One of the most important things you can do when preparing for your second baby is to remember to include your first child in the process. There is nothing you want more than for your child to be excited about having a little brother or sister and if you include them in the preparation they are definitely going to be excited! If you make them feel like they can’t be a part of what you are doing they may start to get a bad taste for what they aren’t allowed to be a part of.

Now including your first child isn’t always easy, especially depending on how old your first child is. Jase is into everything and doesn’t really understand the concept of being careful or not touching things that can potentially be harmful. So we had to pick and choose what he was going to be apart of. Of course he wasn’t there when we painted, but for the most part he was included in everything else.

Elyse’s room is also not off limits for him. Now that the room is safe for him to go into, the door is left open and he is welcome to go in any time. When we first finished her room he would wake up in the morning and go straight to her room and point excitedly saying “sissy’s room.” He wanted to go in and look around and we always let him. I would go in and sit with him as he explored her things and got comfortable with the new space. He is so excited anytime we get a package for her and he knows it goes in her room, he usually brings it in there for us!

When we put together the stroller, Jase helped…well as much as a toddler can help of course. And every time we have gotten something in the mail for her we let him help open it. It has been really fun to see his excitement with everything even though I wonder how much he is understanding. He feels like he is included and knows that he is a big part of his sister’s arrival and I know that is going to help the transition of bringing Elyse home.