Hi there and congrats! I am also expecting twins at the end of August. In the beginning we plan to sleep them together in an original arm's reach co-sleeper in our room. (the arm's reach has a higher weight limit than other pack-n-plays). Once they can roll over, we plan to switch them to seperate cribs. But we'll have to move before then because currently we have a small 2 bedroom space and a 2 year old son as well. Should be tight and interesting but I am really looking forward to it! :)

To me this brings up more questions than answers. Do you plan on being at your current place of residence long term or is your lease up in 6 months? The smaller or portable cribs work when they're infants, but what about when they're 18 months. When do you plan on putting them in beds? Will you have room for that? We have 20 month old twins, and have had them in two standard sized cribs since birth. We started them off in the same room, but had to move them to different rooms so everyone could get more sleep and we could stay sane. I understand that space might not allow for two cribs. Some people put both babies in one crib, which works for a while, or two bassinets. Congrats!

The double decker crib is terrible because the baby in the bottom is really confined. I would recommend having the twins share a crib, and transitioning them to their own once they are a bigger. They spent time together in the womb, so it might be unusual for them to be apart once born.

We have our twins in one crib for now. They are six weeks old and we plan on keeping them this way until they are six months old. We have a second crib for then and plan on placing them directly next to each other in an L shape to save space and keep the girls close to each other.

Oh my goodness. That double decker crib just makes me think of two dog crates stacked on top of each other.

Two mini cribs! They are the same size as a porta-crib, but are intended for permanent use and are therefore as sturdy as a regular crib.

(The smaller cribs will work until about 18 months. Obviously, you'll need space for two standard cribs/toddler beds at some point anyway).

For all those weirded out by the double decker crib, tons of a big daycares use them with no problem. A lot of the babies love them and sleep better since they're "cozy."

I agree keeping them together for as long as possible would be ideal since they're likely to freak out not being close to each other. Then try a mesh divider for the crib once they can roll over. By the time they're too big to fit on the divided sides they'll be strong enough to sleep side by side without suffocating so you can put them back together.

Congratulations!! I have 7 1/2 month old twins- a boy and a girl. We had them sleep together in the beginning in an Arms Reach Co-Sleeper in our room. The original size is perfect for two babies! They were in that for about 6 weeks. Then we moved them into one crib in their room, but that only lasted about two more weeks. So by the time they were 8 weeks old they were each in their own crib. Good luck- twins are amazing!!!

Congratulations! My twins started out together but were steamrolling each other by eight weeks (even in a tight swaddle), so we moved them to their own cribs. I like the idea of mini cribs and know that there are a few affordable and attractive options in Walmart's baby mod line. Another thing to consider is the Graco pack n play for twins, which has a double bassinet and considerably higher weight limits than a standard pnp. Maybe find one secondhand to buy yourself some time so that you can meet your babies and figure out what suits them best. Good luck!

-Roni

Sleep them together at first. Man, that double decker gives me the willies! The bottom looks confined and stuffy (SIDS warning?) and the top looks like the baby could fall out while the parent is "opening" it!

My friend that had twins had them both in the same crib from birth. When they started getting bigger they purchased a second crib used from a friend of theirs.

I think because you're going to want to keep them in cribs for a long time (we just put our triplets in toddler beds at over 3 years old) you'll be best served with full-size cribs. They don't have to be huge - the IKEA ones are supposed to have a pretty small footprint - but they should be full-sized, IMO. Especially since crib tents (the best invention since sliced bread, esp for multiples) only fit full-sized cribs.

You can hold off until they're a couple of months old, though. All three of mine shared a crib until they were about 3 months old.

My boy/girl twins are still sharing a crib at 9 months. At first they snuggled up together. When they could roll we just put them on opposite sides of the crib. Crawling presents a new problem, and I'm debating moving them to separate cribs now that my boy crawls over his sister or steals her pacifier. True story: yesterday they fussed a bit before settling for a nap. I ignored it because it wasn't distressed crying. About 30 minutes later my daughter let out a shriek. When I checked on them, I found they had actually fallen asleep with my son on top of his sister, pinning her flat! She woke up uncomfortable, he woke up mad when I moved him to free her.

we have four months old twins at home. They share d a crib till they were three months old, but when we moved them to their own room (instead of our, which you will need to do if you don't want to drive yourself crazy, particularly if you are planning to nurse!) three weeks ago they clearly made it clear to s that they each wanted their own bed. We picked up two pretty basic, white cribs (Graco, sold on Amazon) and used one in our living room and one in the master while we were maign arrangements to move out of our two bedroom apartment. We moved when the kids were two months old, and switched them to their own room three weeks ago. They loved sharing a crib to begin with, and now they love having each their own bed- I put two cribs in their bedroom, and since they take as much space as a regular twin bed, they will be sharing a room for a lot longer! Good luck!

or you could cosleep!

My first two kids were born close, so the second-born has only ever slept in a pack 'n play. He'll be two next month, and it's worked out just fine. He has climbed out twice now, but no harm done, and it's really a much shorter fall than if he were climbing out of the crib (which would be just as easy at this age).

Regarding the double crib pictured: I worked in a church nursery that uses those and I don't like them. They just had such a prison-like feel to them. And yes, there's not much space inside of them. You'd do better in the long run using two pack 'n plays if you have room for that.

