"But how did you get the baby in there?" Asked 4 year old DS

[Sequinsglitter]

I was tucking my 4 year old and 6 year old in last night when DS4 asked "but how did you get the baby in there?" This is going back to when i first told him i had a baby in my tummy and all he said was "why?" I told him the baby was growing in there and would be born next year when it's big enough. Last night after DS asked this both DS4 and DS6 now really want to know so 9 year old DS who was standing in the door way was about to tell him in full detail so I told them it was getting late and we'd talk about this later. I feel like 4 and 6 are a bit too young but maybe it's better than leaving them confused, it wasn't long ago that i told DS9

It’s not too young to tell them in an age appropriate way.

Tell them in age appropriate way.

e.g.
Dad put his seed into Mummy and the baby grew from that.
How?
We did a special cuddle that is just for grown ups.

or Buy an age appropriate book and go through it together.

Just tell them. It won't be the last time anyway. At four they need to revisit it later before the knowledge sticks. I used proper words.

Babies are half like their mums and half like their dads. Mummies have eggs inside them, and daddies have sperms - when you put them together, they have all the instructions they need for growing a baby. When a mummy and daddy decide to have a baby, the daddy uses his penis to put his sperm inside the mummy's vagina. The sperm find the egg, and then a baby grown in the mummy's womb.

Mine were bored after two sentences anyway, so you don't necessary have to explain the actual mechanism!

Why make heavy weather of it? My now six year old has known the mechanics of sex and conception since he was three or so, and old enough to ask about babies, tampons, or whatever.

Just tell them

My 4 year old knows about sex and periods etc.

Mummy laid an egg is a good book for explaining it in an age-appropriate way. Don't make it into a secret that you can only be told when you're old enough, sex isn't shameful, it's just a biological fact of life.

Also, the younger they are when you tell them, the less likely they are to remember having a cringe-making "facts of life" talk with their parents! I can still remember mine

Really good idea to just tell them in an age appropriate way. It's an ongoing conversation at suitable times that crop up whenever. Better to be prepared and chat to them as a trusted source of info rather than them hearing nonsense at school.