Shopping tips

Joleen posted somewhere on the forum a while back on what to purchase for twins, such as: 1 campcot, 1 nappy bag etc

Could you ladies help me with this. What would I need two of and what would I only need 1 of?

Thanks!

Only buy the basics then buy the other stuff as you need it.

1Cordless phone
2 bouncy chairs
2 kango pouches or if you can find one double one saw them on the web
1 compactum
1 twin pram/stroller
2 change mats (2nd for bathroom or bed)
1Baby bath
1 pilates ball
1 cot to start with
1 mobile
1 playgym
2 car seats that can fit into the double or single prams
4 hands
Noisy toys
Tiny love toys
Lots of small board books
1 Nose frida
Lots of saline drops
By nappies in bulk and always buy 4 packs of wet wipes at a time
4 baby sense wraps
2 sleep wedges per baby
Quite a few blankets (I use them as sheets - warm in winter)
Good medical aid
(substantial credit card balance to pay for pead visits and vaccinations)
1 White noise CD
1 Baroque CD
Very dim light in nursery for night feeds
Not as many clothes as you would think
Couple of comfy pajama’s for mom

Lots and lots of frozen, tinned meals and 2 minute noodles or a mom who will cook every night for the first 2 months minimum

Be prepared for :

NICU / highcare, very few twins don’t spend some time there
Hospital stay in labour ward
Bed rest
Prem births

This was a list I put together for a friend and she has already spent some time in hospital with an infection.

HI Eve

This is my list which is similar to Kerry\'s but minus alot of the stuff. I could not afford all the stuff and have coped without all of it.

I dont have bouncy chairs, or baby sense wraps. No kango pouches either.

I would suggest chest of drawers rather than compactum - saw Eileen\'s and its stunning. More practical for long term use.
I had 2 x cots but babies shared for first 3 months - depends on what you want to do. I was big on the sharing even in NICU.
I have 1 x twin stroller - nothing fancy.
1 x change mat on my compactum
1 x mobile above Erin\'s cot - but I have two lovely toy thingies (dont know what you call them) they attach to the cots and play music and have lights. Stunning, stunnig, stunning. Cost R300 each- pricey. Erin loves hers and automatically turns her head to see it.
1 x play gym
2 Snug and safes (have to buy car seats soon as you can only use them till 9kg)
1 x sleep wedge per cot (Mr Price Home) large and small section - baby lies with its back against large piece.
Lots of blankets especially receiving although I dont use any now!!! mine -kick themselves open and I have tons of blankets now.
Hooded towels but I would say 2 x baby. Mine have not messed on them but you really can use one per baby. These are tiny people. In the beginning I bathed mine in a \"Skottel\" baby bath was too big and from there straight to big bath with the bath chair. I borrowed a bath from a friend.
I did not have space in my nursery for a feeding chair and feed babies in lounge.
I have recently bought a cheap single stroller in case I take one baby out which I do as this is how I spend some alone time with each baby. I have yet to go to the shops with both babies and they are nearly five months old.
You will need tiny baby / newborn clothes cause your babies will be very small. I did use lots of clothes in the beginning cause it was vomit, vomit and more vomit - tmi.
Dont buy too much clothing. Wade wears 3 - 6 months and Erin 0-3 months so she is a size behind. Once you know the sexes of your baby it will also help. Lots of baby grows from Ackermans and leggings are a must.
Wet wipes, wet wipes and more wet wipes. I had tons and am down to the last 2 packs. I am \"heavy\" with mine - probably use about 5 at a time if it is a no 2.
Stuff in dispensers as you need to have one hand on the baby and the other hand to dispense.

Spoeg doekie - I must have about 30. I hate smelling sour milk and once they have spoeged on it a few times in the day - to the wash. You can get from Pep Stores and Ackermans and wash with baby sunlight washing powder
Baby washing powder and stay soft

I would just add:

2 monitors, preferable angel care - prems are prone to apnoea attacks so it gives you peace of mind - you can take over mine Eve, by the time your babies arrive I won't need them any more.
SAMBA membership - R150 per year, you get quite a bit of discounts from Avent, NUK, Chicco, as well as Baby Boom and Toys are Us.
I used bottle warmers in winter - I expressed for mine and the milk was always in the fridge so very cold
Good breast pump, preferably a double one so you can do both breasts at once
Not too many bottles, in the beginning you'll need (2 x 8 feeds) 16 bottles per day, but provided you are willing to wash at least once a day you'll get away with 8, buy the big ones from the start, don't waste money on the small ones, you'll need to replace them and there is no need for the small ones. Once they get to drinking juice you can rather buy them the starter cups.

Will think a bit more...

Not that I have twins but I kept Damion in his pram next to the bed for his first few weeks, maybe if you can't afford a cot now, buy the pram and let them sleep in that for a bit? It also helped with moving him around cos it hurt a bit to pick him up after the c section!

I've got a spare bottle sterilizer and snug and safe seat - both have not been used, if you would like them?

Yup eve I had quite a lot of stuff but some of it I would have not coped without. I spent days with Kian sleeping in the Kango pouch.

But I have to admit 90% of what I have was either given to me or I bought 2nd hand from friends and from classifieds. So accept everything that is offered. somethings you only use for a short while so you can borrow them and return them later.

Joleen I thought a compactum was a chest of drawers with sides on top to stop them rolling off?? I plan to use mine as a cupboard in the boys room for a long time?

