The Most Ridiculous Things People Say To Parents Of Twins

When out in public with a baby, one often finds themselves bombarded with unsolicited advice from well-meaning individuals who suddenly become experts on parenting. This flood of opinions, ranging from how to interpret a baby’s cry to the proper way to hold, feed, and put them to sleep, can be overwhelming for new parents lacking in experience and confidence, Ridiculous Things People Say To Parents Of Twins .

For parents of twins, the onslaught of commentary is not merely doubled but multiplied exponentially. Two children invite a plethora of hilariously misguided or blatantly obvious remarks from strangers. It’s not uncommon to hear someone exclaim, ‘Two babies!’ as though it wasn’t already apparent. And this commentary doesn’t seem to diminish as the twins grow older.

To shed light on the absurdity of these encounters, we asked parents of twins to share the most ridiculous things people have said to them. Their responses, delivered at a rate more than double the usual, highlight the amusing and sometimes bewildering experiences faced by parents of twins in public.

I am the parent of twin girls and also have an older son who was three years old at the time of this particular incident. A few months after the twins were born, we decided to dine out for lunch and brought them along in their spacious double stroller. As we were leaving the restaurant together, a gentleman kindly held the door open for us and jokingly remarked to my husband, who was pushing the stroller, ‘Looks like your fish can swim, huh?’ Despite the initial awkwardness, it has since become a humorous anecdote that we share with anyone curious about our experiences in public with the twins.” -Barbara new york

“As a mother of twin 12-year-old girls, I’ve encountered my fair share of absurd inquiries, but one incident stands out vividly. When my daughters were still infants, I was shopping at Walmart with them seated side by side in a cart. Two elderly ladies approached me, visibly intrigued by the twins. Instead of the typical questions like ‘Are they twins?’ or ‘Are they identical?’, one of the ladies posed a rather baffling query: ‘So, did you have them on your own?’ Taken aback, I responded with a quizzical expression, replying, ‘With a little assistance from my husband.’ Yet, I couldn’t fathom the intent behind her question as she persisted, ‘I mean, did you have help having twins or were they natural?’ The sheer audacity left me speechless at the time, and to this day, I still find it incredulous.” – Mary San Diego

“My twin boys often encountered the phrase ‘double trouble,’ much to their amusement. One day, when they were three-and-a-half years old, a lady remarked, ‘Oooo double trouble!’ To this, my twin A, named Hamish, responded with a grin, ‘I’m not trouble, I’m Hamish, and this is my brother Keegan.’ The expression on the lady’s face was truly priceless.” – Jennifer San Antonio

“I strolled into Macy’s with my identical twin girls, who have a penchant for dressing alike, when an elderly gentleman approached me. He inquired, ‘Are they both yours?’ I couldn’t resist a playful response: ‘No, I found this one in the parking lot but decided to keep her because she matched.'” – Carol-Philadelphia 

“I am certain I have identical twin girls, although one has always been slightly larger, both at birth and now, 19 years later. I find it amusing when strangers and even relatives engage in debates with me and my daughters regarding their identical status simply because they are not ‘exactly’ the same.” – Alexander, Phoenix 

“The cashier exclaimed, ‘Oh wait, they both can’t be yours, they look so close in age’ … well, yes, they’re just a minute apart.” — Nancy Houston 

“I have fraternal twin girls. Whenever I mentioned their birth dates, I consistently encountered comments like, ‘Oh, they are twins.’ Yes, indeed they are. ‘But they don’t look like twins.’ Yes, I’m aware they don’t, which is why they are fraternal twins.” — Jennifer Rodriguez

“Having boy/girl twins, I’m constantly bombarded with questions about whether they are identical!” — Rachel Colyer

“My sisters are identical twins. Once, someone asked them how they differentiate between each other.” — Jamie Michele

“I’ve been asked if they were still considered twins because they were born on different days due to one being born after midnight. I’ve heard that question more times than I can count!” — Christa Buckland

