Five things you should never say to a mother of twins.

I understand that twins are a novelty but they are not an excuse to have mouth diarrhea. They do not give people the right to touch them without their parent's permission. They do not open the floor for criticism or advice. Also understand that sometimes a twin mom just wants to get her grocery shopping done without recounting her entire birth story to a curious stranger. Here are five things you should keep to yourself when encountering a mother of twins.

1. "You look tired. You must have your hands full!" I get this every time I take the girls out somewhere. I get this comment even when I'm not tired and the girls are behaving well! No one likes to be told that they look tired. You may as well say, "You have bags under your eyes, you look old, and your hair is all over the place." 
2. "My friend has kids around the same age as your girls and they do just fine." Someone hurled this comment at me after a particularly long day of coddling two toddlers with high fevers and I could have spit fire. Sure having more than one kid in the house is harder than one but it is also very different than having two of the same age. Also, everyone's situation is different and it is unfair to compare any one family situation to another.  
3. "Did you want girls? Were you disappointed?" My usual response is that I wanted blue cats with red noses. I've noticed that mothers with boys often ask this and I'm not sure why. The real answer is that I wanted a healthy baby and I was so blessed that I got two! 
4. "Were they natural? Did you take hormones?" I'm not sure what it is about twins that gives strangers the right to ask such personal questions. It is no ones business how my girls were conceived and it is rude for strangers to ask.
5. "You are in for it now! You will never sleep again. Kiss your freedom goodbye." I got comments like these a lot when I was pregnant. People are trying to be funny but this is actually an awful thing to say to a pregnant mom. A pregnant mother of twins has double the hormones, double the doctors appointments, and double the worry. When you see a pregnant twin mom why not say, "You are so blessed! You are in for a lot of giggles. Get ready for the ride of your life."