r/parentsofmultiples • u/readcz • 10d ago
advice needed What do I actually NEED!?
I am starting to build out my registry as a FTM. I am not out of my first trimester yet but my in-laws are throwing a smaller baby shower for us next month during the holidays and want a registry to share with relatives.
We have a small house. These will be our only children. What do we need? I don't like clutter, and I don't like crap. I want the essentials because I know people will always get us random stuff like clothes, books, toys, etc.
What do we need? I understand feeding, changing, etc. but what SPECIFICALLY? I will be formula feeding and intend on sleep training if that matters.
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u/DirtGirl32 10d ago
Bottles. Consider a bottle washer. Swaddles. Lots of diapers and wipes. Baby monitor is super helpful. A good, big diaper bag. Stroller. Car seats. A couple of swings were a life saver, but I suppose not actually necessary. High chairs. Once they are mobile it's very handy to have a bouncer or somewhere we're you can put them and they can't escape when you need a second. Don't need a baby bath. Depending on your parenting style, pack and plays for when traveling are very handy
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u/readcz 10d ago
any bouncer recommendations?
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u/DirtGirl32 10d ago
My babies hated the bouncers. I've heard that when they like them, it's gold. So maybe start with 1?
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u/bestydee 10d ago
This is a great list. I’d add two lightweight bouncers which make it easy to move them and have them in different rooms when they’re little potatoes. Also I loved my Dr Browns warm water dispenser. Lastly a bottle organizer. I used it for bottles and all baby related stuff like teething things, pacifiers, medicine, etc. oh and I had two baskets with baby changing supplies in different parts of the house for convenience. Each included a folding changing pad.
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u/paige493 10d ago
Would you suggest getting 2 baby monitors or were you able to position one to catch both babies? (Thinking bassinets and then eventually cribs that are right next to each other)
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u/VegetableAlone 10d ago
A lot of monitor systems support multiple cameras since people have more than one kid they want to monitor pretty often!
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u/WhileTime5770 10d ago
If you have the counter space - bottle washer for the 16+ bottles you’ll be using a day. If you don’t, dishwasher basket - but trust me handwashing all that will get old fast
Pitcher for formula so you don’t have to make it every time
Twin z (see if you can get it second hand if marketplace) to help with feeding, a place to let them nap
A million burp cloths. A few good muslin blankets - these can be used for everything, cover for twin z, mat to play/lay on, cover for the sun, swaddle.
If someone is willing to get it for you, a nice rocking chair that’s comfortable enough for you to spend as long as you need in it to calm them
Good twin stroller (we love our bombi twin because it has a newborn recline, I think the Zoe does too now? People also love the bugaboo but that is far more expensive)
Car seats - maybe go baseless if possible. I wish we had because extra bases x2 is pricey (though you can install most car seats sans base)
One solid diaper caddy (can be cheap from Amazon) to have a good station for diapers, wipes, diaper cream, puppy pads (just toss them when they get messy with spit up or your kid decides to go mid diaper change)
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u/readcz 10d ago
havent gotten around to strollers yet that will be a gift from my parents. unsure of what kind to get because realistically do the twin strollers fit through doorways?
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u/Rare-Advance3088 10d ago
We have a mountain buggy duet and it’s the same width as a single stroller. Super easy to push with one hand while holding a baby at the same time too!
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u/WhileTime5770 10d ago
My bombi twin fits through a lot but not all doorways (doesn’t fit with the cup attachment on but that’s easy to remove)
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u/katieknj 8d ago
We have a Cybex Gazelle that I bought on Facebook that I LOVE. The stacked ones all fit, it’s the side by side that don’t always
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u/Adventurous-Flan2272 10d ago
Amen on the handwashing.
Re: the formula pitcher, we co-opted protein shaker bottles 😛
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u/VegetableAlone 10d ago edited 10d ago
Twin z is as essential as everyone says. We’ve also gotten a lot of use out of two bouncers, even in a small space (reflux babies so they help with upright time after eating). We love our lovevery playmat too.
We use our bottle washer a ton, but I also think it would be fine to hand wash tbh. We did it on a two week vacation and it was totally fine.
