Explaining pregnancy to nearly 4 year old

[Wherethereshope]

Im starting to think about when we tell DS we are having a new addition to the family.

I've started setting the seed by talking about when I was pregnant with him and having a big tummy.. to which he said 'How did I get in there, did you eat me' 😂

I didn't know what to say and just said of course not. But I need an answer to this question.. what did you say?

Also.. answers to how does the baby come out would also be helpful.. I'm sure he'll ask!

Now is exactly the time to be factual, four year olds don't get embarrassed! There are some great books on this. I used this with DS when he was just a little bit older. Let's Talk About Girls, Boys, Babies, Bodies, Families and Friends: About Girls, Boys, Babies, Bodies, Families & Friends https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1406306061/ref=cmswwrcppapifabcc_EMWPFbGZ1NQ6Y

I had geared myself up for "the talk" with my 4 year old when we announced I was pregnant. Wanting to explain it the "right" way. But She said "yeah I know" 🤦‍♀️ and left it at that. To be fair she predicted 6 months previous that I would get pregnant with boy/girl twins and I laughed it off (and then cried as was in the middle of IVF). Turns out she knew her stuff as am having boy/girl twins 🤣

Just tell the truth. It's the best time for honesty and doesn't lead to confusion later on.
My 3 year old proudly announced his baby brother came out his mummy's vagina to the the midwives after I had given birth. Now he's getting sibling 2 he still remembers the logistics and biology.
With regards to how it got there I have an egg and his dad has sperm and together they make a baby, which is all he wanted to know. He's also seen a video on Instagram of egg becoming a baby which is incredibly interesting apparently 🤷🏻‍♀️

The usborne lift the flap book "how are babies made?" Is great. Very factual (no crap about storks) and uses proper terms like sperm and egg but is easy for a 3 or 4 year old to understand. It tells about different animals and how they have babies. But doesnt go in to sexual intercourse or anything like that which they dont really need to know at that age. I think the best course of action with a kid that age is to be factual. Just like if they asked you how their eyes work or why we have toes or what happens to food when you eat it. Its just another body function to them.

Mummy laid an egg is very good and funny

My children are 3 and 4 and we told them about a month ago I’m pregnant (I might add we waited until 20 weeks when we were happy for everyone we encounter to know, I’m pretty glad we did that!). The baby just grows in mummy’s womb they haven’t requested the logistics of how it gets in there so I’m not encouraging it. As for how it gets out I told my daughter (4) there was a magic door when we had our second child (she was only 1 then) and she’s still rolling with that. If I told them the baby came out my bum they would literally tell everyone we meet where it comes from, I really don’t need that everywhere we go. My husband is a high school science teacher, the only thing he won’t let me say is the baby is in my tummy, it isn’t it’s in my womb! He’s taught far too many 15/16 year olds who think babies are grown in the stomach, so he’s pretty strict that we teach where they grow from an early age. The rest they can find out at an age appropriate time though.

I told my son that daddy put a seed called a sperm into mummy's tummy where it met an egg and they stuck together and grew into a baby.

I've also told him that most mummy's push the baby out of their vagina when it's ready but that some mummy's need a doctor to cut their tummy open to get the baby out that way. Have explained that they make you numb if that happens.
I don't see the point in lying, my 4yo also knows when he's being fobbed off.

Oh fantastic, thanks everyone such helpful replies

I love this age. I prefer to go into a fanciful inaccurate lie because it amuses me. Plenty of time to find out the facts. So yes, I did eat you, you tasted of bananas and I had to have an argument with a monkey about who would eat you first. If the monkey had won, you'd be living at the zoo right now so thank your lucky stars I'm good at arguing etc etc

Grow up belle

@lumberingaboutthehouse

Grow up belle

Haha!

DD1 was 4.5 when I told her I was pregnant. We had the book mentioned in the first post. It was read many times over. Very good book.

My x has just had another baby and obviously my son was full of questions about how babies are made etc. I just talked about a mummy having and egg and daddy having sperm and when both are put together then a baby is made in mummy's belly.
Obviously this then brought up questions about where does the daddy keep the sperm so I told him truthfully and said it came from his testicles where he keeps it till it's ready to meet an egg. Unfortunately this brought up my son going round telling anyone who would listen (thankfully just family) "I came from daddy's ballsack" 🤣