He (My Second Child) Came in Like a Wrecking Ball

The lovely featured image in this post is a personal photo of the author's. Please note it is not recommended to leave infants unattended in a drop-side crib.

First, let me just say that I LOVE and adore both of my children to the ends of the Earth and back again, and I love them both equally. However, I’d be lying if I said they were equally easy to parent. People always say your second child is completely opposite of your first. My entire life, my mom has said if she had had my brother first, she would have never had a second child. I was easy, and he just wasn’t (If you’re reading this, sorry Blake).

My first child was EASY. Like, the easiest baby you’ve ever been around. People probably got tired of hearing me talk about what a chill baby he was. My sister in law would always roll her eyes at the fact that he slept through the night. He rarely cried, and was perfectly content being in a swing, bouncer, etc.  He’s now almost four years old, and he’s still an incredibly laid back, easy child.

I refused to believe that my second child would be any different than the first. After all, my first was so good because I was such a good mom. (HA! Totally kidding.) I just knew that if I kept things consistent with the second like I did with the first, parenting would be no different the second go round. Well, joke’s on me! Since the day my second entered the world he has been throwing us curve balls. Miley Cyrus’ song “Wrecking Ball” is constantly on repeat in my head while parenting this beautiful second child of mine, and here are just a few examples why:

1. He has red hair.

My husband, oldest son and I all have dirty blonde hair, so we were NEVER expecting to have a red headed baby. And they are not joking when they talk about that temper that comes along with red hair.

2. He is JUST NOW starting to sleep through the night, and he’s 15 months old.

My first slept through the night at 8.5 months, and he never minded being swaddled and put right to bed. Baby number 2 wouldn’t sleep anywhere but my chest for the first two months of his life. Cue ALL the safe sleep anxiety. Then, he woke up every few hours a night up until he was about a year old. 

3. He’s vocal. VERY vocal.

He knows exactly how to get what he wants and he will stop at nothing until he gets it. My first hardly ever cried, and he still to this day is naturally more reserved and quiet just like me, so it’s taken me a while to get used to his noise level. 

4. He’s got a mind of his own.

Remember a few months back when I wrote a post about how I was done breastfeeding at 12 months? Well, it turns out I was ready, but HE was not. He won’t give it up, and I don’t have the heart to take that away from him. My first baby was done at 13 months. He tried whole milk one time and was almost immediately hooked. I naively thought it would be the same the second go round.

5. He is so daring.

He climbs EVERYTHING. I don’t even think my first kid knew how to climb anything until he was almost 18 months old. He wasn’t interested, and never even tried. This second baby has been climbing things since he could pull himself up, and I am going to have a full head of grey hair by next year because of it. I can’t turn my back for 2 seconds or he’s on a table or a countertop.

 

Even though my second baby is a bit wild, I know that all of these traits of his are going to make for one amazing human being when he’s older. All of these stubborn characteristics are traits that he gets from his dad, which are all reasons I fell in love with him and decided to procreate with him in the first place. I know he will be strong willed, hard working, will have a huge heart, and won’t take no for an answer, which will take him far in life. He’s definitely going to be a leader some day, I just have to try and keep my sanity while I parent him through the tantrums and the broken bones.

Tell me. Is your second child totally different than your first child?

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shelbywilliams
Shelby is a wife and mom of 2 boys, Foster (2016) & Fowler (2018). She recently opened a real estate brokerage and is a work from home Broker who loves documenting her real life Real Estate adventures with babies in tow. She has a love of helping people and putting a smile on their face whenever she can. She never takes life too seriously, and can find humor in just about anything (even if that's cleaning up baby blowouts on her lap in the backseat in between home showings). Formerly a Heritage Hall preschool teacher, she enjoys spending her free time at home doing learning activities with her kids that fill the teacher part of her heart. If she's not playing with her boys or selling homes, you can find her doing home projects with her husband Jacob at their farmhouse in Guthrie!

1 COMMENT

  1. Omg it’s like I am reading my life written out! I have a 4yo and 7mo (boys). My first was so easy and has slept all night since 7.5 weeks and my 2nd occasionally sleeps all night long. They are such a joy but also exhausting! Boys are tough but I wouldn’t have it any other way!

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