“One of the most ridiculous questions I’ve been asked is about who my favorite or least favorite twin is. Like, seriously?” — Carly Cohen

“I have boy/girl twins. Once, at a register, the cashier asked if they were twins. When I confirmed, she then asked their genders. After I told her, she seemed confused and asked, ‘Are they still twins if they are a boy and a girl?'” — Jhina Alvarado-Morse

“I have twin girls who aren’t identical. People frequently ask if they are identical despite their different hair color and texture. When I respond no, they sometimes question it, to which I explain they are sisters with the same parents.” — Brittany Roussel

“Many people nowadays opt for NIPT testing to determine whether their twins are identical or fraternal. Despite this, some still insist, ‘Well, you can never be sure!’ But I am certain. I had their DNA tested!” — Sarah Butler Piscatelli

“It’s common for people to inquire, ‘Who is older?’ But truth be told, I often don’t recall, as I never had the chance to see the first baby before the second one arrived just two minutes later. And really, who does it matter to? It was a C-section; the doctor took out the first baby.” — Courtney Harrington Setteducate

“Here’s a good one: someone confirmed that I had a boy and a girl, then did a little victory dance and exclaimed, ‘You’re done!'” — Katie Hodge

“I had a rather baffling encounter at Walmart when someone looked me straight in the face and asked, ‘Did they come out at the same time?'”

“My oldest child is three-and-a-half years older than my twins. I suppose he realized that we had only planned on adding one more child rather than two more. At one point, he asked, ‘If you only wanted one more kid, why didn’t you give one of the twins up for adoption?'” — Ashley Bartoletti Smith

“During a grocery store visit, someone stopped to give the typical ‘Awwww so cute, are they twins?’ comment. However, it took a weird turn when she remarked, ‘I can tell they’re different. That one’s the smart one.’ I was relieved they were too young to understand what she meant.” — Elizabeth Jane Maske

“Once, while we were at a store, the twins were in a double stroller and their older sisters were walking alongside. A lady looked in the stroller and exclaimed, ‘Oh, twins!’ Then, she glanced at my older two daughters, back at the twins, and proceeded to say, ‘Wait! Are they all twins?’ Once I realized she wasn’t joking, I simply responded, ‘Yes, yes they are.'” — Krista Sutherland

“I’ve had people, mostly strangers, actually ask me if I was taking fertility treatments to get pregnant, as if it’s anyone’s business. One guy even asked me if I could tell them apart. Who can’t tell their kids apart? I feel like the worst thing someone can say is ‘I’m glad it’s not me!’ Well, sir or ma’am, I’m glad it’s not you either.” — Wendy Heald

“There have been so many wild and rude comments, but one that really took the cake was some lady saying to me, ‘I hope you got yourself fixed!'” — Helen

“My boy/girl twins are 13. When they were infants/toddlers, a favorite question was ‘How do you tell them apart?'” — Brandi Worrell

“We were once asked if our fraternal twin girls would become identical when they got older!” — Lacey Cardin Quilhot

“I was once asked, ‘Which one do you like the best?’” — Amelia

“As a nanny, I often cared for twins and we would get stopped all the time by people. On one occasion, a woman exclaimed, ‘Twins! Oh my gosh! Where did you get them?’ I humorously responded with the technical truth: ‘I took them from their mom this morning.’”

“During a doctor’s appointment, after providing their birth date, I was asked if they were the same age.”

“When entering a store or restaurant with two infants in car seats who obviously look the same age, someone invariably asks, ‘Oh, are they twins?’ Eventually, I started responding with things like, ‘No, they are triplets. I left the other one in the car because I couldn’t carry all three.’ or ‘No, one’s my husband’s and the other is mine.’ It always leaves them stunned!”

“I was once asked if I had to go through labor twice.”

