You could be all grins or you could cry for a day or two, however the emotional balance happens with you when you learn that you’re pregnant, again, can change the moment you realize that now you have to let everyone know. Maybe not everyone, but at least that special little someone coming up behind you ready for you to pick her up and love on her.
Telling young children that there’s a baby in your belly can make for some interesting conversations. Breaking the news to your first-born can be easy … especially if you’ve heard what other moms have done. For instance, local mom Kassi Powell Alsip says, “I tried telling my 15-month-old (at the time) that I had Sissy in my belly and he now thinks bellies are called ‘sissy.’ Who knows what he will think once she’s here!” This goes to show that you may not have anything to worry about at all.
If you’re still unsure, take local mom Katie Long’s advice. “My daughter was 4 when we told her, so she was able to understand a bit more,” says Long. “When we told her, we read Big Sister, Little Sister first, then gave her the announcement on index cards, one word at a time (she was just starting to read). When she got to the words ‘big sister,’ those were on a shirt for her. And we recorded the whole thing,” she adds. “If you ask my 2-year-old where her sister lives she points to her own belly. Quite amusing …,” adds Kim Yandell King.
If your youngest is still unsure of what to think about the announcement, talk about how you’ll want help from her. “I just explained to my 18-month-old when I got pregnant again that things were going to be changing,” recalls local mom Amber Raycraft. “And even now as we are awaiting the newest arrival, we just talk to him about having a brother and how he can help Mommy.”
On a different approach, you may need to call for a family meeting (if you have older siblings, too) and announce it to them all at the same time. The look of shock that can run across their face is priceless. “We just sat all of them down and told them,” recalls local mom Crystal Wheat-Kilby. “The youngest is 8, and most of the kids were excited! Our 10-year-old said, ‘Don’t we have enough?’ (We have six kids already!)”
However you decide to tell your children about the coming new addition, just remember that it’s a happy moment. Keep calm and expect a pleasant surprise.
