road trip tips?

Parents, Aunts and Uncles, friends and even friends of friends. I want to hear all your tips on traveling with the wee ones. What are your must haves - food, games, gear- I want to hear it all. Share your best kept secrets with all of us, pretty please!

guest post with jaime

Hey everyone. Today I have a guest post that I am super excited to share with all of you! As you all know, I love love love connecting with other moms - it is nice to have others to share our experiences. Today, I am joined by Jamie who I have known for many years. She is a great mother to two handsome little guys who are only 18 months apart. Jaime was kind enough to share with us her experience as a mother of two, some helpful tips to help prepare your little one for a new arrival and what you can do once you are home.

Please tell us a little bit about yourself and your two boys.
I am a mother of two boys Mr. J who will be 4 in August and Mr. L who is two years old. My boys are eighteen months apart and I wouldn’t change it for the world. They couldn’t be more different but yet so alike. J was born with blonde hair, blue eyes and was a long long labour with many difficulties (we were 15 minutes away from having a C section) while L has brown hair, brown eyes and is a little more easy going than his older brother - his labour was very short and out in two pushes! Even though they are so different, they play so well together and will stand up for each other.

What was your initial reaction when you found out you were going to have two children so close together?
All parents have a fear when it comes to bringing home that second child... I sure did with only eighteen months between them. J was potty training and we knew he loved babies, but weren't sure how he would react when we brought someone else home.

How did you try to prepare Little J for being a big brother?
We tried our best to get him ready by making up social stories and reading books about being a big brother. When the big day came, we had J take his time with L, letting him touch, hold, kiss him and wear the Big Brother t-shirt we made together.

Once home, how did you handle the situation?
The first couple days home were very easy as J would sit and read a book, or have snack while I was feeding L (I breast fed). I would ask J to help with diapers, and during bath time, I would have J in the bath and L beside the bath in his tub on the floor so they would bathe together - J loved this.

Did Mr. J ever get jealous or upset?
I do remember J asking a few months in as to when L was going back because he didn’t want him anymore. This only lasted a few days as I started spending more and more time with J (I think he was missing that and I felt bad). A fear of not spending enough time with older child hit me hard and I learned different ways to make sure he did not feel left out. I still spend quality time with each one alone, but it is a little different now for J. Also, they have learned to share mommys lap.

What are some of the reasons you like having your children so close in age?
The things I like about them being so close in age are: first, they can fit in the same clothes; second, they are able to share in the same experiences (movies, toys, games, and sport activities - less running around); third, if one doesn't want to cuddle, the other one does; and last, having children in diapers or potty training only lasts three years for me (both boys were trained at the age of two).

Any advice you would like to give our readers?
Remember that they are two different personalities and that comparing them just doesn’t fit. I am a mother that is learning, my two boys are learning as well, and they work together to get task done such as cleaning, playing or getting into trouble. These two boys seem to be growing fast, L more so then J because L is trying to keep up with his older brother, but I wouldn’t change it!
As moms, we do not know everything, but with having friends, family or support from random people we can make it through anything. Listening to other people's ideas and trying them, they may or may not work, but at least we are trying and our children are happy. I love being a mom to two very busy, outgoing little boys!

planning to be a daddy... again

Today's post is a guest post by the hubby. I wanted to share this post with all of you before baby D was born but with his timing it didn't happen. Better late than never...right? I seem to be saying that a lot lately...

Now that I have been blessed with expecting a second child, I have been on the receiving end of a lot of questions. In the final days of wait, I thought I would write a post to share my reflections about the second time around compared to the first pregnancy, how it feels to be expecting my first son, and what was I thinking having two kids so close together (i.e. baby bunching)?

How does the second time around compare to the first pregnancy?

Compared to the first pregnancy, I am certainly less anxious this time around.  I have (likely unfounded) confidence that having been a parent to Little Miss L. makes me an expert. It also helps that I've watched my wife become a first class mom. The first go, I read several parenting books, combed the blogosphere and interrogated every parent I came across - I could not be prepared enough.  For pregnancy two, the extent of my prep work included skimming through one of the books I had previously read to refresh my memory.  I can only hope that our daily parenting practice with Little Miss L justifies my lax approach to what will surely be an equally life-altering event.

What it is like expecting my first son?

The stereotype is that men want sons and fear daughters. I fit this stereotype until about halfway through the first pregnancy when I had a vivid dream about how amazing my life would become as the father to a daughter.  Forgive the cliché, but since then, Little Miss L. has made that dream come true. When I learned that we were expecting a second child, I sincerely only cared about their health and did not have any gender preference... or so I thought. When we found out it was a boy, my initial reaction surprised me - it took me a little while to wrap my head around having a boy. With only days left, I'm now very excited to be expecting a son. Other than purchasing and painting all things blue and stocking up on pee-pee teepees, the fact that the baby is a "he" has had little impact on the preparations.

What was I thinking having two kids so close together? (i.e. baby bunching)

Sometimes I wonder what was going through our mind in deciding to have two children so close in age. This might sound contradictory to what I wrote above about my lax approach to this pregnancy, but I didn't say that pregnancy number two was without stress! Those following this blog know that we have gone though many changes as a family over the past year: we moved from another continent, purchased our first residence, and now... expecting a second child.  Although this seems and sometimes feels overwhelming, I take solace in the fact that we made the decision together and for what we feel are good reasons.

Having these questions and others thrown at me gave me further reason to prepare myself mentally in what is now the eleventh hour. Whether I'm comparing the two pregnancies, fathering a boy vs. a girl, or panicking about having two under two, one thing is certain... life is about to change.  I don't know exactly what the future holds for our young family, but I know I wouldn't want to go through this with anyone other than my loving wife.

a different perspective

At any age, it is important to stretch our mind by taking a different perspective. I think this is especially important with children. Teaching them to approach situations in a unique way is great for their development and can be a lot of fun too. The other night, my daughter was admiring her grandparents' Christmas tree.  After staring and saying 'whoa' for a few minutes, the novelty wore off. Later, we decided to lie on our backs under the Christmas tree and look up... we both had another 'whoa' moment by taking a different perspective of the same tree. Take a minute with your little one this holiday season and try something different!