strictly formula feeders, please reply

this first question is for those ladies who strictly formula/bottle-fed their twins from birth.
how much formula did you go through per week, or per day, or however you want to say it?
i'm just trying to get some random idea of how much $ we'll be spending on formula.

also, a general question for all formula feeders...
anyone want to start some type of FAQ thread (or just post here) about everything you want to share, tips, advice, stories, etc related to strictly formula feeding your twins? i have SOOO many questions that i think of a new one every day. thanks all!

amy

 

Hi Amy,

We went through 1 can every 3 days. It costs us about $ 45 a week in formula.

 

Hi Amy,
Well my twins are on Alimentum which only comes in the small can and is extremely expensive. Right now, we are going through almost 1 can per day. So I guess if it was a large can, probably 1 can every 2 to 3 days. Right now they are drinking about 25-30oz/day. Good luck!

 

Once I ran out of the free stuff from the hospital We would buy the extra large cans at BJ's and go through about 1-2 per week.

In general, I had enough bottles to make up 2 days worth of bottles at a time, and devoted a shelf in my fridge to them. I made formula one night, and bathed them the other. I never fed them at the same time, just one after the other. Also, what they didn't finish in 20 min, got dumped.

Hope this helps

 

If I remember correcly, a normal sized can (I think it is right around 25 oz.) would last 1 1/2 - 2 days for my kids. DD was on Nutramigen so that was a lot more expensive, but DD was on Similac and we were able to buy that at Costco and it was a lot cheaper. If your kids can take the regular formula (Similac or Enfamil) check out prices at Costco or Sam's club if you have them near by. You could also try store brand formula's (Target, Wal-Mart, Kroger, etc). If you compare the ingredients, the store brands are usually very close to either Similac or Enfamil and they are about 1/2 the price. My kids got constipated on store brands, so we had to stick with name brands. Sign up with the formula companies for their baby programs (call them to tell them you have twins because they will send you more coupons). Have friends and family sign up too so you can try and maximize your coupons. Even if you end up using Good Start for example (we loved that stuff), sign up with Enfamil and Similac, because you can always trade coupons/checks with people on Craigslist or someplace like that. Contact the formula companies directely and see if they have a program for multiples where you can get free formula and also have your pediatrician do the same thing. We received two cases from Enfamil from our pediatrician. Good luck and pm me if you have any other questions.

 

QUOTE(foppa2102 @ Apr 21 2008, 03:40 AM) [snapback]730987[/snapback]
this first question is for those ladies who strictly formula/bottle-fed their twins from birth.
how much formula did you go through per week, or per day, or however you want to say it?
i'm just trying to get some random idea of how much $ we'll be spending on formula.

also, a general question for all formula feeders...
anyone want to start some type of FAQ thread (or just post here) about everything you want to share, tips, advice, stories, etc related to strictly formula feeding your twins? i have SOOO many questions that i think of a new one every day. thanks all!

amy

We use the Similac ready to feed formula and go through about a bottle and half per day. Ours are eating 25-30oz per day as well. Definitely do sign up for Similac Welcome Addition Club, Nestle Very Best baby, and Enfamil Best Start (I think that is what their program is called). Depending on the hospital you deliver in, they will most likely start the babies on one of these brands of formula. The hospital I delivered at uses Similac, so I got to two Similac Welcome bags that had a bottle of formula in it and they also had a multiples program where the nursery nurses send in the info and you will get two cases of the ready to feed formula in the mail. For ready to feed, it runs us about 30-33 bucks per case and we probably go through almost a case and a half in a week or so.
Another piece of advice for you, if you are using the Playtex bottles with the liners, use an ice cream scoop to push the liner up to get the air out. Works good and quick!
We also put a drop of Mylicon in every bottle to lessen gas. They can have Mylicon 12 times a day and I think this helped us a lot, our babies were gassy!

 

I agree that you should have enough bottles to just make them one time a day - devote a shelf in your fridge to bottles. My girls were on different formulas because Hannah was gassy. I think we spend about $45/week which is crazy. I just switched Hannah to the Target brand and wish I had done it way before. It is $10 a can cheaper!!!! Definitely try the store brand first. There is no point in paying more.

If you can get your husband to take bottle duty, that would be great too! One less thing for you to worry about. I used to feed the girls separately but now I feed them together to finish faster.

 

It honestly depends a lot on what kind of formula you use. Is it special formula (Nutramigen, Neosure, Alimentum, soy based, etc.)? Are you ok with using generic brand formula, etc?

