So first of all, if you find yourself here reading this list because you yourself are pregnant with twins, congratulations!
And second of all, don't freak out. Okay, maybe freak out a little bit because twins are like, seriously crazy and cool and surprising and overwhelming and double the cute. You are going to be ok, I promise.
There's things out there in this new "twin mom" world of yours that will make your life easier and were most likely invented by a twin mom because she recognized the need for such things. So know that if there's something you think you'll need specific to twins, it probably already exists and you just need to give it a good Google or ask another twin mom about it. And if it doesn't exist, you should jump on that patent like, yesterday and become rich.
Anyway...
Finding out I was pregnant with twins was quite a shock to put it mildly! I was in denial for a good 4 months and couldn't sleep because my brain wouldn't shut off about ALL the what-ifs. After the initial shock started to wear off (which I still don't think it ever really did, I just became used to it), I started getting down to business and researching nearly everything I needed to know about twins, from sleeping arrangements, double strollers, twin specific gear, and breast pumps. Here I have compiled a list of resources I found helpful and all the gear that made my own life with twins easier after much research.
And you don't necessarily need two of everything. I had one of most everything below except for cribs, bassinettes, and car seats (obviously you need two car seats, duh). Everything else I rotated between each baby otherwise my house would be drowning in gear.
As I write this, we are almost 4 months into twin life, and are still alive!
Websites:
Lucies List
Twinversity
Twin Stuff
Amazon for baby registry
Gear:
Stroller
Contours Options Elite Tandem Double Stroller (Comes with two toddler seats like in the photo above)
Graco Snugride Car Seats (Cheaper than the Contours car seats)
Contours Tandem click connect adapters (so the Graco car seats will work with the Contours stroller)
If you have an older kiddo too, you might consider getting a Tag-A-Long. (Note: Triple strollers are insanely huge, heavy, and hard to steer. If your older kid is still too little or fast/slow to walk along side you, consider putting them in the front of a double stroller in the toddler seat, put a twin in the back of the stroller closest to you in their car seat, and wear the other twin).
Carriers
Weego carrier (soft carrier)
Twingo carrier (more supportive carrier)
Pump/Feeding Supplies
Spectra S1 breast pump (Can be bought used because it's a closed system)
Maymom adapters (to enable use of Medela bottle parts with Spectra pump)
Twin Z Pillow (#1 best twin device in my opinion. I use this ALL the time for feeding, playing, napping, and tummy time)
Formula Pitcher
Hands free bottle holder (#2 best twin device in my opinion)
Sleep
Graco Dream Suite Bassinets, 2 of these
Rock N Plays
Child Craft SOHO cribs and dresser set from Buy Buy Baby (currently not available)
Honeywell Cool Mist Humidifier (serves as white noise too)
Velcro swaddles
Play
Fisher Price Snugapuppy Swing
Fisher Price Rainforest Music and Lights Deluxe Gym
Diaper Bag
Bag Nation Backpack Dipaper Bag (it's super important to keep your hands free!)
Support
Moms of Twins Support Group (Facebook)
MOMS Club (local chapters, search for yours)
Moms of Multiples (local groups, search for yours)
Instagram hashtags (#boygirltwins, #twinmom)
Money saving tip
To save money, try to buy used! I bought the Twin Z pillow for half price from Letgo, the snugapuppy swing and lots of clothes from our local kid's consignment store Once Upon A Child for half retail price, and I was searching for a used Weego carrier but was unsuccessful in finding one so I bought it new, boo.
Try looking on:
Local Facebook garage sale sites
Facebook marketplace
Craigslist
Local kids consignment stores (Once Upon a Child, Kid to Kid)
Just Between Friends consignment sale (MY FAVORITE way to buy and sell!)
Letgo App
Ask friends for hand-me-downs
My moms group had a clothes swap
Then, when you're done with your kid's gear (and you're done with having children because you are, right? Otherwise you'd be crazy. Just kidding! Sort of.) you can sell all this stuff back to your local kids consignment store or at Just Between Friends when they have their next event near you and make some money back to buy new gear and clothes for when your twins get bigger.
Please list your favorite twin gear in the comments below!
No comments
Post a Comment