I'm pregnant again..so what do I do (twins turning 1 soon)

[VroomieMama]

Yesterday, I was in ER and I found out that I'm pregnant. I had suspected it for few days but was really shocked when the doctor confirmed it.

My DH and I have been in awe almost all day about this because we did not plan to get pregnant THIS soon. Our twins are going to turn 1 on April 29th.

The point of this thread was to ask few questions:

Anyone who has experienced having a baby before their twins turn 2 years old, what was your experience like?

How do you handle shopping or run errands with these young children if you have to do it by yourself?

Do you know where I could get a double stroller with a capacity of carrying an infant car seat?

Which affordable vehicle would you suggest that could accommodate 6 or 7 people (3 car seats space will be needed) but has enough cargo space? We visit our family that lives out of state quite a lot.

Thinking about this makes me feel so overwhelmed and I don't even know the due date.

[hergrace]

One of the moms in my MOMs group went through this recently and has been finding it easier than she imagined with the three kids so close in age, so I hope you have the same experience.

If your twins are happy in the stroller, then wearing the baby and having the older two in the stroller will probably be easiest for errands at first. The Graco DuoGlider will carry an infant carseat if you want a double stroller with room for one toddler and the baby. I'm sure there are others. My guess is that most double strollers at mainstream stores are designed with kids of two different ages in mind. I know that when my brother bought a stroller for his twins, he bought a double travel system and an extra infant seat.

I did grocery shopping pulling the shopping cart and pushing the stroller until I could manage without the stroller. Shopping anywhere that the carts seat 2 kids will make things easier.

As for vehicles, I love my Honda Odyssey. We used 3 car seats in the back row and only one seat in the middle row when we traveled with suitcases and the triple stroller. Now that we don't need the stroller, there is more room in the cargo space and we have room for a second seat in the middle row so an adult can sit in back with the kids. They have been excellent vehicles for many years now, so a used one should be a cheaper possibility than looking new.

HTH

[Intertwined]

I had the opposite experience. My daughter was 17 months old when my twins were born. Some of my experiences will likely help you!

Sunshine Kids Radians (both the 65's and the 80's) will go three across pretty easily. They have a narrow footprint but are super comfy for my five year old. I them.

I do smaller shopping trips with bags hanging on the handles of my stroller. I pack the bags with my items and use the basket underneath if I run out of room. I have a Duoglider and I like it. If I could go back I'd have just gotten a triplet stroller. I think it would have made my life easier, honestly. My now three year old STILL wants/needs to ride a lot and the twins are in the "bolting" stage so many two year olds go through. I've been kicking around the idea of hitting the Dallas MOT sales this spring to see if I can find one cheap.

When the twins were born we bought a Toyota Sienna 8 passenger and I LOVED it. Unfortunately when the economy tanked we got hit hard and we own a much less expensive car now. I have my eye on an 11 or 12 passenger van these days.

Congratulations!

[VroomieMama]

Thank you both for your response and it was really helpful. I'm bookmarking this thread. I have an OB/GYN in the morning at 11am and I'm nervous. This baby will be my #4 (hopefully no multiples this time).

[zebra15]

I saw this in the new threads and just wanted to give you a huge HUG.
Everything happens for a reason and you will be fine, the twins will be fine and yes there are strollers for 'three'. My neighbor has a 'JOOVY' caboose that has 2 seats and a standing/sitting area for #3. You need to look at the extended model. The stroller is a bit $$ but she swears by that thing and it comes in some super great colors.

http://www.joovy.com/pages/pd_bigcaboose.php

http://joovy.net/joovystore/BigCaboose_green.php
Congrats and enjoy the news.

[Intertwined]

Great, thanks a lot. Now I want one of those Joovys.

[Shuli]

My three are also close in age but not as close as yours will be. For the twins I had the duo glider from graco and absolutely loved it. I now have a double umbrolla type stroller for the boys and the little princess goes in the sling, it works pretty well. I did take them shopping yesterday and had baby in the single stroller and the two boys holding on. It was an interesting experience, but everyone survived and all errands got done.

When I have to do a big grocery shop, I put one of the boys in the seat in front, one of the boys in the buggy (they don't have a two seater cart here) and she goes in the sling. I come home with squashed bread and stood on chicken, I get "help" putting the stuff from the cart onto the checkout counter but the boys have learned to count, colors and shapes.