With the twins, they were on Similac Neosure for the first 6 months. It's all a blur, but we went through a few cans a week and I can't remember what they cost, but they weren't cheap. After they were off that, I switched to Parent's Choice Milk-Based which is about $10/can (I think).

This time around, with Olivia, I'm buying the formula at Costco. I'm buying the Kirkland brand milk-based. You can two containers for like $19.97. Right now we are using a can a week for a singleton...but she's only 6 weeks old and not eating the max amount either, like she will in a few months.

 

My kids are on different (pricey) formulas, and eat different amounts. We go through a little more than 2 cans of Alimentum (at 16 oz of powder per can) and about a can and a half of Enfamil AR (at 25 oz per can). So on the order of 70 oz of powder, give or take, or nearly 3 big cans altogether.

Definitely take advantage of the multiples programs (Enfamil and Similac both have them; we had to sumbit the forms at the pedi's office.) And sign up for all the coupon programs . We had my parents sign up too, and other people just randomly give us some coupons sometimes. And if your kids can use the generic, I say, why not? If they had generics that my kids could be on, they totally would be!

 

I never understood the 'making the formula for the day' thing... I always made a bottle from the tap on demand and that way-- it was WARM and not anymore work than pouring it f/ the fridge and heating it up... A lot of people make it in the morning.. I didn't do that.. I thought it was much harder that way, and in my mind, is not a timesaver at all..

Buy the larger cans of formula if you can. The 25.7 oz can of "Similac is cheapest at Sam's or if they do not have it there Babies R Us is cheapest. It's 25.00 per can and one large can lasted us 3 days.. So that's approximately $50 per week or 200.00 per month.


Up until 4 mos old, they only took 24 oz per day and now they are taking 32 oz each per day at six months.

Hope this helps. It's expensive but it's not difficult. We started our boys out on Similac Sensitive just because I knew about all the issues babies CAN have w/ indigestion etc and wanted to start w/ these problems in mind.. It has worked out PERFECTLY for us!!

 

I was really lucky and my twins got signed onto a Similac formula study where we got free study formula for 3 months. After that, we stuck with Similac and the boys have been great. I found a great clearance sale at Target (new packaging) and got the extra big cans (with % free) for $18.95. They are usually $26. I also was able to use my Similac $5 gift coupons (they send them to you in the mail when you sign up) on EACH can! We go through about one big can every 3 days. My boys eat 18-25oz a day each. They have never been big eaters.

 

With the twins, we started out with the Enfamil Lipil. We ended up switching to the Parents' Choice (walmart) and went through about 2 cans a week. With Liam, we went to the BJ's brand of formula right from the start. It was $20 for a can twice the size of the Enfamil at Walmart that cost $25.

We had enough bottles to send 8 a day into daycare. I would mix up batches of formula and then pour them as I needed them. We got the big rubbermaid containers and would mix up 32 oz or more at a time. We had one cabinet dedicated to baby bottles.

ETA: Sign up for the programs on Similac, Enfamil, etc websites, they will send out coupons. And if you join BJ's they send out a coupon book each month and they often have coupons for this stuff.

 

Formula Feeding Mini-Guide

I tried bfing, but it quickly became overwhelming for me, so we switched to formula. My twins were small eaters, and never got past about 28oz by the time they were off of it at 9 months.

We did end up eventually switching to Parents Choice(WalMart brand), and that saved a whole lot of $$! Best of luck with the rest of your pregnancy!

 

At the height of formula consumption we were going thru the giant can of powdered formula (from BJs) every 3 days. Each can (enfamil lipil) was $34 so you can do the math.

Of course in the beginning they were eating less, but we also on the high calorie formula because they were small. Those cans were smaller, but cost more, but we used less. So its hard to give you an estimate of cost.. it will really depend on the type of formula used.

I have friends whose kiddos have to use special formula (alimentum, neosure, etc) and their insurance helped pay.

As for advice, I had enough bottles and nipples for 2 full days. Each night I made a big batch of fomula and in a big pitcher and poured it into all the bottles for the next day. Then I ran them through the dishwasher (nipples on the top rack in a muchkin basket- bought at target) once a day. GL with the rest of your pregnancy.

 

In the beginning we went through about a can (16 oz) of Nutramigen in about 4 days. These days even though we've added solids, the girls still go through a 16oz can about every 2 days. We get our formula off of Ebay so that we can buy a lot at one time and it's cheaper. In the store it's $26-$28 per can, on Ebay we end up getting it for about $14-$18 per can including shipping.

