One mommy, two babies, and a double stroller

I have never run a marathon so I don't know what crossing the finish line feels like, but I'm pretty sure it is similar to the feeling I had yesterday leaving the doctor's office after a SUCCESSFUL visit with the babies BY MYSELF! Lilly woke up with a horrible cough and Nate was still running a fever too, so I decided to get them in to the doctor. Putting all of my double stroller fears to the side, I decided to try and make it a fun outing. After all, my day was already an improvement because I got to stay at home with the babies instead of going to work! It had been raining all morning and by some miracle of God, it stopped before we got to the doc's. I was already running late, so I pretended like I was trying to beat a record and managed to get my 500 pound double stroller out, unfolded and carrying two babies in about 3 minutes (woo hoooo)! We quickly strolled across the ginormous parking lot in victory. I walked up to the door, opened it, and pulled the stroller inside from the front (just want to say thanks to everyone who just stared at me banging the stroller into the door trying to readjust to get the right angle to clear the doorway and get inside -and didn't offer a hand)! Nate got a little fussy when I was filling in paperwork at the front desk. I could hear a collective sigh in the waiting room when Lilly made one little outburst and it sounded as if they may both go into hysterics in stereo. I mean, you're in a pediatrician's office in the middle of the day- what did you expect, a glass of wine and thought provoking conversation while Celine Dion plays in the background? I pushed down my instinct to say "SORRY" with my nervous frowning face and focused (calmly) on my kids. "You're alright!" I said. I took Nate out of the stroller to sit in my lap and pulled Lilly (in the front of the stroller) up where we were all sitting together. Nate was content to eat my keys and Lilly played peekaboo with an old lady sitting across from us. After everyone was calmed down and the babies were "cute" again, the questions start flowing from the mean, staring, sighing strangers.. "Are they identical?".. Me: "Ummm.. no". Mean staring sigher: "Is that one a boy? Are they both boys?".. I'm thinking: "Yes, they are both boys, but since I don't like that one very much and I had an extra purple onesie with a flowers on the collar laying around, I thought it would be funny to dress him like a girl." PEOPLE- look at what a baby is wearing before you start questioning gender out loud!!!! "Do twins run in your family?" Me: "Why yes in fact, they do, but after three painful years of not being able to have a baby, my husband and I used fertility drugs to help us get pregnant, thereby causing more than one egg to be released and fertilized. This is how our twins came to be. And now that you have heard my life story, would you like to share yours?" (Okay- I know I could have just said "yes" or "no"). I have to say I really don't mind the questions or anyone admiring my babies in any way..I think it just annoyed me that they were rude at first and then wanted to strike up conversations later. AT ANY RATE, after about 30 minutes in the waiting room, we got called back to exam room. The stroller pretty much filled up the entire room (pictures to be posted later), but it was no sweat. The babies checked out great and it turns out they are just congested- YAY! No ear infections, no yucky lung stuff. Great news. We checked out and were on our way. I was so empowered- like I could do anything! That probably sounds stupid, but it felt good! I was so proud of Nate and Lilly and how they behaved themselves. Poo on those mean sighing staring strangers in the waiting room! BTW-Thanks to everyone for the advice on the double strollers and getting around with two babies by yourself. I was reluctant, but it turned out to be MUCH easier than it was to carry two infant carriers at one time (MUCH easier).

Wow- that felt good! I really didn't intend on this post being so long, but I started typing and couldn't stop!!