After finding out we were expecting our second child earlier this year, I wanted to make sure that my daughter felt included throughout the whole pregnancy. Now with just five weeks to go until we meet our new arrival, I thought it would be a good time to share some of the things we have done to help prepare her.
1. BOOKS
There are so many books available to help older siblings understand what’s going on and also what to expect when their baby brother or sister arrives. Sophie’s favourites are ‘I’m a Big Sister’ and ‘The Big Sister’s Book Of Waiting’. I have also put together a list of 15 books to help prepare your child for a new sibling which you may find useful.
2. QUALITY TIME TOGETHER
We’ve been making the most of our time together as a family of three, before everything gets turned upside down with a newborn in just a couple of months’ time! We have recently taken Sophie to the cinema, on little weekend breaks and done a fun mini-photoshoot before the baby arrives.
3. GIFTS TO/FROM NEW BABY
I thought it would be a good idea to give Sophie a few gifts so she doesn’t feel left out, which is why I put together a Big Sister Basket for her. It includes a little bunny soft toy for her to give to her baby sister when they meet for the first time and she has a matching one which will be from her sister.
4. INVOLVEMENT
I think involving them as much as possible really helps and Sophie is so excited (and a little impatient) to meet her baby sister! She loves going shopping with me and choosing clothes, so I let her pick out some sleepsuits for the new baby.
5. 4D SCAN
Lastly, we have taken her to a couple of our private 4D scans, which I think has helped her bond with her. We had a gender scan at 16 weeks which she came along to, as well as a recent one at 32 weeks. In my opinion it’s not ideal to take your child to the NHS scans due to waiting times etc. and we’ve found private ones are more relaxed and a nicer experience altogether.
I hope you found this post useful. How did you prepare your child for a new sibling?
Some great ideas! My eldest was 5 when I was pregnant with my youngest and she took it in her stride and was excited from the get go. I took her to various hospital appointments which I felt helped her bond too. x
I love the idea of a big sister basket. I agree about the nhs scans, they're more clinical too.
I love the basket you've done, it's such a lovely idea xx
These are some lovely ideas! I'm not planning on having any more children just yet but I'll be sure to remember these ideas if I change my mind! Xx
I love this kind of thing, my two werent that bothered with their new sister, they were excited and my son asked for a video of her heartbeat which he got me to play often.. I think this is something great for the future when we have another baby.. (yes im mad)
These are really great tips and so important. We had that book for Sophia when I was pregnant with Archie. It is a really lovely book. I think involvement and your time would be at the top of my list. So important. xxxx
What fab ideas. Love that little box you've put together.
These are all great ideas. Getting my son involved (and of course, getting a gift) really helped when we had my daughter x
These are great ideas! I love the idea of matching soft toys – that will be so cute 🙂
Your pregnancy is whizzing by!These are all great ideas i do love the big sister basket idea. When my sister was born I got given a DVD from her that I had wanted and I had chosen a cuddly toy to give my sister.
Such a lovely post, some really great tips! Sophie will be a fab big sister x
I absolutely love this idea.
We did something similar with Hayden & it was a major hit.
Congratulations on your pregnancy x
So many good tips here! I'm sure Sophie will love her baby sister xxx
Great ideas. We found involvement really worked and taking our eldest to the scans with us x