Love is infinite and kind
knows no boundaries
and abides by no law
other than it’s own.
Having a new child come into the family is a blessing but you have to help your child adjust to the new baby! At one time or another we all experience love in our lives. We love our spouse/partner, parents, siblings, family members, friends, pets and then there is the love that we have for our own children. To me that love is the most powerful one of all. As it’s the love that we feel before even meeting our child as our love forms as they develop in our tummies. It is the love that is infinite as we do everything in our power to ensure that our children are well taken care of. I would say that is a remarkable power.
I remember feeling this way on the day my daughter was born as she was placed on my chest. She looked at me with her vivid eyes and I knew at that exact moment that I would love her forever (even through the sleepless nights, tantrums and all the lovely fun growing up stuff).
Since that first day, we haven’t failed a single day to let our daughter know how much we love her each and every day. We always let her know that our love for her is infinite and that the beauty of love is that you can always make more and we don’t need to worry about there ever being less.
This daily lesson has helped our daughter get comfortable with new babies arriving in our family. She has loved every little cousin that has arrived and has been so helpful in trying to make them happy. Recently, a new cousin arrived and it was a more immediate cousin as it is my sister’s daughter (Congratulations Karen!).
We were all anxious in anticipation for the little one to arrive as we all had lots of love to give. Therefore, we started the conversations about the arrival and what it was going to mean to all of us. It has always been important to us to have these conversations with our daughter as we want her to understand the world around her and with the ‘why’ phase it is a perfect time. We explained how she was gaining a new friend and that meant one more person that was going to love her so much more.
Therefore, throughout my sister’s whole pregnancy, my daughter would kiss my sister’s tummy and tell her little cousin how much she loved her. It was a beautiful moment to say the least (captured below).
The day finally arrived as we greeted the little one recently and it was time for our daughter to meet her new cousin. It was love at first sight! Our daughter just adored her little baby cousin and just wanted to give hugs and tickles (apparently babies need tickles according to my daughter). 😉
Seeing the love that my daughter exhibited was so touching as it showed me that I am doing something right. But in all honesty I didn’t have any doubts since she has other younger cousins that she loves so much. Our constant talking and explaining is working so far! YES! #ParentingWin
Now not all children are the same and they are all unique in their own ways. Some children may exhibit jealousy or feel a little less loved when a new baby enters the world. Therefore, I put together some tips that could possibly help.
#1. Communicate
Always start the conversation early. Let your child know of the changes that are about to happen and let them know what they can expect. Teach them that love is infinite and you can always create more of it.
#2. Listen
Listen to your child and pick up on any cues that they are feeling uneasy about a new addition to the family. If they have any concerns, let them tell you and listen. You would be surprised at how much listening means to a child.
#3. Love
Express and show your love to your child. Let them know how much they mean to you…a hug can go a long way.
#4. Engage
Make sure to include your child in the action. All kids love attention (I am sure we know a lot of adults who do too!) so get them involved. If it is a cousin, have them help the mom and dad with the baby. Let them bring the bottle and have them take part in the little things. It is a great way to have the baby and child start to bond too!
#5 Praise
Praise your child on what a great job they are doing and what a great helper they are. They love to hear praise and it is another great way to show your love by noticing how great they are. I use this a lot and I find it helps me tremendously to have a positive outcome in all that I do.
Those are my five quick tips in hopes it helps minimize or avoid some unpleasant feelings of a new addition to the family. We have used all of these tips to help our daughter adjust to a loving growing family. Now our daughter tells the whole world that she has a new baby cousin and she loves her so much because she is so cute! Tugs my heart strings every time!
Until next time…Happy Parenting!
By: Momma Braga
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