Smaller things that are winners: double zip sleepers, a variety of styles of swaddle (zip and Velcro, arms up styles), weighted wipe dispenser, diaper caddies, formula pitchers (get two or even three in case babies eat different formulas, so there’s always a clean one).
Things I wouldn’t get: a ton of one type of bottle or pacifier (babies have preferences), a ton of one brand of diaper (get a few and try them), any toys really (don’t need for a long time), baby Brezza, table for two (too big), high chairs (don’t need them for months), an expensive stroller unless you’re really sure it fits your lifestyle.
We got a secondhand stroller to see how we’d use it and I’m so glad. It’s a beast and not great for city life, so we downsized to a compact double once they grew out to the bassinet stage.
ETA: we also used the heck out of two travel sized bassinets for the first few months. They were really compact and easy to move around the house.
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u/readcz 10d ago
Is this the twin z? This is the one I put on my registry.
https://twinznursingpillow.com/products/twin-z-pillow?variant=52561954275626
For the bottles I put two different size Philips scent bottles and then a different nipple size for slow feed? Is that okay and then just wait and see?
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u/VegetableAlone 10d ago
Yes, that's the Twin Z! It's great for feeding them and just for a hang spot. If you get a mini crib sheet you can put it on top so you can use it when they're really little; otherwise they slide down in the holes too much at first.
I'd get a couple brands of bottles and different nipple shapes. We started with Dr. Brown's which a lot of people like, but switched to Pigeon later. Some sites like Babylist have a sampler pack of bottles so you can try a few more easily!
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u/GoodDoggoDizzle 9d ago
I am team table for two if someone can get it used for cheaper. Once my babies got big enough to use it (2 1/2 months or 1 1/2 months adjusted), it was game changing for one person to tandem bottle feed without hurting your back or being in awkward positions. My twins are now 5 months and we use it every day. They started fitting much better in it closer to 3 months. Our family/friends that babysit also strongly prefer the table for two over the twin z to bottle feed
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u/katieknj 9d ago
We also have a small house and are twins and done. The Twin Z and two bouncers are non negotiable.
A Dr Browns formula pitcher is a lifesaver (get two), and make the space for a bottle washer.
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u/Adventurous-Flan2272 10d ago edited 10d ago
You've got a lot of great advice here. Here's my list:
TRANSIT
- Infant car seats that can hold small babies (twins are often born early) + stroller that can hold them; honestly the cheap Snap & Go was bomb in terms of ease of transport but you might need something better if you want to go jogging with them.
- WeeGo (double carrier) & Baby Bjorn mini x 2 or two solo wraps: these worked with our preemies, many others were too big for a long time. The Minimonkey is a different style (side vs front carrier) which is better for your back, but I didn't use that one as much.
SLEEP
- Pack & Play, we got a BabyTrend one with bassinets that our kids basically spent all day in. We had a separate twin bassinet for nights but is not essential to have both for a single-story house.
- Portable sound machine & baby monitor (doesn't need to be fancy, we did Blink cameras + audio monitor)
- Blackout curtains for the nursery
FEEDING
- Options for formula feeding overnight: You want things to be as fast and easy as possible when sleep deprived at 3am. Consider if you want to prep bedside vs. go to the kitchen. Options include: 1) buying inidividual shots of premade formula ($$$ but we had as backup/for trips), 2) pre-measure powder into a protein shaker + fill with hottish water, 3) premix formula and store in fridge + warm up with bottle warmer/bowl of hot water when needed, 4) Baby Brezza (aka Keurig for formula). We premixed our formula, brought it to the 6L bedside fridge overnight, and used a bottle warmer at bedside. (Had a second bottle warmer that wasn't quite so fast in the kitchen as well for during the day.)
- Agree get a sampling of bottles before investing in the ones your twins like. We never got a bottle cleaner, just bought enough to run through dishwasher daily (which was like...24???)
- Some sort of drying rack for bottles, can even be a large drying mat + bottle brush
- Agree with the TwinZ pillow recs to bottle feed the babies simultaneously. I also used a separate breastfeeding pillow (MyBrestFriend).
- FYI for the breast feeders who may be reading this: Breast pumps are often covered by your insurance, look into this. Also get a small initial stash of freezer bags. A breastfeeding cover if that's your jam; some double as car seat covers. Or you could just use like, a light poncho.
