"Hi all! We are thinking of having our second child. I am just wondering how all you multiple time mommies out there, managed going from one child to two? I am sure it will be fine, lots of people do it right? I am just wondering what advice, you can offer me. Oh- my son Ashton is 13 months. So he would hopefully be about 2 when the new baby comes. Thanks in advance."
-Danielle McCaroll
9 comments:
at first going from one to two was easy . when i first brought my daughter home it was easy enough to put her in the swing or bouncy chair while i did things for my son. it got alot harder as she got older and slept less she wasnt as easily occupied . its very rewarding to have both of them and watch them grow and interact with eachother but there is 4 years between mine and they fight like crazy . if your going to have another do it now they will at least be close enough in age to play some of the same games
I had my second daughter when my first was just over 3yrs. It went great!! My oldest was so excited to be a big sister. Old enough to understand what was going on, but young enough not to really care all that much. The only problems I had were that you can't nap with baby the second time around, you spend that time with your oldest...and now that my youngest is 1 1/2, she's getting on big sister's nerves a little, wanting to be just like her!!lol I think it's cute, but sometimes my 4 1/2 year old doesn't agree!!lol I'm sure you'll do fine, it takes a while, but you'll get a system going that works for your family, and there's nothing more rewarding than seeing the love between siblings grow! Good luck!
I had Olivia when Austin was 14 months old. They are now 2years, and 10 months. I am glad I had them so close to be honest with you. Austin isn't jealous of her, and it is cute to see them interact.
I wouldn't go so far as to say its hard, but it is definitely more work. Depending on age, it is double the diapers, double the bottles/sippy cups to fill, pass out, and wash, double the laundry and so on.
Well worth it.
Another thing I found by having them so close is that I used all the same gear as I used with Austin. Same swing, same bassinet, same bouncy chair, etc. Some people feel compelled to go out and get the newest product, but with mine being so close, they were still new lol.
I say go for it :)
I'm going to be brutally honest here with my experience...
My son was just over 2 when my daughter was born and honestly, going from a mother of 1 to a mother of 2 was the single most difficult thing I've ever done. I found it to be much more challenging than going from no kids to 1.
It could have been a lot worse, but it's been very difficult. Cole was not jealous of Madison at all and he actually adjusted remarkably well and a LOT faster than I had anticipated. He's always been independant so that wasn't an issue but I did find that he got more mischiveous since she has been here. Whether that's directly related to her arrival or simply the fact that he's an active 2 year old remains to be seen haha!
My daughter is what they call a "high needs baby". We've dubbed her the velcro baby. She nurses constantly, there are days when she flat out refuses to be put down at ALL, she is not a good sleeper and definitely doesn't sleep through the night! Total polar opposite to what Cole was at her age! She's 2 months old now and things are JUST starting to settle down a bit...but let me tell you the first 2 months were pure hell! Not trying to scare you off, but it was rough. Very, very rough.
Now things are starting to settle and it's basically because Madi has started to calm down and detach herself a bit from me. She is nursing less often and actually napping by times (praise God!) so I can spend a little more one on one time with Cole and in turn, he's a little less mischevious.
Sleep has gotten better too...at first, Madison would be on the go eating and wanting attention and it'd go on all night and when she'd FINALLY settle down it'd be time for Cole to get up. Ugh! Let me tell you, that was rough! I can't tell you the number of early mornings I was zombie mommy in near tears downing coffee after coffee just so I could function! But like I said, it's getting better!
I was also deathly afraid of Madison's crying waking Cole up...but surprisingly enough, he's fairly immune to it so if it takes me a minute to get to her, all hell doesn't break loose! :)
It is tricky though trying to juggle the two of them at the same time, but we're managing. Cole has learned to be a little patient when I can't get to him right away because I'm feeding his sister or tending to her in some other way and Madison, well, she just has to cry for a few minutes sometime when I'm dealing with Cole.
The good parts really outweigh the bad though. Sure you're a little more tired and your patience might be stretched to its limits...but you trade that off for such blessings. You never really realize how much love your heart can hold and how much love you can give until you bring another child into your home. You love your first born in a different way...you love him as your first baby and as a big brother. You get to see him grow and develop in entirely new ways. You get to see him share his love with his baby sister...and believe me, he does! It melts my heart when he says Madi is cute or she smells good or when he sneaks her kisses or tries to give her his toys or covers her with a blanket. God help me if I let one of her socks fall off because he is right there trying to put it back on so she doesn't get cold.
It's also amazing how much the new baby loves his or her sibling right off the bat! Madison loves to watch Cole play and loves when he talks to her or touches her. I think she gives him bigger smiles than she gives my husband or I.
So enough rambling here haha...bottom line for us was it was extremely difficult but entirely worth it. I wouldn't trade one sleepless night or frustrated day to have my family any other way. Having kids close together is a blessing in disguise. You don't quite get yourself out of baby mode so it's a little easier to fall back into it.
Thats another good point Cindy, you ARE still in baby mode, and haven't "forgotten" how to do some things.
Of course every child IS different, so it's hard to say who will have an easy time and who won't. Olivia was much more/ and still is, more maintenance than Austin. Waaaaay more needy.
It must be a girl thing...Madi is much more maintenance than Cole ever even dreamed of being!
it must be, cus my friend sara says the same thing. (she has one girl 2 years and one boy 1, yup, literally 12 mos apart!)
haha i hope you guys are right ..lol cause summer was really good ..so maybe this possible boy will be better ..i can only dreammm........
lol I like that this point got brought up. Jessika and I talk about this ALL the time, how much different the girls are from the boys. It's funny because we are always saying the same things about our girls, they want constant attention, can't wait to leave the house, NO PROBLEMS talking (getting them to stop now is another issue lol). And again, the same things about the boys, Only talk when they have to, will entertain themselves, and LOVE snuggling with mom. I'm sure there's lots more we talk about too, but those are the points on top of my head right now. I wonder if this is just coincidently our kids or every boy/girl like this?
Post a Comment