Infant Twins: Is it worth the hassle?

[camdensmom]

Our family was blessed with identical twins at the end of August. Along with the joy comes a great deal of chaos, equiptment and work. We traditionally go to WDW in April (school vacation...I'm a teacher). DS4 is a Disney nut and often plays "disneyworld" and frequently talks about "the next time we go."

He starts Kindergarten next fall and currently believes the characters are real and so is the magic. I'm afraid that won't last too much longer. We've also been trying to not let him feel like the twins are "ruining" things for him.

With that said, I'm trying to decide if the stress and hassle of traveling with twins is worth the trek. They'll be 8.5 months.

We're good travelers and already get to the parks early and take it slow. Part of me thinks they'll be easier this year since they won't be mobile.

Any twin parents want to weigh in?

 

[PurpleTurtle]

We went when our twins were 14 months, and it was not fun. We also had the girls who were, I guess, 6 and 3 at the time, and it was such a stressful trip. The boys were scared of the characters, and it was just such a lot of work for DH and I keeping them happy the whole time. My dad was there with us, but he was not much help with the twins. I am certain that another family could have done a better job than we did with the situation, but, if I had it to do again, I would wait until much later. It may have been bad, though, b/c they were beginning to be mobile, although they hated any stroller, too.

 

[peemagg]

We took my 13 month niece and nephew and their 2.5 year old sister and had a great time with them. The twins were happy to be in the stroller and take it all in and their sister would go and do all that she could. I think they will probably have been easier at that age then at age 4 when we take them again. Now that they are really moving and grooving it will be a bit more difficult.


I think it all depends on the temperment of the kids. Ours were pretty easy going and just took it all in stride. I think if your kids don't handle changes in their schedules, then you might have a harder time of it, unless you can get them use to changes before you go.

 

[boakl]

One of the easiest periods ever with my twins was the 6m-1 year period. Everyone was sleeping all night, there was some sort of a predictible schedule, lots of twin props, and they weren't too mobile yet!

We did a lot of traveling the summer after our twins were born (October 04), and it was easier than it is now. They were very content to stay in their stroller, didn't have any real opinions yet, weren't scared of anything, and found everything to be a really fun adventure.

I say go for it, and use the Baby Care stations for breaks if you need them.

 

[dyna]

I'd plan on taking an extra person to help could be a teen you know who could sit with the twins part of the time be on own part of the time an another part of the time be entertaining your 4 yr old goin on attractions with him.

Myself i think it easier to travel with littles before they mobile than the 1st year they mobile an need to be in stroller an don't want to be there an have no conseption as to why they got to be there.

 

[disny_luvr]

This is a difficult one. We traveled with our twins to Disney for the first time in May - they were one month shy of three-years-old. I thought it was the perfect age to take them, but it was a lot of work. My sister and parents came along to help. If we didn't have them I don't think our trip would have been as successful. That being said, I don't think I would have wanted the hassle of taking them at an earlier age. We have traveled other places with them prior to our Disney trip and I thought it was a lot of work - and I don't have any older children. DH and I both thought that our trip to Disney was easier than other family vacations we have been on since the twins were born. Now, I don't know if that is because we had help or if it was because they were older. I will agree that it is easy to put a baby in a stroller and push them around, but when my twins were 8.5 months old, they weren't in to their stroller much and would much rather be crawling around. Had I taken them to Disney at them time I think I would have be very stressed. Your twins may be much different though and will enjoy being in their stroller. My twins also didn't nap well in their stroller at that age (and they still don't) so our days would have been very dictated by naps. When they were 8.5 months old they were still napping in the morning and afternoon so I don't feel like I would have ever made it to the parks. Again, this may be totally different for your twins.

I do understand your concern for your four-year-old. Since we have returned from Disney, my boys talk about it too and are eager to return. In fact, DH and I want to take them again next year - on our own. I'm sure your little guy has had to make a lot of adjustments since your twins arrived so I know that you probably really want to take him on the trip especially since he talks about it a lot. Is there anyway you and DH could go and leave the twins at home with another family member? Maybe your little boy would enjoy some alone time with mommy and daddy. If that isn't an option, I'd strongly recommend taking someone along to help. Maybe that person could tend to your twins in the hotel room while they nap and you and your DH could spend one-on-one time in the park with your little boy.