I am sure it is. But Kayla does not roll off from Eileen's. I always have a hand on a baby anyway. But if you position your changing mat in the centre of your drawers you have space on either side plus you can always push the one end of your chest of drawers against a wall and put the changing mat on the side against the wall.

Kerry - I am not trying to argue with you but compactums can be very pricey where as you can buy chest of drawers cheapily (pine and paint it white). I am thinking cost saving and practicality.

After I saw Eileen's set-up I just thought gee what a great idea.

Re the compactum question, I have one from treehouse that is more like a trolley with open shelves and a tray on top with sides. I works very well and has space for 2 changing mats side by side - I don't often have both up on it enymore, thay are to busy now but it worked very well when they were smaller. I stack the shelves with their nappies as well as books and toys, and once they are ot of the nappies it is a great toy container. I think it is up to personal preference, a chest of drawers is fine too, but the drawers can get in the way and is a hazard if left open. Believe me once they get mobile you want as few corners as possible!

Oh no worries I thought you may be thinking about the really pricy compactums with a bath inside so you cant use it as a cuboard. But I got mine at about the same price as a pine cupboard (I had acctually planned on getting a set of drawers but was horrified at the price.

getting my two cots from the same friend beautiful white ones at the price of a camp cot!

Mine have 2 big Drawers (1 false drawer) and an attached side cupboard - the top opens with the changing mat already fitted & the other side the baby bath that fits into the false drawer. You can actually close it and still use it for years to come, I actually used the bath space for storing some of D's baby blankies & clothes. I paid R1500 for mine

I bought quite a bit of stuff 2nd hand, but the 1 item I can really recommend is a "carry cot". I bought two 2nd hand ones and they have used them so much. In the beginning they slept in them in our room - the advantage being that it's so easy to move them around. Also convenient for going to peoples houses or moving them from room to room. Grace can still fit into hers.
Car seats - we had Peg Perego ones (also 2nd hand) that clip into the base. Much more convenient than strapping in every time with a seat belt.

I have 1 bouncy chair and 1 bumbo chair that they take turns in. Also 1 large do-nut.

I bought a compactum that can be used as a chest of drawers later on. They each have a sleigh cot that can be converted to a bed later on and last them till they're about 4 or 5.

I hired an industrial strength breast pump!

Thanks so much ladies! Sjoe, it seems like so much to start off with!

Haze if you want to sell the seat and sterilizer, let me know

Hey, just wanted to tell you my tips as well.....

I agree with many of the others that lots of people offer to borrow you stuff...... so dont let the oppertunity go by - use it!!!

*2 snug and safe car seats (borrowed) - they are the clip in ones that clip into the base, but i very very seldom removed them from the care with the seat, since i cannot carry both kids in their car seats. Most of the time i took the child out of the seat and carried her to the house or into the pram and returned for the other one. Those snug and safes were just too heavy for me.

*The kango pouches - well thats a personall preference. I dont like them but my hubby loves parading around the house with the one of the girls in "his pouch"

*2 bottle warmers - since i also had winter babies, the bottle warmers worked great. But now that its summer i dont warm the milk up anymore or just stick it into some boiling water to take most of the chill out...

*I also have a chest of drawers with 2 changing mats ontop. Works excellent for me. They have toys hanging down above the changing mats and they loved to play while being changed and being bathed.
i pack my nappies in the first drawer so that its nice and easy to reach when you change...

*1 baby bath. I bath them in their room ontop of the chest of drawers - did try to move them to the big bath, it worked for 1 week and then they got a fobia for water, now i am back again on the little baby bath in the room.

*1 cot for the first couple of months. My girls slept together in one bed until they were 6 months old. Then i moved them to 2 beds.

*Receiver blankets is a great help. 6 is more than enough. You basically swaddle them / wrap them with the blankets and can also use it as sheets.

*We stocked up a lot on nappies, and bought quite a bit of these pampers nappy boxes with 150 nappies inside. (that special from Pick n Pay) They worked well until my girls moved onto Nr#4 nappies. Now those nappies seem to be not so nice anymore. I think they are on the verge of expiring, and dont hold as much wee anymore as other nappies. so if you stock up , you can buy plenty of these specials up to size 3 nappies. But from there onwards its better to buy the bigger sizes not in those box specials.

*1 Playgym - works wonders!!

*Sterilizer - you cannot go without. I found the electric one better, since it can take more bottles at a time. You need minimum 8 bottles like Paulae said

*NB and Prem clothes: DONT buy any summer clothes. Prem/NB babies cannot wear summer clothes. They wear winter clothes/long sleeve clothes and bottoms where the feet are closed like baby grows. Your babies are also due in winter, so even your 0-3 should be winter clothes. My girls were fairly normal sized, not prem or small at all, and they only starting wearing summer clothes in the 3-6 months range.

*Swing - if someone offers to buy or borrow you a swing - TAKE it. My one friend borrowed us one and it works miracles!!

*musical mobile for putting them down: My kids loved it when i switched the music one once we put them down.

*Good twin pram and Baby Nappy bag - i pack one bag for my girls. The first couple of times you go out with your baby (usually to hospital for checkups) is hectic, but then you get used to it. Now that my girls are 7 months i love to go out with them to the mall on a Saturday, they enjoy watching the people and i cope very well now with managing them all by myself.

I will also think about more tips for you Eve!

Lastly - A nanny is essential. Right from the beginning. It really makes your life much easier .

All the best

Thanks so much Page!

Eve, i'm not selling it to you - you can have them. I got so much stuff at my baby shower that I haven't used some of the things. Just let me know when you're ready for them