We're having twins - help!

Look

Hi All

I’ve been lurking on these boards for some time and have really learned a lot. It would be quite easy to spend all day on here!

Now I’ve finally taken the plunge and decided to stop lurking and sign up, because I would reallly appreciate any help and advice on money saving with my (rapidly growing) family. My son is 2 and we’re expecting twins later this year. That’s 3 small children to clothe and feed!

Are there any MSEers out there who are or have been in the same position? How do you manage? Why do kids need so much “stuff”?

And trying to remain portable will mean pushchairs and carriers and a bigger car and …. The list goes on and on. What’s essential and what’s not?

Any tips or advice welcomed.

Penny_Watcher

Hello and Welcome to the boards! :hello:

Can't help you much with up to date info re your littlies (my youngest is 10 now) but many congratulations on your twins. I'm step-mum to twins and although they were sometimes twice the work of one child, they were quite often more than twice the reward.

Wiser minds will be along soon, but I just wanted to say hello and congrats.

TheWaltons_3

Hi

I am a Mum who has 7 mth old Twins and a 23 month old Daughter.

You will be fine, they are damn hard work but very worth it.

I was in your position, I was gobsmacked.

We have a small car, it gets 5 of us in. You wont need to worry about a bigger car until your newborns are into the bigger car seats, so that gives you 6 months or so after they are born.

We got a Double Pram and a Buggy board, my eldest loves it.

As for clothes, yeah they cost money :eek: but people will buy them for you and you can pick up bundles on Ebay pretty cheap in good condition.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

ukbandit

my word, congrats i appreciate its harder and a bit riskier, but well, two bundles of joy will certinaly keep each other happy

with regards to info, i'm afraid its a bit all over the place, i have posted a poll on getting a new subforum setup to hold all the early years information, which would certainly help. (shameless plug i know). have a vote!

I would start having a look at prams now, they seem the greatest expense and there are several designs/forms.

clothes wise if you still have the stuff from your first child, i would be looking to just get a bit more, not a huge amount. still we shall see what the MSE community can say.

finaly, have you added your details to the pregnancy thread (its a sticky)?

Curious_George_2

*jealous*

im still hoping they will tell me that this baby is really hiding its twin
i agree with the previous poster, your son is still very young so you must have a lot of stuff knocking about (my daughter is 7 and ive still got a ton of her things as i knew i wouldnt end up with an only child!)

see what you have, then work out what else you need
xXx

jo1972

*jealous too *

Congratulations! I've got 3 kids but they are 15, 4 and 2 so a lot easier to manage! We've only got an Astra but I would say that a 5 door IS essential!

Ebay is a godsend, search for clothes bundles close to your postcode so that you can ask if you can pick it up and save on large postage costs, means you can afford to bid more than others!

You will be fine, it will be hard work but all worth it!

Good luck, keep us updated!

Jo.

Look

Thank you all so much for your good wishes and quick replies.

It’s a relief to know that 2 adults and 3 small people can fit into a smaller car, so I don’t have to rush out and get a people-carrier. I think having one of those would make the smallest family outing feel like a military operation.

And thanks to all for advice on clothing – it never occurred to me to use my son’s clothing. Of course he had more than he ever used and even if we do have girls – for the first few months they won’t mind what they wear. No doubt they’ll make up for that in later years.:D

It seems like only yesterday I was a care-free single guy and now I’m nearly a father-of-three. I can’t wait!

Thanks again for all your advice.

Justie

use Freecycle as well - there's often baby stuff posted on ours and I've had various lots of clothes. Go to your local NCT nearly new sales (always very good quality goods at good prices and it may be worth joining the NCT so you get in early). Also take anything offered by friends or relatives. We've so far bought very little new for our baby as we've been given or lent so much stuff and I've not bought any new clothes just bought a couple of bundles off ebay. Your biggest outlays will be on things like a double buggy, car seats and cot mattresses (although second hand cots can be found easily you should always use a new mattress - same with car seats for a newborn even if you know a seat hasn't been in an accident there's evidence that moisture just from general usage effects the polystyrene and makes it less supportive). Car boots have loads of cheap baby stuff too.

jtotheb

Hey there Look - Congratulations! My wife is pregnant with twins at the moment - due in October! We're starting to get very excited about it.

All info on what we've been up to (what we've bought etc.) can be found on our blog - see my sig below for the link.

We had a consultant appointment last week and my wife is measuring about the size of a full term singleton pregnancy now (with 2.5 months left to go!)

Bun

Congratulations! I only have one myself and one on the way but I help run a toddler group which has several families with three children including younger twins of similar ages to yourself. I have noticed that many mums prefer the buggies with one child in front of the other (some have one under but I don't know how long these last if they are the same age) as they are easier to get in and out of shops, doorways etc. They also use buggy boards for the oldest which seem to be popular. Alternatively a lady in a recent Pregnancy and Birth said she coped better with a lightweight buggy, a sling and buggy board. Or from JoJo Maman Bebe you can get a clip that links two strollers together if you don't want a double. I think Mothercare do some lightweight double strollers at quite reasonable prices.
Also some of the twins I know were slightly different sizes so one was in the smaller clothes then went up the ones the other twin was wearing, saving on a huge amount to start with. Bundles from ebay (the non-designer ones) can be as cheap as ten pounds for twenty items, and I 've found that a lot of the stuff is almost unworn, and the stuff that is described as a bit worn is great for toddler group, garden etc.). I'm sure the advice will keep coming.

TheWaltons_3

I saw a Twin pram - side by side - for £79.99 in Argos magazine.

I wish I had seen that earlier as I paid £200 for mine.

Personally, we have side by side and my husband won't have anything else, as he feels the child stuck at the back is disadvantaged and this isn't fair.

I like the Phil & Teds and can only imagine how light it would be, but then we only use our Pram at weekends and it's an unecessary expense.