(My) Must-Have Items for Twinfants
Over the past few weeks I’ve been asked on several occasions what items are must-haves for the multiples mom-to-be. It took me a few weeks to round up my ABSOLUTE musts but here goes. Annnnnnnd GO:
Double Snap n Go (1) by: Babytrend $87
Babytrend is the only one who makes a double “Snap n’ Go” and it’s awesome. The price is right, it’s super practical (lots of space under the seats, can fit through doorways) and it’s the only stroller we’re using right now. Our plan is to rock it for as long as the girls fit into their infant carseats, which brings me to:
Peg Perego Infant Carseats $279
As a super generous gift my Nana bought us the (above) carseat(s) for the twins and they’re amazing. By far the nicest infant seats I’ve seen. They’re actually PHYSICALLY attractive as well as being well designed and safe for babies 5lbs and up. (Reverie was exactly 5lbs when she was released from the NICU and she was able to safely come home in this seat.)
Contoured Changing Pad (Portable) (various prices)
I’ve been sleeping in the living room for the past five+ weeks since the babies came home from the hospital so every night, I set up shop in the dining room, prepare bottles, arrange the changing pad on the table, surround it with diapers, changes of clothes et al and get ready for my night of napping on the couch between feedings. (This way I don’t wake Hal and he can get a full night of sleep and work on a full brain.) I do realize the portable changing pad is kind of the only changing pad that exists so this is pretty much just a reminder to take full advantage of its portableness. No need for a changing table when you have a bed and/or furniture to plop a portable pad. Just make sure it’s of the contoured variety.
Boppy Pillows (2) $25 each (does not include slip-covers which you will also need)
We heart Boppy Pillows. They’re ideal for mothers both nursing and not. (I nursed/pumped for the first six weeks and am now feeding solely with formula. More on that soon.) Boppy pillows are SO TOTALLY helpful for those with cluster-feeding twins. I know some twin mothers tandem nurse which is AMAZING. I, however, am not, so when both babies wake hungry at once and I’m alone I prop them both in the Boppy, bottle in each hand and rock. Without the Boppy, I don’t know how this would work. And having two is ideal for when friends and family, and/or nannies lend a hand. The girls also enjoy being propped in their Boppys on the couch while I work.
Baby Bjorn Bouncy Seat, $132
Without the Bjorn Bouncers I don’t know that I would ever have a hands-free moment. Swings are great, too (I don’t have a particular swing to recommend. They’re all basically the same?) but the Bjorn bouncers are extremely portable, super easy to clean and in use pretty much all day long. When we eat? Babies sit in their bouncers. When the kids are all home and I can’t carry babies on my person? Bouncer central. They’re actually seldom in their crib, even to nap. (They prefer napping in the Bouncer and I don’t blame them. It looks CRAZY comfortable in there, all canvas-y and awesome. Investing in TWO bouncy seats is a must and the Bjorns are by far my favorite. (They’re also fab for soothing fussy baby #1 while feeding hungry baby #2 . I can feed one baby and bounce the other with the tap of my feet and feel very accomplished indeed.)
Dr. Browns Bottles $21 (with preemie nipples)
Because I was pumping breast milk and supplementing with formula since day one, and my babies were in the NICU for two weeks, they bottle fed more than they nursed. (If your babies are in the NICU they will be fed with bottles in the beginning so the nurses can monitor their food intake.) Because of this, they preferred the Dr. Browns bottles to all of the other bottles we purchased. And because of the slow flow of the hospital nipples, even the standard infant nipple was too fast a flow for the girls. Most stores don’t carry the preemie nipples so you’ll have to order (or register for) them online.
