Making my Other Children Accept the New Baby

I have a 2.5 year old girl and a 10 month old boy. I am 35 weeks along and my daughter knows she's getting a new baby brother & she's excited about it but she's having problems sharing me with her baby brother she's already got. They both fight over me and my 10 month old is very "Mommy Dependent" right now because he is teething. What's the best way to prepare for the new baby coming and make sure my other two children know that Mommy and Daddy still love them just as much as we did before?

The thing I did during my pregnancies (I have 3 children), was to explain as much as I could about what would happen when the new baby was born. For example I'd say, "He'll sleep in this room in his cot", or "When we go out in the car he'll have his own little car seat in the back next to you so will you look after him while he's sitting next to you because you'll be his big sister/brother". Things like that to make your children feel involved WITH the baby rather than pushed out BY the baby!

I too have three children, and the oldest was 8 years apart from my second child! She had been the only child for so long, that my hubby and I having another child, really ruined her life according to her. It was a major adjustment in our home before the baby arrived. Slowly she got more and more excited with the arrival of our son. It wasn't until the day he was born, that we seen how much she enjoyed his company. My daughter held him for hours in the hospital. Now he is 4, and we have a 2 year old as well. Having a big older sister has proved to be a wonderful experience for them both. She knows that she is at an age, that she doesn't have to share her stuff with them. Which is a plus, but at the same time she joins in to help them learn to color or play barbies. We try to make sure everyone has the same amount of attention no matter what age they are. I thought having a big gap in age was going to be so hard, but it proved to be just right for our family.

How should I talk to my child about the new baby?
I know it is a difficult thing to do, but somehow it has to be done. In fact, the sibling should be told that a baby is coming several months before the actual arrival of the baby. The best way to do this entails giving a suggestion and studying how it is received. You should follow the child’s lead regarding how much he wants to be involved in the preparation. The child may have a few questions about the baby, and so you should try as much as possible to answer them. He may want to know how the baby eats, what it is thinking and how he is moving around. The child may want to know what the baby is thinking or may want to feel the baby kick. It is important that you should let her feel how the baby is kicking once the movements start being felt. Invite the child to sing for the baby. It will help to talk to your child about a new baby as someone who will come with new ideas and thoughts. Explain that the baby will be able to play with you after some time. Even though, it is important to prepare the child for the program of the new baby. Let her know that initially, the new baby will do a lot of crying and sleeping. By crying, the baby will be communicating with us, and it is the only way it will tell us its needs. It may be critical that you show the baby some photos of what he looked like when you were growing him. It helps him understand where he has come from and why the new baby should be handled with care.

For us it was similar she was looking forward to her baby sister but also it was hard for her once her baby sister was born. I tried to spend time with both of them and give both of them enough attention!