5 Ways to Prepare Your Toddler for a New Baby
We found out we were pregnant with baby #2 when Noah was a month shy of turning two, so we knew the concept of gaining a sibling wasn’t going to be the easiest task for his little mind to grasp. Luckily, after doing my fair share of research and talking with other mamas, I had some great advice to put into practice at our house. Here is what I found to be most helpful in teaching Noah about his new role as a big brother.
Read new sibling books. After we found out we were pregnant, I set out searching for some books to help us explain things to him a bit more. Our favorite sibling book to read was “I’m a Big Brother”. They also have a big sister version of the book as well. This book is very well-written, positive, and easy for a young toddler to understand. My favorite thing about this book in particular is how it walks through what a baby can and can’t do, but in a very positive and encouraging tone. Overall, a great book that Noah still asks to read!
Involve big sibling in the baby preparation. Allowing Noah to “help” with the baby prep as much as he could for his age, proved to be helpful in the long run. He helped me “fold” the baby’s clothes and “assisted” with the nursery preparation. This mostly meant he sat in the nursery with me while I put away baby’s clothes and organized her closet, but it was still beneficial for him to spend time with me preparing for his sister’s arrival. Beyond the nursery preparation, Noah also came along to the majority of my OB appointments, where he got to hear the baby’s heartbeat at each visit. Despite the difficulty of sometimes keeping him occupied during these appointments, it was nice to have him there with me to share in these special moments.
Exchange new sibling gifts. Several weeks before my due date (or scheduled c-section date, in my case), I took Noah out for a special shopping trip to find a gift for his new baby sis. We went to the toy store and visited the baby toy section, where he could pick out anything he wanted for the baby. This wasn’t the easiest task for him to complete because he kept asking if the toy was for him; however, he eventually caught on and went along with the idea. He ended up choosing a little pink musical seahorse for his sister. During a separate shopping trip without Noah, I went out and purchased a new toy dump truck for him that would become his gift “from the baby”.
Make the first meeting special. This might go without saying, but I think it’s so important for the first meeting to be as special as possible – whether that initial meeting occurs in the hospital or when the baby comes home. Noah first met his new little sis on day #2 of our hospital stay. After we introduced Noah to her and snapped a few photos, we then let them “exchange” their new sibling gifts to one another. Noah was so intrigued by his shiny new dump truck, that once he started playing with it (i.e. zooming all around my hospital room), he forgot all about the baby. It was okay though, because we tried to use it as an opportunity to remind him just how special that truck was since it was from his new sister.
Learn with Daniel Tiger. If your little one enjoys screen time, the “Big Brother Daniel” DVD is a great one for teaching toddlers about becoming a big sibling. We are HUGE Daniel Tiger fans in our house, so when we found out that Daniel was also going to be gaining a new little sister at the exact same time as Noah, we were ecstatic! We must have watched all of the “new baby” episodes on TV at least a dozen times. Friends of ours even surprised Noah with this DVD for a special big brother gift! The “new baby” series walks children through mommy’s pregnancy, meeting the baby in the hospital for the first time, bringing baby home, and then finally, all of the ways that life is different with a new baby. I especially love the episode “There’s Time for Daniel, and Margaret, too”. If you haven’t yet seen an episode of Daniel Tiger, I highly recommend it! Every episode has a catchy song that teaches various life lessons that you can sing in everyday life with your toddler or preschooler. We have every single song memorized (and they are ALL stuck in my head). It was Noah’s favorite TV show for several years, and has now become London’s favorite show, too.
I’ll wrap up this post with one of my favorite photos of Noah with his new baby sis. He was quite intrigued with his new little friend at the time, and now, 16 months later, they are the best of friends!
I’d love to hear how you prepared your toddler for a new baby! Or, if you are currently expecting, what are you doing to prepare your child for his/her new sibling?
xo,
Sumer
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23 Comments
Amber
What a cute photo. I found I needed to prepare my dogs more than my other child. Lol. They all get so jealous so I typically have 2 kids climbing in me and 2 dogs trying to lay in my lap. Craziness.
