I just read an article on the net about a woman who had twins at 60. No, she wasn’t a surrogate for someone else. She had twins for herself at the age of 60. She had two children that were in their 30’s, another child that she’d had at the age of 53, and then twins at 60. When she wrote the article her twins were 9, making her 69.

OK, so I’m no judge of what anyone else wants to do with their bodies and their lives. Don’t care. But the impact it had on me was, “OH MY GOSH! IT WOULD KILL ME.” If the actual pregnancy didn’t kill me, or the birthing of the babies (and I’m only a young 58), raising the twins would do it. I would lay down one day while folding small clothes and simply expire.

I often talk about how much I love spending time with my six-year-old granddaughter. And I do. But for every day I spend with her, I have to take a day to recover. And by recover I mean I get in bed, cover up my head and watch TV all day through a little split in the covers.

So, either this woman is a super woman, or I am a total old lady with no energy and no spunk!  It kind of almost makes me cry when I think about having to raise twin babies at this point in my life. Think in terms of the ad where the couple speeds off in the taxi and the grandma and grandpa shuffle toward them and say, “Don’t leave us with the babies!”  Maybe that’s more of a hyperventilating panic than a cry.

She obviously wanted them very much because she went through In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) in order to become pregnant at 60. She even had to go to Africa for the ‘operation’ because she couldn’t find doctors in the U.S. that would do the procedure after the age of 55. Most would not do it after the age of 45. And so, I can only guess that she knew what she was in for and ready for the challenge. Me….not so much.

I can barely get myself up and ready in the morning, much less a 7-year-old and twin babies. Who is this woman? Where does her energy come from? What is wrong with me? Do I need more vitamins? Am I not getting enough protein in my diet? Do I need to eat more fruit? Maybe an occasional kale and soy milk shake?

Reading this article has left me feeling completely useless as a 58 year-old Gigi. I really need to step up my game. I think that if I can get to Monkey Joe’s or the skating rink twice a month I have really accomplished something great. Now I just don’t know. I wonder if there is some Gigi/grandparent doctor out there that can help me figure out what level of energy I “should” have at 58.

Oh well, in the meantime, I’ll just keep up my pitiful little display of going to breakfast every now and then with my granddaughter, taking her shopping to look for “Finding Dory” Mystery Boxes, lunch at Steak & Shake, a couple of hours at Bubbles & Brushes, then home for some winding down watching Kids YouTube and a sleep over. Next morning, I’ll pack that six-year-old up and unload at her mom’s and dad’s house, and get back to my place as quickly as possible to rest up for the next 24.

All the while I’ll think about the woman who had twins at 60. And wonder what’s wrong with me.

How old is too old for you to have babies?  😉

dmzh