- I gave birth to my second child when my first was 13 months old.
- It took me a long time to get pregnant with my first child, but I got pregnant with my second child right away.
- Now that they are older, they are into the same things and love playing together.
There are different opinions about the so-called “perfect” age difference But I can only speak from the experience of two boys born 13 months apart.
When talking to people, they often breathe heavily and look disappointed, but I definitely recommend a small age difference. Yes, it was scary and incredibly challenging at first. But they are 9 and 10 years old now, and I wouldn't change anything. The age difference went from disgusting to amazing.
I got pregnant again when my son was 5 months old.
It took her a long time to conceive her first son, James, and the birth was traumatic. He was stuck back-to-back, and after endless straining from an epidural and days of labor that lasted for days, he was finally delivered with forceps, leaving him with an episiotomy and a large laceration.
I wasn't thinking about having a second child because I was in childbirth counseling and focused on being a new mom. But nature had other ideas and I got pregnant again when James was 5 months old. I can't explain the horror I felt when I found out. I think I knew about it for a few weeks, but I denied it until one point. pregnancy test I confirmed that.
My husband was incredibly supportive while I panicked. I was physically terrified of giving birth again, and the prospect of having a newborn again (and to be honest, I barely slept) scared me.
I had an elective C-section to give birth to my second son, Oliver. James was 13 months old, but even at that young age he was unimpressed. He gave me the cold shoulder and refused to look at his baby brother. He went from hiring me full time to sharing me with a new guy.
It was difficult at first
I won't pretend it's my first year. Having two children in less than 14 months was easy. I tried to be combative on a daily basis and try to get it together as much as possible. But anyone who has children knows that you can't always enforce routines, especially around eating and sleeping.
Napping was a monumental feat. I spent years putting one to bed or crawling between rooms trying to resolve each thing while the other one yelled to get my attention.
But on the days they went to bed at the same time, I experienced absolute joy, sipping hot coffee and trotting downstairs for some much-needed alone time. Those small victories were so satisfying.
Also, I didn't know the difference. All I knew was how to deal with two boys at the same time, both in diapers and unable to speak. I think not knowing there was any other age difference helped me get through those early years.
I am grateful that we are close in age.
I am so grateful to have my children so close now and it has been a blessing as they grow up. When we go on vacation, they happily play together, don't need other kids, and don't expect us to do anything with them. If there is an event that they find boring, they always have each other.
My husband and I worked a lot during the school holidays and had to join clubs. It can be intimidating to go to a club if your child doesn't know anyone else, but because they do things together and are often in the same age group, there's always someone to help them through new situations. Masu.
This also means that they are interested in many of the same things. So when you're doing something together, like a day trip or activity, it's easy to find things to do. I think it's confusing how to accept the huge age difference.
Plus, they're best friends. This may be due to luck and the fact that their personalities are so different that they are a good match, but as parents, it is very reassuring to know that we are always on the same page.
