Preparing for the New Baby

By Becky | August 2, 2023

Babies are a blessing! Preparing kids for the new baby is helpful for everyone. A new baby can be great fun, a tremendous challenge, or both for Mom, Dad, and the siblings. Here are tips to aid in the transition, before and after the baby arrives.

Before the Baby Arrives

  • Keep the lines of communication open. Talk about positive changes in your family. Provide age-appropriate answers to questions. Explain the newborn will be too small to be a playmate right away. Read books about new siblings. Share family baby stories and pictures.
  • Enlist siblings help with the nursery, hang baby clothes, and arrange toys.
  • If an older child is transitioning out of the crib, do so before the new baby in born to avoid resentment.
  • Be prepared for possible regression (sleep habits, toileting, neediness).
  • Have a plan in place for older siblings for the time of birth. Talk about who will care for them. Allow kids to help pack their bags if they will be going to a friend or relative’s home.
  • Purchase a small gift for each of your children from the baby. Have the gifts on hand when the kids meet their new sibling for the first time.
  • Arrange for a babysitter who can manage the newborn and older children.

After the Baby Arrives

  • Make time for one-to-one interactions with all children.
  • Create a basket of books for kids to read only while the baby is nursing.
  • Involved everyone. Chores are good for kids. Allow the siblings to help care for the newborn in age-appropriate ways.
  • Institute a mandatory quiet time for reading after lunch for all family members.
  • Stick to the family routine for meals, bedtime, church, and school.
  • Plan a weekly date night for you and your spouse.

For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
Psalm 139:13

Related Posts
The Babysitter Checklist for First Time Parents
Tough Transition Tips for Littles
Become the Babysitter’s Favorite Family

© 2023 Becky Danielson. All rights reserved.

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