Mums with a newborn and toddler/preschooler, share your wisdom!

Following. I'm keeping my son in daycare so he can have as much normalcy as possible. Other then that I don't know.

Continue daycare as much as possible and any regular classes/commitments Get toddler to help as much as possible even if it's only choosing clothes for baby etc etc Get a gift from baby for toddler that might keep him busy when you need to (connetix, toniebox, activity books )

Following. We are in the same position.

I’m due my second any day now! I will be sure to update you when I know of any tips that can help 😅 but at the moment I’m terrified 😂

@Ellie Yeah, my son goes to nursery for 15 hours a week but baby is due right before the summer holidays so he’ll be home until baby is about 6/7 weeks. My mum and sister are close by and have already said they’ll happily take him to give us some time to rest etc. which I really appreciate!

@Isabelle Thank you, please do! We’re very lucky to have my mum and sister nearby who have already said they’ll take my toddler out to give us time to rest which I’m sure will be a huge help but I’m also cautious that I don’t want my older son to feel like he’s being left out/pushed away so I’m trying to think about how to give him some 1 on 1 time too. So much to think about and I’m really trying not to stress but this baby was a pleasant surprise so I hadn’t really given the practicalities of two much thought until I found out I was pregnant haha x

Have exactly 3.5 year age gap. I was extremely worried as my first wasn’t overly happy about the new arrival… needless to say, I didn’t need too! Baby slept a lot so it made transition very easy! Would recommend putting in moses basket or baby wear as much as possible. My baby is 16 weeks now and eldest has adapted very well! To include my eldest I’ll always say things like ‘you did xyz as a baby’ so she knows she has the same attention if that makes sense. Xx

Following. I have just over 2 weeks left before our second baby boy arrives. But I want him to be used to the norm and attend nursery as he is. I do have my mum and Nan near by but for the time being my partner will be taking as much time off as possible as I’ll be having a c section so I need all the help I can get. It’s going to be a learning curve for all and something big to get “used to” other than that we’re just winging it 😅🤣x

Try to think through what your partner will need to do with the toddler after the baby comes, and have them start doing it now. Eg bedtimes and getting dressed in the morning. That way, if your toddler gets upset about mummy not doing something, they don’t blame it on the baby

Following as my son will be 3.2 years when his little sister is born and I went through bad mental health with him which is worrying me about how I will be this time round. I'm planning on keeping my sons routine the same as much as possible and try and get him involved as much as he can with looking after his sister even if its little things

My eldest turned 3 two weeks before baby was born. - we tried to prioritise toddler if he was wanting us and baby was ok, so he didn’t feel pushed aside - asked him who he wanted to help him if he wanted something and the other took baby - he’s a daddy’s boy which helped but he took him out loads - where possible we tried to keep it the same for him like mealtimes etc we bought baby in Moses basket to kitchen - the sooner we was able to provide a set routine for him the better it was for us all - let them be involved with what they can be, if they want to, if they don’t don’t push them, I feel like the more choices the better really helped - in the event they both need you at once but are both safe, go to the toddler first - when they’re asleep, if it’s ever at the same time lol, use that time to prep, get clothes out, prepare snacks etc.

Unrelated, we ordered meal preps that got delivered Sundays and Wednesdays ready made healthy meals we just needed to microwave, which gave us the option to eat quickly when we got the opportunity whether that be with our toddler or after he’d done to bed. Was just temporary, baby is 6 months no and we all eat together at tea time every night now x

Babywear and meal prep!!! Have easy meals and snacks and drinks ready. I’ve also heard some people have a baby is nursing box with toys toddler only gets to play with then.