we get so rapped up in their lives that we can forget about ourselves.  Take the time to keep your relationship together.  Your kids need both of you.  Make dates – get out of the house, put the kids to bed and just talk.   

RISKS:  Let them take some risks – climb that ladder at the park…even though you know it is too high…too steep etc.  It is good for them to try, realize their limits and then ask for help.  At least they tried.  You job should be to pick the battles you are willing to let them tackle, then make sure it will not be overly dangerous.

 

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Famous Parents of Twins :: Tips for Twins B's ::

Parenting Twins C - L :: Raising Twins M - S :: Sanity Savers for Raising Twins ::

Entertaining Twins :: How To Be a Role Model To Your Twins :: Purple Balloons and Twin 3 pound girls :: Top 10 Tips for Small Business Success - as learned from twins 3 pound girls :: The next top 10 tips for success :: Playtime with your twins :: Taking Your Twins To The Doctor ::Grocery Shopping With Twins :: Taking them to the restaurant ::

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