Having them so close in age has been tough in the beginning, but it is getting easier as time goes on and the kids will appreciate it (I hope) as they grow up.

Good luck!

[VroomieMama]

Thank you for the virtual hug.

I went to both links and I'm uncertain about this product because it does not explain/display if I could attach the infant car seat into the two seats stroller. I only see that it has two seats and a place to stand or sit but don't see any place to put the infant car seat in.

Originally Posted by zebra15

I saw this in the new threads and just wanted to give you a huge HUG.
Everything happens for a reason and you will be fine, the twins will be fine and yes there are strollers for 'three'. My neighbor has a 'JOOVY' caboose that has 2 seats and a standing/sitting area for #3. You need to look at the extended model. The stroller is a bit $$ but she swears by that thing and it comes in some super great colors.

http://www.joovy.com/pages/pd_bigcaboose.php

http://joovy.net/joovystore/BigCaboose_green.php
Congrats and enjoy the news.

[VroomieMama]

We do have the Graco's Duo Glider and Jeep Wrangler Twin Sport All-Weather Stroller.

I'm uncomfortable with the idea of having the baby in the sling because of the huge recall recently. I do have a moby wrap but did not use it much with the twins. I probably will end up using it all the time with this baby. We'll see.

I'll find out what its like when shopping with all 3 of them after this baby is born.

Originally Posted by Shuli

My three are also close in age but not as close as yours will be. For the twins I had the duo glider from graco and absolutely loved it. I now have a double umbrolla type stroller for the boys and the little princess goes in the sling, it works pretty well. I did take them shopping yesterday and had baby in the single stroller and the two boys holding on. It was an interesting experience, but everyone survived and all errands got done.

When I have to do a big grocery shop, I put one of the boys in the seat in front, one of the boys in the buggy (they don't have a two seater cart here) and she goes in the sling. I come home with squashed bread and stood on chicken, I get "help" putting the stuff from the cart onto the checkout counter but the boys have learned to count, colors and shapes.

Having them so close in age has been tough in the beginning, but it is getting easier as time goes on and the kids will appreciate it (I hope) as they grow up.

Good luck!

[VroomieMama]

Originally Posted by Intertwined

Great, thanks a lot. Now I want one of those Joovys.

Ha ha.

[just_lily]

I saw this from New Posts and just want to say I have one of those strollers for my home daycare. They come with an attachment that hooks on where the snack trays are that then accomodates an infant seat. I've never had to use it, but they have a list of compatable seats on their website here.

The stroller itself is very long, and not the easiest to move around. But once you get used to it, it will definitely get the job done. It was the cheapest possible option for me to get three kids on one stroller. I picked it up at TRU when they had them for nearly 50% off so if you decide on it watch for sales.

Good luck with your pregnancy. I am sure you are feeling very overwhelmed right now, but I really believe that we are only given what we can handle. Women have an amazing ability to do whatever they need to do. Blessings!!

[mrsfrenchy]

Originally Posted by VroomieMama

Thank you for the virtual hug.

I went to both links and I'm uncertain about this product because it does not explain/display if I could attach the infant car seat into the two seats stroller. I only see that it has two seats and a place to stand or sit but don't see any place to put the infant car seat in.

::butting in::

You just set the bucket seat into one of the regular seats and it locks in.
Here's a list of the compatible infant seats and a picture of how it works (though its on a different stroller in the picture).

http://www.joovy.com/pages/carseat.htm

[hergrace]

Originally Posted by VroomieMama

I'm uncomfortable with the idea of having the baby in the sling because of the huge recall recently. I do have a moby wrap but did not use it much with the twins. I probably will end up using it all the time with this baby. We'll see.

There are other ways to wear a baby that worked better for errands with a stroller for me than using a sling. I used a mei tai a lot with the trips. And a Beco as soon as they were big enough. I liked to have the weight evenly distributed across both shoulders when running errands with a stroller. One shoulder was fine with only one kid, but I didn't like it with more than one.

