Honey, I Switched The Kids! People Share Times Identical Twins Got Mixed Up
Picking out baby names is an important and fun part of the pregnancy process. You sit down and brainstorm a list of names, slowly eliminating options until you reach the right one. With twins, you get to have double the fun and pick out two.
Raising two babies at the exact same time is hard enough without the added challenge of trying to tell them apart. When someone asked if any parents had ever accidentally mixed up their twins on Reddit, people were quick to share their identical twin stories.
I Mean, You Don't Really Need To Be There In Person For A Renewal
"My grandfather and his twin brother loved to use their similarity to their advantage. My favorite story was that they had to renew their driver's licenses, but one of them couldn't make the appointment. So one of them just went twice - and just put on a hat the second time."
It Takes Dedication To Keep Up A Ruse For A Whole Year
"In third grade, a pair of twins at my school each didn't like their teacher so they just switched early in the first semester. Some kids knew, but none of the staff or their mom who worked at the school ever found out, at least not in that year. They definitely bragged about it the next year."
Smart Move: Better To Play It Safe
"My twin boys are thirteen-years-old now. While I'm pretty sure I never accidentally switched them, I did mostly address them with very generalized words like 'son' and 'buddy' when they were younger so that I wouldn't call them by the wrong names."
Honestly, good on you. They'll never suspect a thing.
Those Twins Who Just Live For Mischief
"My mom is an identical twin who lives across the country, but when they get together they find it hilarious to get the same haircut and dress the same. There was nothing more frustrating as a teenager than coming home and lament to my mom only for her twin to say, 'I'm not your mom!'"
These Parents Basically Lived The Plot Of Home Alone
"Identical twin here. When I was four-years-old, we were at Disney World with all my cousins who are around the same age. I wandered off for just a minute. When my mom was doing a headcount, my brother moved and she counted him twice, so it took them a few minutes to realize I was lost."
Matching Clothes Are Cute, But At What Cost?
"Am father of identical twin toddler boys and my wife feels it's soooooo cute to dress them the same, so we mix them up more than one may think acceptable. There are some very small tells that I can find on each, but now I usually try to get them to tell me and look for signs if they're lying."
One Kid Is Just Double Blessed, I Guess
"My grandmother baptized the same kid twice."
This is exactly how evil twins are made. One got blessed twice early in life and the other one was left to grow in their dark and twisted ways. When they're older, they're definitely going to turn into real-life superhero vs. super-villain nemeses.
*DJ Khaled Voice* Another One!
"I was a volunteer at a summer camp when I was 18. On the last day, one of the girls I didn't talk that much to came to say bye to me. Then her twin sister came up as well. I had no idea they were twins, or that it was two of them up until that moment."
"Please Don't Be Mad I Tried To Kidnap Your Daughter"
"I took my three kids to the park, two of which are twins. Twin 1 had a big purple star on the back of her coat which I used to keep track of her. I got distracted by the other two. When I scooped the kids up to go home, I accidentally snagged another little girl who had the same big purple star on her coat.
I only noticed when her dad yelled at me. No hard feelings, but it was embarrassing."
We All Sometimes Just Get Too Tired To Be Social
"My twin, when approached by someone he doesn't want to talk to, will sometimes say: "Oh sorry, I don’t know you; you must be thinking of my twin.' He does this to people that he actually knows. He pretends to be me to get out of talking to people when he doesn't feel like holding a conversation."
I Would Accept A Sneaky Second Dinner Any Day
"As an infant, my grandmother fed my sister twice thinking she had fed the two of us."
Listen, grandma was just trying to do her best and may have gotten a little mixed up. I mean, it's not like the sister in this situation indicated that she'd already had her bottle and didn't need another.
Wait, Is She Attending Her Own Funeral?
"At her twin sister's funeral, my grandma decided to go sit up front next to her deceased twin's husband. People would walk into the room, look at my grandmother sitting next to my great-aunt's husband, look at my great-aunt in the casket, and back and forth about five times. My great-aunt had so many friends who never realized she'd had a twin."
Behind Enemy Lines; They Don't Suspect A Thing
"We were playing capture the flag, but the teams got to hide their flag. Well, each team in my game had a twin on each team, and the one on my team walked over to the other team's side and asked to be reminded where their flag was. He grabbed it and ran back before anyone noticed he was the wrong twin."
...And The Truth Comes Out
"My aunt had identical twin boys. We once teased that they could very well be the wrong one. My aunt swore that it never happened. After the kids went outside, my aunt took a gulp of wine before saying: 'I used to mark one of their feet with a marker and one day after a bath I couldn't find the mark anymore. Just don't have the heart to tell them."
Now You're Back To Square One
"I coached high school football for a few years, and there were identical twins on the team. During tryouts, one of the boys was wearing a crop shirt under his shoulder pads, and I was able to notice he had a giant scar on his stomach from appendix surgery.
