Many people were surprised that we didn’t tell Immy I was pregnant until I was 20 weeks. Given our recent history, we wanted to be as sure as we could be that this baby was going to be okay before we shared the news with her (don’t get me wrong, I know there are no guarantees at any stage). At the time friends asked, “Hasn’t she notice you are getting…rounder?” I can’t explain why she didn’t say anything about that, except that she hasn’t spent a lot of time with other pregnant people, and that the members of our own extended family and friends group all come in different shapes and sizes!
When it did come time to tell her, we used picture books to help share the news (yep, just like I did for starting school). Some of the titles mentioned below I knew from my teaching days and others were recommended to me by two blogging friends, Kate of Picklebums and Nicole of Planning With Kids. Some of these I purchased and others we have borrowed from the library;
There’s A House Inside My Mummy by Giles Andreae. The Watts Publishing Group, 2002.
“There’s a house inside my Mummy
Where my little brother grows,
Or maybe it’s my little sister
No one really knows.”
I love how There’s A House Inside My Mummy explores everything from pregnancy cravings and mummy’s tiredness, to talking to baby in utero and feeling baby kick, positively and in simple but engaging rhyme. I first discovered this book when I was teaching and it was the first book I thought of when we were preparing to share our news with Immy.
Hey Hippopotamus, Do Babies Eat Cake Too? by Hazel Edwards. Puffin, 2007.
Immy has enjoyed a number of Hazel Edwards’ other hippopotamus stories and this title follows a similar format with a style that will be instantly familiar with fans of Hazel’s hippo 🙂
“I’ve got a daddy and a big brother, but we haven’t had a baby before.
So I told my hippopotamus who lives on the roof and eats cake.
He knows everything about babies.”
It’s Quacking Time! by Martin Waddell. Walker Books, 2005.
I love Martin Waddell books and this one was on Immy’s favourite library book list long before another baby was even a possibility in our lives 🙂 At that time I wrote;
“Duckling is surprised to learn that their is a baby inside the egg which his mother has just laid and that he himself came out of an egg! The endearing interactions with other family members about this new baby make this a lovely story of its own and would also make a very nice way of talking to your child when expecting a new sibling.”
We’ve borrowed it from the library again and it is still a hit. It really is a lovely, positive story about being excited about a new family member.
Za-Za’s Baby Brother by Lucy Cousins. Candlewick Press, 1997.
Za-Za faces a lot of changes in his home and family when his baby brother is born. His mama is tired, everyone is busy and their visitors are all enamored by the new baby. This book explores many of the common challenges facing families with a new baby and can be used as a starting point for discussing, especially with preschoolers, that sometimes it might take a little longer for everyone’s needs to be met with a new baby in the house.
The Family Book by Todd Parr. Little Brown Books for Young Readers, 2003.
Although not specifically a new baby book, The Family Book has been good for talking to Immy as a preschooler about the upcoming change to our family. It celebrates the fact that families come in all shapes and sizes, and that every family is unique and special, with simple text and bright colourful illustrations of both human and animal families.
As for some of the other titles that my friends suggested…Kate’s list also included;
- Hello Baby! by Jenni Overend. Francis Lincoln Children’s Books, 2008.
- My Brother Jimi Jazz by Chrissy Butler.
And Nicole’s list also included;
- Brand New Baby by Bob Graham. Walker Books, 2008.
- I Want a Sister by Tony Ross. Anderson Press, 2010.
Do you have any picture book recommendations for sharing with siblings that a new baby is on the way?
Catch up on our journey so far;
- Our Pregnancy Journey: Week 26, Week 25, Week 24, Week 23, Week 22, Week 21, Weeks 18-20
- Our pregnancy announcement
Christie Burnett is a teacher, presenter, writer and the mother of two. She created Childhood 101 as a place for teachers and parents to access engaging, high quality learning ideas.
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