What to do with the siblings when you go to the hospital...

Question

Trying to decide what's the best... In your experiences is it best to start off by taking your older child/children to the hospital, giving you a chance to explain what's about to happen or is it best to keep them out of the hospital until after baby has arrived? I have a 3 yr old who seems very excited but I'm not quite sure he totally gets it.
***** I guess I should specify that my 3yr old will only be there for a while. Get to see what's going on and then will leave with grandma until the baby is born.*****

Answer

My daughter is 6 years old. Our hospital has a class called "Sibling Safari" to give kids a hospital tour and teach them about holding, dressing, and playing with their new sibling. She loved it!

She will not be present for the birth (she will be with my mom) but she will visit afterwards. During her visit, we can call the cafe and they will supply her with a free cupcake for her brother's birthday. I thought that was a super cute idea.

Answer

Mine is 2 1/2 and I definitely don't want her at the hospital!! She will be home until we come home with baby, I don't even want her to visit because I'm afraid she will be upset that we are not going home together. I've explained that the baby will come out of my belly soon and she's satisfied with that answer so far. No reason to get too detailed yet.

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Its hard for me to stay focused while in labor of my kids are there. Plus if something were to go wrong with me or baby I don't want to scare them and have them see mommy or baby in pain. I feel my boys are too young for that... They're 7 and 5. Plus they are very attached to me so I know they would easily get scared if something went wrong. They don't need to see that. So our plan is to have my sis in-law come to our house and watch them while I'm in labor. Then she will bring them to the hospital to visit after I have the baby.

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This is baby #4 for me.

I have a scheduled c-section. It's set for 7am. I have requested no visitors till the afternoon and my 3 kids are staying with my mom and dad until after daytime naps so everyone is happy. This also gives my husband and I bonding one on one time with the baby and gives me time to work on breastfeeding without all the excitement. My kids are 6,4 and 2 and are very excited but I think it's best to have that time with baby and they will eat lunch  and nap and then come meet their sibling 😊

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Im planning on bringing my 5yo. She's very excited to meet her little brother and Im having a water birth so Im thinking this will be a cool experience for her. Midwife says its ok to have her in the room so that's what we'll be doing.

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Following.. Im wondering what other moms have done also.

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I'm on #4 and I bring my kids. I'm having my second csection Tuesday and my dad and step mom are coming to sit with the kids while I have the baby. My kids are too excited to keep them waiting on seeing their new brother.

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My daughter is almost 2.5 years old. We've talked extensively about how I will have to go to the hospital to have her little sister and that she'll be home with her aunt. I can't labor too long at home since I have GBS, but she will be able to see a little of what is happenin (if she's not asleep) and I plan on having her visit us at the hospital as soon as the baby is born. 😊

Answer

My daughter is five and we are having a home birth. My sister will come over and be with her in case she becomes frightened or whatever but the plan is for her to see the birth if she wants to. She's very excited and we prepared her with a class plus lots of videos. Not everyone's cup of tea but we are all excited!

Answer

We're planning a homebirth and I've hired a doula to come entertain my almost 2 year old son. She's a high school senior who's gotten her doula certification and wants to be a homebirth midwife, and she has been attending births with my midwives to help with siblings for years. I would love for my son to be there at the moment of birth, and be as involved as he wants to be, but he's a toddler so there's no guarantees on how he'll act. She can take him to the park down the street and keep him entertained while I'm busy. I really like that she also has plenty of experience with birth, she even caught a baby a few years ago when the baby came faster than expected. I really don't want anyone in the room who isn't going to be 200% calm with the gritty glory of birth. We had invited my MIL to come and watch our son but then she wanted to bring my FIL and their dogs and the whole clan, and stay for a few weeks, and no...I want a couple of weeks with the new baby without visitors. Hiring someone just made the most sense. I met with her a couple of days ago and I really like her. I feel very lucky I found her.

What to do with the siblings when you go to the hospital...

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