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I'm kidding of course. I didn't plan on my appendix rupturing during my 7th month of pregnancy. Stuff happens. But as hard as it was, I really do think it helped to prepare Audrey for not having my undivided attention when Norah arrived!
All kidding aside, one thing I did plan for was to have a 'nursing basket' prepared and ready-to-go for Audrey's entertainment for all those hours I knew my hands would be full feeding a newborn. This time around I would (obviously!) like to avoid going the bedrest route for preparing Norah for the big change that's going to happen when she's suddenly faced with being a Big sister. So I'm preparing to reinstitute Project: Nursing Basket around these parts.
What is a 'nursing basket?' you might be asking? I got the idea here, in the comments section of this brief post on Entertaining Littles with a New Baby. Basically, over the last few months of my pregnancy I slowly accumulated a handful of new toys, puzzles, and activities that I thought would be new and novel and help keep Audrey occupied, and looking forward to, the times when I was nursing (or otherwise busy with) the baby. And she loved it! The basket was kept in Norah's room, so when feeding time rolled around, we all hung out in the nursery together. And when feeding time was over, the new toys were put back in the basket and not allowed out until the next feeding. By doing it this way, Audrey actually looked forward to my being 'tied up' feeding Norah, because it meant she got to play with new stuff! Win-win!
Some of the items in her basket included:
Melissa and Doug's Abby and Emma Magnetic Dress-up dolls.
Crayola Color Wonder Markers and Color Wonder Coloring Books
Infantino Puzzles, such as "Where's My Tail?"
...and Matching Colors and Textures
(for what it's worth, the Tails puzzle has been much more entertaining for both of my kiddos than this matching one has.)
She also had a handful of new coloring books, stickers, etc., but I found that the Color Wonder markers were by far the most practical 'craft' item for her to use (safely) while I was occupied.
Some of these toys eventually graduated to become "shower toys." AKA: they have too many small pieces to be relegated to the regular toy bin in the living room without driving me crazy, so they stay shut up on a shelf in a closet, and are retrieved during key times during the day when Mommy needs to get something important done, like take a shower. Audrey frequently chooses Abby and Emma to sit and play with while I'm showering in the morning. Norah usually opts for Mr. Potato Head when I'm blowing my hair dry. I love how the 'nursing basket' concept has morphed and changed with the needs of our family. :)
So...this brings me to the point of today's post. I'm trying to come up with some ideas for just a few 'new' things to accumulate over the next few months, for Norah in particular, to occupy her during some of the more difficult hours as we transition to becoming a family of 5. Some of the toys above are still pretty new to her, so I'll just keep them in hiding for a few months prior to baby's arrival so they seem fresh and interesting. But it would be nice to add a few more. Mrs. Potato Head's Silly Suitcase is on order from Amazon as we speak. It's going to work out well that Norah's birthday is in June, and Audrey's will follow in September, just a few weeks after baby is born, so we can strategically purchase a few things as birthday presents, too!
So I'm asking you, readers, for suggestions and advice. Any fun, educational toys that your kids love and that you would highly recommend? Any other thoughts about easing into the transition to a new baby when you have particularly small children around? (We will have 3 kids under the age of 4 for a few weeks in August and September.) Yikes!
Would love to hear from you!