Chanel
These are wonderful tips! I wish I had these when we brought our 2nd baby home!
Shannan Panganiban
awww, my son was a little young when i had my second, but these are GREAT tips!
Francesca
These are all awesome tips! We used most of these when we brought baby number 2 home. Lucky for us that Daniel tiger special aired for the first time the week before our baby artived! It definitely helped!
Kristina
Great suggestions and such a helpful list! We are in the beginning stages of considering having a second child so if the time comes for my daughter to be a big sister while she’s a toddler I will refer back to this list.
Megan
We did new sibling gifts when my older daughter came to the hospital. We also made it special and just had her brought in for a bit. So she got her own time with her sister. Love these tips. xo ~ Megan The Fashionista Momma
Miri
I like the gifts idea! What darling suggestions!
tineke - workingmommyabroad
Great tips! We only have 1 so far, but will pin this for hopefully later use 🙂
Danielle
Great points!! I also made sure when my daughter came to visit me in the hospital that my husband was holding our newborn, so my toddler could come right up and snuggle with me (carefully, since I ended up with a c-section).
Julie
That is all great advice! I’ve had 3 babies in the past 5 years, so I’ve had to do this twice, luckily my kids are pretty easy going and adjusted well!
Melissa
Great tips! Thanks for sharing. I’ll definitely have to save this list for when it is time for baby #2 to come home!
Brittany
Thank you for this! I’m gearing up for baby girls arrival and need all the tips on helping my girl adjust. I’ve got some serious mom guilt!
Jenni Laplow
These are great tips! I am waiting for my daughter to be a little older before we start trying for our 2nd, she’s almost 1 right now! I love the idea of reading her stories about being a big sister, so I’ve pinned this post to read again when we’re expecting 🙂
Amanda
I have not had to go through this yet, but I am definitely going to save these for the future!! ? These sound like such great bonding activities too!!
Mamaguru
These are excellent suggestions! I would only add to have a positive, nonchalant attitude about it. I think sometimes mothers get so worked up worrying about how things will be that little ones sense their anxious energy. Toddlers have no idea how much their lives will change and they can’t grasp that concept yet. They live in the present moment, so prepare them gently, but don’t act like its a BIG deal or you might end up making it one.
Melissa
Great ideas! I will have to keep these in mind when we are ready for number two.
Leslie
These are all so good! Involving my son was a huge part of making the transition as smooth as possible.
Kim @ www.fitdisneymom.com
Oh my goodness, this is a look into my future. I have a 2.5 year old and I am due in November. He stopped napping too, I’m a bit worried.
Naya @ Lactivist in Louboutins
Great tips! We did all of these things (minus Daniel Tiger because baby Harriet hadn’t been born yet) when we had our second child a few years ago. One thing we did that really helped was bringing our older son to a midwife appointment. He was able to help the midwife by using the doppler to listen for baby’s heartbeat. He still talks about it!
Jessica
These are great tips! We’ve had to go through this twice now in our house, and I totally agree with your suggestions to help prepare!
Tahnee
Such a great post! I have two kids now but am having another this next week! I have been trying to remember how we made it special for our first and now so glad you posted this! I have a list of ideas what to do now for their first “meeting”. Thank you!
Bre @ Maintaining Me
Great ideas! My first was only a year when my second was born so I’m not sure how much he understood but I definitely think some of these ideas would have helped!
Morgan @ Morgan Manages Mommyhood
Suuuch great suggestions! When we bought our newest home, I was very anxious since they’re only 21 months apart – it was really hard to explain to my oldest what was going on when I was pregnant before he was even really walking. For me I think it was more about preparing MYSELF for the emotional toll of him not being the only child – I took a few solo dates with him to kind of just remember teh time when it was just him. For after baby arriving, I think my biggest thing was putting my toddler first when possible – like if they were both upset, I tended to him first. The baby didn’t know any better to be offended and it comforted my big guy.