As you guys know I am a mommy of three girls! My girls are actually very close in age — one and two years old while I was pregnant with baby girl number three. It was a super hard time for me but we had some very special moments too.
I'm a stay-at-home mom and I was also working from home with my toddlers in the background — it was stressful, but I truly wanted to make my own money so I could take my girls out and do fun things. Then the sciatic nerve pain hit. Sitting all day made me stiff, the pain got worse, and it became hard to move and play with my girls. We had so much on our plates — but our babies were happy, and that kept me going.
💛 A word from Tiffany
I say all of that because I want you to know — you are doing an amazing job and I am rooting for you. Throughout all the hard times, our babies are happy and content. Even when we are spiraling and convincing ourselves we are bad mothers, our kids think the world of us. Seeing my girls fall in love with their baby sister and wanting to feed her and stare at her all day made every hard moment worthwhile. 🌸
"It's a wild time — but it's also so special. And you are doing so much better than you think."
What Worked for Our Family
Get them on a schedule before baby arrives
Before the baby came I took my girls out as much as I could and got them on a consistent schedule so things wouldn't be too hectic once baby girl made her grand entrance. We played and read books every single day. I kept that same routine once the baby was home too — predictability is everything with toddlers.
Make the older ones feel included
Once I gave birth and made it home, I immediately made a plan to make sure my girls felt included. They were still small so they couldn't do too much — but I let them hold the bottle with me during feeding, let them close the diaper after changes, or zip up their baby sister's clothes. Little moments, big feelings of importance.
Potty train before baby arrives if you can
I potty trained so I wouldn't be changing three diapers every couple of hours! One thing that worked for us was three-day potty training — putting them on the potty every 15 minutes for three days straight. You have to be home and doing nothing else during those days. They say to go bottomless but between me and you — I wasn't doing that. I just put them in big girl undies and still put them on the potty every 15 minutes. Find what works for your child!
Put snacks and drinks at their level
This might sound crazy to some but it made my life so much easier! With sciatic nerve pain I couldn't be up and down as much — so having snacks and drinks accessible to them meant they could get what they needed independently. My girls were super chill so they always just asked and never overdid it. Know your child and trust your instincts!
Organize their play area for easier play and clean-up
I organized their play area so both playing and cleaning up were as simple as possible. I also sat with them and talked through cleaning up once we were done playing. I let them race to clean — turning it into a fun game. Granted they are toddlers so they aren't going to be perfect at it, and that's okay! I always did a final clean-up during bedtime.
Do what works for YOUR family 💛
All children are different and we don't all have the same parenting style — and that is completely okay. Please do what works for your family dynamic. These are just the things that helped us get through one of the most beautiful and challenging seasons of my life. You've got this, mama.