Rented Breast Pump (see your hospital for deets)
With Fable a hand-pump sufficed but I needed a hospital-grade breast-pump this time around. Because my babies weren’t with me their first two weeks of life I pumped around the clock both in and out of the hospital and delivered breast milk to the NICU twice a day after I was released and my babies were not. Even if you don’t plan to breastfeed, if your babies are admitted to the NICU I highly recommend pumping where/what you can. It was the only way I felt connected to them when we couldn’t be together. In fact, waking up every three hours to pump was strangely gratifying those first two weeks they were in the hospital. That being said, because I didn’t know how long I’d be pumping, investing in a pump was unwise. By renting a pump from the hospital I knew that for as long as I’d be pumping I’d have a reliable device. We kept the pump for six weeks and returned it last weekend.
I have a Baby Bjorn carrier, too, which I love, but my Ergo is my go-to. It’s super easy to pack in my diaper bag, throw in my car and with the infant insert I was able to carry my babies as tiny infants. (Reverie is still using the infant insert. Boheme is not.) I have several carriers and the Ergo is the easiest to use and most comfortable. Highly recommended.
Soothie pacifier $3 each
Buy a thousand of these. They’re the best. The hospital turned me on to them and now they’re my BFF. Some parents don’t believe in pacifiers which is fine. But I’ll tell you what: Archer took a pacifier and Fable refused one from the get and Archer was able to sleep through the night at six weeks. (It took Fable over a year! Oy.) Bo and Rev both sleep with pacis and it makes a HUGE difference in my opinion. To all soon-to-be-mother of twins, I say embrace the pacifier. We need all the help we can get, yo.
Aden & Anais Swaddling Blankets $35
I bought two packs of these (eight swaddlers in total) and highly recommend them as a must-have. They double as nursing covers, stroller shades but most importantly are the BEST swaddling blankets on the market. I’m obsessed with them and carry two in my diaper bag and one for each baby (in their carseats/stroller) at all times.
Blooming Bath $40
The makers of Blooming Bath recently sent me (two) Blooming Baths to give a try (ed: you only need one as your babies will not be bathed together) and I fell in love. We bought the babies a standard plastic bathing tub and while Reverie was totally down for it, Boheme HATED it. She loved the Blooming Bath however as did Reverie. It’s a brilliant product created by dads and would make a perfect shower registry gift. BONUS: They’re also super fun in photo-shoots.
Coffee (various)
Coffee is going to be your very best friend for a while. You might want to invest in some high quality grounds and/or move next door to a coffee shop. Not joking. Getting out with the babies and walking even a few feet can be an incredibly rewarding experience. Every time I leave the house with both babies I give myself 789172891 high-fives. Anyway, coffee. Stock the hell up, friends.
HELP via friends, family and/or hired nannyhelper:
(my mom + Boppy + Aden & Anais swaddle blankets + Dr. Browns)
I realize that full-time help is not a luxury most of us have, that I have been INCREDIBLY lucky to have my mother here. Still, many of us have friends and/or family that have and will continue to offer to help. TAKE THEM UP ON THEIR OFFER FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY. My mom has been staying with us since the babies were born almost eight weeks ago. She’ll be here another week or two before returning home to San Diego leaving us to fend for ourselves as a family of six. And by “fend for ourselves” I mean fend with a full-time nanny. As a working parent I don’t have a choice in the matter but I highly recommend exploring your options regardless. If you can’t afford to hire someone, ask a friend, family member to come stay with you the first few weeks… If you have a baby registry? Registering for “help hours” is a great way to ask for help without feeling pushy. In conclusion: DON’T BE AFRAID TO ASK FOR HELP. More than all of the above, having some extra help around the house is the biggest must of twin must-haves.
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Any twin moms out there want to add to the list? Did I miss something? Please comment away with your recommendations! And to those expecting multiples, please feel free to post any/all questions in the comments. I was incredibly lucky to have so many awesome readers offer me advice and twinsight when I was pregnant and I’d like to return the favor. Godspeed, mamas!
I second the swaddling blankets. We loved them and my now almost 2yr old twins carry them around all the time. We also loved the twin bassinet pack and play by Graco. Ours slept in theirs until we transitioned them to their cribs at 4mo.
