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STEM Activities for Kids, Twins +1, and Practical Parenting

August 30, 2018 By Kim 4 Comments

Having Twins is No Excuse! How To Be On Time with Kids

Tough love time.  Having kids, and twins specifically, is not an excuse to be late. 

I don’t understand chronically late people.  I especially don’t understand when people are chronically late and blame it on their children.  Don’t get me wrong, the occasional late? I get it.  I’ve dealt with the giant poop just before you walk out the door.  In fact, I’ve had the triple poop back when I had 3 kids 2 and under.  It happens. 

But late every time you go somewhere?  Just because you have kids?  It’s unacceptable.  Yep, tough love here. 

You can get places on time with kids, and you for sure can get places on time with twins.  Here is how to (almost) always be on time with twins.

5 tips to be on time places, despite having kids. #time #kids #mom #tips #twins #hacks Team-Cartwright.com

Look, I don’t think there is ever an excuse to be late all the time.  That is just poor planning. Having twins is not a free pass to never be on time. 

But before I get to into this I do want to point out that there will be times you are late, especially as a twin mom.  Like I said, the double (or even a big single) poop can set you back.  In the newborn days, you might not have a schedule down.  Give yourself grace. 

But do not for a second think you are clear to always be late from the moment you bring home two babies.

Is this harsh? Yes.  But quite frankly being late all the time is rude.  You are deciding that you and your needs are more important than those of the people you are meeting.  More than that you are teaching your kids that being on time doesn’t matter.  It does.  But there are ways to help.

What's In This Post?

  • How To Be On Time With Twins
    • Plan Ahead
    • Do One Less Thing
    • Bring Less Stuff
    • Time It Out
    • Make Being On Time a Priority
  • How useful was this post?

How To Be On Time With Twins

5 tips to get out the door on time with kids. Having kids is no excuse to be late. Here are tips to help you get your family where they need to be on time. #time #late #mom #tips #hacks #kids #twins Team-Cartwright.com

Plan Ahead

This is one of those No kidding methods.  We all know to plan ahead.  But are you really doing it? 

If you need to be somewhere early in the morning are you setting out what you need the night before?  This is the time to really work on planning skills. 

Twins take work, but twin moms are made tough. 

Think through everything that needs to happen before you get out the door.  Write a list if you have to. Most of the time you know when you need to be somewhere.  If you need to be at the doctor’s at 4 pm and your babies take an hour to nurse, start feeding them before 3:30.  Be logical and make the effort to be on time.

Do One Less Thing

Coco Chanel said you should look in the mirror and take off one accessory before you leave the house.  Twin moms need to think similarly.  Do one less thing before you leave the house. 

I used to have this problem. I like to leave things complete, so I would try to clean up one more toy.  Or I would want to just toss in one last load of laundry, wash one more dish. 

Now I do one less thing.  Being on time is more important to me than making sure every single breakfast dish is put away.  Can’t deal with knowing the cereal is left out while you drive your kids to school? Refer to the above and plan ahead better. 

Or get used to leaving the little things undone so you can handle the big things.  There is time to clean up when you get home.

picture of sleeping baby twins with text overlay Baby Twin Tips What You Need To Know To Thrive In The First Year With Twins

picture of twins sitting against a wall with text overlay: Toddler Twins Tips How to handle the unique challenges having twin toddlers can bring
The Ultimate Resource Guide to Breastfeeding Twins. This is a must read for twin moms and those pregnant with twins. Learn about how to keep up milk supply, the best nursing positions, how to tandem feed, the best breastfeeding supplies and nursing pillows. Even learn how to breastfeed twins all alone (or with a toddler around!) #BreastfeedingTwins #NursingTwins #MilkSupply #NursingPillow #TandemFeeding Team-Cartwright.com
Twin Sleep: Your guide for the first year. Everything you need to know about getting your twins to sleep. Twin beds, twin cribs, naps, nighttime sleep, safety. Help from a real twin mom. #twins #baby #naps #sleep #eatplaysleep #twinnap #twinsleep #twincribs #safesleep Team-Cartwright.com

Bring Less Stuff

Yes, I know babies need a lot of stuff.  And yes, I know twins means double the stuff.  But you really don’t need to bring that much out with you. 

Having twins and 3 under 3 taught me to streamline.  You already have to get the kids where they need to be, don’t make it harder on yourself by bringing more stuff. 

That means we don’t take toys out if we don’t need to.  Sure, if we are waiting for an appointment or something we bring a couple of things.  But a trip to Target? They don’t need anything. 

