Baby Items I used During my Twins First Year

Now that my boys are almost two-years-old and I'm all the wiser thanks to hindsight. Below are the baby items that I found most useful for multiples and helped us survive that first crazy year. Good luck!
  • Tiny Love Super Mat - All other baby gyms and mats weren't big enough, this is perfect for two or more and it folds easily for travel. 
  • MAM Pacifiers & Philips AVENT Soothies - I used the MAM pacifiers to soothe them, they stayed in the best & no ring, while the AVENT soothies I would put in the the freezer and the boys would gnaw on them for teethers. Both are BPA free.
  • MAM bottles - We tried Tomee Tippee for the first two months, but the nipple kept collapsing and letting in air. Dr. Brown's came recommended, but there were way too many parts to wash, especially when you have to wash double. MAM bottles are popular in the UK and are now here in the US. The boys took to the flatter nipple better and I loved that I could easily sanitize each bottle in the microwave using their self-sterilize feature and not have to buy another separate sterilizer for it.
  • Britax B-READY Stroller & Infant B-SAFE Car Seats  - The Britax stroller with companion seat was the one I most used during their first year. The double Snap-and-Go was too awkward and long. We ended up selling it by 4m. Instead, I would simply clip the Britax car seats into this luxury base. Later I then snapped in the two seats. It also fit through most doorways unlike a side-by-side stroller and took up less space in restaurants. This was our "we're getting out of the house" stroller.
  • BOB Jogging Stroller - By 6-months and once the weather started getting nice, we used The BOB Revolution SE Duallie almost every single night for a smooth and easy walk around our rugged street and up and down hills. This would help us easily kill an hour before it was time to feed them again and put them to bed. It also benefited us both by encouraging us to get out for some fresh air more regularly. We've also taken this stroller when traveling and flying since it's very durable. Available as a single stroller as well. 
  • Summer Infant Changing Pad with Toy Bar - All changing pads should have a toy bar. I wished I had this from the beginning. It was one of those late purchases I made after they were a few months old. I had a regular changing pad, but as they got older and harder to change, I needed something that helped keep them in place and distracted them. The soft toy bar overhead would at least hold their attention for long enough to quickly change them. Now that they are bigger though, I don't use the toy bar, but it's removable and you still have a changing pad.
  • Tiny Love Super Mobile - I didn't think I would need a mobile as I thought it was just for show. I later went out and bought two, one for each crib. They would distract the boys when I needed to put them down for a bit to do something or while I was changing the other baby. Although the mobile part has since been removed, they are still using the crib toy feature and music even at age 2.
  • Pack-N-Play with a changer - We ended up buying one new and several used for a total of 6! However, in our home we really only used the one that came with a changer. It provided us with a changing station for our downstairs, which was a huge help and better on my back. We also put two regular play yards at Grandma's house for sleeping, which they used often and we didn't have to pack and repack them every time we went for a visit. In hindsight, we only needed 3 though, maybe 4. One with a changer for home, an extra for travel and two for grandma's house. None of which, were the special twin pack-n-play from Graco as we never used it for a bassinet anyway and the twin version only comes in one style only.   
  • Disney Baby Bouncer Seat - Our boys lived in their bouncers for the first 6m. In fact, it was the only place they would sleep in at night for the first 3 months. We would cart these bouncers from the living room during the day too upstairs in their nursery at night. I liked that I didn't have to worry about SIDS as much with them being strapped in. However, you have to be sure and use props to rotate their head so they don't get flat head syndrome either. Even if you don't intend to use a bouncer to sleep in, it's great to be able to put them down securely while you run around the house and cleaning bottles and not have to worry about them rolling around and hurting themselves. We couldn't have done without two! Ours also came with a vibration setting that they loved and music to entertain them.
  • Graco Swing - I picked up two used. For awhile we only had one, but I got the second after feeling bad the other twin couldn't swing at the same time. We used the swing when all else failed. It was our only sure thing that would then put a tired baby to sleep for nap time, even when they were 9m, overtired and not wanting to sleep it would rock it's magic within five minutes.
  • Baby Einstein Activity Saucer & Activity Jumper - I was so busy thinking about the infant stage that I didn't register for items that would be good 6m+. I soon had to scour garage sales and consignment shops for two exersaucers and two jumpers. However, in hindsight, I probably could have just done with two exersaucers and just one jumper.
  • Safety 1st Activity Walker - Luckily, I did register for this, but only one. I read that one twin might not like it, so you should just get one and then see if you need another. Well, they were wrong, so save your own $ and register for two. Granted, we didn't need these until 8m, but they quickly became huge hits with our independent men when discovering their legs more. In fact, for a few months we had to move around our whole living room so they could roam properly. This one also collapses really thin so it's great for storing unlike the saucers and jumpers.
  • VTech Sit-to-Stand Learning Walker - My boys started walking at 11 months and I credit it having a lot of toys around that encouraged them to push themselves up, including this learning walker and the following activity table, which they still played with long after they mastered walking too. 
  • Fisher-Price Laugh and Learn Fun with Friends Musical Table - Hours of fun for a toddler and great to get them standing stronger :)
  • Marpac Dohm Natural White Noise Sound Machine - We still use this every night and when we travel. The steady white noise this device provides not only helps babies fall asleep and stay asleep, it also muffles outside noises, so that parents don’t have to walk on tip toe during nap time and allows the rest of the house to carry on with normal household activities.
  • Duux Baby Projector We went through several night light products before striking gold with this one, which acts as both a night-light and star projector. Unlike the cute light-up turtles and animals that gobble up batteries each month, this simple light is powered by an AC plug. The night-light stays on the entire night, while the color-changing stars shine for the first 30 minutes. The LED lights never get hot or give off heat. A sensor detects sounds and turns on if it hears your baby crying. The machine is quite lightweight yet durable; my twins have put it to the test, knocking it around a bunch.

