I always knew I wanted to have children close together, but didn’t think it would happen this quickly. This time last year, my husband and I were making last minute plans in anticipation of our son. The heavens must have opened because I had a very easy pregnancy with a healthy weight gain (just under 20 pounds), minimal nausea, the ability to continue with my workouts and a natural (med-free) childbirth. I jokingly told myself if pregnancy would be like this every time I would happily carry a child every year.
Well here I am a year later with a 10-month-old and a child on the way. I promise I’m not crazy!
If you speak to my husband, he would have liked to wait two years before going for the second child. But once our son started transitioning into the beginning stages of being a toddler, he didn’t think he would have the energy to push the reset button down the road. Thus, he was cool with waiting just a year.
Every parent knows a child takes work and energy. Our son reached milestones earlier than expected (began eating solids at three months and started walking at eight months) which was a “sign” to my mother another child would be in the cards. “He’s getting out of the way for the next one,” she said. Who believes old wives’ tales?
When reality set in I was pregnant again (our son was eight months old at the time), there were mixed emotions. The first was obviously joy. Children are a blessing. I love being a mother and am so thankful for the opportunity to be one.
Then the thought, “Holy crap we’re going to have two kids in diapers” began to settle in. Even though we both work from home (definitely great to save on daycare), could we handle a 16 month old and a newborn? Would it be too much? There was obviously no turning back. Our little bean is here to stay. The good news is we made a big move months ago to an area with a lower cost of living that will surely help our money stretch. Diapers are no joke!
I then started to think about all the positives of having children closer together in age. For starters, we have just about all of the items we need. Sure we’ll have to purchase new clothes if we have a girl, but we have many leftover goodies from our son we can put to good use. We started a 529 college savings plan for our son and will do the same for our baby on the way so their money can grow over the years. As much as handling a toddler and a newborn seems impossible, it is very doable.
While I can only imagine the craziness that will come with two little children running around my house, I know the bond they will develop is going to be worth it. I adore my little sister, but I wish we didn’t have 10 years between us. I have seen families with siblings close in age who later grow up to have their children (also close in age) play together.
In the end, the age difference between children will be up to the parents. There’s certainly nothing wrong with waiting several years before you pop out another one. For my husband and I, we wanted to strike while the iron was hot–and our bones less achy.
