It isn’t easy.
I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve been asked… “Was it planned?”
Errrr planned? Well, if planned means a brief moment of insanity and one too many cocktails then yes, yes it was.
When we found out we were pregnant the second time around… it was different. There were no high fives or crazy dance moves around the lounge room. Instead, it was just a look we gave each other, like “What have we done?”, “Oh my god!”, “Are we ready?”
Our son Mac had just clocked 8 months – que freak out.
My always reassuring husband was quick to tell me, it was simply TOO late to freak out and we just needed to adapt and deal with it.
Always the realist.
Don’t get me wrong, underneath it all, we were both super excited - a sibling for Mac! He didn’t know it yet, however in less than 9 months, he would have a little sister to jump all over, poke and prod and one day swoon over all her friends.
Since Lila entered the world in March, he has really impressed us with his ‘big brother’ responsibilities. Well most of the time anyway. Of course, like any siblings they have their “moments”.
Like the time you look over and see his foot 2cm from stomping on her head, or when he is adamant a sultana must be able to squeeze into her tiny nostril. I’m sure there are challenges with all age gaps, but here’s a few things I’ve found from having them so close:
1. Breastfeeding a newborn while having an almost-two-year-old run around the house like a maniac, is almost impossible. The cries for my attention are frustrating when I am not able to communicate, “another ten minutes and I’m all yours”.
