One of the things you probably don't think about when you decide (or life helps you decide) to have your children close in age is the amout of gear you will accumulate. You just think, hey, they'll be close in age so they'll be good friends (later, at least) and they'll be in the same stages together (diapers, school, activities, etc.).
After putting away some clothes in the attic that our kids have outgrown, I realized just how much we have accumulated over the years. Of course, we did have three boys in a little over two years - twins fourteen months after we had our oldest, so our story is a little different.
Here's our life by the numbers:
Seven. Total number of car seats we own. Two infant carriers with detachable bases (wonderful things up until about 25 lbs.). Two mid-size seats for when they outgrew the infant seats. Three full-size convertible booster seats, currently residing in my Tahoe. They barely fit in your average car, they're so big and bulky, but our kids have outgrown all the others (95th percentile for our boys).
Five. Total number of strollers we own. The one that matches the infant seat (totally worthless, in my opinion, because when they're that small you're much more likely to just pick up the seat and carry it than put it into the stroller and push it). The double stroller, for when we were expecting a second child so quickly after the first. The two umbrella strollers, small enough to fit in normal size cars (which the double stroller is not). And finally, the triple stroller that was purchased when I was tired of being trapped in the house with three little people (the wheels are practically wearing off of this one after only two years - love it).
Four. Number of high chairs and / or booster seats we own. The high chair is in the attic, but the three booster seats are still in use. We might have gotten more high chairs when the twins were smaller, but it was just as easy to feed them in their swings until they were old enough to sit up more. So now we have a table that seats six, but booster chairs take up three of the seats. If I had it to do all over again, I might just buy the booster seat from the beginning.
Four. Number of baby gates currently in our house. Of course, we have already taken down the big one that enclosed our play area - the kids were finally smarter than the velcro that attached the fabric to the gate. We still have four, two of which are the expensive ones that have openings. You have to step over the others! We also have one that travels, so a total of six are actually owned.
Four. Number of potty seats in our house. Of course, this was us being silly. We needed two, one for a bathroom upstairs and one for a bathroom downstairs, but we couldn't get Connor interested in the toddler seats that attach to the regular potty, so we then went out and bought two children's potty chairs that sit on the floor (again, one for each level). He loved playing with the seat and fake flush handle, but never once pottied on it! My advice is stick with the toddler seats (less mess), and just wait till your kids are ready.
Four. Number of ride-on cars that circle our house daily. We started with one, for Connor, which played a hideously annoying "muffin man" song all the time and whose batteries NEVER died (thanks, Aunt Kelly!), but it finally cracked and became a hazard. We still have three - two Lightning McQueen cars and one Big Wheel.
Seven. Number of beds for our kids have gone through. They now have three full-size beds (thanks to my parents who donated the ones from their house when they built a new one). Of course, only two are currently in use because the twins always sleep in the same bed and leave the other one empty. We also have two cribs, and two travel beds (otherwise known as pack-and-plays). These last four are taking up space in our attic.
Six. Number of sippy cups we use in any given day. Three for milk, and three more identical cups for juice and / or water. I won't tell you how many we own, it might scare you. Let's just say there's a whole kitchen cabinet dedicated to just their cups, and another one to just their plates and bowls.
Fifteen. Number of diapers and / or pull-ups we STILL go through on any given day. When the twins were smaller, it was about 25 a day for three boys in diapers. Lots of fun!
One. Number of loads of laundry that is done every day, at least. Usually two, since in my house there are only two loads - whites and absolutely everything else!
And finally, just for fun . . .
Eighty-Five. The number of child safety locks that have been installed on cabinets and furniture. I won't even begin to count the outlet covers, door knob covers, safety covers for blind cords, or other various child safety stuff. I only know the cabinets because I remember how many packages we bought. Child safety stuff becomes essential when you realize that you're outnumbered three to one by toddlers!
And we won't talk about all the stuff they've outgrown. The carriers - one Baby Bjorn (wonderful for a single child), one backpack carrier (not worth the money; it will break your back by the time your child is big enough to hold his head that steady). And of course the bouncy seats and exersaucers and swings.
All I can say (if you have kids close in age like we do and you like to shop at Babies 'R Us) is you should apply for one of their Mastercards. We switched when Connor was a newborn, and we've gotten I don't know how many hundreds of dollars in gift card rewards back. You earn 1 percent on all purchases, and up to 5 percent on Babies 'R Us and Toys 'R Us purchases. It helped buy a few of those car seats and strollers and other gear that we felt obligated to have.