I don't know if I was of any help. If you do decide to go, I hope you have a great trip!

 

[sss]

Hi,
My twin girls are now 7. They were born at term and healthy at 38 weeks. We also have a very soon to be 5 year old. We took our twins for the first time at 14 months. Note that we had no other children (or for that matter help, just me and DH) with us. That said, we took it slow, brought a lot of cheerios and had a blast. Never in a million years would I go with an infant that wasn't sleeping through the night, let alone twins. Also, I agree with the poster (s) that said it depends on the temperament of the twins. Like I said, ours were/are healthy. They were excellent travelers (we had taken them on several other smaller trips and had experience of twih taking them on airplanes) and pretty good sleepers and had no problem napping in their strollers. I'd wait and see what their temperaments are. When we took our third at 14 months, it was a totally different experience for her. 'nuf said on that! lol. I'm not saying don't, I'm saying wait and see. I also agree with the poster who suggested bringing another set of hands to help. I do not however recommend bringing a teenager to look after twins, it's a big job and i've never left it to anyone younger than college age. I highly suggest bringing a physically fit relative that your older one is comfortable with and can take over either the twins or your son as needed. Finally, even at 7, my twins are awed by the magic and we just came back from our 5th trip as a family. Good luck and hth.
ssss

 

[sk!mom]

I know that this will be unpopular with some but could you leave the twins home? Our situation was different- our DD13 came along when DS was 11. We left her home for the first two vacations we took after she was born. Grandma loved the uninterrupted time with her and we got uninterrupted time with our son who was now sharing us after 11 years as an only.

 

[roobug]

Our twins have been to Disney many times - the first was at 3 months, then 9 months, and 11 months, and again at 15 months. First off I have to say that it really depends on your children's temperment. Our boys where preemies (so they were a little behind in crawling and walking), they travel very well, and are mostly content to be in their stroller.

Obviously we think it is very doable - we take it slow, and use the baby centers alot. They love it, and it was at the 9 month trip that they really loved going on rides, and the parades were so entertaining for them. We loved watching them on the rides as they looked at everything and they laughed so much on that trip there were some great memories. The 9 month trip was also when we had to make sure to take breaks for them to get out and crawl a few times we were able to find places in the park that worked but mostly we went back to the hotel in the afternoon and let them stretch out and nap.

One thing I reccomend is getting ear protection for them. We got our ear muffs from baby banz, and they have been a life saver for us. They always try and take them off at first but we don't let them and just kept putting them back on - they saved us during parades that where loud, and also allowed them to sleep in the park fairly easily. We also bring our own stroller so they were familiar with it, and it has lots of storage for all the junk we brought for them.

 

[jlstwinmommy]

I agree that is will depend on the temperment of your twins. We took our twins for the first time at 14 months (their big brother was almost 7 at the time). We had a great time, but mine napped easily in the stroller. My kids have always been early risers, so we would get to the parks at opening and stay until dinner time. We usually ate around 5 or 6 and then went back to the room after dinner so the twins could get to bed close to their regular bedtime. My older one would stay up later and his dad would take him to the pool. It worked great for us, but I think the key was them napping in the stroller. If you have to go back to the room for naps, that may make it harder, especially if your twins don't nap at the same time (mine didn't nap on a regular schedule until they were almost a year).

Good luck in your decision.

 

[lovin'DVC]

We've taken our twin sons to Disneyworld many times. The most difficult moments have been the plane journey, and transporting the stroller on the plane and on Disney transportation. However, mostly once we're in the Disney parks it's one of the easiest vacations for the parents of young children, IMO. We also have girls 2 and 4 years older than our twins, so we know what it is to have your hands full. Just think through what you absolutely need to keep everyone sane, and then take it slow. You'll have a great time! One thing that saved our sanity was to stay in timeshare villas or condos. That way while the kids slept we could have our own room. The one time we stayed in a single room it was agony for me!

Terry

 

[ampc3]

wow .. that is a tough one! I feel your pain so to speak.. We too had (surprise twins end of May) we are trying to decide if it's worth the hassel and trek down to south Florida after Xmas to see friends.. On one hand like you said, they aren't mobil yet (or will have just started) so the next year, they will be walking for sure and into everything.. so that is one vote for now, but on the other I think all around it is hit or miss.. NO guarantee on how they will sleep, I know mine have never slept in a pack n play and not sure how they would do with that , and all being in the same room again.

