need to prepare a 2 yr old for birth of sibling in advance?

Log in / Sign Up

List of Forums + New Post Recipe Box Usergroups Following My Posts Bookmarks

Private Messages Advanced Search Rules New User Guide FAQ Advertise Contact Us

Forum -> Parenting our children -> Preschoolers

Need to prepare a 2 yr old for birth of sibling in advance?

View latest: 24h 48h 72h

amother

Tue, Sep 19 2006, 6:14 pm

My first born will be two when I am due with my second. Some pple are telling me I need to talk to her about the new baby to her now to prepare her for the arrival
I don't think she would understand if I do. When I get home from the hospital she will get the picture.
Whats your experience?

amother

Tue, Sep 19 2006, 6:22 pm

you'd be surprised how much a two year old understands. from my experience, preparation is a good thing. but dont do it too much in advance, start closer to your due date. giving her dolls to play with, reading books about new babies, letting her feel the baby kick. they might not get it completely but they do understand more than theyre given credit for. of course the main thing is to remember that your older one just 'lost her throne' and try to give her as much attention as possible.

BrachaVHatzlocha

Wed, Sep 20 2006, 5:57 pm

I used to be a teacher of 2 year olds.
in my opinion, tell her, but not way in advance. like a few weeks before your due date, prepare her that you'll be getting a new baby.
also - any big changes you may need to make with her (her own room, into a new bed, etc.) don't do around that time. do it before or a while after.
My kids are 17+ months apart. I told my son that I was going to get a new baby and bring it home...he wasn't very verbal at that point and I wasn't even sure he knew what a baby was! But when he met his new brother, he said, "baby!" It was really cute!

HelloEverybody

Wed, Oct 04 2006, 12:17 pm

I didn't prepare my son at all. We didn't really talk about. Although if I talked about it with others (parents/siblings/etc.) I wasn't making sure to be secretive about it. I think that was okay and he did well. However, I don't think that's what made him so acceptable to his baby sister and brought her to give her a fighting chance in the family.

I think the fact that for the first few weeks I still made him be the first one and her be second, even if it meant she had to cry for a minute. Also, when I nursed I read him books. I tried to make sure he washed yadayim, got milk/food, etc. before getting baby. When I would go in the morning to get him from crib, I made sure NOT to be holding baby so he didn't associate me as always holding the baby. Things like that I think helped and of course last night his baby sister crawling around turned into a "Sheep" we had to pet.

Page 1 of 1