For parents who will be adding a new baby to their family, a big worry is to how prepare older siblings for the new baby’s presence in their life. There are a ton of wonderful sibling courses available out there through local hospitals and birthing centers, but what if parents would like to develop something all on their own? It is easy to develop your own sibling-preparation course; here are a few ideas to keep in mind.

Talk to the big siblings about how they will be able to interact with the baby.
Talking to your older children about things they will be able to do with the new baby helps to get them excited for their job as big brother/big sister. Before their brother was born, my boys looked forward to playing peek-a-boo with the baby, reading him stories, helping mommy change diapers, and singing to the baby. We also talked about all of the great things that they would be able to teach the baby when he gets bigger, everything from showing him how to play baseball to swinging with him at the park.

Be realistic about what life will be like when the baby comes home.
When our new baby was just a month away, we began talking with B and E (age 2.5) about how life would change when the baby came home. We explained that mommy would be really tired and need to rest and that the baby would need lots of attention from mommy and daddy. We also talked about how the baby would be pretty boring for a long time, not even learning to smile for a month or so. I stressed these points because, as much as I wanted the boys to be excited about their brother, I worried about them expecting to be able to have fun playing with the baby starting the day he came home from the hospital, only to be let down. In addition, while explaining all of the time that the baby will need from mommy and daddy, we also talked about all of the things that big boys can do that babies can’t - eat cookies, play at the park, go to school, etc.

Talk about when older siblings were born.
Looking at pictures, watching movies, and talking about what happened when older siblings were born can be a great way to introduce them to what early life is like. They see how tiny babies are and hear about how they, too, were welcomed into the world by friends and family.

Read books with your children.
There are a ton of great choices for children’s books that help to prepare children for the arrival of a new baby and their role as big siblings. I previously reviewed some of my favorites, which can be found here.

These are just a few ideas of ways to help big siblings prepare for all of the upcoming changes in their lives. There is no right or wrong answer to this - you just need to follow your heart to decide what is right for your family. - Sara I.