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> Prepare me!
PrairieMom
Posted: Apr 6 2006, 01:33 AM
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Okay ladies. I am in full baby prep mode now. I'm getting the house ready, getting the boy ready, making meals, now I want to know what do I need to do to get ME ready? How did your life change when baby #2 came along? what was the best part, and the worst part? the hardest part? I want the whole truth so I know what to prepare myself for!
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siblingtoolivia
Posted: Apr 6 2006, 03:54 AM
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I have no personal experience but can tell you I have a girlfriend who went to her son (second) every time he cried at nite, he is now 1 1/2 years old and still gets up two and three times a nite, she always went to him because she didn't want him to wake her 7 year old and her husband.....bad move, I say as hard as it is, you have to teach them to go to sleep on their own and also to put themselves back to sleep when they wake at nite....she is soooo very sleep deprived now it is horrible, so I guess learning from her I would try to make sure I taught the second good sleep habits like I did with my first!!!

Good luck, you will do fine, just like the first, it will all click in and that instinct will take over wub.gif


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My3LilMonkeys
Posted: Apr 6 2006, 04:17 AM
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Best Part - more to love!!!

Worst part - I'm really not sure anything is "worst". I love having 2 kids.

Hardest Part - With Brooke when she napped, I napped at first so I wasn't as tired. With Madison it was a struggle to get her and Brooke to nap together so that I could rest.

The part I worried the most about was sibling rivalry - what if Brooke hates the baby, resents that I'm spending time with her, etc. It really wasn't as big a deal as I made it out to be. She didn't like the baby while I was in the hospital (we think b/c I stayed with the baby instead of coming home with her) but as soon as she realized Madison was coming home with us it became "her" baby.

hug.gif Don't worry too much - you're a wonderful mother and you'll do great!! It will take a little adjustment, that's all.
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PrairieMom
Posted: Apr 6 2006, 04:58 AM
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I know the worst part for me when The Boy arrived was adjusting my time management. I was so used to being able to do things when I wanted to do them instead of when I had TIME to do them. (DH is still struggeling with this) I imagine that this is going to get worse when Baby Girl arrives. Also, I know that I am going to have a hard time loosing even more "me" time. How did y-all adjust to that?
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siblingtoolivia
Posted: Apr 6 2006, 05:12 AM
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What's "me" time rolling_smile.gif rolling_smile.gif rolling_smile.gif

Haven't had that since June 7, 2002!!!


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PrairieMom
Posted: Apr 6 2006, 06:00 AM
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you know, "me " time. It happens from about 8:30 when The boy crashes to about 8:45 when I crash. laugh.gif
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mysweetpeasWil&Wes
Posted: Apr 6 2006, 06:22 AM
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I have no advice...but anxiously awaiting more replies!!! bump.gif


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PrairieMom
Posted: Apr 6 2006, 06:27 AM
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QUOTE (mysweetpeaWil @ Apr 6 2006, 09:22 AM)
I have no advice...but anxiously awaiting more replies!!! bump.gif

Something tells me that if I were REALLY planning ahead, i would have asked this question about 30 weeks ago! laugh.gif what ever the answers are, its to late now! rolling_smile.gif
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luvmykids
Posted: Apr 6 2006, 06:31 AM
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In hindsight, it really wasn't as big an adjustment as I thought, but at the time it seemed hard when I had to do something for her and the twins needed something right then too .... I tried to have easy snacks I could get them one handed, tried to have them situated with their own meals/snacks before I fed her, etc. And tried to involve them, had them go get a diaper for me, "help" dress her, etc.

You're right about even less me time but IMO it becomes even more of a necessity. If you can squeeze in any time at all, you'll need it.

As for not wanting to wake the household at night, it wasn't the issue I'd thought it would be. She slept in a bassinett in our room so I could get her pretty quickly, but by 2 months she was sleeping through the night on her own and it never was an issue.

You'll be great, if someone as disorganized and unscheduled as me got through it, I know you'll sail through! hug.gif hug.gif hug.gif
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BAC'sMom
Posted: Apr 6 2006, 07:00 AM
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Well I guess I will talk about the obvious….

Best part…

More love in our home. wub.gif
Looking into the eyes of a newborn. baby.gif
Bonding time and nursing. rolleyes.gif
That new baby scent. sleep.gif
Finally having another female in the house. thumb.gif

Worst part…

Stinky diapers ohmy.gif
Lack of sleep snooze.gif
Crying emlaugh.gif
Spitting up blink.gif
Taking 2 shopping! huh.gif

Hardest part…

The challenge of having another little person to take care of.
Learning time management. wacko.gif
Spending one on one time with 1st born. unsure.gif
Feeling inadequate as a mother of 2. sad.gif
Getting me time (I haven’t had that since 7-29-96) wink.gif
Getting 2 dressed and ready to leave the house for an outing. huh.gif

You will do find and you will be a wonderful mother. hug.gif
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Hillbilly Housewife
Posted: Apr 6 2006, 07:02 AM
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A big saver for me was giving the kids some quiet toys, and having quiet time in their rooms EVERY DAY. I started them on that young. So now - after lunch... it's quiet time. Zach harly naps anymore, but he still stays quiet in his room from about 1 to 3:30. With a video, some books, blocks, his cars or whatever. Emilie usually falls asleep to a video

I always put the baby down first...then i hurry the kids to their wuiet time in their rooms. So pretty much every afternoon, I have from about 1 to 2:30 to myself until the baby wakes up.

