I absolutely love having two kids. I am not going to say having two kids is easy. One kid is not easy, but most the time having two kids makes things just a bit easier. I make more sacrifices than I did with one, but many things got a bit easier.
Rose reading to Heather when she was about 3 months old. |
Cons
Little to no alone time.
No alone time is definitely the biggest con to having two kids. Their nap schedules rarely match up. When they do it is heaven! When they don’t it feels like forever till I get alone time. RJ is great about watching the girls while I go for my monthly Brazilian wax, make a trip to Target, or moms night out with my friends. I savor my alone time a lot more than I used to.
Twice the mess
I am the jungle gym. |
Pros
Entertainment
Rose and Heather play together all day. Rose has a hard time sharing sometimes, but they can play for hours and hours. I am sure it’s because we had them close together. I’ve noticed with some of my friends kids that are far apart, the older sibling wants to play pretend or more sophisticated games and gets frustrated with the baby. This doesn’t happen with Rose and Heather. The way my girls play so well frees up time for me to do other things. I don’t need to use the TV as a babysitter while I do the dishes or cook dinner like I did when I only had one. Rose and Heather play, chase each other, and wear each other out while I do the house work. It’s great.
I can never resist a snuggle from Rose and Bullseye. |
They help each other
Rose feds Heather for me all the time. Even if it’s just passing her a cracker, it is still super helpful. Heather is great at helping Rose calm down. When Rose is throwing a tantrum on the floor Heather will crawl up to her and just sit next to her. It always shocks me how quickly Rose calms down with Heather’s help.
They teach each other
We try to pick up the toys every night before bed. Heather at 9 months old follows Rose’s example and puts toys away. Heather will stand next to a bucket, I will pass her a toy at she will throw it in. Sometimes following each other is not always a good thing. We have a set of LEGO that looks like ice cream (LEGO Ice Cream). If you blow through some of the pieces they make a whistling sound. Rose does this, then Heather does it too, it gets pretty loud sometimes. Most the time when Heather copies Rose it’s a good thing. I think Heater is more developed than Rose was at the same age because she has a big sister to watch. Rose is slowly learning how to share, some days are harder than others but after a few reminders she does ok.
Playing in the play room. |
They look out for each other
Rose loves Heather so much. If Heather is hurt Rose tries to make it better (even if she caused the pain). Rose already shows a bit of protectiveness when they are playing with other kids. If there are big kids around Heather, Rose will play near Heather too. I’m sure as they get older Rose will watch over Heather at the playground and be the protective big sister.
Myths
Two in diapers is hard
Having two in diapers is not as bad as people make it out to be. Aside from the cost it’s pretty easy. We just have a assembly line during diaper changes. Usually Heather first then Rose because Heather likes to escape. We buy our diapers from Amazon that helps keep the cost down (Rose diapers Heather diapers). I can imagine you wouldn’t want two in diapers if you did cloth diapering. Cloth diapering is not for me.
It’s twice the work
Yes you have two little humans to take care of, but that doesn’t mean you have twice the work. They entertain each other, they feed each other. I do the same loads of laundry I did before Heater got here. I don’t make twice as much food. Loading them into the car is a bit of a hassle if the big one has a temper tantrum, but she can climb into her own seat when she feels like it. Two is not twice the work.
Two cost twice as much
We got lucky and since Heather and Rose were born in the same season. Heather fit all of Rose’s old clothes… for a while. Heather is bigger than Rose, and grew out of things quickly. By six or seven months Heather fit into the summer stuff Rose wore when she was one, but I have not bought Heather many clothes at all. I do not spend twice as much on food. I think we waste a lot less, but I don’t need to buy more yet. If Heather starts a pouch of applesauce and gets bored, Rose will finish it. We have not bought more toys at all. We don’t have a lot of toys. We just have a few good ones, LEGO DUPLO, lots of puzzles (my favorite Melissa and Doug puzzle), a tea set (duh we have two girls), and a big block bead maze like the ones you find at doctors offices. We have an odd mixture of soft and hard toys too. We have enough they don’t get bored, but not so many it’s overwhelming if every single toy bin is dumped out. I think a lot of people have way too many toys.
Shopping in Costco. They love the double cart. |
I love having two kids. I love hearing their their giggles as they chase each other around the kitchen island. I love how Rose kisses Heather before her nap every day. I love seeing two cute kids piled on top of RJ. I love getting big hugs and slobbery kisses. I love having two kids I cannot wait for a third. I’m sure the dynamic will completely change but I cannot wait!
Thanks for reading! I will be posting some more recipes soon. Keep an eye out for them.
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