Have your DCs regressed to "baby behaviour" in reaction to news of impending new sibling?

[Jacksmybaby]

Re-post from "pregnancy" topic as not much response from over there...

DS is 3.3. Since being told about the new baby (due Oct) a few weeks ago he has been increasingly insistent on pretending to be a baby. Keeps repeating "I'm a little baby" and wanting to go into his old cot, have a baby bottle, be cuddled like a baby, and today insisted on being spoon fed his lunch in his old high chair! Basically I gave in on the lunch thing because I felt too sick and exhausted to argue, but this is getting silly now.

I understand why he's doing it (worrying about being replaced as "mummy's baby") but not sure how to react to it. Don't want to make him even more resentful of the new baby before it even arrives.

I keep reassuring him he will always be mummy's baby / special boy etc. And also keep reminding him about all the fun things he can do / eat etc, now he is a big boy, that babies can't do / eat. If this is just a phase that will pass in a couple of weeks I don't mind humouring him a bit, but obviously can't have him acting like this long term esp once the baby is here!

Am particularly terrified he will start to regress on his potty training - he has not done so yet but keeps threatening - he keeps saying things like "babies don't go to the toilet. Babies wee in their nappies".

Any experiences to offer from those who have been through this and come out the other side

My dd was younger (2.2) when her little brother arrived and she did and still does (nearly a year later) quite a lot of 'baby role play' as you describe. I've just gone along with it as a 'game' eg saying "baby dd bringing up her wind" whilst patting her back etc and she gets bored of it pretty quickly. Backed up with reminders of all the privileges that older kids have, as you describe. She also likes to hear about when she was a baby and look at picture of herself as a tiny one.
I don't know about the PT; my dd had just got into using her potty when ds arrived, and then refused to give up her nappies for another 7 months. I would imagine that any regression would be short-lived - maybe remind him that 'playing baby' is a game and that his peers don't wearing nappies?

Thanks Rosebud.

DS has not long "got" the toilet training thing (only in last month or 2) so worried that it's not an ingrained-enough habit and he still could regress - however another 5.5mths til baby arrives so hopefully by then he'll be far too used to it to go backwards...??!!

Only read OP. DS1 was 2.10 years old when DS2 was born. We'd read lots of books with him before about babies and becoming a big brother - and he was really into the idea of being a big boy already (though purposefully delayed potty training until after his little brother arrived as didnt want him to regress on this). When DS2 arrived, he was great with him but did want to do baby things - like lie in the cot/carrycot, roll around on the baby's play mat, try to sit in the bouncing chair etc - to be honest we just let him and laughed at how funny a big boy like him looked in those places, and reminded him of all the fun things a big boy could do that a baby cant (like all his play groups, play dates etc) - we also made sure he had as much one to one time with me as we could manage and that both parents gave him lots of love and attention in the early days - and the stage passed in a few weeks. So it will be fine. I'd expect for potty training to take a set back - its a way of getting parents' attention - but just lavish lots of love and attention on DS and all will be fine.

5 months is a long time in the land of toilet training - my dd stopped wearing nappies in January, so less than 4 months ago, and it already seems a long time ago.

Thanks dinkystinky and Rosebud.