OT-How soon did you have Baby #2?

[mjkacmom]

#2 was born 20 months after #1, #3 was born almost 3 years after #2, and #4 and #5 were born 22 months after #3. #1 and #2 are very close, and #3, #4, and #5 are close - those 3 years made a huge difference. The only reason for the big gap was my sister's wedding! I love having them close together, for so many reasons.

 

[Fintastic]

How soon after baby #1 did you have #2? Do you wish you waited longer?

We don't have #2 yet. We're going to TTC at the end of the year. If we're successful right away, our kids will be almost six years apart.

I knew I absolutely didn't want them any closer than three years apart. DEFINITELY not 2-in-2. As the years have passed I just haven't felt that "tug" for another baby, and have been happy with my only child. I still don't have baby fever, but the longer we wait, the harder it will be. So we're going to try soon.

I think the big gap between my kids will be awesome. There was never any rush to get DD out of the crib so the next baby could use it. I don't have two in diapers. We've had a chance to enjoy our first child on her own for a while before adding another. DD is so much more self-sufficient than a three-year-old, so I won't have to worry about two "babies" at once. She will be in school when her sibling gets here, so I'll have a chance to bond with baby #2 one-on-one like I did with DD. I think this will be a great age difference!

 

[mrsturtle]

good luck with your decision. it is a very personal one. pros and cons for any decision. do what is best for you and your husband. talking about it with your significant other would be my advice. being a mom is an incredible thing.

 

[TinaLala]

We started trying after 1+ years and then found out we couldn't get pregnant. Eventually it worked and my girls are 3 years apart.

It's great because they get along really well, but they're not too far apart that they don't get each other. Plus when they were younger I wasn't going crazy with two babies running around. The oldest one was old enough to 'help' because she wanted to not because I was asking her to.

 

[DevilDuckie]

Looking for some different perspectives: I had my sweet baby girl in January. Life with her is a pleasure and I am starting to feel pangs of wanting another baby. Hubby feels the same. I've always loved kids and LOVE being a Mom. I'm a SAHM and hubby works. When we have Baby #2, we're going to get part time help and I will continue to stay home.
I just don't know how soon is too soon to have another? Or if their is such a thing as too soon.
How soon after baby #1 did you have #2? Do you wish you waited longer?

"Baby" #1 is going to be 11 in December and we are just starting to work on Baby #2. Not quite what you're looking for, I think.

Understanding the difference in our circumstances, take this with a grain of salt: I would wait until you can manage a second baby without hiring help. You really seem to love being a mom and I think you might regret having to hand off chunks of the experience to someone else. Even two years between babies gives you a better ability to manage on your own and not miss out on parts of the experience. I'm also a strong supporter of reducing the amount of time that you have more than one in diapers.

 

[ColleenG]

I have 4 and here is their spacing:
#1 and #2 are 22 months apart
#2 and #3 are 2.5 years apart
#3 and #4 are 17 months apart (guess who was a surprise!)

My feeling is that I am glad they are all close in age. Hopefully as adults they will be friends. 22 months was nice because DD (oldest) was talking well and was very excited to have a baby in the house. She was old enough that she wasn't a baby "baby". For a long time they were both into the same kinds of things as far as toys and activities went. 17 months apart was a little harder cuz 17 months is still a baby. My sister had her 2 boys 13 months apart (not planned) and they are surviving just fine.

You should do what ever makes you happy and you feel you can handle. If you can afford extra help that is great. I would let them worry more about the household tasks so you can enjoy time with the kids and not worry about laundry and cleaning. That's just my 2 cents.

 

[PaulaSue]

2 years 2 1/2 months and 2 years 3 1/2months between my girls

Don't know if I would space them that close again, it was especialy hard with my 3dd and breastfeeding and getting anywhere on time.

 

[acerunner81469]

16 months between DS and DD, Drove us nuts at first but now 10 and 8(almost 9) works good share friends and activities, only one year seperates them in school so that works good too.

 

[kimbo0569]

One month short of 3 years apart. It has worked out well. They are good playmates. Since they fall on either side of the school cutoff, they are only 2 years apart in school (going into 2nd and 4th).



I did the same thing, just about. My oldest was about 2 months shy of her 3rd birthday before I was pregnant again. Though they are a few more years part in school, because they are about 3 1/2 years apart in age - my 6 1/2 year old will start 2nd grade this September and my 3 year old will start pre-k in Sept 09. They are very close and will stick up for each other - they have their moments but my 3 year old wants to do EVERYTHING the older one does and gets mad when she can't

 

[LisaNJ25]

7 years after the first one. I love the age gap. If you look at my kids ages in my sig.. my last 2 are a year apart. 12 months and 6 days to be exact. I dont like them being so close.

 

[bzzymom]

DS had just finished kindergarden and was turning 6 when I found out I was pregnant. I had difficult pregnancies, and it was nice that DS wasn't needing much attention anymore.

I think the age of the parents is something to be considered as well. I was 27 when I had my first, and 33 when I had DD. My brother and his wife have 2 boys, they are 18 months and 3 months old. They are in their early 20's though and are up to the challenge. The hardest part for my sister-in-law is that when she is breastfeeding the baby, the older one knows she is busy and he gets into a little mischief.

I am 11 years older than my oldest brother, and 13 years older than my youngest brother. We always joked that I was a built in babysitter. The cool part about the age difference is that my brothers and I have never ever argued. The boys did argue a lot with each other though.

 

[islangrl]

There's no one size fits all spacing! My first 2 are 15 months apart, then a 5 year gap, the next two are 13 months apart. Things are just now getting alot easier, except for the moody 10 year old ( I think it's the start of puberty, please keep me in your prayers .) Right now they are all playing together so nicely, in 5 minutes someone will be crying. For the most part everyone gets along, but there is a battle every day. Having 2 pairs close in age has meant built in playmates, with similar interests. The hardest hit with a new baby was #2, she was 5 when #3 was born. #1 and #3 barely noticed when their status as "The Baby", was over. Whenever you have the next one, that will be the perfect time! Good Luck!

 

[Kaler131]

My kids were born in 94, 97, 00 and 03....so my DD was 2.5 when my first DS was born and the boys are 3 years apart. No more babies for us! My DH and I will wait patiently for grandchildren, but we don't want them anytime soon! LOL

 

[DizzieMinnie]

9 years and 3 months between DD (12) and DS (3) took hubby a long time to get the subtle hints

 

[craigs bride]

my first two have 2yrs 9mths between them ds born dec 90 dd sept 93

and i've jst hada thought while writing this my second lot will have the same
dd sept 05 and new baby dec 08.

 

[Dawson's Mom]

Our DS was born on February 29, 2008-yes, he's a leaper! He will 5 months old tomorrow, yikes, its growing so fast. We hope to start trying next January for number 2! I wanted to start about a week after DS was born, but my DH wants to wait till our next trip to WDW in January 2009. We don't have time to waste, I'm 38 and DH is going to be 43. So if we are lucky enough to have 2, they will be close!