Someone told me once to do as much hoiusework etc while the kids were awake... so that when they were sleeping, I could relax and do what *I* wanted instead of laundry and duishes. (sorry bout the typos, t1h)


Something I dif when the kids were young too is I'd take a bath WITH them. It was fun for them, nd i'd get a break too by relaxing in the tub. happy.gif

And everyday - dh takes the kids outta my hair for 15 minutes, and that 15 minutes I can do whatever i want, undisturbed. happy.gif


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KingMom
Posted: Apr 6 2006, 07:22 AM
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QUOTE (mysweetpeaWil @ Apr 6 2006, 09:22 AM)
I have no advice...but anxiously awaiting more replies!!! bump.gif

Dito!


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A&A'smommy
Posted: Apr 6 2006, 07:40 AM
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AWWWWIEEE I'm so excited for you!! I can't believe how close you are getting it seems like yesterday you told us you were pregnant!!! love2.gif


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5littleladies
Posted: Apr 6 2006, 07:57 AM
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I transitioned very easily from one child to two. It just seemed natural to me. happy.gif

Definitely, if at all humanly possible, try to get the 2 to take naps at the same time. That quiet time will be a lifesaver for you! I love Rocky's idea for quiet time after lunch-I always mean to do that but never do. I'm going to start today.

Have your older child help out a bit. I know he's only 2, but he can do little things like getting you a diaper for changing the baby, and then throwing the dirty one away. The little things really add up.

Do not try to keep your son quiet during baby's naps. It will be a blessing if she learns to sleep through noise and frankly-It's hard for little kids to keep quiet for an extended period of time. Do yourself a favor and let her get used to a tolerable abount of noise. wink.gif

Make Dh help!!!!!! rolling_smile.gif

This post has been edited by 4littleladies on Apr 6 2006, 07:58 AM


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PrairieMom
Posted: Apr 7 2006, 02:07 PM
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I am so blessed to have such a helpful Hubby! I have also been Big Brother training The Boy for a while now. We are working on getting into his own car seat so all I have to do is buckle him in, also walking beside the cart at the grocery store instead of riding since the baby will have to ride. It will be interesting to see how he handles things when Baby Girl gets here!
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mysweetpeasWil&Wes
Posted: Apr 7 2006, 02:38 PM
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QUOTE (PrairieMom @ Apr 7 2006, 05:07 PM)
I am so blessed to have such a helpful Hubby! I have also been Big Brother training The Boy for a while now. We are working on getting into his own car seat so all I have to do is buckle him in, also walking beside the cart at the grocery store instead of riding since the baby will have to ride. It will be interesting to see how he handles things when Baby Girl gets here!

Those are great ideas! I was wondering about the shopping cart situation. I'm not sure Wil will walk with me, but I can at least start practicing like you are!

I'm going to try and get them to nap at the same time. Wil still takes a long afternoon nap, so hopefully that will give me a bit of time alone.

What I'm really scared about is making sure Wil isn't bored. He doesn't like many of his toys anymore and he's used to getting out. So I'm not sure how he will handle the first month where I'll be in the house for most of the day.

Tarah, are you setting up a babysitter or anyone to hang out with the Boy every once in awhile? I'm doing mom's morning out on Fridays from 9-12, so Wil is going to a church where he can play with other kids. I may also get a sitter to come in every other week for a few hours. This is because I have no family in town.


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My3LilMonkeys
Posted: Apr 7 2006, 03:19 PM
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QUOTE (mysweetpeaWil @ Apr 7 2006, 06:38 PM)

Those are great ideas! I was wondering about the shopping cart situation. I'm not sure Wil will walk with me, but I can at least start practicing like you are!


Definately start EARLY!!!! That is something I totally didn't think of and wasn't prepared for.

Just a suggestion on that though - what worked for me was telling Brooke that walking instead of riding was a big girl priviledge and it would be taken away if she didn't act like a big girl. We only had a few problems and now she is a pro.

rolling_smile.gif But I remember one shopping trip where she would NOT behave so I sat her in the main part of the cart and piled groceries around her. Every time it got too full we checked out, loaded the car and came back in. We ended up checking out 4 times and bought 3 gallons of milk because every time I couldn't remember if I'd picked it up the last time through or not. rolling_smile.gif
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PrairieMom
Posted: Apr 7 2006, 06:29 PM
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QUOTE (mysweetpeaWil @ Apr 7 2006, 05:38 PM)


Tarah, are you setting up a babysitter or anyone to hang out with the Boy every once in awhile? I'm doing mom's morning out on Fridays from 9-12, so Wil is going to a church where he can play with other kids. I may also get a sitter to come in every other week for a few hours. This is because I have no family in town.

He will be going to Pre-school in the fall, and he will go to the neighbor's house for a few hours every once in a while, but I really hadn't thought of that. I guess I figured I would just keep doing what I am doing and haul the baby with us. I have apparently forgotten how time consuming babies are. blush.gif Thanks for putting that into my head, I will have to give it deeper thought.
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PrairieMom
Posted: Apr 7 2006, 06:30 PM
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QUOTE (brookeandmadisonsmom @ Apr 7 2006, 06:19 PM)

rolling_smile.gif But I remember one shopping trip where she would NOT behave so I sat her in the main part of the cart and piled groceries around her. Every time it got too full we checked out, loaded the car and came back in. We ended up checking out 4 times and bought 3 gallons of milk because every time I couldn't remember if I'd picked it up the last time through or not. rolling_smile.gif



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