Pregnant for the Second Time in a Close Age

My grandmother has six kids, the second and third of which (my uncle and my mother) are 15 months apart. My cousin had her second when her first was only 18 months and a friend's sister had HER second when her first was only 9 months (her second was a month or so early). Plenty of people do it and do it well.

Hi Carie,
My kids are even closer in age; their 17 months apart and it is great! I have a 3.5 yr old son and a 2 yr old daughter. It was easy in the beginning I played with the older while the younger slept and then as they grow they will play together and love eachother. we found that they interacted better once they shared a room. It's great because they like the same shows and they like the same toys. I would recomend the book, " To train up a child" by the Pearls. Congratulations

My first and second babies are 18 mos. apart and my second and third are 22 mos. apart. Honestly, I wouldn't have it any other way. They are so close.

C.,
Congratulations on your new baby!!
I got pg with #2 when #1 was 11 mos old. They are 19 mos apart....#2 came a month early. But it is wonderful!! They are now 2 1/2 yrs & 13 mos. I am having the time of my life with them!!
I was told that the first 3 years was going to be tough, but I have found that to be nothing but further from the truth!! I have 2 boys, but I dont think it would matter whether they were the same sex or not.
Try to relax about it & have a good attitude about it & you will be fine. I promise you, it is not as much as you think it is going to be. I am in heaven & in love with my kids!!! And wouldnt have it any other way.
H.

my brother and I are 1yr 1mnth and 1 week exactly apart. My mom said as soon as I was sleeping through the night she had my brother soo she had me awake during the day and my brother at night. She said it was exhausting but it had its advantages. I basically thought my brother was my doll baby, and we were best friends as kids. She didnt have to entertain us because we entertained each other!

I think it's great that they will be so close. Around 2 years apart is perfect as far as I am concerned. They will be a little closer but it will work out great. My Mom had 8 of us. Two sets of twins. She said the twins were easier then the single kids. Just remember to love them both and treat them equal. Let your son be involved with the new baby. That will hep a lot. You'll do great.

That can be an awesome age difference! My boys are 21 months apart and adore each other. It can be bumpy at first but if you plan for plenty of one-on-one time with your older child and include him whenever you can, it can be wonderful. If you can persuade your husband to let you, try getting a realistic baby doll for your older child to play with and practice being gentle with. He can also "take care" of his baby while you take care of his little sibling, which can be a nice way to include him. Congratulations!

I have 8 kids. My first three were 14 & 16 months apart. I would only change two things about my family. I'd have them all closer together, not the first three, but the rest of my kids and I'd have my two daughters born back to back.

The first three helped each other, played with each other, did homework together, sports, even the prom. You'll be glad later on that you had them so close together.

Good luck to you and yours.

Hey C.. SURPRISE!!! Isn't it scary? My daughter was 6 years old when I found out I was pregnant with my second. I was beyond freaked out. Well, fortunately, you have this site and can get some great advice on things to set into place BEFORE your second one arrives. First of all, if you can get your son into somewhat of a schedule for naptime, you're going to thank yourself later! My daughter went down to one nap right around 9-10 months. I ended up laying her down for a nap at 12:30 and she'd sleep til 2:30 or 3. At first, I had always rocked her (big first time mom mistake!) and when she fell asleep, I had been laying her on the couch. Once the baby came though, I was in a complete shock because it never failed, as soon as I'd get her asleep, the baby would cry. So, while taking care of a newborn, I had to break my daughter into taking a nap in her bed....not fun, so do yourself a BIG favor and get this done ahead of time if you haven't already. Another thing, my husband worked from 8 til 8 everyday, so I did grocery shopping with 2 CARTS! The front one had my 15 month old in the seat part, and the newborn infant carrier in the basket part,and I pulled one behind me for the groceries. I STRONGLY recommend that you set up a time, whether it be someone coming to your house once a week, or you taking the kids to someone's house, but set up 2 hours one night a week if your husband isn't able to handle 2 kids that close in age, so that you can go to the grocery store yourself. It was so stressful for me! I was constantly getting out snacks for my oldest, putting pacifiers in the newborn's mouth....not fun....Another thing that helped me is I set up a small area upstairs and downstairs that had all my diaper stuff I would need in it. It kept me from having to run around to get diapers/wet wipes because they were close by. Also, in the beginning, when your oldest lays down for a nap, get some housework done, and get things prepped for dinner as much as you can so it's easy when the time comes to make it. A lot of parents will tell you to get some sleep, but for me atleast, as long as I was keeping up on housework and making dinnertime easier, I was less stressed out. Making dinner with 2 very little ones is stressful at times, so if there were ingredients I could cut up, I would, and I also got out everything I was gonna need to make it, and set it out on the counter. Trust me...it REALLY helps.

