After five-and-a-half years of “only grandchild” status, Benaiah will welcome a baby brother at the
end of August. My daughter and son-in-love can’t wait to fill the nursery with a sweet little boy,
and we grandparents can’t wait to have another one to spoil and care for.

Thinking about a sibling for my grandson reminded me of each additional child we added to the
family and the dynamics of new babies, jealousy, and enough love to go around for all. For the
most part each of our children welcomed new ones to the family without extreme cases of
emotional meltdowns. Our kids came three years apart, boy, girl, boy, girl. My husband and I
tried to plan ahead to alleviate or thwart jealousy issues. Some of our ideas worked, and some
didn’t.

Here are a few tips we tried and extra ones I researched to help your child welcome a new baby to
the family.

Preparing For the New Arrival

• Announce the impending arrival with the glee it deserves, but plan to wait a bit to make the
  announcement, especially for really young kids. Most little ones don’t have a concept of time,
  and almost-nine months seems like a long time to wait for such an exciting event.
• Share the joy you feel about a new baby and talk about the sweet relationship between the
  older child and his or her new sibling.
• Be honest about some of the challenges – the baby will cry when it needs something (which
  may be often!), the baby will take a lot of your time, the baby won’t be old enough to play for
  quite some time. Make sure your child is somewhat prepared for the changes that will take
  place., good and challenging!
• Assure your child of your love and care. Make sure your child knows Mommy and Daddy have
  enough love to share with however many children join the family.
• Purchase a few new toys to give your child when the baby is born. Pick toys, games, or crafts
  that can occupy your child’s time while you’re busy with the baby.

Once the Baby Arrives

• Whenever possible, share special one-on-one time with your firstborn. It doesn’t have to be a
  lengthy activity, just a special one!
• Keep reminding your child of your love and devotion.
• Involve your older child in baby care, age appropriate. You child can hand you diapers and
  hold the baby’s hand while you nurse or give a bottle. Older children can read books or show
  board book pictures to the newborn.
• Line up family members and friends to give your older child some special attention and one-
  on-one time away from the new baby.
• Get creative to meet the needs of your older child to dispel jealousy as much as possible. That
  might take extra hands, like grandparents or a neighbor, or sending dad to the store for the older
  child after he or she is asleep.
• Keep assuring your older child he or she could never be replaced by a new baby. Give lots of
  hugs and kisses and plan for snuggle time when the newborn is asleep.

With preparation ahead of time and intentionality after a newborn arrives, you can help your
older child feel loved and cared for when your family adds a new little one to the nursery. Enjoy!
I am looking forward to welcoming not one, but TWO grand babies this year! Both
of our daughters are expecting, and I am excited about getting a grandson and granddaughter
about six weeks apart, two new GrandTreasures as I like to call them.

by Julie Lavender

Be sure to sign up to receive updates of each new post on our Christian Children’s Authors blog. Follow us for new book news, free resources, parenting tips, and encouragement!

#christianchildrensauthors #christianauthors #christianwriters