How to Prepare Your Older Children for a New Baby

If you are expecting a new baby then you are the lucky “soon to be mother” woman. Obviously, you must be very happy and excited about the new baby. But you might feel some pressure and nervousness as well if you have an older baby as well.

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For mothers, the biggest challenge after a new baby is to prepare the older kid for the new baby. Usually, toddlers don’t accept the new baby as they won’t like to share the love of the mother with anyone else.

So, if you wanted to make things cool then you should train your older son or daughter before you have a new baby. There are various ways you can mentally prepare your elder children to accept and welcome the newborn baby.

Remember that children of different ages show different reaction upon seeing a new baby.

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Usually, the toddlers i.e. children of age 1 or 2 years don’t understand the meaning of new baby, younger sister or brother. So it is difficult to make them understand. Still, there are various ways you can make them understand why he or she should love the new little baby.

For example, you can watch a photo album having pictures of little babies. Engage your older child and surely he/she will love to watch the photos. During this excitement of watching the photos you can make your child realize that soon “we” will have a little baby like one of these in the pictures.

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Upon arriving of the new baby, you can present a special gift to your elder ones to make them release that they are still very special to you. You can also get the help of your husband to give special attention to the older baby. This should be done 2 months earlier than the delivery date so that the older baby gets attached to the father.

The preschoolers of the age of 3 or 4 years can understand better than the toddlers but still, they are not ready to share your love with a new family member. So it is important to tell them that they are soon getting a new baby and that one will be very cute just like them. They can play with the new one after some time and they will be able to use the toys of the new baby.

While doing the shopping and buying the nursery items like baby cribs or anything else, bring your older baby with you and let the baby involve in the shopping. You can show your older baby the pictures of his own and tell him that soon we are going to have one more baby just like the one in the picture.

Let him buy some toys for the new baby and also, let him play with the new toys of the new baby just before the arrival of the little one. Also, you can get a doll for him so that he can start playing with his “own baby” before he has a really cute little brother or sister.

When a new baby arrives home, arrange some welcome event and allow your older kid to have some fun in that event. Allow him to take part in the preparation and decoration. Also, arrange some games for him that he can play with other kids in the family or neighbor kids.

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For the older babies who are going to school, you can assure them that they have a special role to take care of the new baby. You can buy some gifts for the older kid as well. For example, you can buy personalized big brother apparel and tell him that now you are his or her big brother or sister and now you have to take care of the little one.

Try to get the help of an older kid when you are making things in order for the new baby. For example, if you are going to buy diapers, take the older kid with you. Or if you need to pick up the diapers from the bag, ask for the help of the older kid.

If the management of hospital allows, bring the older kid to the hospital right after the birth of the new baby so that he can feel himself a part of the growing family.

Check this: Best Islamic names for boys and girls.

Allow your older kid to hold and love the new baby. When he loves the new baby, tell him that his attitude towards the little one is very good and gentle. Just make it sure that you are with the little one when your older kid holds her.

Don’t forget to take care of the older baby just like you do in the routine. Make him feel that he is still very special for you and you love him just like when the little one was not part of the family.

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