Preparing Your Firstborn for Newborn Sibling

10 Tips to Help Prepare Your Child For A Sibling

Congratulations, you’re pregnant…again! There is so much joy and excitement surrounding the arrival of another new little birdie to your family, and it is oh so important to make sure those emotions carry through with your new darling’s older sibling(s). Often with new pregnancies, older siblings can feel left out, and even resentful and those feelings can remain even after new birdie’s arrival. We have compiled a list of the top 10 tips to prevent any negative emotions that may arrive within your older child (ren) and to get them (and keep them) just as excited if not more than you are about the arrival to your nest!

Bring around family and friends with newborns to get them excited
Involve older sibling in baby prepping process as much as possible – this will help them feel a part of the welcoming process and become excited for your family’s new arrival!
Have older sibling add their own little touch to the nursery/baby area – have your exiting birdie(s) create their own work of art to be featured in the nursery! This can be as simple as a framed drawing hung on the wall in baby’s new room. This is another way for older siblings to become a part of the welcoming process which excites them for the new member of the nest!
Go through their own baby pictures with them- show your child maternity pictures from pregnancy with them – especially for those with our younger friends, this will help to really connect the dots that “mommy is having a baby that will become a member of my family!”
Let them feel baby move in the belly – again this connects the dots that mommy is carrying a tiny human that will become a member of their family.
Stay light and positive when talking about the baby – any stress we feel, our kids feel. If we show them that we are stressed about the new arrival, then they will share the same sentiment. Keep conversations light, airy, and happy. “This is an amazing event happening for our family!”
Explain what it will be like when the baby arrives – highlight what will change, what will stay the same, let them know their roles as the older sibling and what may be expected. The more they are prepped, the better equipped they will be to manage through the transitions and changes as they arise.
Stick to existing regular routine as much as possible – speaking of changes, try to minimize them as much as possible for your older child’s world. This is a big time change for them and so the more that is stable around them, especially sticking to school schedules (keeping drop off and pick up times the same, sticking to the same early morning and late evening routine) as much as possible. Surely there will be some changes both simple and drastic, and though it may not be a walk in the park with your new arrival, it will surely make the difference for your older child!
Spend as much time with them in the final/countdown weeks – this is precious, treasured time as it really is the last time they will be able to relish being the only child with you. Use the time to remind them that they were, are and will always be a special gem in your eyes and that will never change. These are moments that they will rely on in case any feelings of resentment arise as you are spending more time caring for and tending to new birdie.
There are literally tons of children’s literature addressing feelings that may arrive in older siblings with the arrival of their new babies – reading these will really help solidify and bring closer to home what to expect when you’re expecting