And most important..IT WILL BE OKAY!!! The first 2 years are going to keep you busy, but man, once they're my kids ages, 6 and 7, you're going to love it so much because they play together all the time! They have been for years now, but especially now, when they're at the ages where they want to play "something" rather than play "with stuff", it's so nice! We have LOTS of fun! Those first 2 years for you definitely don't have to be as stressful as they were for me if you get some of these things into practice. I had NO IDEA what I was in for, and was completely unprepared and therefore really struggled with how to make things easier for myself. It took me about a year before I realized the prepping for dinner thing! It took me months before I realized that even if I wanted to sit and stare at the tv while the kids were sleeping, if I got some cleaning done, I just felt better and more on top of things. So, enjoy it! It's awesome having them close!

My older two are only 14 months apart! They are 13 and 14 now. It will be ok. They share everything and are becoming each others best friend. When they were babies it was tough.... but that all becomes a blur. Congrats and don't worry :)

Hi, It will be fine.... I have 3 children. My first two are 15 months apart. I wont lie to you it is hard going for about 6 months. The day time was fine, in fact it was so lovely, when I had my third I wanted a fourth the same age gap but we can't always have want we wish for. The nights is where I found it hard for about 6 months, then it was great. They do so much together as there isn't much age gap.

All the best. It will be fine..Oh and Congratulations.

that same thing happened to my w my last two boys. i got pregnant when my son was 11 months old and i had an iud. the pregnancy was normal except i was so tired of being pregnant by the time i was 7 months along. my kids are 7,5,3, and 1. the 5 year old is my step son and the 7 yearold is from my ex husband. but wow they keep me busy. i was so happy when the baby went from 2 naps a day to 1 because i could lay them for a nap at the same time. at first when one was just waking up the other was going down. my 3 year old gets along better w the my 5 year old but i think its because the little one dosnt do the older things. don't freak out to much but it is busy.

It is easier in a lot of ways to have children close. Your first will be out of diapers (or almost) by time sibling arrives and though the initial demands of the first three to six months will be a challenge by the end of that first year they will be playing together which reduces your energy output. Hang in there it will be great!

my first two are 15 months apart & my 2nd & 3rd are 20 months apart, so 3 in 3 years....right now they are 3, almost 5 & 6...........you will be fine & tired, lol

My girls are 14.5 months apart. They are 2 and 3 right now. That first year was hard and a bit of a blur, but I love it for the most part now. They are so cute together and such good friends. I loved it when the little one dropped her morning nap so we all have nap time after lunch now. We still have our days when I would like to not have "mom" be my name, but I wouldn't do it any other way! My eldest didn't ever really get used to being an only so she didn't have any of that resentment or frustration when baby was born. They both only know life with the other. So sweet.

Mine are just under 17 mos apart. I won't lie, it is hard when they are both "babies", but after that there are huge perks. Similar interests and bonding. I was anxious about it too, but actually LOVE them being this close in age. There is no "perfect" difference, but good and bad to all spacings... .enjoy the positives of every stage!... and CONGRATULATIONS!

You're not alone! My son will be 19 months old when my daughter is born. We wanted a second child, but we were taking steps to prevent it at the time. I was scared at first, and I'm still not sure how it will work out. But this is our situation! It will be okay. I think it will be rough at the beginning, but then the kids will be around the same age and thus able to do the same things at the same time. No more worrying about how to cart the baby around while Big Brother goes to Disney Land - by the time Big Brother is ready for Disney Land, #2 will be ready too! Make sure you have a network to help you out for the first couple of months, and then savor it! Good luck!

It will be OK!!! I wont lie, it wont be as easy for the first 8-9 months, but once they are 1 and 2, it will start to get a LOT easier. They will entertain each other and be good friends. As they get a little older, they will probably fight a lot, but they will love and cuddle each other just as much as they fight. My boys are 2 years apart and I have read and heard from others that it is easier to have them back to back than it is to have them 2-3 years apart. Reason being, that they have more in common when they are closer in age. I also have to boys and they are boys in every sense of the word, so they are rough and tough and can be nasty with each other. But, they also sit on the couch and cuddle with each other and do NOT like to be apart. Almost like they were twins.

Don't worry. All will be OK and it will be fine. They will grow up together and be very close. If they are the same sex, it makes things a little more difficult - like you have to buy two of the same thing ALWAYS. I don't know if this is true with a boy and a girl. It also makes it a bit difficult when they catch up in size and you aren't quite sure whose close are whose! LOL!! I am getting ready to color code all the underwear!! :-)

No worries! It's going to be OK and you will love it!

My kids are 15 months apart (on purpose) and it was great - they play together - you get through the sleepless nights and diapers quicker, all the hard stuff, in one fell swoop - everything is a breeze b/c you just went through it with the one before. Best decision ever for us. I can't imagine how much harder it would have been if we had had a taste of no diapers, a little more freedom etc. and then go right back to square one...

My two youngest are 18 months apart. My youngest was not planned either, but she is here. It was an adjustment at first, but it doesn't take long to get a routine down. Just be sure you get a good routine as soon as you can. Routine was my lifesaver!!! Congratulations on your new little surprise!