 

You also need to remember that it will depend if your twins are early. My oldest was not premature and ate every 3-4hours, the twins were preemies and ate every hour and a half. The twins were on the high cal formula for about a month and then we switched to the generic Sam's huge can after speaking to a pharmacist friend. She said she used it and that the formula is all pretty much the same. Anyway, for a long time I kept a bottle of water on the counter and used that as needed to make the formula. We went through about 10 bottles a day or so in the beginning. We used the hospital bottles for a long time. Once we got down the 6 bottles a day, I would make a pitcher of formula for the day and keep it in the fridge. The large Sam's can would last about 3 days or so...

I won't lie, it was very expensive. That is why we switched to milk before 12 months! If money is a concern, I always encourage Moms to look into WIC, it is a wonderful program. My sister used it and it saved them financially.

 

I wanted to BF, but was not able to So I FF now. It is going to depend on what type of formula you buy and how often they eat. Mine must eat every 3 hours and I use Similac Sensitive. We go through about 1 bottle of ready to feed per day. I think I estimated $200 per month for formula!

Get enough bottles so that you don't have to continuously wash them, but you might want to wait before stocking up to see what bottles will work for you and your babies! We went through many different types of bottles at first! Now I make all the bottles for the day and keep them in the fridge.

Right now, mine are eating about 3-4 oz. a feeding (sometimes less). They started out eating a lot less though - especially my smaller twin!

 

when my twins were on different formula. we went thru 2 cans a week (about... we bought the big cans) Now that they are both on Nutramagen we go thru a little less than one can a day.

 

QUOTE(Cristina @ Apr 21 2008, 08:42 AM) [snapback]731239[/snapback]
If money is a concern, I always encourage Moms to look into WIC, it is a wonderful program.


This. I was shocked that we qualify. I guess because we're only using DH's income since I went on bedrest in Oct. I get the special preemie formula the girls need in EBM for free.

 

Mine were on high calorie Enfacare for the first 3 months and I was paying $86 a case to order right from Enfamil. The case lasted about a week and a half. When they were taken off high calorie, we switched to Parent's Choice brand (walmart) and they have done so well! Not to mention it is about 1/2 the price of most other brands for the same nutrition.

 

We go through a can a week, thankfully they can take the parents choice brand which is like $12. So they not nickle and diming us with it.

We feed them about 5-6 times a day

 

Ours had reflux and milk allergy so they had to be on Alimentum which is the most expensive formula there is so I would not say its a fair comparison. They only sold it in the smaller cans too--what a joke! Anyhoo...

My best advice for form feeding is learn how to feed them both yourself. Learn what positions work and what dont so that in the middle of the night one can feed and the other can sleep. For us putting them in the boppy together worked well because they were too small to be in the bouncy right away. Then when they could hold their heads up better putting them each in a bouncy and facing them back to back and draping your arms across worked well.

Another tip is to make a big batch of it (like 24 hours worth) and put it in the fridge so that its made and all you do is have to heat it up. This was great when they were eating all the time.

Good luck.

 

QUOTE(foppa2102 @ Apr 21 2008, 03:40 AM) [snapback]730987[/snapback]
this first question is for those ladies who strictly formula/bottle-fed their twins from birth.
how much formula did you go through per week, or per day, or however you want to say it?
i'm just trying to get some random idea of how much $ we'll be spending on formula.

also, a general question for all formula feeders...
anyone want to start some type of FAQ thread (or just post here) about everything you want to share, tips, advice, stories, etc related to strictly formula feeding your twins? i have SOOO many questions that i think of a new one every day. thanks all!

amy

We consistently went through about 1 1/2 cans of formula per week. We started on Neosure and we blessed to know a Similac rep who gave us lots and lots of samples. Also, we wrote Similac and they gave us a case of it. One dd had reflux and was on Ailamentum (sp?) for a while. Other than that, most of the first year, mine were on the Costco Kirkland brand of formula.

I made it once or twice a day in a pitcher for formula. This worked well for me. I'm happy to say that we are now done with formula.

Good luck

 

QUOTE(ivfbound078 @ Apr 21 2008, 12:45 PM) [snapback]731136[/snapback]
I never understood the 'making the formula for the day' thing... I always made a bottle from the tap on demand and that way-- it was WARM and not anymore work than pouring it f/ the fridge and heating it up... A lot of people make it in the morning.. I didn't do that.. I thought it was much harder that way, and in my mind, is not a timesaver at all..


It really isn't a time saver. It takes longer to warm a bottle up in water than to get the water warm (10 sec), put the poweder (another 10-20 sec) and shake it up (maybe 30 sec). One minute to make a bottle rather than 5 minutes of a screaming baby waiting for it to warm up. SOOOOO much easier just making it fresh. Plus you don't have to worry about the temperature change affecting the plastic bottles.

