Cost of twins?!

[MrsPennyLane]

Hi everyone,

We've just found out yesterday that we're expecting twins! They will be our first babies and we're thrilled (and slightly in a daze!)

The hospital advised us to do some reading up on twins, which we have, but the one thing that keeps cropping up is how expensive they are. We obviously knew they would be more expensive than one baby but I'm starting to get slightly concerned at how much more it will be. It seems there won't be any point in myself returning to work due to childcare costs for two (I thought one was high enough!)

I just wondered if anyone could give me an idea of how you've found it financially. I know we will need 2 cots, moses baskets, double pushchair, car seats etc. I'm also wondering about the average price of nappies/formula if I do use it? Does the extra child benefit help cover this?

Any experience/ideas would be great, thanks

Congratulations - the dazed feeling is typical with multiples and may well last until at least the end of the twins first year :).

The thing with twins is you don't get much benefit from hand me downs like you do for other siblings.

Childcare costs - I think some of that would be covered by child tax credits (at least as they have been - not sure how that will change in future). Car seats come as a shock because you have to buy two at a time.

My advice would be try and pick up as much as you can cheaply from NCT sales, charity shops, ebay, friends etc. Don't bother about things matching for example.

As they get older another factor is paying for things like school trips - so getting into a habit of savings for those big chunk spends is a good thing.

I didn't bother with moses baskets, my girls just sleep together in their cot, if I have them down stairs I just put them in their pam carry cots.

T heyare such a joy though

I was given formula on prescription as they were bjorn at 34 weeks, which has saved money, but am now breast feeding which is obviously free. Thee are always deals on nappies etc.

SorryAbout spelling/grammar on my phone one handed!

Thanks for your replies

I'm refusing to feel too worried as I'm stupidly excitied- it was so amazing at the scan when we were told 'and there's the other baby...'

It doesn't help that I still have student debt etc but we will have to cope. Luckily family have said they are helping with cots/pram so that will be a huge help

start looking on your local freecycle network now...it's amazing how much quality stuff is given away... we're expecting our two anyday and have spent very little - less so than with no 1...

all i have bought new is changing mats, bulk order of nappies and bouncy chairs... We've been given/loaned pushchair, carseats, cotbed etc (which are fine so long as you know they are good quality, match safety standards and have not been involved in any accidents) make do with as little as possible until they actually arrive as you don't know what will be absolutely necessary for your individual needs...and unless you live in a gorgeous spacious house, you simply won't have the space to store the two high chairs you will need in 18 months time! obviously get all the essentials but don't get sucked into the 'twin dollar' thing on sites such as twins uk which offer very expensive lovely looking twin paraphenalia which you will manage perfectly without!

best of luck...a very exciting journey and i'm still very dazed and don't anticipate it ending for some time yet!!

p.s. i refer to the carseats having not been involved in any accidents - not the cotbed!!

womb brain. !

Just wanted to add something about cost of clothes etc-even if you find out the sex of the babies just stick to neutral basics,sleepsuits,bedding etc so you can just pull out the first thing from the cupboard.
It also makes it easier when other people are changing them or looking after them just to be able to dress them without looking for different coloured clothes!
Also dont write off work if you really want to go back-i went back last month full time and we are coping even though it is a stretch it has made me feel like me IYKWIM

Congratulations!

Do you have a local twins club? Could find out through TAMBA. I sell a lot of my old twin stuff through my local club, and have bought a lot of stuff too, bath seats, cots etc. Also netmums have a good local for sale board. But clearly don't hang out on their message board

Thanks everyone. I've had a look on TAMBA and going to have a look for local twins clubs!

Can't believe that we're going to have two babies to look after as first time parents- we're very excited but I have to say it is more than abit daunting!

you do need two carseats, but our shared a moses basket in the first couple of weeks, and have yet to move from our bed to a cot. they can also share a cot till they grow a bit.

the costs of childcare are scary, but friends have been really generous with passing on clothes/cots etc. we have even been given a double pushchair via a friend of a friend. I think when people know you're having twins they rally round that much more. plus dt1 seems like she will be that much smaller than dt2 for a while, so she will be having his hand me downs as long a possible - another reason to prefer gender neutral clothes.

congratulations :)

I think to some extent the twin cost thing is overblown. I'm not saying it isn't more expensive. Just that you don't have to spend a fortune covering everything. Also there are plenty of people who have a second child several years after their first and don't have all the paraphernalia around as hand-me downs - but they don't get people scaring them with stories of financial ruin - so don't panic.

Friends and family are normally particularly generous in passing on gear to parents with twins and there's plenty of stuff available secondhand.

Do learn to hoard your money and budget well though - I think the shock of paying for two car seats/childcare spaces/birthday presents etc. at the same time can be a bit panic inducing. Spread the cost out over the year and you'll be better prepared to write the cheques.

Formula and nappies are expensive, and CB does not really cover them. If you can breastfeed it will save you a lot of money. And if you have a decent washing machine and some outdoor space for drying then (secondhand) cloth nappies can also save you a bundle. But also remember, with twins sometimes where you need to spend your money is on things that cut hassle out of your life.

On the work front - from a financial perspective it's difficult in terms of cash flow but, if you have a career (and you mention student debt so...) rather than a job, then going back as you would have with one might make sense long term. You can get away with a shorter career break with twins than if you'd had two separately. And in the long term that will mean more money for your family. Twins make a nanny seem more cost effective too - and then you have less difficulty with time off when they're ill (not much use if you just can't stretch to a nanny though).

I think car seats are the biggest expense as you can't manage with only one - although I did manage to borrow one first stage one and the other used the one from dd1.

My best piece of advice is if you are buying 2 of anything is to ask for discount - it does work and I ask everywhere from shops to indoor playcentres.

Washable nappies are an option and I used a mixture of these and disposables - check with your local council - I got a load of free washable nappies for the twins.

Find your local twins club, as mums of older twins will probably be selling on car seats etc.

Join Tamba, as you can then get discounts in a lot of places (eg. Clarks, when you start having to buy 2 pairs of shoes).

Forget the moses basket, mine went straight into a cot bed in our room (they shared 1 cot bed).

Good luck, you'll be fine - I was, and I was terrified till they arrived!

My friend formula-fed her twins and she worked it cost her £1100 in formula for the first year, and that was 5 yrs ago!! So, try breastfeeding if u can!

Get everything from ebay or freecycle, you can often sell things again for the same price u paid minus postage!

Find a friend who has twins of the same sex as yours, about 1 yr- 18 mths older. You'll never have to buy ANY clothes!! This is where your local twins club comes in handy

The twins were my first too, it was a steep learning curve but wonderful too!

Having a dryer works to reduce the amount of stuff you need to buy - as you can go from dirty to clean and dry in just a couple of hours.

I only have three sets of bedding between them - one on each bed and one spare.

Especially good if you have two of the same sex. I think my boys have never had more than 4 pairs of trousers between them!

They share everying in one communal chest of drawers(except outdoor coat - where for safety, its important to have them in different colours - so you shout out the right name when they run into the street and you don't think you have seen both kids when in fact you have only seen one!)

Congratulations!!

My tip would be EBAY!! I got enough clothes to see both twins through the first year for about £100 I think. People sell great bundles of clothes for specific ages e.g. 0-3 months, 3-6 months and there also seem to be quite a few people selling twins bundles (it does help to find out the sexes for planning ahead). I also got my double pram, bath seats etc. on there and then made myself feel a bit better by selling some maternity clothes too.