A Toddler Adjusts to Life with a Newborn

There are some obvious questions people have when you announce the birth of a new baby: What did you name him/her?  How much did she/he weigh? Are you breastfeeding? (This last one is unnecessary in my opinion, but none-the-less, people want to know for some reason) One additional question keeps popping up with the birth of our second child, and that is: How is Wyatt doing with the change at home? So I thought I’d take a minute and let everyone know what’s been going on here…

Let me start by telling the story of BEFORE Brooklyn was born. Like most parents, we tried to warn Wyatt of the new addition coming to our household. We started talking about “the baby in mom’s belly” long before I even started looking pregnant. At this time, he looked at us strangely and ignored us. This is understood, it is quite an abstract concept for a then 2 year old Wyatt.  Once my belly started swelling, we talked about it even more. Wyatt would respond every once in a while with a “no baby mommy, no baby” comment. But most of the time he continued to flat out ignore us.

One particular day, my girlfriend Beth was over for dinner. We were just finishing eating and I thought it was a perfect time to talk about the baby again.  The conversation went like this:

MOM: “Wyatt, do you think mommy has a brother or a sister for you in her belly?”

WYATT: (Silence, eating pizza)

MOM: (trying another approach) “Wyatt, did you know mommy has a baby in her belly?”

WYATT: (pointing at Beth) “NO. Def does.”

**Important point – Wyatt  calls Beth “Def” and she was pregnant also***

This was pretty much consistent through my entire pregnancy. Total denial. Every time we brought up babies, Wyatt would literally turn his head the other direction, look sheepishly at the ceiling, or walk away.

I have heard many horror stories of how toddlers react to a new baby in the house.

1. Potty draining down the toilet (funny choice of words huh?)  Good thing we haven’t mastered this yet!

2. Toddler reverts to baby behavior ( ie: wanting a bottle, sucking thumb, wetting bed,etc.)

3. Temper tantrums return.

4.  Toddler acting out because he/she is not getting enough attention.

He is actually copying her, not covering his ears!

Here at the Hustad house, all systems are a go. We have not had any of the above.  ( I am knocking on every piece of wood in sight as I type this)

While I was still in the hospital and grandma and grandpa Wolter were staying with Wyatt, they tried explaining to Wyatt that mommy had her baby, her name was Brooklyn and she was very beautiful.  Still nothing. No reaction.  Then, grandma showed him the pictures on our website.  I think this is where the light turned on, so to speak.  By the next day, he was saying her name. He started by calling her “baby Bookin”.  This has progressed to “baby Brookin” which sounds like our “baby is broken”.  By Wednesday he brought her picture to school for show and tell.

When we arrived home on Thursday, he checked her out a bit and left it at that.  I think he was just happy to see mommy and daddy both home again.  By Friday morning, he did NOT want to go to school, he wanted to stay “home with mommy and baby Brookin”.

The weekend arrived and life has started to settle down here.  Each morning, Wyatt wakes up and asks where Brooklyn is, and each night he requests to kiss her head goodnight.  Yesterday, she was sleeping in her crib and he requested to “hold that”.  So, with the help of dad, we let him, and of course I captured it on film.

Wyatt kissing Brooklyn on the head

Today, Wyatt and I were watching a movie and I had just finished feeding Brooklyn. I put her in a bouncy seat close to me. When she started fussing a bit, Wyatt looked over, got up and moved her chair so she could see the TV. “Can’t see” he said.  He tucked her blanket up around her, patted her on the head, and sat back down to continue with his movie.  My heart melted a bit, I smiled and said, “she’s too young for TV, but thanks Wyatt”.

I posted a new gallery of pictures here as I have had many requests for NEW PICS! I will also update her album in the photo album section soon. (Please be patient, my time is limited – see my last blog about breastfeeding and time constraints)

So far, I feel like Wyatt is adjusting quite well to the new baby in the house, I hope and pray this continues. When she gets older and starts stealing his toys, I may be blogging a different tune.

I leave you with a funny. Today, Wyatt proudly announced, “Baby Brookin eats mommy’s body!” I can’t wait to hear the things he will tell his friends at school on Monday.

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