April

 

On another note, we do buy the store brands and so glad we do. It is so much cheaper....wish I would of known with older DD! Each are on a different kind. Soy and Gentlease. So they go throught their own can in about 5 or so days. I think....dont' keep track anymore. Go store brand if you can though!

April

 

QUOTE(mar66rus2 @ Apr 21 2008, 05:42 PM) [snapback]732223[/snapback]
It really isn't a time saver. It takes longer to warm a bottle up in water than to get the water warm (10 sec), put the poweder (another 10-20 sec) and shake it up (maybe 30 sec). One minute to make a bottle rather than 5 minutes of a screaming baby waiting for it to warm up. SOOOOO much easier just making it fresh. Plus you don't have to worry about the temperature change affecting the plastic bottles.

April


We didn't warm bottles so it wasn't an issue. I made all the bottle ahead of time so I all I had to do was pull a bottle out of the fridge when needed. If it was really chilly I put the bottle in a pyrex with hot water while I changed a diaper and it was ready to go when I was.

 

great advice, ladies, keep it coming!
amy

 

Hi Amy, the best advice I can give you related to formula feeding is below: (and I formula fed my first two children and now feeding soy formula to our b/g twins who are 4 months old)

1. We use Playtex Drop-Ins......bpa free plastic, plus great for fussy/gassy babies.

2. ONLY get the 8oz sized bottles....you DO NOT need any 4oz sized bottles when using the drop-ins system, as you can just register for the 8oz sized bottles and put the 4oz sized liners in them. We literally used our 4oz bottles for our twins, for like a month. What a waste of money!

3. Also, you can buy the Walmart brand drop-ins liners and save a few dollars!

4. You can put the silicone nipples, rings and bottles in the top rack of your dishwasher and have them be sanitized clean!

5. The liners are recyclable...

6. Make sure you ask the maternity ward nurses for the Enfamil or Similac brand representative's FREE formula program information and get yourself signed up for it. ANNND ask those nurses everyday to bring in a big bag full of formula to your room and have your family take it home for you.

7. You dont have to buy brand name formula, you can get the Walmart brand, or Costco brand, etc......the nutritional values and ingredients are all standardized by the Food and Drug Administration. If you compare say, soy formula, can to can, the nutritional values are the same as well as the ingredients listed. Save yourself some money

8. Buy yourself a big 2 quart mixing pitcher. I bought ours at Walmart, I think it was a Rubbermaid brand pitcher with a mixing wand in the lid, so as you mix formula the mixing wand gets all the clumps out. The pitcher, lid, mixing wand all come apart and you can put it in the dishwasher.

9. We mix enough formula/bottles for a 24 hour period and have those bottles ready to go for the day/night.

10. THE FINAL AND BEST piece of advice I can give you is......(drum roll please!) DONT warm your bottles!!! Take it cold from the refrigerator. We never warmed a bottle for all four of our kids. When you are tired and feeding TWO babies, take it right from the fridge.....cold and all. It will NOT produce gas, or make them fussy or make them not eat. They wont know the difference and it saves you time/energy/sanity. My mom threatened to call the Dept of Child and Family Services on us when she saw us feeding our first born a cold bottle from the refridgerator, she thought that was mean, :lol:


Best wishes and good luck! ~jillian

 

Mine were preemies and on Similac Neosure (high calorie) until 9 months. We were going through 5-6 cans a week at $16/can. What is that... $80-96/week total?

When they were eating every 2-3 hours, we would make a big batch of formula for the day. We don't anymore because they eat just 4 bottles a day.

If I had to do it over, I would not go with Dr. Brown bottles. We run them through the dishwasher every night, but they are still a pain. I wish we would have done the drop-ins. They are BPA-free and seem so much easier. I now have a complex that I've caused irreversible harm by using formula (which sold in cans lined with BPA plastic) and BPA plastic bottles.

 

Oh, and we put a dorm-sized fridge in the nursery to keep all the night-time bottles in. We used an electric "hot shot" warmer thing to warm up the water that we used to warm the bottle. The water got really really hot so it took just a minute or so to warm the bottle. (We only "warm" them to take off the chill. They're more like room temperature than warm.)

 

I don't know how much I went through in the beginning but a small can of Similac lasts us about 2 days. We are also on the soy and Alimentum so they are a bit more expensive. Target started carrying these and dropped the price to $23. It is so much better to get the bigger can! If you have a price club enroll. Bj's is the best, they have great prices, you can use coupons and they send you a coupon book often with lots of baby coupons to use there!

