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Guest Post – Tales of Two Girls

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Hi everyone! I’m Tessa from Tales of Two Girls.  As evident from my blog title, I have two little girls, Kendall (3.5) and Sydney (21 months).
I remember getting those two pink lines when we found out I was pregnant with Sydney.  You have so many emotions in a split second, it’s unbelievable.  Your brain jumps around to “OMG! Another baby! How exciting!” to “What the heck did we get ourselves into??” to “Kendall’s going to have another sibling! How great for her!” to “Is she going to get jealous? Is she going to resent us from taking attention away from her??”
It’s nerve wracking to add to your family.  You have the fear, that every mother has, that there is no way on Earth that you could love this new baby as much as your first.  I mean, your child is the smartest, cutest, funniest, greatest child in the world.  How do you compete with that?
As cliched as it sounds, when your new baby is placed in your arms, you just know.  You know that you can love them as much.  You know that they were meant to be here.  You know that your family wasn’t complete without them.
I was so nervous leading up to the birth, on how we would prepare Kendall for this huge transition.  She was just over 19 months when Sydney was born.  I soaked in all the time I could with her leading up to the birth.  I wanted to capture all of the one on one moments that I was afraid would be hard to find in the foreseeable future.  I wanted to make her feel like this was exciting for her, too.  I bought her a couple of Big Sister gifts to have ready for her at the hospital.
The funny thing was, she seemed to be completely oblivious.  The day came when she got to meet her little sister, and she looked at her and went on her merry way.  At first it was like a “this is what all the hype is about??”.
In the following weeks, things changed and she became so much more entranced by her little sister.  I tried to always keep her in the process.  If Sydney needed a diaper change, Kendall got to be my big helper and hand me the wipes.  If Sydney needed a blanket, Kendall got to get it.  She loved to be part of the experience.  When I would be nursing Sydney, I’d try to let Kendall sit next to us and read books together.  Above all, I didn’t want her to feel left out.  To feel replaced.  That was my biggest fear.
Since I was breastfeeding, a lot of the care of the new baby fell on my shoulders.  This meant that my husband was now the one responsible for more of the tasks involving Kendall.  It was such a blessing, because she loved the special daddy time.  He’d take her out to play outside, or play special games with her.  If anything, I think she got more attention out of the deal!
We could just be lucky, or it could be do to her young age, and not really knowing any better.  From the day we brought the baby home, she’s been an amazing big sister.  While there are always going to be sibling fights and irritations, there is a love between them that cannot be described.  I really think seeing the love your children have for each other is the most amazing part about parenthood.
My advice for parent’s about to add a new baby into the mix, is to just keep it fun.  Keep it an exciting time for your oldest child.  Always let them know that they are still loved and important, even if you can’t do as much as before.  It will all fall into place, and it will all be worth it!
Thank you so much to Censie for letting me come and guest post! 

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Comments

  6. julie says

    like this story. considering embarking on trying for a second, and already have that worry that "that there is no way on Earth that you could love this new baby as much as your first".

    It's reassuring to hear that others worry about this, and more importantly, that it wasn't a problem in the least for you! glad to hear that. and your girls are adorable! Julie

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