Hints for small age gaps

We are due any day now with no.2 there will be 13 months between Daniel and the new bub and I was wondering if anyone has some helpful tips......

ie - it was suggested from day 1 for me to bath them together so Daniel gets used to the new bub and I can dry and change bub while Daniel is still bathing...

any other tips would be greatly appreciated?

Thats a good one!  I'll remember that.

I agree with the routine comment. Also pack away some of his toys in a box so that he can have "new toys" (short memory!) every couple of weeks. Balloons every now and then can be a real lifesaver, as can attending a playcentre (where you can look after baby and he can have supervised playtime..... you can do all the volunteer stuff when the kids are older and you feel ready).

I had 2 years between my 2, but still found that Alex was too young to really undestand what was happening. So when I came home with Sophie he didn't understand that she was going to stay, and so we didn't have any problems. But we did make sure that his routine didn't change, and that when friends and family came around to see the new baby they still went to see Alex first. A lot of family brought Alex a little gift too so he didn't feel left out when baby was getting lots of pressies.

Oh, and I always remember my plunket nurse saying don't feel bad for letting the oldest child watch tv!! Its a great babysitter while you are feeding baby. Alex watched a lot of little einsteins while Sophie was little!!!

As long as they don't suddenly feel like their mummy is too busy for them, and their basic routine doesn't change I think they are usually fine and adjust very easily.

Good luck!!

Thanks for the tips so far, Saffron the pre packaged snacks for me :) is such a good idea!  Even now I seem to go without quite often.

Congratulations Verena.... lots of fantastic advice for you! I can honestly say, I was quite scared about our small age gap and was wondering how it was going to go... but seriously, I don't know what I was worrying about... it is just SO fantastic and I love having my two girls 13 mths apart. They are 7 mths and 20 mths now and have such a strong bond already - my oldest, Georgia, brings little Matilda her water bottle and toys and strokes her on the head and says "Tilly" and gives her kisses. They are already so fond of each other - it is just the most amazing thing to watch - it really does almost move me to tears sometimes. That being said, it is not always easy - two under two is a lot of work, but it is doable! I agree... I go with pre-packaged snacks like rice crackers, raisins and little packets of wine biscuits - whenever I am out with the two of them - especially today when I was doing the grocery shop - which can sometimes be a nightmare - but we get through.

Like others mentioned - you have to make the first born feel like they are not being ignored and are an important part of the family, especially when you are so busy with a newborn and trying to get BF established etc... especially when you are getting next to no sleep!!! I do admit, at times I did sit Georgia down in front of TV to watch Baby Einstein, while I was trying to feed Matilda, because at times, all Georgia wanted to do was climb all over me, and didn't care if I was holding little Matilda or not!
My parents and PIL made sure they got Georgia some wee gifts when Matilda was born too... so she didn't feel left out. Honestly, she was too little to understand what was going on and she ignored Matilda for a while, but is now just SO in awe of her.

Try and be as organised as you can - especially at meal times and around nap times etc .... I don't get much spare time to myself - so it is really important to get your man to help out where he can! I am quite organised when it comes to the running of my kitchen and plan out all the meals for the week etc - so I don't have the 5pm panic of "WTF am I going to cook tonight?!"

Best of luck chick, hope it all goes well!
edited england

Edited by kimmies

Great Thread..!! I thought I was the only one having babies close together..
14 months between my two..

Love the suggestions - keep them coming..!

My idea is to stick to routines and have some fun with it too..

There's 13 mths between me and my brother and my mum said the same thing Verena - why is it our mums always seem to cope so well?! Mind you, I did pip her at the post with the gremlins - they're only three minutes apart

We compiled a list of tips from OHbaby! mums on adjusting to life with a newborn and a toddler, you can find it here.

And when all else fails, take heart in the fact that it WILL get easier. There's 20 mths between lil miss and the gremlins and the first few months really were a blur, I have no idea how we got thru the day, we just did somehow. We ate a lot of toasted sandwiches and easy meals, and if it wasn't for the nanny then I might never have gotten on top of the washing, but these days we have settled into a nice routine, the kids are all six months older which makes a HUGE difference so things are much easier.

Oh yay!!  thanks Maya I will check out that list!  Yip Mums - they are truly inspirational!!  and she did the twin thing too so she has to be an expert :)