Like any endeavor, there are marketing giants poised to take advantage of every insecurity that you have about being a good enough parent and your desire to give your children the best. When you have higher order multiples it is natural to want to get every promising item and device but you don’t necessarily need three or more of everything.
There are items that are ‘must haves’ for safety and to just make you more efficient. I recommend that you align your shopping and culling list with sales in your area. In Calgary, our club has sales in the Fall and Spring where members can sell their used children's clothing and equipment. Unless you have a completely empty undeveloped basement, you will want to keep the amount of ‘stuff’ you have in your home to a minimum and only have clothing and equipment that you need for the next year.
Some things are recommended but may not be suitable to you or your situation based on your home, your time and the personality of your children.
In an ideal world, you would buy an item such as a bouncy chair and try it out on each baby then buy two more if they liked it. However, it is quite likely that you will have your higher order multiples by Cesarean section and your days of hoping in the car to do a little shopping will be over for awhile. You may want to get someone else to do the shopping for you, shop online or buy what you might need ahead of time, knowing that you may return it later. Find a good store that will give you an extended time to make a return and of course keep your items in the original packaging.
In an ideal world, you would buy an item such as a bouncy chair and try it out on each baby then buy two more if they liked it. However, it is quite likely that you will have your higher order multiples by Cesarean section and your days of hoping in the car to do a little shopping will be over for awhile. You may want to get someone else to do the shopping for you, shop online or buy what you might need ahead of time, knowing that you may return it later. Find a good store that will give you an extended time to make a return and of course keep your items in the original packaging.
My advice is that if you get an offer of a donated item, you take it and store it with similar age grouping items. A bouncy chair would be stored in 'birth and up,' whereas an Exersaucer would be stored with 6-12 months items.
The club’s website has an excellent list of things you will need and you may want to share with your friends and relatives through a blog type gift registry. TTMAC Layette & Supplies for Multiples Indicate which items you would prefer new and which items can be used.
When purchasing or accepting used items, check out the latest Health Canada Consumer Product Safety Guidelines and Warnings. http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/cps-spc/child-enfant/equip/index-eng.php The great news is that for many companies, you don't need to be the original owner to get replacement parts so be sure to look used items up for recall notices. Also, if you get a used item and it is missing some parts, check with the manufacturer if they have replacement parts. I had an Exersaucer that was missing some toys and I got new ones for a few dollars each, then when I sold the item, I made sure asked for enough to pay for the parts.
When purchasing or accepting used items, check out the latest Health Canada Consumer Product Safety Guidelines and Warnings. http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/cps-spc/child-enfant/equip/index-eng.php The great news is that for many companies, you don't need to be the original owner to get replacement parts so be sure to look used items up for recall notices. Also, if you get a used item and it is missing some parts, check with the manufacturer if they have replacement parts. I had an Exersaucer that was missing some toys and I got new ones for a few dollars each, then when I sold the item, I made sure asked for enough to pay for the parts.
When people hear that you have triplets or more, their sense of generosity is peaked and they will likely donate loads of hand-me-downs. Ask people to separate clothing into sizes as well as whether it is fall & winter or spring & summer as it will make it easier for you to align your shopping lists for each TTMAC sale. Also, ask them to sort the clothes into genders too.
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