Same for water or snacks.  Most of our outings are just an hour or two.  They can wait.  I keep the car stocked with diapers, wipes, extra clothes, and a towel.  (Keep a towel in your car. You never know when it will come in handy.)  If I use something in the car I replace it as soon as we get home. Otherwise, all we really take is the kids.


More Posts To Read

Tips to go out alone with your infant twins. It can be intimidating to take two babies out in public, but you can do it. Soon it will be your new normal. #twins #newborn #infant #errands #mom #tips Team-Cartwright.com
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Toddlers running with text overlay how to get toddler twins out of the house all by yourself

Time It Out

I am completely serious here, time out how long it takes you to load and unload your kids.  Every phone these days has a timer and it will help so much. 

I knew when Ali and Sammy were babies it took me about 3.5 minutes to get everyone out of the car, girls in the stroller, and have all of us ready to walk to our destination.  Now with practice, that got faster.  But I knew to build that time into our total travel time. 

With a potty training toddler, we added on more time knowing that we would need to find a bathroom as soon as we got to our destination.  Add that time to your plans for being on time.  Make the effort to know how long you take to get things done and plan ahead.

Having twins is not an excuse to be late all the time. Here are 5 tips to get you and your children out the door on time. #twins #tips #hacks #time #late #mom Team-Cartwright.com

Make Being On Time a Priority

Being on time is about prioritizing. 

Do you value where you are going enough to be on time?  Do you respect the people you are meeting enough to be on time? 

Being late sends a message to your children too.  It’s a simple one, that it is okay to be late.  But is it?  When you have a job you need to be on time.  Being on time also shows that you respect yourself. 

So you need to decide, what do you want to hold as a priority?

Look, I totally understand that being late happens sometimes.  Cars break down, kids have meltdowns, life just happens.  But it should not be something that happens all the time. 

Having kids is not an excuse to be late all the time.  And for sure having twins is not an excuse to be late all the time. 

Having twins can be tough, but that is your parenting lot in life.  You have to make it work.  And you will.  Because twin moms are made tough.  So stop using your twins as an excuse. Be on time.

Here are some more posts I think you’ll like!

Tips to go out alone with your infant twins. It can be intimidating to take two babies out in public, but you can do it. Soon it will be your new normal. #twins #newborn #infant #errands #mom #tips Team-Cartwright.com
How to teach your kid to call 911. No landline? No problem. Teach your child cell phone safety and how to call 911. This is an easy and fun learning activity for teaching safety. #safety #911 #emergency #learning #activity #kids #toddler #phone #preschool Team-Cartwright.com
What to do when your twin babies cry and you are all alone. Here are 5 easy techniques to soothe both twins at the same time. You can do this, twin mama! #twins #cry #soothe #baby #newborn #babywise #hacks #tips Team-Cartwright.com

Having kids is not an excuse to always be late! You can be on time, despite having children. Here are 5 tips to get your family out the door. #time #late #kids #twins #mom #tips #hacks Team-Cartwright.com

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Filed Under: Parenting, Team Cartwright, Twins

About Kim

Hi, I'm Kim! I'm the mom of three and a former chemist turned bookkeeper and mom. I am passionate about helping kids (and parents!) embrace STEM fields by sharing easy and fun learning activities. I also like to help twin moms and just moms in general by sharing the practical parenting methods I have found to work. My motto is you don't need all the answers in life, you just need to be willing to wonder.

You can follow me on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest for even more fast and fun learning activities!

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Comments

  1. Sarah says

    September 3, 2018 at 7:06 am

    I agree with this so much. I’m always early and it’s helped me so much with kids. Like once we were walking out the door. I just had my daughter at the time and she fell into the parking space next to ours into an oil stain and got it all over. We went back in, I gave her a bath, got new clothes on her, put the oily ones in the wash and still got back out and to where we needed on time.

    Reply
  2. Laura says

    September 3, 2018 at 7:34 am

    I hate being late! With 4 kids it isn’t always easy to get everyone out the house on time but we get it right about 90% of the time and if we are running late I ALWAYS let the people know

    Reply
  3. Charlotte says

    September 8, 2018 at 1:39 pm

    I think twin mamas need to be extra organized. I really upped my game when my twins arrived! But I must be honest that sometimes I do use them as an excuse to be late. 🙂

    Reply
  4. Jennifer O’Shea says

    September 9, 2018 at 10:02 pm

    Oh man I can’t even imagine !

    Reply

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Hi, I'm Kim! I'm a mom of three and STEM enthusiast. I love coming up with simple and fun learning and STEM activities for kids. And don't worry, I give the science behind it all! My goal is to encourage moms, find practical parenting solutions, and help moms with the unique challenges twins bring! I'm so happy you're here!!

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