Living Through the Twinsanity

Living Through the Twinsanity
I was graced with twin daughters in September of 2005. Little did I know what was in store. My mother calls them "Her Little Retributions" - I call them "My Heart & Soul".
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beltaineca - > Living Through the Twinsanity -> The Bel Air Troll
The Bel Air Troll
A while back we were driving home from a doctor's appointment & I remembered  that we had NOTHING in the fridge at home. I also remembered that we took the double stroller out of the trunk for errands the day before.  I thought to myself, "We just need a gallon of milk and a loaf of bread.  It'll be ok without a stroller."  Let's look at this little predicament shall we?

First and foremost is the my current biggest pet peeve in the universe - apparently I'm the only person in the world with 2 children under the age of 3 years old, let alone twins, because other than Costco/Sam's Club the stores with double shopping carts are few and far between. When you happen to be shopping at a store that does have some sort of double riding conveyance, it is either disgustingly grimy & filthy, a person with only one child has taken it because it's "more roomy/more fun" (as in the case of the carts with "cars" in front or back), or - and this is the one that ticks me off the most - someone with NO KIDS takes it!!!

With that said, I decided to brave going into Bel Air while holding the girls' hands - it was only 2 items, right?  I was  so desperate to just get this done and get home that I didn't take into consideration several things: 1) the girls have just spent the entire morning in the waiting room at the doctor's office (yea Kaiser), 2) we are already about a half an hour over when they normally have lunch, and 3) it is about 20 minutes until what is usually their naptime.  Hindsight's 20/20 isn't it. Do we see where this is going?

I headed into the store and made a beeline to the bread. I was  almost there. I rounded the aisle.  Almost there... It was at this point that the girls decided it was far more fun to jump as a mode of transportation than it was to walk like normal WELL-BEHAVED children.  I thought to myself, "Whatever, they aren't causing a scene & aren't touching anyone or anything."  Got the bread.  Headed for the dairy case.  Luckily, there was nothing at eye level that they recognize - no Dora fruit snacks, no Blue's Clues yogurt, no easily recognizable cracker boxes. 

Almost there. The girls were laughing maniacally & my stomach was tied in a knot.  We reached the dairy case and I began quickly scanning the expiration dates.  It was at this very moment that Alessa decided to sit on the floor, followed quickly by Caleigh.  "We don't sit on the floor in the grocery store," I said as calmly as possible.  Caleigh got up but not my mother's "Little Retribution".  I leaned closer to Alessa and repeated myself in a low growl & she reluctantly stood up. 

"Dear Lord, let me get my groceries and get out of here without a scene," became my silent mantra. I whisked down the aisle with a little pair of sandals tapping quickly on each side of me.  I finally reached the checkout stand, but there was no set of sandals tapping on my right.  "Why?" you might ask.  Well, Alessa decided she was going to try to sit on the floor again.  However, I had instituted "Mommy Death Grip" and had her hand and wrist firmly in my grasp.  I virtually hissed at her to stand back up.  She did momentarily and then the mortifying happened. 

Have you ever seen chimpanzees at the zoo?  They will hold a rope with one hand then just hang and twist merrily.  That is what Alessa did.  I shot a look to Caleigh that warned of the reprocussions if she decided to join in the escapades and hissed at Alessa again.  No luck.  Then I tried to ignore it -and get the heck out of the store - besides, I was next to check out.  Looking back, it really wasn't a big deal - she wasn't touching anything and, other than giggling, they weren't making any noise.

However, it was at this point that the old biddy behind me addressed me with a disdainful gaze and said, "Are they YOUR children?" What was that supposed to mean?  I replied, "Yes.  It's almost naptime and their first time in the store without a stroller."  Here's the real kicker.  This woman had the audacity to respond, "Well, I think you need to keep them in a stroller a while longer." WHAT!?!?! Thanks for the input, Hag, I'll take that into consideration the next time I'm out! 

The next time you see a mother struggling with her children in a store and they aren't actually bothering anyone/anything/making a racket - shoot her a smile instead of a dirty look.  Chances are that she's terribly mortified as it is and would rather be anywhere than where she is.
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posted by beltaineca on Friday, August 29, 2008 at 11:58 PM
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3 comments from 3 users

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posted by teacheroftwos on Aug 30, 2008 at 08:32 AM
AMEN! I have to many times been mortified in the store by my chikdren and what you described is nothing compared to the antics my two boys can put on! LOL! Oh the Horror!
posted by lizzie on Aug 30, 2008 at 09:17 AM

Oh, I feel for you!  My daughter was throwing a tantrum in Walmart, by the entrance, b/c I made her ride in the cart. This old woman kept staring at us. I finally turned to her and asked, "what, you've never seen a 2-yr-old before?" She kind of huffed, but she left! :)

I have a friend that says "I hate taking my sister's kids with me" whenever HER kids are acting up! HAAA

posted by MamaSeaShell on Sep 1, 2008 at 10:57 AM
I always shoot a smile to the lady struggling with her children, if I'm near.  We all have to deal with it in one way or another, sometime now and then. 
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