what is it like to have children 12-18 months apart in age?

Question

any insight or personal experience would be gladly accepted!

Answer 1

I have 2 boys. They are 25 days shy of a year apart. (They were born in the same year, so they are considered Irish twins.)
I will be the first to tell you that it will not be the easiest job taking care of 2 babies, but it is SO worth it........the only thing I can think that would be harder is to actually have twins.
You will have a huge learning curve learning how to get them all out of the house to go shopping, etc. I know people who haven't figured out how to do that, and their lives are quite miserable. When my youngest was less than 6 months old, I was carting them to the park, the mall, the grocery store......BY MYSELF!! It can be done, don't let anyone tell you otherwise.
I have been a stay at home mom, and I can assume that things would be different if I went back to work, and there were days that were stressful having a newborn and a 12-13 month old.
Now that they are 2 and 3 years old, they are each others best friend. They are so close, they even have their own language...it is so cute to watch and listen.
Now, they have their moments where they can't be in the same room as one another and they fight, but what siblings don't. We also have a 6 year old. I almost wish that my daughter had a sibling that was closer to her age so that she could have that same relationship like her brothers do.
Again, it is a lot of work......and a LONG period of the terrible 2's and the trying 3's, but those kids make it SO incredibly worth it. It is so much fun...and you get to be a kid again!!!!!!!

Answer 2

Not at all. I have 3 children and am pregnant with my 4th. They are 20 months apart, 17 1/2 months apart, and when the baby is born in April there will be 14 1/2 months between the youngest. I love having my kids this close in age. It's so fun. They play together and love each other. It can be demanding some days...but then again, some days having only one child is very demanding, that's just parenthood. It works out well for me because my husband is very loving, supportive and involved with our children. If you like the age distance, then I say go for it. It's so much fun! Good Luck!

Answer 3

My children are 12 months apart. It was very hard in the beginning. I also had a 3 year old when my youngest was born. So, there was an infant, a 12 month old, and a 3 year old. I won't lie, it was hard to do anything, and to go anywhere. The first time I wen tto WalMart with all of them I cried when I got in the car afterward. But, I adjusted and now it is nothing to take them all to Walmart or anywhere. They are now 6, 4, and 3. I wouldn't have it any other way. My two youngest are soooo close and love each other so much. They depend on each other so much. They will not even sleep in seperate beds. I love it and I will do all that I can so that they remain close always!

Answer 4

My Children are 20 months apart. My son is now 16, while my daughter is 14. In my opinion, they are almost the perfect age apart. They are friends, they get along well, my son looks out for my daughter...When they were babies, although they were totally different, things that I went through with my son was still "fresh in my mind" when my daughter came along. My son was just old enough "help out" when I needed an extra hand with the baby. They could entertain each other, when they were toddlers...it worked out very well. one is walking one is crawling, one is just potty trained when the next one is coming into the world, one is starting pre-school, when the other is starting Kendergarten, one is starting high school, when one is starting college....etc. While they can be a hand full at any age...I think anywhere from 12-20 months apart is great. Hope this helps!

Answer 5

Having children with several years gap between them is a newer concept. I grew up in a large family where most of us are 18 months or fewer apart. In fact there 3 in a row with less than 12 months between each. Having them so close can save a lot with baby furniture, clothing (hand me downs) and they are generally closer to each other emotionally. I would have loved to have my 2 closer together but the good Lord doesn't always work that way. Mine are 6 years apart. So we figured we will have one out of college and paid for before the 2nd starts.

Answer 6

My two are 19 months apart and while it was tiring at the begining, it works fairly well now. It can be easier on the younger one, they don't have to try as hard to do the things their older sibling can and the younger child (no matter the age difference) will always try to be like the older. My oldest was still in diapers (well training mode) when the younger one came around so it was easy still being at that stage. It can be hard as the older is less likely to understand that your time/attention is elsewhere, but I think there is no resentment like there could be from an older toddler/child when a baby comes into the family.

Answer 7

Well, from personal experience it was fine actually. I guess because they had each other after they got a little older. I had three in 4 years. The smallest one was put in a playpen, so he was guarded from the other two, if I left the room. His swing was even in the play pen, so the other two couldn't give him "Big" pushes. I have to admit I was more strict with all three of them to get some kind of order, but they were good kids. Now I look back, and can't believe how I did it. To top it off, their father passed away when they were 2,3, and 5. They are all best friends now, and have given me 6 grand-babies so far! Good luck!

Answer 8

I think it is great my girls are 13 months apart and they are happy and like 2 peas in a pod. It is actually easier on the parent as well especially when it comes to clothing as the older one grows the hand me down clothes are not to out dated for the younger one. Obviously this will not work if one is a boy and one is a girl. One last thing I can say is it is wonderful to see how close and trusting they are towards each other.

Answer 9

I have a TON of personal experience with this subject. For one thing, I have a six year old, four year old twins, a three year old, and a two year old. My twin girls, Bailey and breanne, are only 14 months apart from my three year old boy, Derin. And Derin is only 13 months apart from my 2 year old daughter, Kaila. Now I am pregnant with a boy due in december, only 15 months apart from Kaila! it was not easy, especially when they were babies. Miachel, 6, was only 2 when I had bailey and breanne. It was complicated, but now I get to do it again when my new baby boy is born. It is especially hard because if one of my kids get sick, as hard as I try, all of them get sick. A few weeks ago, all of them got the stomach flu. It was not easy having to take five barfing kids to the emergency room every hour so they could get poked with needles for tests and IV's. BUT ANY ONE CAN DO IT! THEY JUST NEED TO BE A SUPER MOM!!!

Answer 10

Hope you don't mind, but I don't have this, but two of my sisters did. They each have three, in just the age range you mention. Both of them said it was hard at the time, but the best thing they ever did. In a way it kind of got everything over with, but the best part was in both cases the kids grew up really, really close and are totally all best friends (in one case, it was three boys; the other, one girl and two boys). Have a cousin who did this with three kids too, and she loved the result. (Odd that they are all in threes, eh?)
When I was growing up, there were six of us, all pretty well spaced about three years. For this years apart range, we could play with the older one, but then as you get older, you are not as close. My younger brother is 10 years younger than I am, that is the one exception.