I asked Stacey to blog about her life with a 20 month old and expecting a baby in 18 weeks!
Hope we can offer her some solid advice and encourage her!
My Thoughts on Baby #2
Where to start... well, my first son was born July 20,
2005, 8 days early, and very unexpected! I was
certainly not ready to go into labour when I did. I
think this has had a huge effect on my feelings as a
mom, and I've been trying to change my perspective for
#2.
This baby is due August 6, 2007. I'm very excited,
yet pretty nervous all at the same time. This time I
have more to think about too. How will I deal with
two? Will Rowan be jealous? Do I potty train Rowan
now, or wait til after the baby is born? Am I crazy
for having them only two years apart? How will I go
grocery shopping with two? Am I ready to give even
more of myself?
My list could go on and on. The things I've been
thinking about most lately are whether I will get back
to my pre baby size again, or if I'll gain way too
much weight this time. How was it for you other moms?
~Stacey
Hope we can offer her some solid advice and encourage her!
My Thoughts on Baby #2
Where to start... well, my first son was born July 20,
2005, 8 days early, and very unexpected! I was
certainly not ready to go into labour when I did. I
think this has had a huge effect on my feelings as a
mom, and I've been trying to change my perspective for
#2.
This baby is due August 6, 2007. I'm very excited,
yet pretty nervous all at the same time. This time I
have more to think about too. How will I deal with
two? Will Rowan be jealous? Do I potty train Rowan
now, or wait til after the baby is born? Am I crazy
for having them only two years apart? How will I go
grocery shopping with two? Am I ready to give even
more of myself?
My list could go on and on. The things I've been
thinking about most lately are whether I will get back
to my pre baby size again, or if I'll gain way too
much weight this time. How was it for you other moms?
~Stacey
11 comments:
Ok step by step directions just for you!!
Take away his diapers.
ALL OF THEM... except for nap time and leaving the house for long trips.
Get a timer...
Time every 15 minutes.
Put him on the potty each time that timer goes off... no matter what he says he needs to atleast sit. Now if hes screaming bloody murder ... then try to explain to him and bribe him :-)
After he goes reward him w/ a gummy bear or something sweet he likes.
Sometimes I would even blow bubbles for Caleb when he was sitting on the potty. He loved that.
After he goes a few times every 15 minutes try moving it up to 20 minutes... then 25... then 30... eventually you'll be able to go an hour. It takes a good month to get up to an hour though.
Its going to be VERY annoying. You wont really be able to relax and watch an entire TV show because every 15 minutes you'll have to deal w/ sitting him on the toilet... but its worth it.
Be prepared to have accidents.
Buy atleast 6-10 undies.
I buy the toddler kind located in the onesie dept. at walmart or target. They have extra padding on them incase your baby leaks.
DO NOT USE PULLUPS! He will never learn a wet feeling if you stick a pullup on him.
Its ok if he has an accident... just remind him he has to go on the potty now... that he has big boy undies on and that he cant pee pee in those.
He should get the hang of it... but you have to make it enjoyable. THere will be times he fusses... but he'll get over it.
Caleb was pretty much fully trained by 25 months. We rarely have pee pee accidents now and never poop accidents... the only time we have a poopie accident is if he goes during his sleep.. which thankfully when he sleeps he still wears a diaper LOL.
Dont stress about naps or bedtime. Some kids have bed wettings well into ages 4 and 5.
Not unheard of.
I hope this helps!
It be better to start this now than to wait til your new bundle comes... cause once he or she is here you wont be able to watch Rowan as much, you know?
and get some rest! Hope this helped.. email me w/ any questions.
oh and I did the math wrong. he was like 28 months.
:)
i have two boys 20 months apart, and yes, its a lot, but its fun! (perspective makes all the difference) the main way i get through anything is prayer, and I know God sees all our fears, and is right here to help us step by step!!!!!!
i don't have my firstborn potty trained (they are right now 2 1/2 and 8 months old) and its fine. i have two in diapers, and its not too bad. diapers are fast.
it did take longer to lose the weight this time around, but don't get discouraged, it will eventually mostly fall off. i finally feel pretty much like myself now. :)
for us, jealousy only really lasted the first week. we just explained everything to my oldest. and kept telling him how proud we were of him. and got him a few special toys. and gave him some special attention. and truthfully, now he absolutely LOVES his little brother. they play together for a little bit each day. (this started when the second one began crawling).
anyway, you will do GREAT, stacey. all will be well. :)
Mine are 4 years apart, so my story is quite different!!
I don't think you have to potty train right now, it may be too much, and he may regress when the new one comes anyway.
I am taking day by day with Ethan (2 1/2) Everytime he ppos I ask him where the poop should go, I don't yell at him I just always encourage him, "Next time mayb eyou can tell mommy and we can put it in the potty fr a treat!!" Ethan will pee on teh potty between changins so he is familiar with it, but he just isn't all teh ready, I don't want the struggle so I choose to wait unitl HE is absolutely ready! We try underpants for a bit every few days just to give it a try..One day it will work=)
Yeah the weight thing with the second sucks, not for everyone though so maybe you will be lucky=)
It is hard to get into a new routine at first but one day you will hear yourself say, I got the hang of this=)
I agree with Bek, it is your attitude and whaich perspective you choose to view your situation from. I am guessin git will be a good one and all will go well!
