The first year with twins is a whirlwind! Take it from me, an experienced twin mom, you might not remember too much because this time will be spent just trying to survive without going too crazy.
The good news is, it doesn’t have to be all that bad. With some good planning and preparation, you will find those sweet moments to enjoy with your two little ones. In this post I am sharing what to expect when raising twins in their first year, along with my top tips to make it go as smoothly as possible.
Please note, there are affiliate links in this post. Read my privacy & disclosure policy at the bottom of this page to learn more.
Raising & Parenting Twins Through Each Stage of the First Year
In this section, I want to rundown what to expect during each stage of your twins’ first year. Setting reasonable expectations will go a long way in helping you reduce stress and understand that it’s normal to feel overwhelmed. At the same time, remember each stage is only temporary, and twins do get easier!
I also want to point out that I have a lot of articles that are more detailed on particular topics regarding twin care. I have included links below where those apply, so be sure to click over to those for the things you find yourself needing help with. Or, just bookmark this page for future reference so you can get where you need to easily.
Newborn
The newborn stage with twins can be very intense and you might feel like you are constantly feeding or caring for one of your babies without much of a break – especially at night. The reason for this is a newborn twins schedule is not reliable yet.
On top of the lack of sleep and schedule, figuring out how to feed your babies (breastfeeding, formula, or pumping) is a huge learning curve. Plus, babies take a very long time to feed during this stage. Finally more specifically regarding twins, figuring out how to feed your twins at the same time, will be very important too.
The newborn twins phase is the time to get as much help as possible. If you have family or friends offering a helping hand, take them up on it. It’s also important to have a particular task to give them when they arrive.
The hardest times will likely be the lack of sleep at night. I recommend having a plan for night care. You can read more here about strategies for dealing with newborn twins at night.
Additional help for surviving the newborn phase:
- Printable Twin Schedules & Trackers – designed specifically for twin parents, this bundle helps you stay organized and reduce stress with newborn twins and beyond
- Breastfeeding or Pumping class – these courses are taught by a twin mom
- Baby Care Guide – a roadmap to surviving the newborn phase
- Newborn Sleep Course – understand how to deal with sleep with newborn babies
- Postpartum Class – learn how to heal and thrive
Related:
3-6 Months
Once your twins reach anywhere from 6 weeks to 3 months old, you will start seeing some patterns in their schedule and they will probably sleep in longer stretches at night. This will be a welcome relief.
This is the time to get your twins on the same schedule because they are now capable of it. At this point you should have mastered feeding your twins at the same time, so you will now have some rest periods during naps.
The other important thing to understand here are typical baby wake windows for this age. This goes a long way towards ensuring your twins get enough naps and sleep well at night.
Also likely happening sometime in the 3-6 month time range is your return to work (if you are going back). You might already know your twins care plan, but if not, it’s time to decide. Will you hire a nanny for your twins, put them in daycare, or have family members (like grandparents) care for them?
Related: Typical 3-6 Month Old Sleep Schedule
6+ Months
Get ready for another schedule change! Once you have adjusted, you will enjoy this change though. Some time at 6-9 months old your babies will start napping two, rather than three, times per day. Additionally, babies usually start solids around 5-6 months old.
Those are two different areas of schedule changes you will be navigating. This can feel stressful because you have two babies that you are trying to keep on the same schedule. First up, I recommend checking out this article on feeding twins solids. That will help understand how to get through this phase.
Second, check out this article about 6 month old schedules, so you can see how to go about switching from 3 naps to 2. I recommend reducing the number of naps at the same time with twins.
The other thing that will change in your life is anywhere from 7-12 months old your twins might start crawling, pulling themselves up, and walking. Walking could come after 12 months, but some type of moving around will be happening by 1 year. That means you will need to get serious about baby-proofing your house with baby gates, cabinet locks, and other similar types of baby safety gear.
Tips for Surviving the First Year With Twins Straight from a Twin Mom
You now have an idea of what to expect with changes from newborn through the first year. This is important to set reasonable expectations for raising twins in the first year. Now, I want to share my tips and hacks for getting through this rewarding, but also trying time with twin babies.
- Take help when offered AND have a task to assign the person
- Learn how to feed twin babies at the same time
- Be efficient with quick diaper changes
- Learn how to swaddle well
- Get your twins on the same schedule as soon as possible – around 3 months old
- Sleep train your twins when they are old enough (6+ months) – I know this is a very personal decision. As hard as it was, it only takes ~3 days and I thought it was so worth it.
- Know what to pack in a diaper bag for twins – here is a checklist to help
- Use trackers and planners to stay organized and track each baby’s individual habits – check out this printable Twin Schedules & Trackers bundle designed specifically for twin parents to reduce stress and overwhelm.
- Teach your twins to hold their own bottles as early on as possible – around 6 months
How To Set Up Your Home for Twin Babies
In this section I am pointing out the big baby gear items you will need two of, so you can understand the space you will need to create. This is what I recommend to make caring for two babies at once easier in your home.
- Living room: Space for each baby to “lounge”. I recommend two bouncer seats.
- Kitchen: Counter space to prep bottles. Two boosters or high chairs once you start solid food.
- Master Bedroom: Twin bassinet or two single bassinets
- Nursery: Two cribs
I also highly recommend the Twin Z pillow. You can use this pillow for tandem breastfeeding or tandem bottle feeding, and you can also let your babies lounge on it too. Just keep in mind this pillow will take up more space than you think, so you will want to have somewhere to store it.
What Is the Cost of Raising Twins in the First Year?
Budgeting for your additional costs will include some of the following items. As a reminder, some of these you need double of when compared to having one baby:
- Diapers & wipes
- Formula (if using)
- Daycare / nanny
- Baby gear – bassinet, nursery, car seats, strollers, etc.
- Medical costs – birth, health insurance, doctors appointments, etc.
For an estimate on the actual cost of raising twins in the first year, check out this article.
Raising and guiding twins through their first year is a huge accomplishment!
Hopefully this article has given you a general overview of what to expect starting from taking your newborn twins home all the way through until they are 12 months old. It will be quite the journey with a lot of ups and downs.
My biggest piece of advice is that getting and keeping twins on the same schedule is so important to making things go more smoothly during their first year. Good luck and for more twins help, be sure to follow my Facebook page!
