Alexandra Says: Breaking The Baby News — What Will My Stepkids Think?
It was time to tell the kids that they had a new sibling on the way, but to be honest, my husband and I were more terrified than excited!
We were committed to making the new arrival a smooth transition. So telling his three kids, from his previous marriage, that they were going to have a baby brother had to be done delicately and with great care. I think my husband was quite apprehensive and nervous about telling them, while I was more concerned in the manner in which we told them.
Our intention was to show the kids that the arrival of the baby would add to the family dynamic in a positive and exciting way and would not take anything away from them.
Our goal was also to inspire the youngest to want to take on the new role of big brother, as I feel that it is usually the hardest for the current ‘baby’ of the group to adjust to the change.
Due to my husband’s anxiety, the date of the reveal kept being postponed by a number of made up, and at times, humorous excuses. I, in turn, could only be patient and supportive, while trying to hide my continuing growing midriff and my increasing appetite.
At one point, I just asked him if we should just wait, tell them I got fat, and when the baby was born say, “Congrats here is your new baby brother!!!” I think he realized it was time…
As we sat his children, ages 16, 14, and 10 at the time, down for a family meeting, we asked the youngest if he was prepared to finally be a big brother. They stared at us, not quite sure what we were getting at.
The middle one broke the silence with, “Is Alex having a baby??” while the eldest chimed in with, “I knew it!!!” With the unexpected excitement of the night, we were both greeted with hugs and kisses, and the entire speech that we had prepared over the course of the last few weeks was quickly forgotten.
So it looked as if, for now, things were progressing as smooth as could be expected, but with such a huge age gap between them and the new baby, I am hoping that they won’t feel too far removed and enjoy the experience of being older siblings. Only time will tell.
–Alexandra Osipow
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