I have a twin sister named Kari--Kar for short--who is two minutes younger. We were delivered three weeks early, at almost 3am, on May 7th. My parents didn’t find out that there were two of us until about a month before we were born (maybe due to the less-advanced early-80s technology?). I don’t blame my parents for not having any other kids. I am sure that two at once is plenty to handle when both mom and dad have to work.
Growing up with a twin was different. When I watch tv and see children playing by themselves, I always wonder what that would be like because my sister and I always had someone else there. While going to school, enduring dentist appointments, playing in the yard, getting ready for bed, etc., we were never alone. We celebrated every birthday together, graduated from elementary school together, got our drivers licenses together, went to dances together… you name it, we did it together.
People always ask if it is “cool” being a twin, and I honestly don’t know how to answer; I don’t know what it is like to not be a twin. I can say, however, that it isn’t all fun and games. Being a twin brings with it a whole bunch of identity-related issues that my sister and I still struggle with as adults.
I don’t really have any recent photos, but I scanned these while at my parents’ house yesterday:
This picture was taken when we were really small. You can always tell which one is me because I was much chunkier than my sister. The average birth-weight for twins is 5lbs 8oz. My sister was 5lbs exactly, and I was 5lbs 11oz (meaning that I was giant compared to her). My poor mom… over 10.5 pounds of baby total!
Could we be any more adorable?! This was taken in our backyard in Santa Ana at 13 months old. I’m on the left.
This was our first time dressing up for Halloween (1.5 years old). These outfits were homemade; my parents used coat hangers to get the ears to stand up. Apparently, we were looking up at an airplane that was flying over. The next two Halloweens, my homemade costumes (a clown and Frankenstein’s creature) were not-so-cute.
This picture was taken at a wedding when we were 20 months old. Thanks mom and dad for cutting our hair at home. Look at those horrible bangs! :)
Here we are at two years old. We grew up with a house/yard full of reptiles, but I think this picture was taken at my grandmother’s house. According to what’s written on the back of the photo, the desert tortoise was named Sam.
Here we are outside of the Santa Ana Zoo at 3.5 years old. I’m smiling really hard!
This one is from the third grade. I believe that this was taken at the Balboa Pier. Look at those jackets! That bright parachute material gives you a good idea of when the picture is from!
Yesterday, my mom and I went through all of the photo albums from babies to junior high. We were crying we were laughing so hard by the end of it. Lots of dated outfits, awkwardness, and ugly glasses :)
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That is cool. I wondered before what it would be like to have a twin.
ReplyDeleteI think its Awesome that you have a twin, My sister and I look very much alike as well and people always ask us the same thing but no we are not but I Can relate, God bless you !
ReplyDeleteThe same way you say you can't imagine not having a twin, I don't think I can imagine having a twin myself. When I was younger, I wanted to have a twin pretty badly. I'm closest with my brother who is my two-year junior, so while growing up we were inseparable and always wanted the same things and to do the same activities. It's as close as I'm going to get to experiencing having a twin, and good times were had in any case.
ReplyDeleteAwesome! I remember you mentioning that you had a twin last fall but never showed us any pictures. There so cute and you look so different. Must be fun to have an twin and be like best friends! But I'm sure its not.always like that.
ReplyDeleteOh and that's my sisters name too! :)
ReplyDeleteThat seems like so much fun! My only other sibling is ten yrs older than me so I always had to entertain myself or try to make friends. I'm a huge " friends" fan and whenever I think of twins I think of phoebe and Ursula but if u watch that show I hope there's no Ursula!
ReplyDeleteOh wow that's amazing! I would have never guessed you had a twin. I'm an only child myself and always liked the idea of having an older sibling, though the thought of having a twin never crossed my mind though. It might be quite the experience having a sibling, let alone if it's a twin! :"D
ReplyDelete(But that's just an only child speaking.)
I also know what it's like to be a twin. My brother and I went through our entire lives together and to this day many people still mistaken us even though we're fraternal. We love hanging out with each other but we also know how to get under each other's skin.
ReplyDelete@David~ When we were born, the doctors were unable to figure out if my sis and I are identical or fraternal. Most twins are fraternal (even twins who totally look alike), so I'm guessing we fall into that category as well.
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