Don't buy:
  • Double Snap & Go - This seemed like such a good idea, but you're better off finding a double stroller with an infant car seat adjustment instead. That way you can have an all-in-one stroller that will last you longer, look nicer and be more durable. However, not all double strollers allow for two infant car seats (e.g. Combi Twin only accommodates one car seat at a time) so make sure you check ahead of time if your double stroller holds two car seats and what extra accessories or adapters you might need to purchase too. The Britax B-Ready accomplishes both, but I did have to order the bottom car seat bar adapter and a second seat.
  • Adult Glider/Rocker - When I was pregnant I would rock in my expensive glider and look at my boys' empty nursery and imagine what was to come, but my imagination was not very realistic. I assumed I would be rocking my boys in the glider one day, reading to them, etc, however, it was almost impossible to fit both of them on there with me due to how high the arm rests were. So I'd only use the rocker to rock or feed them separately, much to the chagrin and anger of the other crying twin. I ended up selling it for a fraction of the price by the time they were one. I wish I had bought a love seat or a mini couch for their room instead, that way I could of had one baby in my arms and the other in a Boppy pillow next to me ready and waiting. Once they were being bottle fed this would have been a much better solution too. Plus, I'm sure I could have used that couch to sleep in the first few months. I never could sleep in a chair. 
  • Expensive High Chairs - I had matching Graco High Chairs because I liked the idea I could take the legs off and then use them on our own chairs, but it depends what chair you have in the first place. Also, they hated being strapped into these high chairs. They were also bulky. Grandma, then bought two ANTILOP Highchairs with safety belt & tray from IKEA as a cheap option to have at her home, but the boys ended up loving those, so we switched. They slide into them easily and they don't mind sitting there even when we eat. I think they like the freedom of them over the traditional high chairs. It's also a bargain in comparison. 
  • Clothes too far in advance - when the boys were really little I ransacked a bunch of consignment sales and attended store sales for future clothes for the boys. However, it's hard to figure out what size they will be wearing when and during what season. I ended up having a lot of t-shirts in the winter, etc. 
  • Onesies past 12m - My boys lived in onesies that first year, but after that it was harder to pin them down and change them once they were off and running. That's when we moved to just shirts and pant separates. Now we have a bunch of never been touched 18m onesies though and I laugh when I see 24m onesies in stores. No thank you. 
Related posts:
Essential Tech for Your Baby Registry 
Decorating the Twins Nursery 


2 comments

  1. Such a great list! So funny how different people say they used different things. I used nearly everything that you did with my kids too.

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  2. I read your post carefully that I found there are many baby products are essential for a baby and some are not suitable for a baby. A newbie mothers gets clear idea from this post. Thanks for your valuable post.

    ReplyDelete