Thanks for being open and posting about this!
I just had my second baby 5 weeks ago and my oldest is 3. So far I have found that the transition has been quite easy. Although I have yet to take them both downtown on my own. My son hasn't shown any signs of jealousy yet...he loves his little sister! Make sure you just talk about the baby alot so your son understands what is going on. 2 babies in 2 years won't be any different than 3 years apart. I think it might even be better because they will be able to play together sooner than they would at 3 years apart. Does that make sense? You will do great! The motherly instinct will just kick in like it did the first time. Although the second time around you will most likely be more relaxed and not so frazzled trying to figure out a newborn!
As for potty training. Do it when he is ready. Whether that be now or after the baby is born. I waited until my son was ready and we had him trained in 3 days! Rather than taking months to train them because they are not ready. But that is my advice and may be different for others!
I stumbled across this blog last week and I think it's a great idea!!!
Nice to meet you Christy! Do you have a blog??
Hi Stacey - thanks for sharing. You sound like me about 6 or so months ago :) My son was 23 months when my daughter was born and the first month or so was hard - several moments in the day when I felt a little overwhelmed - but now a few months later and things are feeling normal (but busy!)
My son acted out a little when our baby was born. He was jealous and would sometimes through tantrums while I was nursing, etc. But after a few weeks he realized she was here to stay and now he has totally gotten used to her presence in the family. I wondered about potty-training too and decided to wait (he's still not trained at 28 months and I'm planning to wait a couple more months yet - my daughter will be 6 months by then). But if you still have 18 weeks it might be enough time to do it before. You probably won't have much time to think about it the first few months after (at least I haven't!) and Rowan might not take to it too well with a new baby in the mix.
Going out with both of my kids was really scary at first actually, but once my daughter got more predictable it wasn't so frightening! We go to a grocery store with big buggies so that I can put my son in the seat and my daughter's car seat in the buggy and still have room for my groceries :)
And baby weight? A little harder to lose this time around I'm finding, but I'm hoping I'll get back to "normal" eventually!
You're going to do great. I had all these same fears/concerns and it was hard for the first couple of months. I stayed home a lot :) But things feel normal now and I LOVE having two kids. It's way busier, but it's a lot of fun too. Just make sure you surround yourself with lots of supportive friends (esp. other mothers of two!) and then you won't feel so overwhelmed and alone!
Can't wait to hear how things go for you!
hi donna! yes the address is:
http://christysblogofun.blogspot.com
hope you stop by!!!
I know how you feel Stacey, as you know we are in the same boat.. It's like the first time round there were so many unknowns and now there are so many different unknowns :) I think its just important to remember that you can always try things and if it doesn't work - what's the loss.. we just have to keep trying different things different ways until we find something that works for us :) wow, only 18 weeks left!!
I don't have a lot of advice in this area but I hope all adjusts well when #2 arrives. Many people have 2 children approx 2 yrs apart and from what I have heard they wouldn't have it any other way. I wanted mine to be approx 2 yrs apart and after almost a year of trying nadda yet :( We are patiently waiting for God's timing. Jacob will be 2 @ the end of this month so even if I did get pregnant in the next month or so, they would be 3 yrs apart give or take. I wanted to start potty training Jacob at 18 months becuse he was showing so many signs of being ready, but I didn't have the potty. Now that I do have it, I haven't sat him on it once yet! lol when I do start I want to make sure that I am diligent every day. Many people I have talked with said that their children were trained after a week of diligent attempts, and catching them in the act...and a lot of diaperless days. My bro was trained in a week and my grandmother had all of hers trained @ 18 months! I guess when the child is ready it will come.
As a mom of 3, I have to put in my 2 cents on potty-training:
IT IS SO MUCH EASIER IF YOU WAIT UNTIL THE CHILD IS READY!!! If you try to force the issue before the child is ready, what you're really doing is frustrating your child, frustrating yourself, and wasting lots of your precious time (and I mean it when I say it is PRECIOUS!)
Also, with the baby weight... I am the oddball who gets in better and better shape after each pregnancy. I wouldn't expect to look fit & fabulous 1 month or even 6 months postpartum but eventually you should be able to strut your stuff. :) Here are my tips for postpartum bounce-back:
*watch your portions
*eat plenty of fresh produce
*drink plenty of water
*breastfeed if possible
*take regular walks (or swims or whatever activity is ENJOYABLE for you...don't think of this activity as mere 'exercise' but do it for your mental and emotional health too!)
*do some light weight training (this is KEY for me...revs your metabolism!)
*allow yourself some indulgences (in moderation) from time to time...discipline is good but deprivation is detrimental to your success!
*embrace and be thankful for your feminine body through each stage of pregnancy, birth and recovery. it's a miraculous thing to bring new life into this world, and your body has done a very strong and beautiful thing.
*have patience with yourself. it takes time. small healthy changes over time reap BIG rewards! trust me.
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