Shelley wrote:

OK, give me the truth. How much different is two kids than one. I
know many people do it and seem to survive but I'd love to hear the
lowdown from you experienced moms of what to really expect. Some of
my concerns/questions may seem a bit trivial but I wonder anyway.

It's different for different people (and different kids).
Some people find going from 1-2 hardest. Others find going from
0-1 hardest. Personally, I found 1-2 harder because we didn't
change our lifestyle much with just one child. Having a second
meant a more significant lifestyle change, especially since
my second was very active. Still, it wasn't *that* big a deal.

- Does the new baby crying at night wake up older child

This has never been a problem for us. I wouldn't
anticipate a problem unless they were sharing a room.

- How does older child react to younger child. Any ideas for helping
with resentment issues for the older one.

This depends a great deal on the age difference,
temperaments of the children, and family dynamics. Under
normal circumstances, I don't think there's any reason to
anticipate serious trouble as long as you respect the
firstborn's need for continued time, affection, and support.

- When baby is mobile, how do you keep them safe from older childs
toys

You have to keep the older kid's toys away from
the baby. Keep them in the child's room or other contained
space. Some people put the older child in a play yard
with the toys with little pieces.

- What do you do to keep older child happy while breastfeeding younger
child

Books, special toys, talking, videos, etc. Actually,
though, that's never been a problem for me. My babies were
speedy eaters, so there wasn't that long for the older kid
to get into trouble. Just prepare in advance and you'll likely
be fine. You also have to be willing to stop nursing and
deal with any real issues that arise; otherwise, number one
will quickly realize he has you over a barrel while
nursing.

- Any techniques for taking two children on errands

With that age gap, I would think you could
just pop the baby in a carrier or stroller and have
Jacob walk along with you. You just have to keep
errands short enough and time them well so that you
don't have meltdowns. To be honest, I think you just
do it. It's not as easy or as quick as running errands
solo, but I don't think there's any magic to doing it
other than planning in advance so that you're not taking
hungry, cranky children out for too long.

Best wishes,
Ericka