You're twins arrival due date is quickly approaching and you're panicking over all the STUFF you might need! What are the essentials to have before your twins arrive.......this is a common question raised by expecting parents.
Based on my experience, here's a little overview of what I found essential for the first several months. I welcome other parents of twins to leave comments of what they found essential as well.
Books
“Happiest Baby on the Block”, Harvey Karp
“Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child”, Marc Weissbluth
“Solve Your Child’s Sleep Problems” Richard Ferber
“Baby 411”, Denise Fields and Ari Brown
i'm often asked for recommendations on books regarding twin care, and I didn't necessarily find anything specific about twins. The website www.twinstuff.com was very helpful.
Essentials
-Receiving blankets (for swaddling)
-Miracle blanket (for swaddling) - www.miracleblanket.com
-Halo Sleep Sack Newborn 2in1
-White noise and/or nature sounds cd or machine - there are cute sound -machines for babies, like Cloud B’s “sleep sheep”. i downloaded a nature sounds/white noise cd on my ipod that i still use at nap and bedtime for my 2 yr olds.
-lovey security blankets (not to necessarily use when they are newbies, but once you want them to start learning to fall asleep on their own, the lovies are all important, as recommended in a lot of the books about sleep (ie, Dr. Karp and Dr. Ferber above) - still very essential for my 2-year olds. We got our lovies as gifts - didn’t even know what they were at first. I’ve since bought several of the same kind to add to the rotation as I need to wash them several times a week since they bite them, fall asleep with them in their mouths and now, as toddlers, share their food with them.
Sleeping arrangements
Sharing a family bed, having both babies sleep in a co-sleeper next to the bed or having two cribs ready for babies' arrival have all successfully worked for parents of twins.
Personally, because I wanted matching cribs as they'd eventually be in the same room together and the family bed was not an option for us, we got our two cribs set up before our twins arrival. We had one crib in our bedroom and one in their room with the idea that we'd keep both in our room, sharing a crib, as long as that worked. The configuration of our room made a co-sleeper impossible, although I know many parents of twins successfully used a co-sleeper for both babies until they outgrew it.
Bouncy seats
You'll definitely benefit from having two of these!
Diapers
Another topic often asked about - cloth diapers. I used a diaper service for the first 9 - 10 months before taking on the role of washing the diapers myself. I also always used a combination of cloth and disposable. I used disposables at night and if we went on an outing. Sometimes, after a bad diaper blow-out, I'd need to switch to disposables to get myself a break. In case you didn't know (as I didn't), you still need to buy and wash diaper covers even when using a diaper service.
I used Mother Herb Diaper Service, which I loved. I eventually bought the same brand diapers that Mother Herb uses when I bought my own and was very pleased with the Willow Sprouts Change diapers that do not need to be folded. I mention this because getting a diaper on a 10-month old gets more challenging as they like to move and roll around. I found the tri-fold diapers would not stay folded correctly under my wiggly babies! I found the Willow Sprouts Change diapers to be a big improvement at that age.
Strollers
Deciding on what stroller to put on our baby registry was one of the most difficult. Double strollers are all expensive and seemingly complex. will it fit through doorways? what is going to be more flexible as they grow? will it fit in the car? is it difficult to fold up? you can drive yourself mad trying to figure out which stroller to invest in. The bottom line is this...you will most likely need several different strollers, just as parents of a single usually have several for different circumstances. The good news is that, in my experience with 2-year old twins, you can do just fine with a combination of single strollers, baby carriers and one double stroller.
I recommend that you put the double snap n go for carseats on your baby registry. Almost all parents of twins I know found the double snap n go essential in the first 3-6 months.
Once the double snap n go started feeling difficult to steer as the babies got heavier, I bought a used single snap n go and would wear a baby while pushing the other. Eventually, as my guys got bigger and outgrew the infant carseat, I used a single umbrella stroller (which i had on my baby registry and received as a gift) to replace the snap n go. I much prefer this arrangement personally than any double stroller as it is the most maneuverable. I wore one and pushed one as long as I could wear one comfortably. I also bought a used jogging stroller as a stroller with big wheels is much easier to push over uneven pavement and/or grass/dirt. The two single strollers (umbrella and jogging) are still very much used. Even though I am not able to wear anyone anymore (at 2 years old), my husband still can. When we go out together with the boys, my husband usually wears one on his back and I push the other in a stroller.
I didn’t get an actual double stroller until their 1st birthday. By then, we had a better idea of what features were most important to us.
-If you are having a winter baby, “BundleMe’s” are wonderful - Fleece bags that fit in carseats and strollers
Baby carriers
We used Mobywraps and slings during first 3 months then Ergos and love, love, love the Ergo as you can continue to wear them in the Ergo until they reach the weight limit of 35-40 lbs (3-4 years old). Our guys are big (30 lbs at 2 yrs) and can still be worn comfortably in the Ergo by my husband. A word about the Mobywraps....I love the flexibility and closeness you get with the Mobywrap. However, it is involved to get on and off which is more problematic for moms of twins. It is not easy to get one baby out of the Mobywrap/get the Mobywrap off yourself when your other baby is screaming and wants to be nursed. This was my biggest problem with the Mobywrap....I think if I were to do it again, I would get the infant insert for the Ergo and would have started using the Ergo earlier. At the time, having already spent what felt like so much on various carriers, i didn’t want to spend more money on the infant insert when I wasn’t sure if I’d use it. A word about Ergo models.....I have an original design that works great for me (5’4”, small frame.) I recommend the Ergo Sport for moms or dads who are tall. My husband, who is 6’4” did not like that he had to pull all the straps to their limits for it to fit him. The Ergo Sport has longer straps and can accommodate taller, larger framed people. We both love our Ergos.....I’d recommend that parents of twins each get their own so that you don’t have to re-adjust straps, etc. From what I’ve learned, the below baby carriers are superior than the popular baby bjorn for several reasons: first, and probably most important, the carriers below all have broader seat bases to support baby’s pelvis.
-Mobywrap – great for newborns, but involved to get on – www.mobywrap.com
-Sling – best to buy locally and get instruction how to wear
-Ergo, beco or boba - great carriers that can be used for years. They all are similar, but have slight differences. I believe all are recommended to use when baby is around 4 months old – if used before 4 months old, “infant insert” is needed. I believe Beco comes with infant insert. Ergo sells infant insert separately.
Boba has a good baby carrier comparison: http://www.bobababycarrier.com/index.php?page=compare-baby-carriers
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