This is the second post of my STORIES OF MY LIFE series. “Two are better than one…If either of them falls down, one can help the other up.” This has rung true in my life, as I had a little brother. I married a great man, who helps me be the woman that I can be. And, my husband and I decided we could not only have one child. I hope the stories give you hope, inspire you to do things you wouldn’t do and encourage never give up. When we learned that I was expecting our second child, we were thrilled. But, we were also a little anxious. During the previous year and a half, our daughter had been the center of our family and, in her growing mind, the center of the universe. How would she handle the arrival of a baby at home?

Teach How to Be a Parent.
We took advantage of my daughter’s natural fascination with babies by giving her a precious baby doll when I was pregnant. She “learned” how to feed her, to change her diaper and how to hold her. Watch the video done by YesVideo below to see how she brought her doll to the hospital to meet her little brother.

Every child will react differently to when a new addition comes into the house, but I’ve found the following tricks help promote positive sibling interactions.

Praise everyone.
With all the attention heaped on your new baby, your toddler may feel neglected. We’ve always tried to extend any compliments to include everyone. When an admirer would say, “What a beautiful baby,” we would add, “Now, we have two beautiful children” or “And, he has a beautiful big sister!”

Share your time.
It’s admirable to say that you’ll give each child equal amounts of your time, but it’s unrealistic. New babies require a lot of maintenance, and you don’t have 200% of yourself to give. There are, however, easy ways to share with your toddler the time you spend caring for your baby. When feeding the baby, read a book to your toddler. Or, place your baby in an infant seat on the floor to watch while you play with his big brother or sister. As your infant gets a bit older, encourage your toddler to entertain him, such as making funny faces and noises, which they will both love. Big toothless grins can be an incredible ego boost as your toddler thinks, “Hey, he likes me.”

I love showing this YesVideo clip to my kids as they are older, and they giggle together. Friends come and go, but family is forever. My hope is that my kids become friends for life. I cannot wait to tour YesVideo headquarters later this week to see how all the MAGIC happens. I hope you will join me on Instagram to see.

Disclosure: YesVideo has selected me to be their ambassador, which includes compensation. This post was not reviewed by a 3rd party. All opinions are mine and may not reflect those of the company. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” All photos are mine and subject to copyright.