I agree with not warming the bottles. I take the chill off but it is room temp. Easier for when you are out and about. The only time I really warm them is the evening because DH is convinced it is necessary. I warm it up in a glass mug in the microwave for like 15 seconds and shake well to avoid burn spots.

I made the bottles ahead of time in the beginning but now I just make them fresh. So much easier for me. I also change diapers ahead of feedings (from the day they were home) that way if they fall asleep you don't have to wake them to change them. In the beginning it doesn't matter much because you change them alot but it was a good routine for me to get used to.

As far as feeding them both together... I always have. So much easier for me to keep them on the same schedule. I used the boppy, my thighs, their bouncy chairs and their carseats.

GL with everything!

 

I have to agree about checking out WIC. We qualify since I am currently not working and get 18 cans of Similac a month. It is such a money saver.

 

QUOTE(foppa2102 @ Apr 21 2008, 03:40 AM) [snapback]730987[/snapback]
this first question is for those ladies who strictly formula/bottle-fed their twins from birth.
how much formula did you go through per week, or per day, or however you want to say it?
i'm just trying to get some random idea of how much $ we'll be spending on formula.

also, a general question for all formula feeders...
anyone want to start some type of FAQ thread (or just post here) about everything you want to share, tips, advice, stories, etc related to strictly formula feeding your twins? i have SOOO many questions that i think of a new one every day. thanks all!

amy


We go through a can every 2-3 days, so 2-3 cans a week. We buy them 12 at a time each month. I highly, highly, highly recommend that you use store brand if you can (if you don't need special formula). We use the Target version of Similac Advance. The babies do great on it, it mixes up easier than Similac IMO, and it's only $12 a can vs. $24 for Similac. We have a Target Visa that gets us 10% off days, so we buy 12 cans at a time at $10.80 a can.

We use Playtex Drop-ins, which is one of the reasons I make up all the bottles ahead of time. They don't really mix well in the liners. We have like a $7 32-ounce formula pitcher we got at BRU that has a grate thing in the top, and I literally just shake for about 30 seconds and it's mixed. I put all the bottles pre-made in the fridge, and then we put them in a cup of hot water for a couple minutes to warm. We just shoot for room temperature. I would do bottles cold right out of the fridge, but I'm worried they will get used to that, and then I will have to chill bottles on the road (we just take water and powder so no chilling). Target makes a great liner for the drop ins as well - I actually like it better than the Playtex b/c the Playtex come in the expandable 10 oz, but all the bottles don't have the 10 oz. measurements on them - just a pain I don't need.

Personally, I have not gotten the hang of feeding them at the same time, in part because we feed ours sitting up. The hospital recommended this, and I swear by it - we have really no spitting up at all. Maybe once every couple weeks some tiny spit up. So, DH and I get up together for all feedings, and we are done and back to sleep in a half hour. We could still let the other one sleep, it just meant that we had to feed one after the other. I have tried feeding them at the same time with the bouncers, but I find it to be inefficient, and I only do it when both are screaming like crazy and I can't calm either one down without feeding. That's just me though.

Feel free to ask any other questions!

 

honestly - we wound up on Isomil (Similac soy) and while it was a few $ more expensive it mixed up much better than any other store brand or Enfamil - the rest were VERY lumpy...I would buy a case of 6 cans of powder from BRU every 3 weeks - usually I was lucky enough to get the "jumbo" sized cans and that would last me almost 4 weeks - but mine never topped more than 30 oz per day...the case of 6 cans cost me $134...

also if you need higher calorie formula if your twins are preemies or small you can use regular formula and mix it stronger...normally its one scoop of powder for 2 oz of water - to make 24 cal formula you mix 2 scoops in 3 oz of water...and you avoid having to buy the ridiculously expensive Enfacare...

also I second and third the PP's that fed cold formula - we did the same...it actually helped DS's spitting problems...if the formula was too warm or I gave RTF (which seems to be richer) he'd spew like a fountain! I'd make up 24 hours worth of formula and pour it into bottles...also if there were any leftovers that had been out of the fridge less than an hour I'd combine them with another bottle - the hosptial nurses said it was fine (even though the can will tell you not too) - we wasted far less that way...

also we did Drop In's - both my kids loved them...we did use Avent for a while with DD when she was a new born...she had terrible tongue thrust reflex and would not let the bottle in her mouth...the avent nipples were a bit stiffer and would pop through her jaws when she'd clench shut!

thats about all I have...also I know lots of posters will tell you that you can get piles of samples, coupons etc...I never got a single coupon EVER! both my mom and I signed up with Similac - I even called their "Welcome Addition Club" to tell them I had twins and was told that they had discontinued their multiples program and that was that!