Anyone else finding twins much harder now they’re both mobile?

[ThisCalmDuck]

Hi everyone,

I’m mum to 2-year-old twins and I feel like things have actually got harder now they’re both walking, climbing and running in opposite directions 😅

When they were babies it was exhausting, but at least they stayed where you put them. Now it feels like I’m constantly on high alert. One heading for the stairs, one trying to escape through the front door, both wanting different things at the same time.

My husband is at work most days so it’s just me with them from morning to late afternoon, and I’m finding it really overwhelming. Simple things like getting them out of the house, doing a shop, or even making lunch feel like military operations.

I sometimes feel guilty for struggling because they’re “only two” and people say this stage should be fun. But honestly I’m just shattered and stretched to my limit.

How did others cope at this stage? Did it get easier as they got a bit older? Any practical tips for managing two toddlers on your own during the day would be really appreciated 💛

My Twins are 4 now but I remember this well!!!

How I handled it, by removing as many hazards and dangers as possible. When younger we had a playpen so that I could leave them for short periods to make food, nip to the loo etc but they soon grew out of that. I then separated our lounge (open plan 2 rooms knocked to together type layout) using the playpen as a kind of baby gate / room divider. I got rubber interlock matting for the floor as we have wood floors and made it their playroom.

It is absolutely exhausting, I was scared to take my eyes off them as it felt like an accident was always just about to happen.

It gets easier, they calmed down a fair bit and could follow and understand instructions better by age 3. Now at age 4 it’s easier still as I have been able to take down the room dividers and stair gates etc and I can typically leave the room to cook dinner or make a cuppa without that terrible anxiety that someone would require A&E if I wasn’t watching constantly.

I did the same as a PP… cut the living room in half and baby proofed it. I used little life backpacks with reins for a while, people don’t use them so much now but they were great. My two refused the pushchair as soon as they could walk! You just can’t do anything quickly… it doesn’t get easier!!

Sorry to hear this op.

In these cases, the priority is to keep them safe.

I would do exactly as the pp suggested and use a baby gate to make a safe room, and rubber matting (you can get nice bright coloured ones).

Also, don't beat yourself up about giving them a dvd to watch. I think people get waaaay too precious about this. I am less of a fan of tv (or games) because you aren't in control of the content, but there are some nice things for children that age, like the Percy the Park Keeper stories and some of the BBC stuff for that age group.

I was never a huge fan of Peppa Pig as its a bit screechy and manic - but them sitting watching an age appropriate pig thing while you do what you need to get done (and you WILL need this time) is better than them falling downstairs or escaping out the door.

As long as you use it judiciously and not all the time, with well-chosen content, it is not massively worse than being read a story.

Life was definitely easier when they didn’t answer back and they stayed where they were left! Mine are late teens now but I can remember what they were capable of as a tag team.
We had a stair gate on the door and used playpen pieces to fence off the dvd player, bookshelves etc instead. Reins were also necessary as they could both move quite quickly and I got very good at the eyes at the back of my head! I remember one time panicking in a park as I couldn’t see them - that’s because they were where I hadn’t realised they could climb that far, right up a huge slide’s steps!

When my twins were 2 I had a new born and a five year old. I take it you already have 2 stair gates. Like others have said try to maybe keep to one safe space even if you use a stair gate on a door frame. I used to keep most toys downstairs so there was always something to pick up and play with. Nothing wrong with some TV as someone else suggested the older shows like Percy the park keeper. Barney, tots tv some are good for learning too.

Agreeing with the above. Pen them in until they can reliably follow instructions! Twins are chaos. But this stage does pass fairly quickly, I promise. Mine are almost 7 now, and it's ages 2-3 I look back at the videos of the most - they were so cute 🥰

Thank you for all the messages. Very helpful and reassures me I'm not going as crazy as I thought!