Baby Registry Must Haves and Other Essentials
After having our second son, I thought for sure we were done having kids. My first and second pregnancy were not for the faint of heart - for reasons that I will not address here because this should be a happy post about getting prepared for babies! So after about 2 years and having a hard time with birth control and wondering if we should have another kid or not, we decided to go for it! We still had some things for the next baby, but we gave away all of our clothes and a bunch of our gear to people. I knew we would have enough one and I thought really we would only need to buy new clothes. Was I SO wrong about that! When we found out I was pregnant my oldest immediately asked for two! Ha! "Well, I can promise you one, but you would have to pray for two," I told him. And of course he did and a few week later we found out we were having twins! I had a gut feeling I was carrying two before I had the ultrasound appointment, but I was pleasantly surprised when I found out it was true! My husband was in a little bit of a shock because we have always joked about having twins in the past, but knew it was a very small chance that would ever happen. Both of my boys were so excited when I told them the news and they have been loving on these sweet little ones ever since! But I had a dilemma - now we needed a ton more things for twins. All of the gear I had either needed to be doubled or sold to get something to accommodate TWO. And don't mention double all of the clothes! We do a lot of laundry now, I can't begin to process adding twice as many baby clothes into the mix!
So, my solution? I started a baby registry. Which feels weird because they definitely aren't our first children, but we also needed to basically start over. Enter Babylist! Our family expressed a desire to help out and I honestly needed one place were I can check off things as we buy them. I have always heard about Babylist, but I have never had the chance to use them and oh my goodness I wish I knew about it with my first! I love how I can add anything to the registry from any site and being able to note how much I need of one thing or any specific details. It's seriously a game changer for registries and I highly recommend it if you are starting out putting together a registry.
After I signed up for Babylist the question was, what do I add? As a mother of two with twins on the way I feel like I have some experience as to what I want by now. I have gone through many things with the first two and have definitely developed a good idea of what I want, as well as what I dislike, for these little two peanuts. I also had to do some research about what to actually get for twins and while there isn't anything significant I need that's labeled specifically for twins, I did find some helpful posts about what other mothers used for their twins.
So to the exciting part: what I put on my registry! I am going to split it up into two parts. The first will be what I am buying that I think everybody should have on a baby registry for twins and the essentials that you should add to your registry in general, whether its for one babe or two!
Here are my specific twin items on my registry:
The Mockingbird Single to Double Stroller, second seat kit, and accompanying accessories. When I realized that my Joovy double stroller won't be able to accommodate two carseats, I was immediately on the hunt for a double stroller that A) wouldn't cost an arm and a leg and B) had wonderful reviews about using it in it's double stroller capacity and C) can fit in the back of our Honda Pilot. I would've been more picky about details and specs, but my choices were limited with the price of the stroller itself. After getting down to the Evenflo Pivot Xpand and The Mockingbird Single to Double, I texted a friend and asked her how she loved her Mockingbird Stroller and she told me she loves hers! And after reading some reviews and watching some videos - I was sold! Even though it was a little more than Evenflo's, I had in the back of my mind that we are going to be using this stroller a lot so I would be worth it to pay a little more.
Because Mockingbird only sells a stroller, I had to find a car seats that would fit one of their adapters. I settled on the Britax B-Safe Gen2 car seats. After a saga of finding the right stroller, I went through another one with car seats. One of the reasons we chose the Honda Pilot last summer as our upgrade SUV is the automated button on the second row seats that with a push of it the seat will fold and slide forwards. Well, I definitely want to optimize this feature when the twins are here as the boys will be going in the back. And for us to use it, I needed to find a car seat that has a low base and will still fit one of the Mockingbird adapters. It wasn't any easy fit, but the same friend who loves her Mockingbird Stroller told me she has the Britax B-Safe 35 and loves that car seat too! So because of her one other reviewer showing a photo of that base in her Honda Pilot with the second row seat forward, I was sold!
After much research on what to use to carry twins - I landed on WildBird Ring Slings. The reason I picked this was because of ease of use in getting our babies in and out. Also, it folds more compactly making it easier to bring with us for errands. I've always loved wearing both boys in my Solly Baby Wraps and while I will try using those at some point, I just want the easiest thing I can put on and put the babies in. I'm also just not a fan of really structured carriers to begin with, so the a ring sling was the perfect solution to carrying twins.
The Inglesina Fast Table Chair was a pretty obvious space saving choice for us. We thought about having highchairs that attach to our dining chairs, but we like having people over and don't have any extra chairs to offer guests. And just the thought about having two standing highchairs sent me into a frenzy. We have a small amount of space as is and anything but these chairs weren't going to work for us.
We already have a swing, but I have always wanted to try a rocker as well. I never saw the purpose of having both with one baby, so this is definitely my chance to buy one and I can just switch the babies between them. I added the Dream On Me Rocker for a couple of reasons. One, it can be folded and stored compactly. Two, it has a a gentle vibration to soothe. And three, it can be used in a stationary position. This is definitely a budget friendly version to those on the market and I love that!
I had already planned on using the Snuggle Me Infant Lounger when we decided to have another baby, but knowing we are having twins I knew I needed two of them to help me throughout the day. I love the concept of this lounger and see my specific use of needing to put our babies down to help our older boys as well as get chores done.
