So, I’m at the grocery store a few weeks back and a sweet older woman comes up to us as I’m trying to wrestle the Crazies into their jackets…tiny little thing she was too.
Oh, are they twins?

Yup…they sure are!

Oh, I had twins…

Really?

Yes, and a set of triplets…

REALLY?

Oh, yes. Then I had another child and believe it or not, the single was tougher than either set of multiples.
Then we launched into this discussion about how it’s nice to have multiples because they have each other and there really isn’t any way for one child to get ALL of the attention at any given point. It’s just not possible, but it does give those children coping mechanisms for the real world…yadda, yadda, yadda.
We said our good-byes and departed. She was so sweet…it was really nice to see that someone was able to maintain her sanity after they manage to escape the toddler years! Oh, and the teenage years…don’t even get my started!
Anyway, I kept thinking about her and how crazy her life must have been on a daily basis and how normal she seemed now. I thought about what life would be like after all of this craziness and how boring it might seem, but how accomplished I would feel knowing that I sent good citizens into the world. That is our job, after all, right?
So, I’m in the gym the other morning and notice that she’s there. I watch her for a while and notice a couple of things.
First, she’s in terrific shape. Her arms are toned, her legs are slender, and her belly looks, of all things, NORMAL.
Second, she walks in a way that exudes serenity…I can tell you that when I walk around the gym, I’m exuding nothing like serenity. I don’t know what you would call it, but it ain’t calm.
She sits down on the machine next to me. At this point, I’m happy, but I’m slightly mortified as my Grand Canyon sized belly button is desperately trying to eat my shirt and her tummy is perfectly flat.
Hi! We talked at the supermarket the other day about having multiples, right?

Yes, dear…how are you?

I’m good…life is crazy, but that’s how it goes, right? (omg…I’m so lame)

Oh yes…how old are your children again?

Two and a half…boy and girl…like a different species.

Yes, my triplets were two boys and one girl. I couldn’t believe how different they were!

Yeah, but as long as we make it through the day, right?

Oh, yes…and if you can make it without hitting up the Jack Daniels, you’re especially lucky!
What the what??? Did she really just say that? I kind of LOVE her now!!!

Oh my God, I kind of love you right now (clearly, I’m not shy about my feelings)…I guess if we can manage not to drag our children into a liquor store at 10 AM, we’ve won the battle, right?

Yeah, but if you have to do it, don’t beat yourself up…we all have those days.

So, this is how she manages her serenity…she’s drunk! I love it!!!

Yup…we sure do. (pull shirt away from chomping belly button)

Well, it’s been nice talking to you. It’s nice to see that we’ll come out on the other side…that we will survive.

Oh, you sure will and you’ll have lots of people to take care of you because your mind will be shot at the end of all of this!

Haha…have a great day!
I loved that woman. Lesson learned…we will survive, one day at a time, and if you can manage to avoid the Jack – bonus points for you!
Come visit me at Unexplained X2 if you want to see how I’m avoiding the bottle these days…we’re in full-fledged Tantrum Time in my house. Please join in the madness if you’ve been there, done that…or if you’re currently in the trenches!