Did your newborn disturb your toddler's sleep?

[Writerwannabe83]

Currently pregnant with DC2 and our DS will be 3.5 years old when new baby arrives.

We live in a 3 storey house with the most ridiculously impractical set up (I'd love to move) and the issue of sleeping arrangements has come up in terms of when baby arrives.

Currently myself/DH are on the top floor as is DS's room and our spare bedroom is on the middle floor opposite the living room.

We've gone round in circles and at one point we were thinking about moving DS to the spare room so me/DH and newborn are on a different floor so as not to disturb our toddler but I worry about us being on a different floor to him and also whether he'd sleep if he knew we were only a small distance away from him in the living room opposite.

We then thought about me and DH moving down a level to the spare bedroom, again so baby would be on a different floor so as not to disturb our toddler but for a variety of reasons it isn't very practical.

So we are currently thinking of just keeping things as they are, having the new baby in with us until 6 months (or more) and then re-evaluate when baby is ready to have its own room.

I'm just so worried that if we are all on the same floor the baby waking and crying is really going to disturb our toddler's sleep and I obviously don't want that.

Am I over thinking and worrying about nothing? Can toddlers really sleep through anything?

Yes mine did, DD1 was only 20 months when DD2 was born and has always been a light sleeper and DD2 definitely disturbed her sleep. We ended up moving to a different house because of it!
We now have a three story house and both DD's (now 3 and 1) are on the middle floor while we're on the top floor. It's now DD1 who disturbs DD2's sleep!

I don't have any answers but watching this with interest as our house has the same set up. Currently have 3 year old DS on top floor with us but he will be moving down to the middle floor over the next few months to prevent him being disturbed by his new sibling when s/he arrives. Like you, I worry a little about him being on a different floor but he doesn't come out of his room at night (just hollers if he needs something!) so hoping this continues

The first night my daughter woke her 4 year old brother. Then never again. We are on the same floor but he is down the hall. His door was open by mine (and the baby's was closed).

It's been the other way round for us!

Ha always the other way around for us too! I've got 4dc 2 yrs apart has always been the toddler that disturbs the newborn! The newborns have always been downstairs with us until we go to bed and once we go to bed if the baby wakes up they are right next to us so they don't cry for long enough to wake toddler up, if the baby is really unsettled for some reason would probs get up and go downstairs with them so as not to
Disturb everyone else.
The toddlers on the other hand will prod and poke the newborn when they have their daytime naps, and will wake them up in the night when they want to get in our bed too!! My dd1 even tried to make her little sister more comfortable once by covering her in cushions
From the sofa when she was
In the Moses basket

Other way round. When the baby is in with you you can get to them before they start to cry. Of course there will always be times when they're overtired in the late evenings and do cry, but it's not necessarily that often.

But the toddler hollering to get up at 6.30am used to wake the baby every single time.

But it was never a problem particularly.

I would leave things as they are as you can always move someone later on if it becomes an issue which it may not.

I used to actually lock myself into a different room for daytime naps with the baby. Toddler would start testing the door handle like the velocirapter in Jurassic Park!

No, DS1 was 19 months when DS2 was born. I was worried he would be disturbed by night feeds, and any other reasons the baby would wake up, but DS1 sleeps like a log through it. On the odd occasion he has woken up we just tell him it's night time still, the little one is awake because he's poorly/has pood etc, and to go back to bed.

Thanks everyone - it's reassuring to hear babies and toddlers can co-exist on the same floor

I think we'll just keep things as they are, our current bedroom is much more spacious in terms of room for baby stuff and cots etc so moving downstairs would actually be quite a pain.

We'll just play it by ear and make changes as needed

We have a three storey house too and we are in the room opposite living room on the middle floor and our son is upstairs.

I've worried about this for when we have another, but I figured most people live in two storey houses and therefore children would be on the same floor so we'll just have to manage!

Same age gap as my dc and neither has ever woken the other up (they are 6 and nearly 3 now). Dc1 was a terrible sleeper too, even at 3.5.

I've had both of mine in my bed when youngest has kicked off and 4yr old has slept through it. Whenever it's the other way round though youngest is woken instantly.

Mine shared a room, it was fine. No drama. I think there were a few shenanigans when dc2 moved to a bed, but when dc2 was a baby I was surprised dc1 didn't wake in the night.