On the note of Snuggle Me, I decided I needed their Feeding & Support Pillow as my next nursing pillow. No, this isn't a twin specific nursing pillow. I might get some flack for that, but those things are huge and I can see myself getting extremely frustrated with using it. I love the design of Snuggle Me's pillow! I WISH I had this with my first two. Why? Because of the tapered ends! I very much disliked the Boppy nursing pillow. It never hugged me right and my boys always fell into the crack between my body and the pillow. The tapered ends of this pillow will allow me to tuck the in to get an effective nursing position.
Here are my other baby essentials that I have added to my registry:
The FridaBaby Electric NoseFrida is a simple gadget I am looking forward to using! I had the original snot sucker and while I loved it, I would always get winded from using it. The bonus distraction light will be so helpful to keep the twins entertained while it sucks out their boogies.
This Embe Swaddle is a swaddle that I landed on after searching for a week. I used to use the Swaddle Me, Happiest Sleep Pea, and Woombie swaddles and have disliked them all. What I love about the Embe swaddle design is that I can have the babies legs in or out and diaper changes will be so much easier! It's definitely more pricey than others, but it definitely meets my needs.
I used BIBS pacifiers with my second son and he loved them! But instead of adding those, I decided to add the FRIGG baby pacifier. It's a similar design, but a little sleeker and I love the color combos!
When I first saw the Nanobebe Breastmilk Bags and Organizer I knew I needed to have them in my life. I have always struggled with storing breast milk in an efficient way that wouldn't take up to much freezer space. I love how these lay flat and have a first in, first out system!
Next up Comotomo Baby Bottles! I love these bottles so much! I already have a few, so while they aren't on my registry I have added new nipples for them. I love the comfort of holding these bottles as well as the shape of the nipples. And they are so easy to clean!
While we are on the topic of feeding essentials - I added the Haakaa Manual Breast Pump and Silicone Bottle Brush Set. I loved using the Haakaa manual breast pump while nursing my second son. And while I don't know if I will actually use it while feeding twins, I definitely want it on hand just in case. I also love the design on their silicone brush set! I disliked using foam and bristle brushes to clean our bottles. They always got so grimy and I had to replace them a lot. With these silicone ones, I can imagine them lasting for a long time and I just love the detailer brushes for easy straw cleaning!
The Boon Puff+ Inflatable Bather is a dream come true for me! I have not liked any baby bather on the market, but I could never find a bather I did like with my first two. Enter this one. As soon as I saw it, I knew it would be perfect for us. I love that it's inflatable to give a soft comfort for the baby and for easy storage, the cover is removable and washable, and it has a wrap that can cover the baby and keep them warm while washing. Extra plus, it's flat and it fits in our farmhouse sink! It's a win all around for me!
The Ubbi Steel Diaper Pail. We have had our Diaper Genie pail throughout all two boys' diaper days, but it finally broke on us. Am I disappointed about it? Not in the least. My cons for that diaper pail was frequently buying special diaper bags for it and it always smelled. This Ubbi diaper pail is one I am excited for because of the opposite reasons why I dislike the Diaper Genie. Regular trash bags, check. Steel pail to keep in smell, double check!
The Eufy Video Baby Monitor. We had the Baby Sense video monitor and while it was nice for the price, it didn't age well for us. So we decided to upgrade to the Eufy video monitor. Reasons why I chose it: It's a private connection to the parent unit, I can attach it to a corner of flat on the wall, and I can pan tilt the lens for easy coverage of the twins.
A Chicco Lullago Portable Bassinet. We have one already, but we need to get another one for the twins sleep separately. I love this one because we can take it anywhere for when the babies still sleep in a bassinet. I'm not a huge fan of pack n plays while babies are still really young.
This Ingenuity Activity Gym & Play Mat looks so cute and doesn't break the bank. I love that it comes with a mirror and a tummy time pillow and can be stored easily.
And finally a Freshly Picked Diaper Bag. We got rid of our other cheap diaper bag a while ago. It was ratty and gross because the outside was cloth and would not clean easily. I decided to go with Freshly Picked because a dear friend raved about it, it's more structured and doesn't crumple when it's not full, the outside is wipeable, and i love the sleek look of it!
Other essentials that I won't link, but are some of my favorites:
Muslin anything! Muslin is such a soft fabric, super absorbent, and delicate on baby skin. I've added muslin wash cloths, crib sheets, diaper changing pad cover, swaddles, and burp cloths to my registry!
For health essentials, I've added a no touch thermometer, Boudreaux's natural butt paste (it's not as thick as the original), Eucerin baby eczema creme for dry skin, A+D ointment, Aquaphor (I like to mix it with the butt paste for extra protection), a couple of Pipette baby products, and the Haakaa baby electric nail trimmer.
My extra's but don't need to have's are Mushie pacifier clips, Mushie silicone pacifier holder, Yogasleep portable white sound machine, baby diaper bag dispenser and bag for on the go, wipes dispenser for a diaper bags.
Also any other nursery gear that you need! I'm talking cribs, mattresses, changing dresser/station, changing pad, rocking chair, and a book shelf/storage.
And lastly any baby clothes and toys!
Whew, what a list that was to type out! I had a lot of fun putting my registry together and researching baby items. So I hope this helps any of you who are looking for ideas on what to put on your baby registry for twins or singletons! I hope you enjoyed reading this and I am looking forward to sharing more things regarding nursery decor and reviewing baby items!
With love,
Brittany