Is it possible to prepare for twins ahead of time?

Help! I am a teacher, so I will have 8-10 weeks off in the summer to prepare for these babies....I am especially interested in knowing how we can prepare financially, but organizationally as well. Can you share what worked for you? What do you wish you had done? I am at a loss as to where to start so I can keep my sanity down the road, but I desperately want to start doing SOMETHING....

 

i went to babies r us every couple of weeks to buy diapers and wipes. every time i was there, i also bought a $25 or $50 gift card to put back for later on after the babies were born. you cannot have too many diapers and wipes. try different types so you can figure out what you like and what the babies tolerate once they're here. i also did a lot of the major purchases, like bouncy seats, car seats, pack n plays, etc prior to their birth. i admire your enthusiasm to prepare, as i was the same way. for example, since i didn't have any living children prior to my twins, i subscribed to many of the parenting magazines and then every time i found an interesting article about developmental milestones, behavior, illness, when to call the pedi, tylenol and motrin and benadryl dosing charts, all of this stuff and i created a 3 ring binder notebook with articles in plastic sleeves under the various categories. get as much together now since you will have no time to even think of your own name when they first come home. also, i didn't wait on my baby shower for anything. because i didn't want to be stuck at the last minute buying everything that i didn't get at the shower. i asked mainly for gift cards from BRU, target, or walmart at my shower. but i have to say that my best thing i did overall was to stock up on gift cards myself so i didn't have to spend any of my money on them for the first few months. good luck!!

ps- staple or tape all of your receipts to the diapers and wipes since BRU has since developed a tighter return policy, and target's not too nice with their policy either.

 

Before my first was born (or maybe during my maternity leave), I did a lot of freezer cooking. You can find more information by googling "OAMC" or "Once a Month cooking" or "freezer cooking". It takes a while to find your rhythm and to find recipes that you like, but I have maintained a freezer full of food for over four years now. Personally, I like to double or triple recipes I am already making rather than do the whole OAMC thing. A lot of it is just figuring out how to store stuff well. And buying a second freezer! Anyway - I highly recommend it!

I also read books on nursing and baby care (Happiest Baby on the Block and Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child were the best) and highlighted them. I went back and re-read them after my son arrived, but the highlighting helped me skim to the most important parts.

Don't worry, you will have PLENTY to keep you occupied, and frankly you may not be up to doing too much by that point in your pregnancy anyway. I would love to have 10 weeks off right now to just sit and incubate!

 

To help prepare financially I started buying bigger items earlier so it spread out the cost over time. It helped me feel prepared as I slowly added to our collection. It seemed weird to get car seats at 12 weeks along, but now here I am at 35 weeks with everything I need to get started.
It also helped to make a list early on of the things I needed to buy and the things that needed to get done early on so I could tackle them one at a time. It was a little daunting at first, but I think the key is to start small and start early. Starting early will give you a chance to keep your eyes out for great craigslist deals and great coupons/deals at BRU, Target, etc.
If these are your first you may want to think about having a baby shower earlier so you have more time to assess what you will still need

 

Here are some things off the top of my head:

If someone is throwing you a shower, try to have it before 30 weeks.

If you are registering, do it early (say, before 24 weeks) while you're still comfortable enough to be on your feet for a couple of hours.

Make lots of food and put it in the freezer. (My parents gave us a chest freezer as a baby gift.)

If you can afford it (or can get someone to give it as a gift), line up a night nanny. Yes, many people survive without, but it was easily the most important thing for me in terms of keeping my sanity in the first few weeks. (She came twice a week for the first 10 weeks, but I'd say weeks 1-6 were the most important.)

If you will be using daycare, and especially if you live in a city, start looking around and get on a waitlist as soon as possible. Similar advice if you plan to have a nanny -- contact some agencies or start getting recommendations.

Ask your colleagues if they would be willing to set up a meal rotation for the first couple of weeks. Get someone other than yourself to organize it! We had someone bring us a meal every other night -- another lifesaver.

I did read some parenting and newborn care books, but none of it seemed very real until the babies were here -- and then I learned fast.

