Submitted by omegapoint on July 24, 2008 - 7:33pm.
My wife and I shared our excitement about having our second child with my first-born. We talked about how great is was going to be to have a baby in the house and as my wife's pregnancy progressed, we talked about how big the baby was now ("she's the size of a peanut now!", "she's the size of a lemon now!"). We avoided saying anything like "You might get jealous, but remember we still love you" because that would put into my first child's mind that there was a possibility that we might not love her or think she's great. Asking my first girl if she was excited about being a big sister helped too. The only problems we've had with jealousy have been around 18 months old when the little sister started being more assertive. But the first year and a half were a breeze. I think that demonstrating that you are happy and that this is a happy time for the family as a whole really brings out the best in the older sibling.
Share the joy
My wife and I shared our excitement about having our second child with my first-born. We talked about how great is was going to be to have a baby in the house and as my wife's pregnancy progressed, we talked about how big the baby was now ("she's the size of a peanut now!", "she's the size of a lemon now!"). We avoided saying anything like "You might get jealous, but remember we still love you" because that would put into my first child's mind that there was a possibility that we might not love her or think she's great. Asking my first girl if she was excited about being a big sister helped too. The only problems we've had with jealousy have been around 18 months old when the little sister started being more assertive. But the first year and a half were a breeze. I think that demonstrating that you are happy and that this is a happy time for the family as a whole really brings out the best in the older sibling.