What and when to buy for friend expecting twins?

[Dunoon]

My friend is 28 weeks at the moment and I feel the urge to start getting her stuff now. Is this a good idea and what would be most useful?
I have thought about a twin breastfeeding pillow, a nappy wrap machine thing or just sheets, blankets etc.
She is till working full time and hasn't much time to get stuff or even much idea of what to get and I want to be as useful as possible.

My SIL had twins last week. I will ask her what she is finding useful and get back to you. It may be a little while - I don't think she knows her a**e from her elbow at the moment!

It depends how much you want to spend really. At the lower end of the budget, babygrows are really good (you need LOADS because you obviously have twice the babies and half the time to do laundry!) if going for this option I'd buy a range of sizes rather than just tiny ones. If spending more one lovely couple got us four baby sleeping bags which wasfantastic. Alternatively what about slings? Double buggies can limit your access to places and we found our slings really useful.(check which type she'd like obviously) Another thing which is pretty vital with twins are good quality bouncy chairs (you can boubce one baby with your foot while feeding the other) we had Hauck (sp?) ones which were fantastic as they could be clicked to a flat setting so the babies can sleep in them during nap time. Hope this helps! Good luck to your pal!

Yes echo the sleeping bag things, plus the fold down bouncy chairs. If you buying clothes, please tihnk about older age ones too- i.e.6-12 months. She'll prob get loads of newborn stuff which is lovely but then it all stops just when they are starting to move, wean etc. The first few months, its sometimes too much hassle to put them in anything other than a baby grow. One of those indoor swing things was a god send for us. Or seemingly dull but vital- fill up a basket with cotton wool pads, wipes, nappies (lots), sudacrem, gripe water etc. It'll all get used. If you don't have much money, give her an IOU book for some casseroles/pizzas/pasta bakes and take them round each night in the first few weeks (and only stay if you are going to feed a baby or hang some washing up!) I know its one of the cliches but we were delighted when anyone cooked us a meal as it meant I ate something other than cinnamon grahams!! Also- one of our best presents was a special keep sake box with little boxes for each of their first hair, teeth etc. Again I know it seems corny but you don't think about the nice stuff in the chaos. And one each of those 'my first year' books as in no time you forget who did what and when so it really gets you into the discipline of recording it. And for her, if I did it again (which I won't) I would take a pair of flip flops instead of slippers/indoor shoes as it was so hot and the showers often had a LOT of nasties in the bottom, so she might be really pleased to get a funky pair of flip flops. Hope this helps?

Great ideas and suggestions thanks. So is it too early to get things?

Maybe a little bit. Even if the twins arrive early they are unlikely to get out of hospital until 35 weeks.

I second the meals thing - a godsend as you never get time to eat anything other than toast, and even then by the time it's popped up a baby is crying so its cold by the time you get butter on it . Bouncy chairs are a godsend. We used lots of muslins.

But basically any labour saving device, and helping her when the kids are born like taking washing away to do etc. The help is actually most needed at 10-20 weeks, not the initial weeks.

The best thing anybody could have given me would have been the offer to babysit once in a while, family that we had close by didn't even offer to babysit so it was a long time before we felt able to go out.

Yes I echo the craving some time away from the babies- i know its sounds awful but i yearned for just a couple of hours off during the day to go out for a coffee. I really loved the little fellows but it felt so intense and frantic that I just wanted to be able to give them to someone for just an hour or so to feel like i was part of normal life again. (we did get the chance and it was wonderful!)
But with regards to the question about is it too early to start getting things- I would check with your friend. Yes twins do tend to come early and your friend may be someone who feels she needs to have everything ready early so she is prepared(I was like that) or she may start feeling a bit overwhelmed if there is too much too soon.

Lots of good suggestions. If you can find one extra large play mats are a godsend - most aren't big enough for two babies at the same time and most twins like to be close to each other. Also, if you can make her a promise to keep her company in the early weeks. I was completely no my own after my husband's two weeks paternity leave and got really lonely. It is very tricky to get to Mum and baby groups with twins but it is very important to see some other adults.
You sound like a lovely friend by the way.

My favourite thing for a long time was an Infantino Flutterbug changing table mobile. When there are a lot of nappies to change, having compliant babies makes it all a lot more bearable.

A helping hand would be amazing if you can offer it. I never got out to mother and baby groups except the weeks that my husband, mum or sister were staying with me. Being able to go and meet other people would have been so helpful.

That's brilliant. I have a list now.
I do hope to get across to her regularly when the babies arrive as her partner doesn't seem to have arranged any time off! [he may surprise us]
It's her first pregnancy after a few years of IVF so very thrilling and want her to be well supported.

Things I love

Baby bjorn bouncer chairs
Tiny love baby mobile
Nappy bin
EZ2nurse breastfeeding pillow (it can be used for bottle feeding as well apparently)

Moby sling - £24 on ebay (£40 on amazon) I use it when one twin is asleep but the other won't settle. It means I can do washing etc and not have to do everything 1 handed.

Cake & high calorie sweet things something about breast feeding makes you starving. Now off to join the multiples diet though as I ate too many brownies

Thinking back, the things I loved most were:

Bouncer chairs (good padded comfy ones that went completely flat for newborns). We used these for daytime naps for ages.
Changing mats & nappy bins upstairs & downstairs - a lot of people don't like the bins, but for twins they saved a lot of trips to the kitchen/outdoor bin with nappy bags.
Baby swing - I borrowed one and bought one, and they were fantastic for giving my 10 minutes of peace while the twins dozed in them.
Bloom high chairs - these also lie flat so you can use them for newborns - I had my two in their Blooms in the kitchen while I cooked - much safer for them at my level rather than on the floor in bouncy chairs at risk of having things spilled on them.

Oh, I forgot the most important one!

When the twins were 3 weeks old, DH was back at work and my sister (who stayed for a week to help) had gone home, my friend brought round some homecooked meals (risotto, pasta bake, soup kind of thing). I sobbed as I was so grateful to have something freshly cooked.

Food, definitely food - I would have been completely thrilled if anyone had brought round a home-cooked meal for us. It's the one thing that would have really helped ease the pressure in the early days. Actually, offering practical help of any kind (getting some shopping, running the hoover round, unloading the dishwasher etc.) is priceless.

Wow great thread, i wish i'd bought a sling now...no doubt a feeling i'll be echoing soon after mine are born!
i asked my friend to get me nappies simply because of how many i'll get through. Feeling more relaxed now i have a few packs.

yep definitely food food food... if you've a massive plate of nutritious home made tasty food in front of you then all is right with the world. (for at least 10 minutes )