“My identical girls are now 11, but the best comment I received when they were around three months old was, ‘Are they both yours?’” — Sarah Emily

“They aren’t identical twins, they don’t even look alike.” Excuse me ma’am, my body was cut open and I saw their shared placenta. They are indeed identical (monoamniotic/monochorionic) twins.” — Kelli Sandra

“I dislike when people ask me, in front of them, ‘Which one is the evil one?’” — Rachel Brooks, Ohio

“A woman shopper stopped to coo to them, asking if they were ‘fraternal or maternal.’ I replied, ‘Both!’” — Kathleen Duke O’Melia, New Jersey

“As new parents, we encountered a lot of (probably well-meaning) negativity: ‘Oh, what a handful,’ ‘Twins, poor you,’ ‘Double trouble,’ ‘Oh, you’ll never rest again.’ I was not prepared to have to say so often, ‘Actually, we are very grateful for our twins.’ I almost wanted to respond with ‘Oh, just the one child for you? Poor you.’” — Elizabeth Greenwood

“‘How wonderful! Twins, right?’ Yes. ‘Are they yours?’ I blinked for a minute and said ‘No … we found them on the side of the road.’ And: ‘Are you sure they are twins?’ Yes. ‘How can you be sure?’ I lost it with that one and asked if she wanted to see the stretch marks and C-section scar.” — Kathleen Otto Schotto

“When my boys were around two, I was in Target loading them into one of the giant double seats. A young woman passed by and said ‘Ew, why would you have kids that close in age? I would never!’” — Katie Barbara

“I have quadruplets. Once a couple approached me and asked if they were all triplets. At which point I acted horrified and yelled for someone to call security as I was counting ‘One, two, three, four — oh, nevermind, they are all here!’ The man behind me in line was highly amused.” — Kim Mecum

“At Walmart, a cashier told me my twins weren’t really twins because they aren’t identical. She kept insisting they looked alike because they were dressed the same, but there’s something about them that makes them look different, so they can’t be. When I mentioned they were fraternal twins, she said it’s not possible — that, yes, they were born the same day, but they can’t be twins because they weren’t identical. She said they are just considered siblings born on the same day. As we were walking away she said ’Enjoy your twins.’ I looked at her and said, ‘Thanks, I will.’” — Melissa Nancy

“At my first pediatrician appointment after they were born, I was making small talk with the receptionist. She asked how much they weighed at birth and then goes ‘So, do they have the same birthday?’ … I guess there’s rare cases that one twin is born separately. I was very caught off guard.” — Jaimie Caicedo

“My brothers are twins. People asked: ‘Are they natural?’ (No, totally radioactive and/or aliens); ‘Are they identical?’ (One redhead, one brown hair); ‘How did you get them?’ (Really?!?) ‘Why don’t their names rhyme?’” — Dorothy Marie Landfried

“When my triplets were young, several people thought it was acceptable to tell me, ‘If I were you, I would kill myself.’ I finally had enough of it and told one of them ‘If I were you, I would kill myself too.’ The look on their face was priceless.” — Margaret

“People would inquire if they were both ours. We had fun coming up with absurd replies: ‘No, the hospital had a buy one, get one free promo.’ ‘One is real, one is a clone.’ ‘This one is ours, I found this one on the way here.’ Absurd questions deserve absurd answers!” — Charlotte

“Once when they were infants we went out to eat and a lady walked over and said, ‘Let’s see, which one is prettier?’” — Laura Graves Hendrix

“I have triplets and more than once I have been asked, ‘Are those three twins?’” —Elisa

“A lady on the elevator with me looked at my girls and said, ‘Oh, such beautiful identical girls.’ I politely said, ‘No, they aren’t identical, but very similar.’ She then said to the girls, ‘Well, mommy isn’t very bright, is she? Anyone can see you’re identical.’” — Andrea Scott

“Them: How far apart are they? Me: 22 minutes. Them: Oh, so they’re almost identical.” — Isabella