I am in total agrement with the mom of triplets. You are going to want to keep those babies in the cribs as long a possable so the full size cribs are the way to go. I have never heard a parent talk about an easy transition from crib to toddler bed...now double that. My twins slept in their cirbs until almost 3 1/2 yr. (note...I made the mistake with my oldest son of transitioning too young).
Keep in mind that the idea that they will snuggle with each other and comfort each other is nice but I did not find it to be true. Both wanted to snuggle and get comfort from their mom just like anyother new born. I think sleeping in the same room with you is nice especial if you plan on nursing (I nursed my twins until over 1 year) so you may not need two cribs right way. You can kind of wait and see how it goes. Note: most doctors will tell you not to put your twins in the same bed. It is a SIDS thing. I did put mine together but just sharing the info.
I think I would double think the co-sleeper just because they are very small and you would NOT be able to use it very long with two babies. A lot of money for a month or two of use.
Hope all goes well with your pregnancy. Best wishes!

Congratulations Sylvia! Twins are a wonderful adventure. (Mine are nearly 5 now.) I just wanted to mention that Mothers of Twins Clubs, even if you're not much of a 'joiner,' are a tremendous resource. Most have twice-yearly tag sales where you can get all kinds of gently used gear (including cribs and bassinets!) dirt cheap. (Ours lets expectant Moms shop early, before the crowds.) Also, even if you never go to a meeting, I found the online communities to be invaluable. Best of luck with your new additions!

Congratulations! We kept our twins by our bed in a pack and play bassinet until they out grew the weight limit. Then transitioned them to sleeping in the crib together with a crib divider. We only ended up needing one crib. When they out grew sleeping in the crib together - they rotated between the pack and play and crib. We also have a very small space issue. But if you do decide to buy two cribs brand new BRU offers twin discounts. I second the mother's of multiples clubs. I've gotten great stuff from those groups...

Friends of ours who had twins in a small NYC 2BR apartment handed this unique crib down to us: http://multiples.about.com/od/cribs/ss/twincribs_2.htm. It's a large, well-made crib that is divided in half by a plexiglass panel. Each crib is basically a square. Our twins are now almost 2.5 and still content sleeping in it -- though a bit too content, as they often start the night gabbing at each other and have been known to vault the divider once or twice. Also, the plexiglass is a little weird -- we joke that they're training to be bank tellers or subway token clerks. I'm frankly surprised no other manufacturer has started producing something similar.

that crib looks like it might topple over...

We use a pack n play for our younger toddler. I dislike it because it's so low to the ground. It's hard to get a sleepy girl in and a lot of lifting to get her out. Ready for the new bed transition!

I know twin mamas who found that especially in the early days, nursing two meant a lot of nighttime getting up. She ended up bringing both babies to bed with her (with hubby on the couch for a short while until they got a king) and it worked fantastic! Everyone got so much more sleep :) If you want info on nursing twins, Kellymom.com has lots of assistance. The forums are also excellent for advice.

You really don't need two cribs, I promise. My twins are six and a half now and still prefer to sleep together. I don't know why we bothered buying bunk beds, they're always climbing into the same bunk for a "sleepover"! When they were babies, they slept best when they were curled up together.

Wanted to add - we had one crib until they were about six months old, then two cribs (both hand-me-downs). We put the cribs in an L-shape at first, but the boys kept climbing into each other's cribs, so we put one on each side of the room. They started crawling out of the crib and across the top of their dresser to get into each other's cribs so they could snuggle while they slept. They just wanted to be together.

Our twins are 16 months and have slept in their own separate cribs since half way through our first night home. (we had them in a pack play in our room and before the sun was up we moved them into their own room, the bending and the constant baby goat noises made the pnp unbearable. ) we got our cribs from amazon, they were way cheaper than anything BRU offered even with the twin discount. They are pretty standard davinci cribs, solid, no drop side death traps. And they convert to toddler beds later on. Their mattresses we got from Costco. Organic cotton less than $100 each.
If you haven't already, pick up the baby bargains book, it saved us a ton of money and research. There is sparse twin-centric info, but the other stuff is helpful. Like which crib companies have the best safety/recall records, where to save on furniture, mattresses, clothing, strollers, etc. Which brands hold up best which is essential for twins!
Good luck, twins are awesome.

I had twins in June and we let the girls sleep in the same crib facing opposite directions for the first 6 months and then added a soft crib divider to keep them from waking one another up once they started rolling around. It's worked great so far. We think we'll purchase a second crib in the near future since they are getting too long to fit side-by-side with the divider but so far one crib has worked for us.

I have two year old twins. I bought the Stokke cribs which were really expensive, but have worked out really well. We also have a hand me down portable crib which I put on wheels that has been really useful as well, especially when they were young, we wheeled it all around the apartment, and they could play in it. I highly recommend getting a crib that you can put wheels on (locking), and one that fits through the bedroom doors, so that you can wheel it into another room, say when one is sick, or not sleeping well My girls spent the first few weeks in the portable crib together. They still fit in it at 2, but not together!

Maybe it's just me, but it definitely looks like the double decker crib is gonna hurt the hell out of your back over time.

Oh my goodness. That double decker crib just makes me think of two dog crates stacked on top of each other:)

cribs for twins