I guess my vote is , if there is anyway to find someone to come stay at home with the twins, while you take your son to Disney... you are planning on going at a REALLY busy time.. spring break plus with all the changes going on with him not being the "only" child now etc.. it would be a VERY special trip for you all..
I took my 6 yr old alone for her bday in sept for the weekned, and it was sooo special to just be the two of us.. if that isn't an option, then I guess I would see if anyone else wanted to come along so you and your hubby could have an extra set of hands...

then I think I would just flip a coin.. lol... serioulsy you aren't going to be able to predict how they are going to react/behave/sleep etc... so either way you have a 50-50 chance of having a great time... and even if it stinks and you say never again...at least your son will have some fun I started this saying noway.. now, I"m saying yes! good luck! now I have to go figure out if we want to deal with this too! I think I'm convincing you so I can convince myself to take our trip lol!...

 

[chrisw127]

We've done it twice and both times were different. The first time, our twins were 10 months old. They did really well. We took it really slow and on one of the days, we used a babysitting service (actually, we had two sitters as required by the service, because they weren't walking yet and frankly, I wouldn't have been comfortable leaving them with just one anyway) so we could take our 5 year old out for a special day. At 10 months they were totally content to just sleep in the stroller or sling or crawl around in a play area. We also loved the babycare centers. We also traded off taking care of our older child so he could enjoy the attractions, because the twins really couldn't do much.

Biggest mistake on that trip was getting into the resort too late at night. They (all the kids, really) needed time to explore and get comfortable. There were some minor sleep issues as well and naps, other than in the car or the stroller, didn't happen.

We went last Christmas at 22 months and it was a disaster. In fact, we swore we wouldn't go back until they were older. At 22 months, they want to explore, but it's not always safe for them to do so and it's not always possible to chase after two toddlers at once. Seriously. It was bad. I think my husband had it worse because I brought my best friend and at least she and I could go out at night and explore the parks while he tried to get to toddlers to sleep which was another disaster (they're not used to sleeping in the same room).

Since we love Disney, we decided to take them back again next week. They'll be 34 months. I'm thinking things will be slightly easier, although I'm keeping my expectations pretty low.

I guess what I"m saying in a roundabout way is by all means, go! The trip we took when the twins were babies was so easy and probably one of my best trips so far. Just keep your expectations low, stay somewhere where you have some room to spread out (we stay at Ft. Wilderness cabins, which gave the kids some space), and take some time alone with your older child if you can.

Good luck.

 

[wmharley]

Our family was blessed with identical twins at the end of August. Along with the joy comes a great deal of chaos, equiptment and work. We traditionally go to WDW in April (school vacation...I'm a teacher). DS4 is a Disney nut and often plays "disneyworld" and frequently talks about "the next time we go."

He starts Kindergarten next fall and currently believes the characters are real and so is the magic. I'm afraid that won't last too much longer. We've also been trying to not let him feel like the twins are "ruining" things for him.

With that said, I'm trying to decide if the stress and hassle of traveling with twins is worth the trek. They'll be 8.5 months.

We're good travelers and already get to the parks early and take it slow. Part of me thinks they'll be easier this year since they won't be mobile.

Any twin parents want to weigh in?

go.. at that age, they would be fine in the stroller for extended times. its when they are 13-18mo wher ethey want to walk everywhere is a hassle.

Also, when you go, you can easily stay relaxing at some area while DH or you go with DS on a ride. all of you can get on Small World, etc and they will all love it..

 

[casselsshopper]

I have a five year old daughter and twin girls who are almost 2 1/2. If you are planning on going either the week before or after Easter, I personally wouldn't take the twins. That time of the year, the parks are very crowded and taking two babies and a preschooler is hard enough during the down times.

If the only adults going are you and your husband, I wouldn't take the babies. We've taken our twins to the parks twice (just for the day each time, since we're local). The first time, it was just my DH and me with the kids. It was doable, but a lot of work. The second time, we took my parents with us. Wow! What a difference those extra set of hands made. Not only could they help with the twins when needed, but it allowed us to give our oldest daughter some extra attention, because we didn't have to always be so focused on her sisters.

Basically, if you do choose to take them, I strongly recommend bringing along at least one extra adult family member to help. You will be really glad you did.