This post is the first in a series about one of the biggest transitions that your toddler may encounter – becoming a big brother or big sister. Dylan became a big brother last Sunday, and while he has had his ups and downs he is doing well for someone so young who is going through such a major life change. My husband and I had been preparing him for the arrival of his little brother, but all of the preparation in the world can not fully insulate your toddler from the feeling of being Mom and Dad’s only child to sharing Mom and Dad with a new baby. In short, prepare your toddler but do not expect that there will not be a period of adjustment for the entire family following the arrival of the baby.
I’ll begin at the beginning so that you can see what the change has been like for our family. As of the Monday before last, Dylan’s baby brother was safely tucked away in Mom’s belly. As the week progressed, lab tests showed that I had developed preeclampsia. At first I was very worried because I thought that I was only 35 weeks pregnant. An ultrasound revealed that I was between 39 and 40 weeks pregnant. That was a huge relief, because the way to get rid of preeclampsia is to deliver the baby.
That day, Dylan learned that instead of coming in one month, his baby brother would be coming in a day or so. I do not think that that bothered him, though. For weeks he had been telling me that he was going to help me get the baby out of my belly, and he would often say “now” when he was saying that. I think that he noticed that the bigger the belly got, the more uncomfortable Mama got and the less fun she was. The next post in this series will discuss what I learned about what to do (and not do) as far as getting your toddler through the actual event of his sibling’s birth.