And you thought eating just one Lay's potato chip was hard

We are about two weeks away from the twins' first birthday, and I don't want to be premature on calling this, but it appears as though we will all actually live to see that day.  I have been fortunate to read a lot of insightful posts reflecting on lessons learned about raising twins through the first 12 months of life.  This will not be one of those posts.  Instead, I created a list in the hopes of normalizing what new twin mommies are going through, and giving the rest of the world a glimpse into this challenge.

So here it is: Ten things that are easier than surviving the first year of parenting multiples.

1. Earning 100% on every quiz, test, and paper in an advanced college organic chemistry class.

2. Finding the perfect birthday gift for your sister/BFF/mother/grandma who already has everything and has returned every present you bought her for the past 10 years.

3. Becoming fluent in Kamassian, an extinct language of Russia whose last native speaker died in 1989.

4. Painting your toenails and fingernails, with accuracy, while sitting in complete darkness next to a humming bee's nest.

5. Losing the last 20 10 pounds of baby weight.

6. Convincing your 3-year-old that he doesn't really want to watch Little Einsteins for the umpteenth time, but would instead be happier catching the latest episode of What Not To Wear.

7. Identifying all symbolic objects and allegorical relationships in the book "Lord of the Flies" without buying Cliffs Notes or consulting Wikipedia.

8. Fitting into your skinny jeans, when you have your period and just polished off an entire can of Pringles (washed down with some Coke and a bag of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups).

9. Composing a blog post, with actual sentences that make actual sense, when you've had 4 hours of uninterrupted sleep only a handful of times in the past year.

10. Finding true and everlasting love as a contestant on The Bachelor.

And because it's easier than writing actual sentences that make actual sense, now some photos.