My almost 3 yr old has separation anxiety when it comes to mommy. I think it may have started when I sent him to daycare at 1 which was way too early for him (i now realize he is much more sensitive and nazuk than other children his age). Anyways, abt 3 months ago I was put on bedrest so im not working anymore. I pulled my son out of daycare so we could spend more time together and i thought it might be good for his confidence if he spent lesser time worrying that mom will leave him at daycare. Well i think it did help, BUT now there is a second baby coming in a month. My husband thinks we should get a live-in nanny so both kids can be taken care of at home. It will make things easy for me dealing with two kids while on maternity leave and even later when I go back to work. It will also be cheaper than paying for two kids daycare fees. But it means my son will be relegated to the nanny and i will deal with the newborn. Will this make him even more resentful toward me or baby having to watch me hold or feed the newborn all day while nanny takes care of his needs? Other moms with 2 kids, how did u handle the change and any jealousy issues? Were you forced to ignore the elder alot more when the newborn came into the picture?
Re: How to prep for arrival of second child
I had my 2nd baby when my first was 2.5 years old.
I gave her all the attention she wanted. The baby isn’t that hard to handle since you’ve done it before and are more confident the 2nd time around. And honestly, newborns just eat, poop and sleep. Don’t ignore your older kid. Include him in diaper changes and let him help you feed baby (if bottle fed), let him play with baby too. Try to give a lot more time to your first child, he’ll feel it when you ignore him but the baby won’t so don’t ignore him.
Re: How to prep for arrival of second child
^
I agree!
Babies don’t really get insecure if their elder siblings are getting necessary attention. However it isn’t the same, other way round. My eldest got too clingy and I was too anxious before the second ones arrival. But I made a conscious effort to give him more attention and alhamdulillah he turned out to be a caring soul towards his younger brother. 