The Halo Sleep sacks are great too! I’d also recommend the book Healthy Sleep Habits for twins. It saved my life and helped me get them on a schedule I could manage!
As a twin mom of two year olds I whole-heartedly agree with this list.
Double snap n go: Lightweight enough for me to lift almost immediately following my c-section. And it meant I didn’t have to risk waking a sleeping baby in the transition to a stroller
Bouncers: The reason we were able to sleep and shower
Dr. Browns: Kick Ass
Ergo: By far the most comfortable baby carrier/wrap we tried.
Soothies: Awesome and you can buy them online in different colors, if you want everyone to keep their pacifiers to themselves
The only thing I would switch is a “My Breast Friend” pillow (ignore the ridiculous name) with the boppy. It is bigger and I thought it worked better for twins.
Good to know, Fun mama. I know a lot of other mothers who swear by My Breast Friend. Thanks! And Denise, just purchased a Halo sleep-sack for Bo who NEEDS to feel squeezed at all times. Can’t wait to give it a try as soon as I can peel her off my body. (Wearing her in ERGO now.) xx!
The Halo sleep sacks with swaddle were great for us… I couldn’t get the aden blankets tight enough and my baby would kick out after a few weeks and be all free and angry. The sleep sakcs were our best friend. Could even change diapers while still swaddled.. man was that nice.
But otherwise I agree with your list!
If you are planning to tandem feed the babies I’d suggest a twin-specific pillow that supports both babies at once. (There are several varieties – My Brest Friend makes one, as does Double Blessings. And I think there are others…) Boppy-type pillows are great for babies to hang out in regardless, but not always the best for double feeding on your body. (You can also use a twin nursing pillow for bottle feeding, though I’m not sure how the arm position would work in the long term.)
And I definitely agree that asking for and accepting help are MAJOR with twins. I sometimes suggest that moms create a “to-do” list to post on the fridge so when people come over you can just point them to the list so they can do at least one helpful thing besides just visit – not that visiting isn’t sometimes exactly what you need, but taking the trash out or unloading the dishwasher can be SO helpful, too!
I second the twin bassinet Pack n Play by Graco. It rocked for the first few months for our twins to sleep in, and it is still functional now as a larger than average pack n play.
Another must have for us is the KidCo Peapod travel bed – so compact and great for traveling with two, and functional for the park, beach, etc.
Once your kids are mobile I highly recommend a big play yard of some kind. It saves our lives daily, and my only regret is that I didn’t get it sooner.
Ok, so no twins over here, but I have a hot tip on pacifiers if you dig the Soothies! It’s called a gum drop pacifier. This is what my hospital gave my son when he was born. Same type of design, but this paci is made so that it doesn’t cover your baby’s nose (also phthalate free, bpa free, latex free). And the best part? You can buy a value pack of 6 for less than $12! http://www.gumdroppacifier.com
I’m not a mom of twins, but if anyone is looking for a swing recommendation, then I highly suggest the Fisher Price Snugabunny Cradle ‘n Swing. We borrowed an earlier model of this swing when my daughter was born two years ago, and she would have probably stayed in there all day minus feedings and diaper changes if I had let her. When my son was born a few months ago, we had to buy our own (no borrowing this time), but he feels the same way about the swing.
The reason I love it is because it swings front to back OR side to side, and you can also recline the little basket so that the baby is in a laying-down position. When my son falls asleep in there, I just recline and let him nap safely. I also love this particular model because it can use batteries OR electricity. The earlier model we borrowed for my daughter was only battery-operated, and I felt like we were changing out the batteries on the thing every 2 months for a year.
And you can buy it pretty much anywhere, although I highly recommend that if you buy big-ticket baby gear items in general, you price compare against Amazon. We were able to get this swing for about $30 savings PLUS free shipping right to our door (no trying to lug a bulky box through a store and into my trunk while 6 months pregnant and a toddler in tow).
That’s just my two cents on a good swing.
