Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to ask why people say this?

118 replies

Somanytwins · 14/10/2021 17:10

Lighthearted!

If you stop someone with twins in public and say "double trouble" or "you must have your hands full" why do you do it? I've had this non-stop and I was just wondering why. Also, do you realise that it's the most unoriginal thing to say to someone with twins? Grin I'm always super friendly to everyone who inconveniences me stops to talk to me whilst I'm minding my own business but it does get tedious when each person says the same thing and I wonder if they realise they're the 20th person to say it that day.

Again, lighthearted!

OP posts:
PeskyRooks · 14/10/2021 18:48

@Cottagepieandpeas

Same with big dogs…”is that a horse?” “Who’s taking who for a walk” etc etc 200 times a day.
Yes! Laughing my head off at this because I used to have a deerhound!

Also I have 4 children so have heard "hands full" "haven't you got a telly" "do you know what's doing it yet?" numerous times! I don't mind though, as pp said it's just something to say!

ItsMeAgainAndIHaventChanged · 14/10/2021 18:48

I always think “gemelli! Que belli! Pensa que fortuna!”
But as I don’t live in Italy I never say it, or anything else really.

badgerswitharms · 14/10/2021 18:49

I have twins (they're older now so people just assume they're siblings) but I liked the random comments, even as an introvert. I think it's nice people notice them.

Basically no one can ever win 🤷‍♀️

KrispyKale · 14/10/2021 18:49

I'm always going in for one thing and buying five, geniuses are employed to design stores to encourage/ ensure such behaviour: it's probably a fascinating area ti study.
Now if I said that out loud at the checkout I'd be considered weird. People chat the repetitive, corny lines to fit in. Not necessarily because they are dullards.

Northernsoullover · 14/10/2021 18:50

Oh god Blush I am the twat who says stupid things. I wouldn't say twice the work though. With twins and babies it's usually 'how cute' my twat comments are usually to the postie or taxi driver. 'Been busy?' Blush

3scape · 14/10/2021 18:51

Ooooo you've got so many freckles.

Oh my god do I?

FictionalCharacter · 14/10/2021 18:54

The worst for me when my twins were babies was “2 for the price of one haha!”
Er, no. Having to buy 2 of everything is extremely expensive.
And “did you have ivf?” Scuse me? Why do you think you can ask a stranger a personal question?!

PeteWicksSexyPirate · 14/10/2021 18:55

Yep I work in a call centre and every other customer asks for the winning lottery numbers at the end of the call
My fake laugh gets weirder by the end of the day

OnlyTheTitosaurusOfTheIceberg · 14/10/2021 18:55

If left to its own devices my brain fires some really stupid shit out of my mouth, so I fall back on the repetitive platitudes / small talk because coming across as ‘boring’ is several steps up from coming across as ‘embarrassing weirdo’.

SeasonFinale · 14/10/2021 18:57

I would never say that.

I would be asking which one is the evil twin Wink

NewlyGranny · 14/10/2021 18:59

All the above! Plus people saying, "Not long to go, eh?" from about 24 weeks. 🤦🏼‍♀️

CatRatSplat · 14/10/2021 19:00

@Sinner10 I got this today.....off my 5year old!😅 I replied with I don't know any different so I can't answer that. She did not like that answer, then started to ask if I chose to have a twin!

OP: it doesn't matter what you have you will get people who just want to talk, I get asked if my two are twins, they are two years apart 🤣

ALongHardWinter · 14/10/2021 19:03

I used to get sick of people saying 'Haven't you had it yet?' from when I was about 35 weeks pregnant.

riotlady · 14/10/2021 19:05

It’s just their way of saying “I observe that you have two babies, and I would like to initiate friendly small talk”

Whoopsies · 14/10/2021 19:10

I think often people don't realise. Or are projecting and it comes across negative. I'm not sure if I've ever said it before but since seeing something on here about it I make sure I am always so positive about people who have twins, I would say something like "oh how wonderful to have twice the fun/love etc" even if I'm internally wondering how the hell you are coping!!!

furbabymama87 · 14/10/2021 19:11

I've got four kids and when I'm on my own with them all I get " you've got your hands full haven't you". One woman even asked if I was allowed to have four on my own. I realised she thought I was a childminder. I don't really mind though, she probably felt stupid after I told her they were all my kids.

LavenderYellow · 14/10/2021 19:26

@PeteWicksSexyPirate

Yep I work in a call centre and every other customer asks for the winning lottery numbers at the end of the call My fake laugh gets weirder by the end of the day
I find the question at the end extremely annoying so it works both ways. But I tend to pity the poor bugger on the end of the phone as I assume they have a script, so I politely just say no thank you.
LovelyLovelyWarmCoffee · 14/10/2021 19:27

I often comment when I see baby twins… but only to tell the mum I have twins myself and give a smile - just because I remember when I was at this stage and it was hard and it felt nice to know others knew how it was, kind of like being part of a private club in a sense.
I never do the double trouble types of comments though, and never initiate a long conversation, just a few words in passing.

LovelyLovelyWarmCoffee · 14/10/2021 19:29

I get asked if my two are twins, they are two years apart
I was told my two couldn’t be twins as they were boy and girl (babies, same size) Hmm

ancientgran · 14/10/2021 19:30

Are they identical? When my son was about 3 he saw identical twins in a buggy he stood there open mouthed and said, "Two babies with one face." The mum and I couldn't stop laughing but I thought it was quite perceptive.

Original poster
Somanytwins · 14/10/2021 19:31

I've nothing against people making nice comments. Nothing at all.

However, a nice comment from one person on every aisle of the supermarket can significantly increase the time it takes to do your shopping Grin it'd take a saint not to get inwardly annoyed with that after a while!

OP posts:
Original poster
Somanytwins · 14/10/2021 19:31

I should add, that many of these people do stand in your way and make you stop your pram/trolley to talk to them.

OP posts:
Nahhh · 14/10/2021 19:39

Lots of “buy one get one free?” comments and random strangers asking if I had fertility issues.

This meme made me laugh when my twins were little!

to ask why people say this?
JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff · 14/10/2021 19:51

I rhink I must have something wrong with my face as no one ever really makes these comments to me.

I did get "hands full" and "double trouble" quite a lot when they were babies but these days the most is "are they twins?" which is a fair Q as they are B/G and rarely dressed alike.

What I do find funny is when people think my almost 7yo and 3yo twins are a set of triplets, which happens more than you'd think 🤣

Curlygirl06 · 14/10/2021 19:52

I had small twin girls (4lb 12 each) and I used to take them out lying back to back in my single pram. A woman in a shop glanced in the pram, did a double take and said " my god, there's two of them!)
Quick as a flash I said oh no, there was only one in there when I left home! and walked off.