when to tell the children they will have a new sibling?

[mad4girls]

hi
i have 2 d's they are 7 and 4 will be 8 and 5 before dc3 arrival.

but when do you think is the best time to tell them, my family dont know yet as it wont be a great reaction so have put it off so far will be 12 wks tommrow,

was always planning on telling the girls at around 12 wks but seems to have come so fast.

also dd1 has contact with her dad(only by phone he lives in scotland) but he has just had a 3rd child today (which dd1 is really pleased about )but she has said she doesnt want anymore siblings,

also dd2 4 yrs, has no conatct with her dad, at all (he dosnt want to know)DP trys to include her etc and she says dp's like her big brother,(which i thought was really sweet)has an absolute hatred of babies she says they smell and cry and she would have to share her toys etc, and she says she does not like them and wont even come near when i am talking to friends with babies

how/when is going to be the right time to tell them? and what on earth do i say(also if anyone can recommend any good books for these ages as well)

also im getting a bump already so cant hide it for much longer,

any advice/replies are gratefully received

Hi Mad
I think you'll be pleasantly surprised by their reaction when its a baby in YOUR tummy rather than someone elses. There are loads of good books around, there's a little princess one although they might be a bit old for that, have a look amazon.
Our DS is coming up to 3 and we started mentioning it to him after we had a nuchal fold scan at 14 weeks and knew everything was OK (as much as you can at this stage).

There are loads of things you can do to help them accept the new one, there was a thread recently I'm sure. Get them a book each to put their 'baby treasures' in, copies of scan pictures, later on get them involved in planning the nursery or picking clothes, get them to think up nicknames (or if you're really brave real names). Congratulations and good luck, I'm sure your girls will surprise you

thanx pheebe
anyone else out there
also my birthday on sunday maybe i should tell then

also told my mum and grandma last night and they didnt lose the plot so thats good, they thought it strange i hadnt told the kids yet though

i think if you leave it much longer the older girl at least will guess and could feel resentful that you kept it secret.

just go for it, sit them down and let them know how happy you are and how much you love them

they may surprise you!

think i might tell tomrrow as dd2 with her hatred of babies saw a friends baby laugh today and said can we buy a new baby from the baby shop, so taking it as a good sign
thanx

told them both this morning and they seem quite please/excited, dd2 4 yrs did say she wanted the baby now and she didnt want me to get ab fat belly,im fat already so th made me feel a bit better,

going to have a wander round wh smiths tomrrow as they have inset day and town will be quiet before the half term and see if we can find some books they might like to show whats happening

anyone got any ideas on books for almost 5 and 8 yr old went on amazon but cant seem to find any info, they have loads of books but cant find outwhats inside IYKWIM.

dd1 understands how babies made etc as she really into the human body, dd2 thinks weve been to baby shop

also they both wont a girl as well as me and dp and all of dp family as no girls in his family for 55 yrs aaarrrggg scary