If Bo likes to feel squeezed, you might also try the Wombie. Its a zip-up swaddle and seriously squeezes the baby, but is made of stretchy material, so the baby can still move. My first was colicky, so I feel for ya, mama…and I only had 1 baby at a time! Also, inquire with the ped sooner, rather than later, if you think she might have reflux. Oy! I was a first time mom and kept going, “man, this baby sure does spit up a lot…all day long”. Reflux meds really helped my colicky boy…though they didn’t end it totally.
No twins in my house, but I’ve had 2 babies that loved a tight swaddle. We used the miracle blanket until they were pushing 6 months old – loved it.
Another mom of twins here, and I am totally on board with this list! I’d also second the twin-specific nursing pillow (it’s the only way to make tandem nursing do-able) and the miracle blanket, which makes for super easy tight swaddling (I too swaddled my guys until they were six months).
I have 6 week-old twin daughters, and I have found this book very helpful in keeping track of things: http://doubleblessings.com/doubletime.html. Without it I would probably forget who ate when, how much, ect. I would also recommend a Kindle with some good books on it to read while you are feeding babies. You will spend A LOT of time either nursing or bottle feeding (in my case, both) and it is relaxing to read a book while feeding. We use Halo sleep sacks and love them. We also have two bassinets which we roll around the house with the babies in them. It helps keep them safe from our three-year-old :)
As a momma of 3 month old twin boys I completely agree with this list! We have and use regularly everything you listed except the bloom baths and I actually just bought one of those for a friend of mine expecting twins because I think it would be perfect. We also use our pack-n-play to sleep the boys in our room at night. We plan to transition the boys to their room when they start sleeping through the night but until then this has been perfect for us!
http://Www.apairofones.com
I think you pretty much nailed it! We have almost all of these exact things we used for our twin boys. OMG and I can totally relate to camping in the living room!!! Ah, life seemed KAH-razy back then but actually…..it still is! :-D
xo
cortnie
Great list! I just want to add a few things:
I second the suggestion of infant swings made by another mom. We had one and used to switch off with bouncy chair and swing until I realized that the baby in the bouncy chair always got fussy faster than the one in the swing. I bought a second swing and OMG it was as though the heavens parted, I actually got some time to do thrilling things like laundry or make something other than cereal for myself. My fussier baby (with reflux) has practically lived in that swing since about two months old and it’s the only place he’ll nap during the day.
I also recommend that all twin moms cruise Craigslist regularly (do this before the babies come as you won’t have time after they’re born). I am proud to say I bought almost nothing new for my twins. You will often find other parents of multiples trying to unload “batches” of items they’ve outgrown–for example I bought the great double stroller you recommended, as well as two bouncy chairs for $50. A steal! And these things are used for such a brief period, they are usually like new.
http://everythingforareason-moon.blogspot.com/
Totally agree with everything on your list and will add a few more items: We heart the gauzy swaddle blankets (our 3 yo loves them still, especially as a warm weather blanket) but have found the Summer Infant Kiddopatumus swaddles to be our life-saver. Like some other posters, we just couldn’t get the blankets tight enough and when you swaddle 2 babies 80 times a day doing the swaddle wrap gets seriously old. Velco rules. (We also tried the Wombie, but both our babies hated it for some reason.) Boppys are a must but I use a body pillow to feed both our 3.5 mo old twins at bedtime. My last must-have is a note book for recording feedings, diapers, naps, etc. because there is no way you’ll remember those things, especially functioning on less than a full night sleep. Or if you want to get all high tech, go for the Itzbeen baby timer.
I have triplets that are almost 3. My recommendation for infants is the Miracle Blanket. It will have your babies sleeping for long periods of time, like, a miracle…
Perfect list. Also recommend the Dr Brown’s formula pitcher – no more lumps or shaking those bottles like mad to mix. They’re small enough that you can use one per child if they are on different formulas and still fit in the fridge.
Once the babes get a little older, the Maclaren twin triumph umbrella stroller is fab – folds down tiny and light to swing in and out of that minivan.
