How did you know you wanted a second child?

[shil0846]

I've just been reading the "How did you know you want children" thread and it got me wondering how people decided to have a second child.

My DS is now 14 months old, sleeping through the night and in a good routine. I'm not sure we could afford another DC or whether I could cope with the new born stage again...but part of me wonders whether it would be better for my DS to have a sibling. How did you decide and is it really easier the second time around?

Watching with interest. Dd is 6 months. We've got a good while to decide, but so far we're really on the fence.

DSil and her husband say one plus one is three, but that hasn't managed to put us off.

I always wanted two kids, with approximately a two year gap. When DS got out of the baby stage and became a toddler I became increasingly broody for a little delicate snuggly newborn again.

I come from a large family (both my parents have four siblings) so I knew that I wanted at least two children. I'm about to turn 37 and DS2 is six weeks. Ideally I'd like to try for a third in six months but won't push the issue if I don't fall pregnant, as I don't want to be too old.

Thanks for all the responses, the advice on the age gap is really helpful. Keepsmiling, the same thought crossed my mind - whether I could love another child as much as I love my DS. I think we'll just keep thinking about it for the time being.

I didn't.

I got pregnant when my first was 6 months old because in my sleep deprived and hormonal state, I was careless with the pill.

Consequently, there is a 15 month gap between my two.

Luckily, it turned out to be brilliant and I wouldn't change it for the world.

We always knew we wanted more than one child but due to fertility problems we thought that it was unlikely. We didn't use any contraception and amazingly I got pregnant when ds was 13 months old.

I didn't have the same yearning to get pregnant that I had before I got pregnant, it was just a very practical decision. We wanted ds to have a sibling so he would have a close familiy member after me and dp die, we also wanted him to learn to share and compromise.

I am worried that I have ruined ds's life. I'm in bed trying to avoid throwing up whilst dp plays with ds in the living room. Ds's life is already being disrupted and the sibling is only the size of a blueberry.