Those of you with twins...

[twinlioness]

I'm really digging the City Select tandem stroller, and heavily leaning towards the Chicco Keyfit 30 for carseats. I currently drive a Civic, and I've heard that Chicco's seats are slightly less bulky than the Graco Snugfit. My brother's fiancee's siblings have already offered their 2 cribs. We're not planning on a bassinet, because there won't be enough space in our bedroom for it. But the room with their cribs will be across the (fairly narrow) hallway. No thoughts yet on the playpen; we might end up with a hand-me-down, though, which is fine with me.



So...how long does it take to get them on a schedule (assuming no NICU time)?

And, should we have them in separate or shared cribs? I get that they'll probably have a special bond as twins, but I don't want them to be co-dependent. I've heard, though, that newborns sometimes have issues sleeping in a crib at first because it's so huge compared to them.

This was a life saver for the first 6 months http://www.amazon.com/Baby-Trend-Dou...8669167&sr=1-3

We chose to go with a side by side. As the kids got older it has saved us the argument of who gets to go in front and it also saved us from the one in the back constantly kicking the one in the front. lol If you haven't seen this one try to check it out. http://www.amazon.com/Baby-Jogger-Do...8669285&sr=1-1

The Chicco's are nice if you need the room. We used the snugfit.


I would suggest separate cribs. Oftentimes you have one who is a restless sleeper and disturbs the other and in theory it ups the risk of SIDS. However, I know a ton of moms whose twins slept together up until about 3 months.

And these are bouncers http://www.amazon.com/b?ie=UTF8&node=166851011.

Also, invest in a good swing. Our two didn't love the bouncer but they LOVED the swings.

[jlm4]

Tisha, I have a Zolo I can give you - there are moms who swear by them and youtube has a lot of videos of twin moms using twoof them at once. They are pricey (as are all of the good carriers) so if you want to try the Zolo I can get you halfway there! We are practically neighbors!

Speaking of being neighbors, lets get together while the babies are baking!! If you think you can trust me and my skills I would loooooove to lend you a hand!! I also have amazing daughters (16yo and 13yo) who are helping me raise Guy so they are experts at walkin' & rockin', not to mention feeding and changing. My big boys can watch Guy so we can be at your place whenever you might need us.

Good heavens, I just realized I passed 4000 posts! I'm glad I did it on your thread.

[Brookes4boys]

They make twin carriers so you can wear the babies and a backpack, babies will both be in front while tiny, but once they get bigger that will kill your back and you would need one in front/one in back which wouldn't work with a backpack. That would be once they are 6 months or so though.

We used a regular double stroller for the first year and then had to get a side by side once they were toddlers because of the kicking and hair pulling from the one in the back. That is why hand me downs and used things are so great because with multiples sometimes you will have to try different options to figure out what works for you.

As far as the cribs, we were told by a few different multiples Moms while I was pregnant that they would sleep better together so we only had one crib, but they would not sleep through the night for anything. Finally after 4 months (and extreme sleep deprivation for me) I set up another crib and they slept through the night from that point on! So, you just have to try and see what works best for you. It is possible that in the first few weeks it is comforting for them to still be together but then later they may need their own space. Funny enough, once we put ours into toddler beds they started squeezing into the same bed every night and slept together until just recently (they are 9 now). Needs change, I guess.

[ButterflyDream]

This was a life saver for the first 6 months http://www.amazon.com/Baby-Trend-Dou...8669167&sr=1-3

We chose to go with a side by side. As the kids got older it has saved us the argument of who gets to go in front and it also saved us from the one in the back constantly kicking the one in the front. lol If you haven't seen this one try to check it out. http://www.amazon.com/Baby-Jogger-Do...8669285&sr=1-1

The Chicco's are nice if you need the room. We used the snugfit.

I would suggest separate cribs. Oftentimes you have one who is a restless sleeper and disturbs the other and in theory it ups the risk of SIDS. However, I know a ton of moms whose twins slept together up until about 3 months.

And these are bouncers http://www.amazon.com/b?ie=UTF8&node=166851011.

Also, invest in a good swing. Our two didn't love the bouncer but they LOVED the swings.

How small does the snap & go fold? One of the things I liked about the City Select is that when infant carriers are involved, it appears to fold into a pretty compact package. Although, the BBB that I went to didn't have the carrier attachment adapters--so I might need to check on how well (or if) it folds with those hooked in. Even though my trunk is spacious for a compact car, I don't know if the double snap and go will fit in it. I realize that with twins I'll probably have to trade my car for something larger down the road, but I'm trying to hold off on that expense for as long as possible--especially since we don't know for sure how much the whole pregnancy is going to cost.