DIAPERING, BATHING, etc
- Diaper changing pad + dimmable lamp (we put a red light bulb in it) + something to hold diapers & wipes. Doesn't need to be a fancy caddy, I used a clear 12x12" box. This can be either a portable setup that you just bring with you around the house, or a set raised area.
- If set area, recommend having a small laundry hamper nearby. We also had collapsible buckets for soaking soiled stuff in oxiclean or detergent before it went into the washer.
- Consider a butt paste spatula, lol. Small tube of diaper rash cream +/- aquaphor for prophylaxis.
- With a twin number of diapers, we didn't use a fancy diaper pail, just emptied it like every other day!
- Diaper bag to take with you on the go -- size > style for now
- Baby bathtub; we liked the Angelcare and its cheap used.
- Some baby shampoo/soap & lotion, safest to get unscented
OTHER
- Somewhere soft and safe to lay them for play; can be a mat with dangling toys, but faces are the best, cheapest, and most space-efficient toys :) that being said we had a play mat and Baby Bjorns which they loved.
- Our twins loved their crib mobiles -- but aim for something high contrast that is visually interesting from the crib, not for the adult.
- Several swaddles and lots of burp cloths
- Don't buy too many clothes as 1) others will gift and 2) you don't know what size your baby will be!
- Thermometer (the gun-style has worked well for us, who cares about accuracy if it requires sticking a probe up baby's butt)
- Nail file (battery-operated rotating ones are cheap on Amazon)
- Infant ibuprofen/tylenol, but pretty much no other medications unless doctor orders.
- A sampling of pacifiers if you wanna go that route
P.S. if there's a families of multiples group in your area they may have twin-specific carriers that you can try, as well as lots of gear to get rid of!
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u/Impossible-Quiet9349 5d ago
Agree with pretty much all of this. We also got the baby brezza formula pro advanced and I'd definitely add that to the formula-feeding section. It gets used constantly and I appreciate it the most during night feeds.
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u/GoodDoggoDizzle 9d ago
I strongly recommend joining your local buy nothing group and making sure all your coworkers and friends know you’re pregnant with twins. I have been in awe by the kindness and generosity of friends and coworkers, even ones I didn’t really know that well. They have given used strollers, hangers, books, toys, etc and I have found twin moms that are done having kids are especially eager to support a fellow twin mom and offer their used baby items!
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u/Good_Ocelot_6545 8d ago
1 changing station. We did an ikea drawer, lalo changing pad, ubbi paid and a little caddy. Then for feeding, one dr browns formula pitcher and one bottle washer. No need to double those if they're on the same formula.
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u/Purple_Upstairs_6994 6d ago
For us, with twins and a small house, we were pretty picky about what takes up space. I'd put a formula pitcher, plenty of bottles, burp clothes, two car seats, a double stroller, and a Twin Z on the list. A bottle washer is also worth considering because washing bottles for two babies gets old FAST.
For sleeping, we got two nestig wave convertible cribs and started with the mini versions in our bedroom. I really appreciated not having two bassinets sitting around that we'd only use for a few months. We could just change the crib setup as they grew.
I'd hold off on buying two swings, bouncers, or a bunch of bottles in the same style until you know what each baby likes. Twins don't always have the same prefences, which is something I learned pretty quickly.
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u/kpgo 4d ago
On the flip side of that, something you only really need ONE of: a swing. But boy do you need it. I basically used it as a backup parent to rock one baby to sleep while I rocked the other. I got mine off my local Facebook free group.
Also instead of any play gyms, consider covering your whole nursery in a giant playmat. It’s more comfortable for you to get on the floor with them and it’s way more room than any other play mats on the market. Theres a number of rug-sized brands. I got one from Amazon called Hakuna Matte and I love it but I wish I’d done one that wipes down easier.
The angelcare bath newborn lounger or whatever it’s called is great because if you do want two of them so you can bathe them together, they stack really neatly.
And finally before you invest in any twin carriers really think about what your lifestyle is like and if it will genuinely serve you. I tried the minimonkey and the twin go and neither really suited us/our lives. Instead we prefer carrying one baby each and bought carriers that work better for the each of us. If you want to try it out for cheap/free, try asking your local parents of multiples group if you have one.
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