Breaking News

Twin Parent Hacks: Tips to Make Life with Twins Easier

For Twin Parents, By Twin Parents

We parents of multiples are pretty amazing, right??! I mean, every day we manage to keep our kids alive (#goals) and are adept at accomplishing most of our daily tasks with one hand (multitasking, anyone?). But raising multiples can also be seriously overwhelming.

I get it. I really do. And so do all of you. When you’re a PoM (Parent of Multiples), you need all the help you can get. And who better to learn from than each other? So we asked you, our awesome readers, for your most clever secret weapons and tricks — the hacks that make your lives with multiples less stressful (see full list here) and more efficient.

Are you with us on FB? Follow our Lucie’s List Multiples Page.

The Greatest Twin Parent Hacks ~

Kathleen Belknap on Feeding:

I used to kill three birds with one stone by pumping while giving them bottles at the same time in their Baby Bjorn bouncers. Even my 4-year-old daughter could feed help them this way.

Ashley Welch Janis on Staying One Step Ahead:

Preparation. Preparation. Preparation. In the morning, I set out bath towels next to the tub and jammies/lotion/diapers in my daughter’s room. I’ll set out plates/dry foods (like apple sauce pouches or crackers) for lunch. At nap time, I’ll prepare dinner (crock-pot, bake the casserole, etc). At night time, I set out everyone’s clothes for the next day. After the kids are in bed, I’ll set out everything for the next morning’s breakfast: bowls, spoons, cups, cereal box, etc. (including my coffee cup in the coffee maker!). Then I’ll make lunches and set out water bottles and my blender/protein powder for my morning smoothie.

I’ll also re-pack my bag with snacks, diapers, etc. and my clothes/toiletries for getting ready at the gym. I’ve found being prepared and just being able to pick up whatever I need at the exact moment I need it with little fuss makes life so much easier!! 2-year-old twins are not the best at patience…so I *try* to set myself up for success! I also enlist my almost 5-year-old to help out with whatever he can — teamwork makes the dream work!

Kacey Schneider on a Stroller Hack:

A buggy bench and the Joovy Twin Roo+ hack… I get so many comments on where to buy one 🤔! It was such a great stroller, I had to figure out a way to make it work beyond the infant car seat year. Bonus is adding the Englacha Cozy X Rider for my toddler too.” (Note: this is not an approved use of the stroller or buggy bench, but it has worked awesome for Kacey!)

Buggy bench and the Joovy Twin Roo+ hack by reader, Kacey Schneider

Kacey Schneider shows how she can even fold her Joovy Twin Roo+ WITH the Buggy Benches attached – great hack!

Jane Fox on Sleep Training:

Sleep train as soon as possible and be consistent whenever there’s a regression. We did sleep training at 4 months. At 27 months, they’re still awesome sleepers and we have our freedom in the evening. We applied the same logic to our bedtime routine…always two songs, two books, lights out.

Lizzie Frein on Bathing:

One of my favorites was bathing them in a laundry basket once they were old enough to sit on their own. They were 6.5 months in this picture. 🙂

Reader Lizzie Frein’s twins bathing in a laundry basket

Samantha Michalski Planas on Formula:

If you are formula-feeding, make a batch in the morning to last the day. (Dr. Brown’s makes a great mixing pitcher.) For nighttime bottle feedings, pack a cooler of chilled bottles and have a bottle warmer near the babies’ room (no more running to the kitchen). You can also use the cooler to store pumped milk if you pump overnight. Use pre-portion formula powder and water to mix for on-the-go or nighttime feedings.

Dr. Brown’s Formula Pitcher

Dry erase markers can be used to label which baby’s bottle is which, and it wipes right off. Paint babies toenails different colors if your twins look alike. Keep an emergency diaper pack (diaper, wipes, maybe pants) in the glove box for desperate times.

Courtney Allen on a Play Corral, like this one from Evenflo, or this one from Summer Infant:

This was also one of my best ideas, and now that they are toddlers, we have taken the panels of the gate apart to block other things throughout the house!

Reader Courtney Allen’s twinsies chilling in a gated play area

Andrea Lai on Labels:

If they each have the same toy or blankie etc., put little labels on them with a picture (I used Oliver’s Labels). They learn very young to remember which is theirs and there is a lot less fighting!

Shea Smith on Duplicates:

I swore when I was pregnant that we’d just have ONE of everything and they’d ‘have to learn to share.’ HA! It’s much easier to just get TWO and have peace. See also: Twin’s Registry Guide (aka “what you need two of… and what you don’t”)

Wendy Weiss Melton on Improvising:

This worked great when we were on vacation and they could not quite sit up on their own. It also keeps their toys close by.

Wendy Weiss Melton’s hack for sitting babies up on vacay

Andrea Kane on Tooth Brushing:

Brush their teeth in their high chairs after breakfast and dinner before they’re 2 (and need to spit). Sooo much easier than trying to hold them and do the teeth!

Maria Gillespie on Warming Bottles:

For efficient bottle warming: keep a pot of water simmering on low on the stove 24/7, and just stick the two bottles in the pot for a couple minutes. It’s always ready and has no cool down period!

Thank you so much, parents, for your fantastic tips. Hopefully they will serve many of you well (myself included!). If you have any other hacks, please share them in the comments. We’d all love to hear!

Take care!

~ Marissa


Back to: Twins

The post Twin Parent Hacks: Tips to Make Life with Twins Easier appeared first on Lucie's List.

No comments