Tisha, I have a Zolo I can give you - there are moms who swear by them and youtube has a lot of videos of twin moms using twoof them at once. They are pricey (as are all of the good carriers) so if you want to try the Zolo I can get you halfway there! We are practically neighbors!

Speaking of being neighbors, lets get together while the babies are baking!! If you think you can trust me and my skills I would loooooove to lend you a hand!! I also have amazing daughters (16yo and 13yo) who are helping me raise Guy so they are experts at walkin' & rockin', not to mention feeding and changing. My big boys can watch Guy so we can be at your place whenever you might need us.

Good heavens, I just realized I passed 4000 posts! I'm glad I did it on your thread.

Thanks, Leigh. That's incredibly sweet of you. We're going to be moving back to SD, though--otherwise I'd be thrilled to accept the offer of a hand (or 6). But since my parents weren't too happy at the thought of their only (and much-awaited) grandchildren being 500 miles away, and DH's work is willing to transfer him to the San Diego office with the same amount of pay, we'll be leaving the Bay Area towards the beginning of the 3rd trimester.

But I would absolutely love to meet you, and will happily take you up on the carrier.

They make twin carriers so you can wear the babies and a backpack, babies will both be in front while tiny, but once they get bigger that will kill your back and you would need one in front/one in back which wouldn't work with a backpack. That would be once they are 6 months or so though.

We used a regular double stroller for the first year and then had to get a side by side once they were toddlers because of the kicking and hair pulling from the one in the back. That is why hand me downs and used things are so great because with multiples sometimes you will have to try different options to figure out what works for you.

As far as the cribs, we were told by a few different multiples Moms while I was pregnant that they would sleep better together so we only had one crib, but they would not sleep through the night for anything. Finally after 4 months (and extreme sleep deprivation for me) I set up another crib and they slept through the night from that point on! So, you just have to try and see what works best for you. It is possible that in the first few weeks it is comforting for them to still be together but then later they may need their own space. Funny enough, once we put ours into toddler beds they started squeezing into the same bed every night and slept together until just recently (they are 9 now). Needs change, I guess.

Sounds like I should take advantage of the fact that 2 cribs are available to me from the get-go. My husband is a restless sleeper, while I wake at everything--not a good combination, even with a Cal-King bed. I can only imagine that being confined to a crib with a restless sleeper would be far, far worse.

Our hope is to avoid buying two strollers, although it sounds like we'd be in the minority if we actually followed through on that. It appears that the seats can face opposite directions (one forward and the other facing whoever is pushing), which would hopefully eliminate the kicking issue.

Thanks for all the suggestions and offers, ladies! I'm sure there's lots I haven't thought of, so please keep the advice coming.

[Neicy]

Tisha,

Look into the double snap and go on craigslist. The bay area is awesome for finding things on there.

For only $35
http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sfc/bab/3055870075.html

[twinkiesmom]

Definitely grab both cribs while you can. Your babies may love being together, but you'll have to put them in separate cribs once they start rolling (we just kept them side-by-side so they could touch each other thru the slats).

The side-by-side vs. tandem stroller debate rages hotter than any presidential campaign. We started out w/ a tandem stroller b/c it is easier to get thru doors & aisles, but switched to a side-by-side b/c it is easier to maneuver & avoids the fight over who gets the front seat.

The refrigerator-bottle warmer was made by The First Years; it was called the "Night & Day" bottle warmer. I think they've changed the name but it shouldn't be hard to find at Babies R Us or someplace like that. It made those middle-of-the-night feedings so much easier.

And now, jumping ahead to when your kids are older and must take turns.
1) For episodic things like which toddler gets to play w/ a toy, I bought a big hourglass so that the kid who waited got to have the fun of turning the hourglass over & she/he could really see time passing as the sand poured down. 3 minutes was a good length of time for us: long enough for the player to have a good time but short enough that the waiter stayed calm.
2) For daily things like who gets the first bath or whose favorite lullaby is sung first, I assigned one child even days & the other odd days. DD's lullaby is sung first on odd days & DS's lullaby on even days. Months w/ 31 days don't work smoothly, so DD gets the double in odd months (May 31 + June 1) while DS gets the double in even months (August 30 + 31).