Happy Friday! This was my first week since having Peter of getting a new blog post up every day and I’m chalking that up as my win for the week! I definitely don’t have work/life balance with two kids figured out yet but progress is progress. I’m excited to see my sister and take Teddy to the Memorial Day parade this weekend even if the forecast is a little dismal in Connecticut. I hope you all have a good one!
1. Most surprising part of going from 1-2 kids?
I was really bracing myself after a difficult postpartum recovery with Teddy and hearing plenty of “oh just you wait” type stories (can we all agree those are the worst?), but I’ve been pleasantly surprised that this has been a more seamless transition than going from 0-1. I feel incredibly fortunate now having my husband working from home, my parents living with us, and an easier delivery/postpartum recovery the second time around, all of which have made navigating 2 under 2 a lot more manageable than if I were looking after two kids alone for most of the day while still physically recovering myself. I thank my lucky stars for the incredible village we have at this chapter in our lives and wish I could give the same to every new parent!
2. Do you use a double stroller or do you wear Peter and push Teddy?
Both! We’re currently using our Uppababy Vista with the bassinet and rumble seat when we have both of them in the stroller and it’s working well so far! It’s definitely a more heavy duty stroller so I love it for walks around our neighborhood but it probably wouldn’t be ideal if you’re loading it in and out of your car all the time (check out my full stroller review here). We keep the Babybjorn carrier in the bottom of the stroller in case Peter starts getting fussy and wants to be held or sometimes we venture out sans stroller with Teddy in the Doona trike and Peter in the carrier. (You can see my ultimate baby essentials list here!)
3. Best advice for mamas thinking about doing 2 under 2?
It’s such a personal call but we’re pretty happy so far! I’d reflect on what kind of support system you have in place and whether you might be able to secure additional help (I wrote more about our support system here!) before baby #2’s arrival. We’ve been really lucky that Peter’s a pretty easygoing little guy and generally content to be carried around while we chase after his very busy older brother. It’s definitely still chaos, but it’s a good kind of chaos!
4. How has Teddy adjusted to having a sibling? Do you feel like it’s a good age gap?
I don’t know any different but I’m sure there are pros and cons to any spacing! I would say Teddy basically had no idea that anything was different while I was pregnant and didn’t have a strong reaction to Peter coming home from the hospital either. He’ll occasionally get jealous if Peter has a pacifier (which Teddy has in his crib to fall asleep but not usually during the day) and sometimes runs to Will instead of me if I’m holding the baby, but in general he’s just kept doing his own thing. He’s only recently (with Peter being a month and a half) started to express interest in holding or sitting with the baby, helping wash Peter’s hair in the bath, or taking notice if he’s crying. I think as Peter is able to do more (smile, laugh, sit up, etc.), Teddy will naturally become more interested in spending time with him!
5. How do you go about purchasing clothes for your children? Any method?
I don’t have an exact count of what I purchase every season (I wish I had it down to a science!) but I generally place one big order of basics at the beginning of every season and then sprinkle in some more fun purchases over time. Peter is wearing a ton of Teddy’s hand-me-downs — even though I had them in opposite seasons, it’s easy to reuse onesies and pajamas regardless of weather. I try to post the majority of the boys’ clothes on the blog — you can see a lot of Teddy’s spring wardrobe here and then I’ve ordered a bunch of cute things from this post of monogrammed children’s clothing!
6. Best places to buy cute baby boy clothes? Everything has dinos, sharks, or trucks!
I hear you! I avoid any kind of motif like the plague. ? My go-tos are Ralph Lauren, Kissy Kissy, Petite Plume for pajamas as well as a few special monogrammed pieces from Etsy that I rounded up in this post!
7. Any recommendations for cute second trimester summer clothing? I’m trying to avoid buying maternity!
Assuming your second trimester is over the summer, I think dresses are your best friend! Flowy cover-ups, nap dresses, and t-shirt dresses are all good bets that you’ll be able to rewear when you’re no longer pregnant.
8. Can you please link your outdoor furniture? Thank you!
So far we have this dining table, these outdoor chairs, and this umbrella — you can see our outdoor dining furniture in this post and the outdoor lounge furniture I ordered (still waiting for it to arrive) in this post!
9. Best tanner for fair skin?
I’ve used this St. Tropez self-tanner on my body for years and this year I’ve become absolutely obsessed with this tanning mist for my face. If you’re worried about going too dark, try these tanning drops mixed with your regular moisturizer where you can easily control the color depending on how many drops you use!
10. Nantucket suggestions for kids? Taking my 19-month-old next week for his first trip!
Yay! For beach days, I would recommend Children’s, Jetties, or Steps Beach for calm water close to town. I’m excited to let Teddy run around at Brant Point and Sankaty and you can also drive out to Great Point if you’re up for a longer adventure. For playgrounds, Children’s Beach in town, Codfish Park in ‘Sconset, and Hinsdale Park on Old South Road are all great. And for restaurants, we love breakfast at Black Eyed Susan’s or Island Kitchen and lunch or dinner at Millie’s in Madaket. You can see all my favorite spots in my Nantucket guide here!