Building Cathedrals
I just recently became aware of how potentially crazy the arrival of our third child will be in just a few weeks. While his nursery is all set up, his clothes washed, and his Fuzzi Bunz arranged neatly on the shelf, the emotional stability of my other children may be in jeopardy!
While having friends over the other day, I plucked up their 6-mos-old and snuggled him, completely unaware of the stress I was causing our precious T-baby, 2 in August. I looked down to find him in full tears, saying “No Mommy, no baby.” Oh no! I quickly passed off the infant and scooped T into my arms, consoling him as best I could. The situation soon passed and all was well.
But how could I really console when I knew that the scenario we just encountered was soon to be our daily reality. We are gearing up to welcome our third son in early August. M will be 3.5 and T will be 2 when Baby J arrives, fresh out of the womb. I can already see T crawling all over me, demanding attention especially while I’m nursing… I can also imagine the subsequent tantrums. Lord, help me!
I know I’m not the first parent to encounter such issues; to weather the changes a baby brings to a family; to endure the jealousy that little ones might harbor toward a new addition. In fielding some advice from friends, I received two gems of wisdom. The first was to prepare for the baby by having the children buy a gift for the little one to welcome him/her. Likewise, the baby could also have gifts for the kids when he/she arrives home from the hospital. The second was to always relinquish attention to the older child. If T and the baby need me at the same time, always refer to T so as not to encourage jealousy between the two. Excellent advice.
Now, all of you seasoned mothers of many out there, have any nuggets to add? I am desperately nervous about this transition and want to do all I can to prepare for it as best as possible! Thanks and blessings!
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In