Getting ready for baby number two: It’s ok to question yourself

How do you prepare for your second baby—both in heart and in mind?

 

When I was preparing for my second baby, I often had (silly) thoughts like:

What if I can’t love him as much as my firstborn?

What if he’s not as cute and people don’t like him as much as my first?

What if he gets overlooked or—maybe worse—compared?

What if I don’t have time to notice the small things?

What if I can’t cope with the workload of two littles (and the laundry, chores, etc. that come with them)?

What will I do with my toddler while I’m putting my baby down for naps?

How will my toddler cope with me breastfeeding all the time?

Will having two babies limit my mobility and make me feel trapped at home?

I’m already often tired now, how will having another baby make me feel physically?

How will I give both children the individual attention they need to thrive?

How will my relationship with my first born change?

Will my firstborn be resentful toward me for the time I’ll need to take care of the baby?

Will the baby’s accomplishments go unnoticed because the toddler is stealing the show?

And on and on my list went.

Your questions can help as you’re getting ready for baby number two.

I don’t feel bad that I had those questions. In fact, I think they are an important part of processing your changing family dynamic and your ever-growing role as a mom.

These sorts of questions—as silly as they seem to be now—help you to think through expectations, ideals, and practicalities of expanding your family.

Worrying doesn’t help (never does!) but questioning can help you grow as long as you’re kind to yourself and intentional in the process. (That means no guilt trips for not reading your pregnancy and parenting books cover-to-cover again or not knowing exactly which fruit represents your baby on any given week—ha!)

Embracing the change from one child to two when your second baby arrives.

Now that Judah’s been with us for four months, it’s hard to even remember life before he came.

Our family—like the millions of others who have gone before us—morphed and changed along with his arrival.

We expanded our hearts. We changed our routines.

We’ve learned, we’ve grown, we’ve marveled again—at milestones, at idiosyncrasies, at personality.

We laugh even louder… because there’s even more to laugh about.

And we love even deeper.

He makes our family even more “us.”

And the same thing will happen to you. Before you know it you won’t even remember life before….. two.

Dear friends, are you getting ready for baby number two? I hope you’ll be encouraged that your questions are ok and that it’s all a part of the normal process of transition. If you have more than one child, what’s one thing that helped you to prepare your family or yourself for the change?