I thought this would be the way I could distinguish between the kids! Turned out both of the boys had their appendix taken out."
One Twin Absorbed All The Ouchies!
"During a checkup when our twin boys were about six months old, they had to get two shots each. Due to lack of communication in the clinic, our oldest son got all four shots. Luckily, nothing bad happened."
Nothing We Can Do About It Now!
"My best friend's dad got drunk one night and confessed that, while they know the older twin is named Gary and the younger twin is named Bill, he was giving them a bath when they were a month old and lost track of which one was which.
He never told the mom, just put one back in the 'Bill' outfit, and the other in the 'Gary' outfit. This happened two other times before they were two years old."
I'm Glad She Married An Honest Man
"My grandmother had an identical twin. At my grandparents' wedding, my grandfather was dancing with my grandma's twin sister and she said, 'You know, this is the first time we've ever danced together.'
He responded, 'Really? I never knew which one of you I was dancing with at the high school dances.'"
One Party Got The Raw End Of The Deal
"Twin here! My brother and I use to take each others' classes at university. We decided that he would take my math class and I would take his English class. We only did it for one semester though because I failed his English class and he got an A for me in math."
That's One Way To Make A First Impression!
"I remember having algebra with a boy who's a twin. As a newer kid, I didn't realize he had a twin and I never saw them together.
One day, I borrowed a pencil from him during class. The next day, I gave it back. He was confused, which made me confused. But he took the pencil anyway, then promptly walked to his brother — who was in the same class — to return the pencil."
I Mean, It's An Easy Mistake To Make With Identical Twins
"One of my brothers (they're twins) passed away about a year ago. During the wake, we had TONS of pictures of him. About halfway through, my family realized my mom had accidentally chosen one picture of twin 2 (every other picture but that one was of twin 1). Nobody else at the wake noticed."
If You Thought Two Were Hard, Throw A Third Into The Mix
"I'm a father to triplets. One night, I sleepily mixed them up and fed Number 1 again. Number 2 eventually realized he wasn't getting fed and screamed my wife awake an hour later, who assumed I hadn't fed any of them and fed them ALL again. At that point, the bottle count was: Number 1 (three bottles), Number 2 (one bottle), Number 3 (two bottles).
My wife realized something was wrong when Number 1 wasn't in the correct cot and projectile vomited his third bottle all over her."
Now I'm Scared That One Twin Is On The Roads
"I'm an identical twin. My twin brother took my driving test and passed on the first try. We use each other's ID all the time — driver's license, passports, etc.,— or when we need to pick stuff like packages up. My wife has slapped my brother's butt twice so far because she can't tell us apart from behind."
Make Sure You're Treasured
"I was told at a Mother of Twins meeting to mark the back of every photo because, even if I knew then, I wouldn't be able to tell them apart in the photos ten years later. I took the advice and I'm so glad I did because in the few pictures where they aren't marked or wearing color-coded clothes, I literally have no idea."
This Teacher Has Magic Powers
"Once in my very large high school, I had a teacher stop mid-lecture and say, 'You're not Twin A, go switchback.'
When Twin A came back, he was really embarrassed at getting caught and asked how she knew. She didn't have an answer, but apparently they had switched on at least two other occasions."
That Poor, Sweet, Confused Baby
"My dad has an identical twin brother. Until I was about four years old they'd sometimes pretend to be the other to mess with me. After that age, I could pretty easily tell them apart, but I couldn't (and still can't) really articulate how to do it to other people."
A Type Of Deja Vu Most People Haven't Experienced
"My twin had the same teacher the previous year for a class. He expected anyone he'd taught before to understand how he hands tests back. When I got up there and did it wrong, he slammed his fist on the table and yelled, 'YOU SHOULD KNOW HOW TO DO THIS. YOU WERE IN HERE LAST YEAR!'
I quietly explained that I had a twin brother. The teacher immediately calmed down, blushed, and called the next name."
A Brilliant Twin Identification Hack!
"I am the younger sister of identical twin brothers. My mom was so scared of switching them after removing their hospital bracelets that she painted one of their big toes just until she knew she'd be able to tell them apart."
Keeping them in different clothing colors can only go so far—you need nail polish for bathtime."
"But, What Did I Do Wrong?"
"When I started my current job, I met a woman in the smoking area. We worked on different floors, but usually had the same break time. We got along well and usually chatted when we saw each other. However, she completely ignored me one day—not even a smile. I thought I'd said something to offend her, but the next time we were back to chatting.
About a year later, I saw her and her twin on break together."
It Still Happens Even If You Aren't Identical
"Fraternal twin here! My twin and I are night and day. He wears glasses; I wear contacts. He went to college; I stayed and learned a trade. Get the idea? Well, my grandma doesn't. Twenty-years on this planet and I still answer to my brother's name just out of the goodness of my heart."