[VroomieMama]

Just_Lily and MrsFrenchy, thank you for the link because it relieved my concerns. Its close to what I was looking for. At the zoo I saw a stroller that had two children sitting side by side with an infant car seat between them. I thought it was cool but I can imagine it being difficult to go through the door and etc. I have the Jeep Wrangler Twin Sport All-Weather Stroller and using it can be difficult to go through a door but I prefer this stroller than the Duo Graco Glider ones anyway.

I didn't know that Toys R Us or Babies R Us have this type of stroller. I'll look for it but if they don't have it then I'll ask them to order it for me.

I got a feeling that I probably will end up using the moby wrap all the time with this baby b/c buying this type of stroller is really expensive and not sure if we have it in our budget. I guess, we'll find out as time approaches.

[Callimom]

Hugs to you.
My twins were 26 months when my youngest was born. I also had a 5 year old.
I am out of the baby equipment stage now (twins are turning 9 in a month) so I am no help there.

For errands I used a sling or trekker for my infant and had the twins in the grocery cart or stroller. From a purely logistical standpoint I was probably more authoritarian with my kids around safety rules when we were out than I might have been with kids space further apart.

I remember my singleton feeling incredibly easy after the twin's infant stage - probably because by then they were toddlers and babies just always seem easier to manage logistically than infants. Although I don't have tonnes of memories from that time not related to pictures. We tri-andemed nursed which was tiring and I was actively discouraging night nursing from the twins at that point.

I know it feels really overwhelming now, but I have to say I love love love the very close spacing of my kids who are all very close and it is quite easy for us to travel as a pack and do things as a family.

Good luck to you.
Karen

[VroomieMama]

thank you for the good luck.. will need it. :0

Originally Posted by Karenwith4

Hugs to you.
My twins were 26 months when my youngest was born. I also had a 5 year old.
I am out of the baby equipment stage now (twins are turning 9 in a month) so I am no help there.

For errands I used a sling or trekker for my infant and had the twins in the grocery cart or stroller. From a purely logistical standpoint I was probably more authoritarian with my kids around safety rules when we were out than I might have been with kids space further apart.

I remember my singleton feeling incredibly easy after the twin's infant stage - probably because by then they were toddlers and babies just always seem easier to manage logistically than infants. Although I don't have tonnes of memories from that time not related to pictures. We tri-andemed nursed which was tiring and I was actively discouraging night nursing from the twins at that point.

I know it feels really overwhelming now, but I have to say I love love love the very close spacing of my kids who are all very close and it is quite easy for us to travel as a pack and do things as a family.

Good luck to you.
Karen

[3greatkids]

We had a 2 year old when my twins were born.
I drive the Honda Odyssey and love it. When my older son was still little we used a Valco tri-mode twin stroller with the toddler seat attachment and it was a life saver. The twins laid down in the seats and my son sat up above them.
Grocery shopping is always interesting. I have one twin on my back, one in the cart and my older son once he was able started pushing his own cart. Realistically at the start I went for groceries when the kids were in bed for the night and my hubby was home. Now my twins are 2 and my older son is 4 and it feels a bit more streamlined.
Good luck with 3 under the age of 2

[~bookcase~]

wow - what amazing, wonderful news
(i second the hope it's not multiples but you will sooo cope with it if it is )

my first two were ten months apart (boys) and then i had dd when they were 22 and 32 months old. very different circumstances BUT it was sooooooooooo eeeeeeeasy because i was used to juggling pure chaos by that point. to have only one baby in arms was delightful!!! and the boys played so nicely by that point it was sweeet.

twins threw me upside down again, but you have an older girl, twins to hang out with each other (cause trouble ) i think you will be awesome with number 4

many doubles i've looked at will take a carseat. but i'd go with the moby until 5 months ish and then switch to a beco butterfly so you can get babe on your back. they are great with the infant insert. made world of difference to me with the twins

CONGRATULATIONS

[VroomieMama]

Thank you for the replies... interesting suggestions from several new posts.

[awesomemum]

Hi, I just read your post about being pregnant again and your twins turning one soon.

My twins have just turned 1 and I have just found out I'm pregnant (only about 5 weeks at this stage)

And I just wondered since you have probably had your new son/daughter by now if you could tell me how you went with some of the things you asked. Twin stroller with a baby seat? Car with enough space etc. We also have an 11 year old.

Many Thanks,

Regina