To add on as I have thought about it more:I have identical twins who are now 6. As well as a 3 year old. First off congratulations !!!Like most Bogleheads, I (34m) am a super planner. My wife (33f) is also a super planner. We have budgets, weekly attack plans, goals, monthly net worth and balance tracker, etc etc
And today, my world got completely flipped upside down. My wife and I just found out we're having twins. We knew we were pregnant (first time) for over two months now, but did not expect to be expecting.... two!
We have been investing ~30% of our income and I had a plan set up for 25% including childcare costs, but now, these expenses are doubling (less economies of scale?? lol)
Income: $150k + bonus + 6.5% match / $183k (expecting raises for 2024, 3-5%+) = $333k+
Net Worth: $980k ($115k taxable, $300k 401ks, $100k Roths, $60k cash, $750k house - $400k mortgage (3.2%), two newish SUVs (Nissan Rogues)
We've been maxing out 401k's and throwing $30k-36k+ in the taxable. Had a little lifestyle creep, but it was proportional to our income growth (a few good raises over the last few years). We were on fire and it felt so good (went from $200k to nearly $1M net worth in five years).
But now... I'm a bit shocked (would love some encouragement). Our primary goal is to now raise these two kiddos, but I really want to keep blazing on the the simply path to wealth.
A few questions:
- any other twin parent bogleheads out there?
- Was going to pull back on taxable contribution for 529 - was thinking $500/mo per twin (Ohio)
- Rather than monthly 529, should we just divest the brokerage and superfund the 529s? And then build taxable back up? (again, Ohio)
- Should we nanny? We're both professionals who WFH (optional hybrid). Twins are due in June, probably don't need childcare until Jan '25.
- Any lifestyle tips? Automatic baby formula maker? How many date nights per month?
- How have you felt about reducing your investing contributions after having it "easy"?
- Any other tips?
Thanks!
For 529 - depends on where you anticipate sending kids to college and you want to avoid overfunding as well. We did $1k a month for a few years and now at 6 they each have $50k. I have slowed down contributions as we are targeting 70% funding from 529 rest taxable for in state college. Remember not every kid is college bound so some risk management is prudent to avoid over contributing unless you see passing 529 to a new beneficiary to use rather than withdraw.
For Nanny vs daycare - At two kids we found that daycare was still cheaper and provided a better experience in many cases for our kids. Many daycares will be flexible with pricing to some extent knowing twins is somewhat a hardship financially. We were lucky that our daycare did the first 2 years offered a 20% discount as a courtesy. This was well above their published discount of 10% for second enrolled child. Does not hurt to ask. Also you can use dependent care pre-tax amounts up to $5k/yr for married couples for daycare. Nanny may not qualify.
As far as tips - depending on feeding plans ensure to trade off nights rather than do shifts through the day (learned this too late). For formula Costco is great and we used baby brezza (like kurig for formula). Accept help and realize that two is much harder than 1 but it does get better. Just avoid comparing yourselves to other parents as it is not the same and at times can be a downer. Try to enjoy this unique experience and appreciate them for their small differences.
Diapers - Amazon has reoccurring delivery which provides a steep discount on diapers.
Night nurse - worth considering as those first few weeks are hard as most twins are born early. Full term for twins is 37 weeks not 40 and many are delivered before 37 weeks so they are smaller and that means more frequent feedings initially. If you go the night nurse route you need to schedule them sometimes weeks or months in advance for a reputable provider with appropriate trained, licensed, and insured nurses. Also very expensive but worth their weight in gold to help everyone adjust to the new normal. Not trying to scare you as it is well worth it and everyone gets use to life after kids but it’s just more of an adjustment when your first kids are twins.
Sleeping arrangements for newborns - strongly believe that it is helpful to have the baby in a separate room. They get use to being alone and you will hear them if they want something. It is also good for the parents to have a break as well. I know may people who have insisted on having their babies sleep in a bedside bassinet but it often has made it hard not to be constantly providing for your baby when they may be perfectly fine if left for a minute or two to settle (I.e. post feeding gas or just general baby noises).
If you have a fussy or colicky baby - SNOO smart sleeper bassinet is amazing. They are very expensive but I know many people buy them second hand and some companies rent them as you only need them so long. But they work wonders.
Stroller - depending on where you live (city or suburb/less urban) this is more or less important. When our twins were born we lived in Chicago downtown so this was like our car. We loved the bugaboo donkey double stroller. It was pricey but served us well for the years we used it. I would also recommend getting very light car seats (maxi cost has a very light model) as constantly carrying around two car seats and infants can be more work than you may anticipate.
Take lots of pictures and if they are identical could be good to label the picture now while you remember who was who for years down the road. We unfortunately did not do this as much as we should have and really cannot tell any more in pictures who is who despite being able to tell who is who consistently at the time and now.
Car - again depending of lifestyle, location, and future children plans would strongly recommend a mini van. Just so much easier to get kids in and out. Plenty of room for two rear facing car seats (which take a ton of room so really need a pretty large car either way) and can story all the stuff that goes with having twins without a roof rack. Sure you can make a 3 row SUV worn but I have been living with that reality for several years and hunching over to squeeze into that back row Is not fun and if you use the two middle seats the back row is entirely inaccessible. Just bite the bullet and get at least 1 mini van.
Tummy time - it can be easy to forget or not realize the importance of tummy time when they are young. When ready this is how they build neck muscle to lift their head up and also allows them not to constantly put pressure on the back of their head which can cause flat spots. Not a huge thing to worry about but I found that those first few moments in the morning were a great time lost feeding to do tummy time ELT them.
Schooling (way later) - we separated our twins at kindergarden and this was the best decision. They have become more independent socially and emotionally l. I would strongly recommend it if an option when the time comes.
That’s all if to for now.
Statistics: Posted by Bb073084 — Wed Dec 13, 2023 11:17 pm — Replies 51 — Views 3575