I read your other post too -- I totally understand that you're in the freak-out phase right now :ibiggrin: , but I swear, it will be OK. It will take some time to get used to the idea. :hug: But you sound like an extremely organized person, which will be a huge help.

 

Other than what the others mentioned, I found it pretty helpful to keep a notebook full of baby stuff: The inside cover was my OB's office name/#, the perinatologist's name/#, the boys' pediatrician's name/#. Inside I kept lists for what I needed to do, what my DH needed to do & what good friends of ours needed to do. I also kept addresses of people who sent us cards, etc., so after the babies were born I had all the addresses for the thank yous. I tackled thank yous for gifts before the birth as they came in- otherwise it's very overwhelming. Then I addressed the birth announcements/picked out my style on Walgreens.com. I literally ordered them in the hospital, had them out within a week of being home. Buy a set of address labels for yourself + a roll of stamps. I really wish I hadn't bought a book here, a book there.

Most importantly, EAT, DRINK WATER, & REST. Take care of yourself so you have big, strong babies!

Congrats!

 

Financially speaking, the thing that helped me the most was not rushing out and buying two of everything! Obviously, you will need two carseats but you may want to see what your kids like and don't like in terms of swings, bouncers, activity mats, etc. I ended up not using the pricey double stroller I got (just used the snap-n-go initially) and didn't even use both cribs until the kids were three months old or so.

Honestly, the big thing I wish I had done different was enjoy my pregnancy (and the freedom to just sit or sleep or watch a movie or read a book in my spare time). I was so worried and nervous the whole time that I didn't relish what will probably be my one and only time to be pregnant!

 

Everything you've been told is great advice.
Since I'm a list maker, I made lists and I put a date for completion next to each item so I knew I had some time to get it done.
I had our nursery done fairly early with both cribs totally put together and everything ready by the time I was 24 weeks.
Have your shower early if you are having one, you'll enjoy it more and you'll have more time for returns/exchanges and time to get everything ready and put together.
I bought a TON of diapers and wipes before the boys were born. Everytime I went to the store I grabbed a box of diapers and a thing of wipes. I always used a coupon and I didn't need to buy diapers for them until they were into the size 3's I had that many stocked up in our garage! Keep your receipts with the box in case it needs to go back and buy multiple sizes. I was pretty close in my estimates but still had 1 small pack of newborn size, 1 big box of ones and about a 1/2 box of 2's left when we were out of those sizes. I ended up "gifting" everything I had left to my SIL when she had me nephew a few months after my boys were born.
The idea of buying gift cards to stock up is a great one and ask for gift cards as gifts. That way you always have some extra to fall back on when shopping.
I signed up everywhere I could think of for coupons and never bought anything baby related unless I could use a coupon.
Spread out the big purchases if you can. When we bought our 4 carseats after the infant ones, I bought one a month instead of having the big expense all at one time.
Don't be afraid to buy used. Ebay is great, Craig's list gets me a few good things and mom to mom sales are wonderful if you have them in your area. So much of our stuff was barely used or not used at all and I learned really quickly that if I was smart about my used purchases I could get stuff that was practically new at a fraction of the cost. This was especially helpful for our second swing and pack and plays to keep at my parents house.
The other thing I started doing when I found out I was pregnant was having $100 of my check get direct deposited into a separate savings account that we used as our baby fund. It has been a lifesaver in a few situations where we needed something right now...but didn't want to charge it. I continue to put into our baby fund now even though we hardly ever use it at this point in time, but it's nice to know that there is always a little extra there for stuff for the boys if we need it

 

I just thought of something else you can do if you get bored - input your birth announcement address list into a spread sheet. That way, you can make mailing labels from the list, and then you can re-use the same spread sheet over and over for x-mas cards or whatever. You can also use the same list to keep track of gifts and thank you's. We have maintained a list from our wedding and have used it countless times to produce "mass" mailings for stuff - so much better then handwriting!

 

I would stock up on diapers(different sizes) and onesis. I also set up my bills to be paid automatically. I had no time to write out bills or do it online those first few months.

 

If anyone asks you if you need anything... DIAPERS... any size, any brand... just start collecting them, you'll use them! LOL.