The Second Pregnancy

The second pregnancy is a big step in your life as a parent as well as in the life of your first born. On one hand you are embarking on a familiar journey and have a sense of what you can expect, while on the other hand you have a new set of responsibilities to juggle as you make the transition and become a larger family.

Am I Missing Out on the Pregnancy?

It takes a lot of resources – both financial and time – to raise a child. With all those demands constantly pressing on your time you may feel like you’re “missing out” on the new pregnancy. Many second-time parents fear that they will not bond as strongly with the new baby because so much of their time is taken up.

Will I Love One Child More Than The Other?

Many parents fear they will not love the new baby as much as their older child, or that the older child will feel replaced or unwanted. The older child is starting to become more independent and needs less hands-on time, but will they feel completely shut out when there is a new infant taking all of tired mom’s energies?

Safe Transitions

The best way to proceed will of course depend on the temperament and age of your oldest child. You can explain to a five year old what is going on and involve them in planning and decorating for the new baby, but a two-year-old won’t have the same level of comprehension – they can tell “something” is changing, but need to be carefully handled so they don’t wake up one morning and lose their room, lose horseback-mommy, and have to learn all new routines.

Much like the first pregnancy, they key to a comfortable transition is beginning early. No one gets a right to complain – mother nature gives us nine months to get our things in order and prepare for the change in our lives. Second-time (and third-time and fourth-time) parents have an ace up their sleeve in that they already know what to expect when bringing home an infant.

Stop. Breathe in. Breathe out. Now go and enjoy this amazing time!

Online Walk of Shame

While writing The Parent’s Nook, I struggle to find balance between my desire to share the exciting things going on with my own child’s development, and the desire to keep the tone of the site somewhat neutral.

Certainly the main goal for this blog is to share with other parents some of the tricks I learn and discover as I go through this journey, but it’s sometimes difficult to know when I’ve focused the discussion too much on myself and my own thoughts (except, of course, for this particular entry).

This web site is certainly not a journal by any definition, but in some ways it is journal-like because the topics I write about tend to be the ones I’m dealing with at the moment. My intent is to make you better, dear reader. So if I go on too much about myself please tell me in the kindest way possible.

This is where I should promise to write more often and get back to my regular daily posting schedule. The problem is many bloggers will do that and then not post. So here’s to the spirit of posting regularly, and let’s see that it happens!

Worth Every Minute

What makes everything worthwhile to me:

When I come home from work at the end of the day and my son gets his first glimpse of me. For a minute, that big old smile melts away all of the world’s problems for both of us.

Working Late Means Less Time With Family

Does this sound familiar? When my son wakes up in the morning and has his first bottle, I am busy getting myself out the door for another day at work. By the time I get home in the evening he has already finished his last bottle and my role is putting him to bed for the night. In between, the only time I see him during the day is when I look up at the picture of him I have on my desk at the office.

Prepare Early
If you take the time to prepare any necessary items and place them by the door in the evening, you will have more time in the morning to spend with your child. Make your lunch in the evening, bag it and put it in the fridge so you don’t have to wake up and prepare food. Even breakfast cereal can be pre-measured so all you need to do is add milk to eat.

Do What You Enjoy
More than ever, now is the perfect time in your life to find out what you enjoy doing and get out there to do it. It’s discouraging enough to spend nine hours a day away from your family; if you’re stuck doing something you don’t enjoy, you are forever losing a big part of your life that you will never get back. Take care of yourself and your needs, and you will be better focused to take care of your family’s needs.

Leave Work at Work
If you are the type of person who is used to bringing home work, now might be a good time to take a step back and leave unfinished projects at the office. Since family time is reduced by work during the week, your “homework” is to squeeze every last moment of togetherness out of the evening.

Resolutions and Plans

Now that the holidays have passed the cleanup can begin. In our household we are busy digging up boxes from the basement to store away Christmas decorations for another year and fortifying anything packed away in boxes so that mice aren’t able to surprise us with their nests next December.

Overall I would have to say we had a very successful season. Our son started eating rice pudding on December 24 which made for a hilarious home movie. We were able to see my parents and the in-laws all in the same day which is a rare treat for us. These are frugal times but we managed to keep the tree surrounded by presents for all of the children – I don’t think any of them went home disappointed.

Even though most people are back to work, today (January 2) is the last real gasp of “holidays”. Soon we will get back to our regularly-scheduled shuffling about and trying to pick out a living for ourselves. Now is a perfect time to reflect on the year that just passed and the excitement the next twelve months will bring.

We aren’t “resolution” people. January 1^st doesn’t involve a list of sins we wish to cut from our lives. But I do have goals as a parent; basically, these are the journeys I wish to continue moving forward.

My Dad list:

• Take care of my health so I can take care of my family
• Learn a new skill that I can one day pass on to my son
• Take care of our finances so I can both provide for and spend more time with my family
• Take photos for cherishing, but avoid the living behind a camera lens trap
• Above all, put my family before all else