My twins are just over a year now, and I’m trying to teach them to high-five so that we can congratulate each other on making it through a whole year and still smiling. Most of my favorites have been addressed (the boppies, bjorn bouncer, dr. browns bottles, sleep sacks).
I can add in one tip on the carrier I love: the Beco Butterfly. I’ve used a moby, ring sling, storchenweige, mei tais, you name it with babies over the years but the Beco’s internal liner makes flipping a baby around to carry on your back so very very easy. Our out-of-the-house routine is one baby on the back, one in the seat of the grocery cart. Or one baby on the back, one in my arm, and one hand free as a bird.
My last suggestion: find your local moms-of-multiples group. You may never have time to make it to the meetings once your babies are born, but you have people that know exactly what you’re going through. My group has a very robust online message board and it’s so comforting to be able to sneak a few minutes online here and there and read discussions that apply to me or that I can contribute to.
Great list, hard to believe you are this far along with the babies — that it’s been months! As a mama of 2 y/o twins (have to remind myself we’ve made it through the hardest part, yay!!) — I do have some things to add. (SO wish I had known about that awesome flower squooshy tub when they were tiny!)
— Hands-free pumping bra
— ScootaBaby hip carrier for when they are a little older
— Twin Weego carrier for when they are very little and you need to carry both at once. Somewhat structured to ensure great positioning and super easy to put on/take off. Especially good for premature babies as you can carry them in the front and they can be as little as 3 pounds each.
— The Miracle Blanket (if you are into swaddling for sleep and they are able to break free of blankets, no matter how well you wrap them)
— Grobag Gro-Egg thermometer for their nursery, so you can easily ensure the room is a good temp. for them + a fan for the room
— Bob Double stroller, once they are out of infant car seats
—- A “Lovie” in addition to the pacifier (if you are so inclined). We held off for many months on a pacifier (was worried about nipple confusion) and it changed my son’s sleep pattern dramatically once we allowed him to have one. At the same time we introduced “Lovies” (Angel Dear is a great brand… cute heads and little blanket bodies that are not big enough to cause a suffocation hazard, according to my doc… but be sure to check with yours before using one). When my kids finally got attached to their Lovies (took many months) it made a huge difference for them, especially b/c I couldn’t always hold them both at the same time and though I felt a bit guilty and silly encouraging them to be attached to something other than me, it was necessary. Get two of whatever kind they end up loving, just in case one is misplaced.
— As another mama mentioned definitely, definitely join a parents of multiples group. Even if you only ever use them for online support. Took me too many months to really utilize my local group and I wish I had done it earlier. So many questions can be answered and so many of your difficult experiences validated. Makes a HUGE difference.
— And… join Amazon.com MOM. Combine that with Subscribe and Save when ordering diapers, wipes, etc. and you’ll save 30% (and no tax, no shipping!)
Oh, forgot to mention that the Wubbanubs are a great combo of a Soothie brand pacifier and a Lovie. (My son liked other pacifiers, but some kids adore the Wubbanubs and they are easy to hold even before they can “hold” things. Can rest them on their chest, etc.)
great list! you nailed it mama! my twin girls are 6 months old and only a little over 12 pounds. even at that tiny size i have come to dislike my snap n go intensely! i ditched it a few months ago and got a maclaren twin side by side stroller. it’s much easier to push and the girls seem pretty happy in it. i also LOVED my sleepy wrap (now called the boba wrap i think) in the early days. now we pretty much use an ergo and a boba whenever we go anywhere. a hands-free pumping bra (medela makes one) is a must if you’re pumping often. oh, and one more thing that my girls loved was the fisher price rock & play sleeper. try it. you’ll love it. now that we’re eating real food i couldn’t live without my bumbo seats & trays. and once they’re mobile i hear i will NEED one of those big play yard thingies….otherwise known as baby jail. oh, and bathtub seats make bathtime much easier once they can sit on their own but still need to be corralled. i try to buy minimally, but with twins you need some serious gear! :)
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