There's a New Baby Coming

How to Prepare Toddlers For the New Addition

Sep 16, 2007 Jean Marie Lockwood

When a new baby is on the way, it can be a challenge to make sure all is ready. Here are some tips to make the transition easier on everyone, even your toddler.

When a new baby is joining the family, either by birth or adoption, the children already in the family have an adjustment to make.

Preparing for a new baby is an exciting time for any family. How do you make sure that everyone is emotionally prepared as well as being physically prepared? Here are some things you can do to help the transition be a happy one for all involved, even the youngest children.

• Talk excessively about how things may change. Include things like having to get up and change a diaper or feed the baby when you are trying to do something else. Letting the children know that being flexible is OK and to be expected will help them be understanding when the interruptions happen.
• Use a doll or a stuffed animal to demonstrate how to treat and handle a baby. Let the children do things such as change a diaper, put the doll in the baby swing and swing it gently. Show them how to hold a baby using the doll as a model. Let them rock and burp the doll. Stress points such as giving support to the baby's head, and not jerking the baby when burping it by patting the back too hard.
• Make sure everyone in the family has the attitude that this is "their" baby too. If each person has a part and knows they play an important roll in the life of the baby they will be more appreciative of the new life they share.
• If you have a toddler, begin before you start showing to carry him less, and encourage him to do more on his own. This will prevent the toddler from feeling replaced and blaming the new baby on less attention being given to him.
• After the new baby arrives you can include toddlers in the care of the new baby. Let the toddler pick out clothes for the baby to wear. Let him burp the baby gently, while you hold her over your shoulder.
• When you feed the baby, whether nursing or bottle feeding, you can turn meal time for baby into story time for all the children. Holding a book to read while feeding the new baby is not difficult, and this time can be a family time that you can enjoy together.

By including your other children in welcoming and enjoying your new family member, you are helping begin a sibling relationship that will bond them together for life. Being prepared well, and knowing what to expect will help even the youngest children welcome a baby with open arms and open hearts.

For more information on welcoming a new addition, read Preparing Siblings For the Baby.

The copyright of the article There's a New Baby Coming in Infants & Toddlers is owned by Jean Marie Lockwood. Permission to republish There's a New Baby Coming in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.