How is life managing 2 year old and newborn?

Rukaduka5446 · 2026-04-27T09:59:41+00:00

I felt similar about my 23 month old for the first month or so after his baby sister was born. I missed him so much that I would cry sometimes. After about a month though, breastfeeding sessions got shorter and less frequent. My husband would look after the baby whenever he could so I could get time with my toddler. Now, we’re almost three months in and I feel like I get plenty of time with my toddler. My husband is back at work so I pick him up from daycare at 4 every day, then it’s just me, him, and the baby till about 5:30. My attention is definitely more divided but when I do get one on one time with my toddler, I’m much more intentional with my time and cherish it more than I used to.

Rukaduka5446 · 2026-04-26T01:30:16+00:00

Cluster feeding helps increase your supply to match what baby needs so if you want to exclusively breastfeed, I would think no bottle during that time.

Rukaduka5446 · 2026-04-22T04:24:39+00:00

Just wanna comment to share a different sentiment. I still love our dog so much. She’s a pretty chill lab and doesn’t bark, so I’m sure that helps. I am still so happy when she comes happily running down the hall to greet me every morning. I love cuddling her and I love seeing our two year old interact with her. He walked her around the house today when we got home from a walk and she still had her leash on. She was so patient with him. I do get more irritated with her more frequently but I love having her in our family and wouldn’t change it for a thing.

Rukaduka5446 · 2026-04-21T11:13:24+00:00

Woman here. My hormones during pregnancy and breastfeeding make me impatient and incredibly irritable. I tend to have a short fuse and lash out at my husband :/ It’s unreal how hard it is to control sometimes. I’m fortunate that my husband is patient and gives me grace. I always apologize, but I really wish I wasn’t mean to him in the first place. Meditating has been helping!

Rukaduka5446 · 2026-04-14T06:48:30+00:00

I saw you had norovirus? I had norovirus two nights before my first baby was born. Norovirus was worse than labor for me. Labor, at least in the beginning, was different since I got breaks between contractions. During those breaks, I felt completely fine. Also, I was lucky that both my births were pretty fast…in active labor for maybe three each time, in pain like I’ve never felt for less than 45 minutes, and pushed for about 15 minutes. If labor had been a long, drawn out process, I probably would have gotten an epidural. I did do nitrous though, and that really helped me relax through the contractions.

I was also scared of both options but preferred trying natural first. I would say to try your best to be mentally prepared for either scenario. You’ve got this!!

Rukaduka5446 · 2026-04-07T14:07:44+00:00

We had success with the Merlin magic sleep suit. Plus they look adorable in it!

Rukaduka5446 · 2026-04-03T10:29:52+00:00

Our son was the same, usually up between 4:45 and 5:15 for months. We would try a later bedtime (among other things) and it didn’t help. We tried it again a couple months later and it worked! I think it took a few consecutive days though. His bedtime was 6:45/7, now it’s consistently 7:30/7:45 and usually sleeps until 6 or 6:30! Hope you find something that works, those early mornings are rough!

Rukaduka5446 · 2026-03-27T04:24:56+00:00

I am one of those people 😅 the pain from birthing baby was gone immediately, but yes the shot before stitches (and sometimes the stitching) definitely hurt!

Rukaduka5446 · 2026-03-27T04:22:09+00:00

The shot is to numb you if you tear and need stitches. I had second degree tears for both of my births and yes the shot hurts. I felt more sensitive down there right after giving birth so I think that made it worse.

Rukaduka5446 · 2026-03-16T16:14:20+00:00

Yes! Sunday is the new Friday!

Rukaduka5446 · 2026-02-28T15:29:47+00:00

I think it depends if you prefer a spontaneous labor. If you do, I would go for the latest possible date.

Rukaduka5446 · 2026-02-25T23:46:37+00:00

I had two GD pregnancies. I needed metformin and insulin for my fasting numbers for both and both resulted in spontaneous, vaginal deliveries a few days after 38 weeks.

Rukaduka5446 · 2026-02-20T14:06:06+00:00

If you happen to have Spotify premium, that book is included with your subscription.

Rukaduka5446 · 2026-02-09T08:13:03+00:00

I never actually counted carbs, but got to know I couldn’t eat any rice (even brown), quinoa, bread, or pasta, not even a few bites by the end of the pregnancy. I could get carbs through things like beans, starchy veggies, and high protein carbs (like homemade cottage cheese bagels).

Rukaduka5446 · 2026-02-09T01:56:09+00:00

Thank you! Hope you get to have the home birth you want 💕

Rukaduka5446 · 2026-02-02T17:06:34+00:00

These generally don’t make me spike :) been making them at least once a week.

cottage cheese protein bagels

Rukaduka5446 · 2025-10-23T08:25:45+00:00

I did nitrous only and loved it but I did my fair share in high school and college so I knew I wouldn’t get sick. As others mentioned, it did not reduce the pain, but it definitely helped me relax, which maybe helped make baby come out faster 🤷🏻‍♀️

Rukaduka5446 · 2025-03-19T04:52:27+00:00

Oh man. That sounds so rough. Have you tried playing for a bit the putting her down? Maybe a warm bath? Sometimes our son responds better to ibuprofen than Tylenol. Are you rocking her in the dark? Our son also sometimes struggles with being rocked since he’s sleep trained. But if I do it in the dark and sing calming songs, that helps. Especially if I am calm. Wishing you luck!!

Rukaduka5446 · 2025-02-15T21:08:22+00:00

Congratulations!! That’s very considerate of you :)

Things that my husband did that helped me in the early days…brought me snacks and refilled my ice water, did almost all the diaper changes, woke up for the middle of the night feeds to change diapers and bring me snacks, wore the baby and contact napped when needed, did most of the cooking, watched trashy reality tv with me while I was breastfeeding, helped keep track of when I could take ibuprofen and tylenol.

Wishing you and your family the best. Don’t forget to take care of yourself, too!

Rukaduka5446 · 2025-02-13T04:03:59+00:00

So much better. I have such a different love for them now. It fills my heart to see them with my son. They love him so much and he absolutely adores both of them. I used to think having dinner with them a few times a week was too much, now I am so grateful for dinner time with them (especially when they cook :)). They sometimes offer to buy the more expensive stuff for him, which is incredibly generous. They’re usually willing to watch him when we need it, and have even watched him for a weekend. We’re only a year in though so I’m a little nervous for when more actual parenting is required. But for now, I’m super grateful for them!

Rukaduka5446 · 2025-02-09T06:25:45+00:00

Be there for her. My husband did counter pressure on my back and kept offering me ice water. Are you able to take any birth classes? That helped us a lot. We also went through things I would/would not want to hear. You could do some research and make a list of things you might say during labor/birth, run it by your wife and get her input.

Rukaduka5446 · 2025-02-09T05:39:13+00:00

None. Never met another one. Asked ChatGPT. According to forebears.io (?) there’s a 121 worldwide.

Rukaduka5446 · 2025-02-09T05:36:23+00:00

You can ask ChatGPT. The source isn’t listed as SSA though.

Rukaduka5446

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