How/when did you decide to have #3?

la79al

With DD2, it was easy because I knew that I didn't want DD1 to be an only child.  Now I seem to go back and forth on an almost hourly basis on whether to try for #3 (and it probably wouldn't be until July if we did, I want a spring baby).  I am just now getting to the point where I even feel like I want another one (after DD1, it was almost immediate).  So what made you decide to have a third and how soon after #2 did you decide?

PhilsWife07

We are going to try for #3 around the same time (July). DS2 was a pistol for the first six months and still isn't what I'd call "easy." But we've always wanted at least three and I don't feel like our family is complete yet.

penguingrrl

We have always wanted 3 kids. Right now DH is in his final year  of a PhD program and just entered the job market in advance of spring graduation. Once he has a job lined up we'll talk about getting my IUD removed. In an ideal world we would be TTC now.

shouldbworkin

I really couldn't contemplate it until #2 was 2 y/o.  We didn't start to TTC until she was about 2.5 b/c life got in the way.  We've gone back and forth a lot over the years and my body had other plans for me during that time, but the decision was kind of made for us and we're thrilled.  I'm actually pretty happy with the age difference now, even though I was super worried about it before.  My kids have gotten so much easier lately, so that now seems like a great time to be PG and add to the family. 

libra31

I've always wanted 3 or 4 and known I would try to have at least 3.  I was never ready to think about another child until my baby was at least 1!  I wanted my kids close to 2 years apart so we based it on that but I also didn't want another christmas baby b/c DS #1 is 12/29.  DS #2 is 2/22 so it worked great.  My DD is May and I love spring babies too!  Now the question is when to have #4??

franciscaz

 I'm glad I don't have this dilemma.  3 kids is awesome but I think I would be really hesitant because the jump from 1 to 2 (3 in my case) was real jarring.  I don't if I would have had a 3rd child if we had not had the twins for #2. 

Jinsy80

I plan on having baby number three around the time DD2 starts kindergarten, maybe a little before. DD1 is very "spirited" and DD2 is special needs, so I don't think it's fair too add another baby into the mix. I originally wanted to be done having babies at 30 (DD2 was born when I was 30), but now I guess it'll be 34-35.

ArcticFox

I desperately want 3 but DH says no.  The timing is good now because my oldest is going to start Kindergarten next fall, so that would be kind of ideal for having a newborn.

jerol

I always wanted 3 but after having 2 kids 16 months apart I was unsure.  I flip-flopped often but once #2 got older I went back to wanting 3.  I started TTC when DD2 was 3 so there was a bigger gap this time.

KristinKD

I've always wanted four kids, so having three isn't even a question to me. However, from a practical and financial standpoint, DH would be happy with our two girls, so we compromised on three.

The "when" for my last pregnancy and my potential next one was decided by outside commitments; I didn't want to be pregnant for my sister's wedding before getting pregnant the second time, and I didn't want to be pregnant for our upcoming trip to Hawaii. I pushed it back even further by signing up for another marathon in November, and I don't want to be pregnant or miss out on that either. Plus, the 2 1/2-ish year age difference has worked really well for us. So come December, it's game on.

o2bme

We are two and done.  My family feels complete and we are both happy with it. 

Bride2bMO

I struggle with this, too. I have no answer. In theory, we always wanted *at least* three. But now...

I am in no hurry, but at the same time, I fear I will get way too comfortable the longer I go and will not want to get pregnant again. These boys wrecked my body (internally) in ways that will affect me for the rest of my life, and yet DH won't discuss adoption.

If I could adopt...I'd go for it in a heartbeat.  I think I could handle another actual child better than I could handle pregnancy, postpartum recovery and breastfeeding another child. 

shopgirl78

I always want 3 and I wanted a winter baby (had a summer and a early fall baby already), that was a bad idea though : ) DS2 was born in January right after New Years.  Its a tough time to have a birthday and it was hard having cabin fever with a toddler and a newborn....I love that all three of mine are close but it was hard adding #3, waiting would have made that easier...

ecoppins

It is something I struggle with as well. Before having children, I thought I wanted four. Dh is an only child, and wanted no more than two. So prior to kids, we thought 2-3.

Now, the realization of parenting, life, and finances all have other implications. I was a better parent to one, than I am to two. I was more patient and understand etc and am unsure if I would like myself as a mother of three. KWIM? (I also worked when dd1 was little and now sah, so that might be part of it)

Our house isn't really big, so adding another person would mean either tighter quarters or moving and we bought when the market was falling and continued to fall so we would loose serious money. We would need a bigger car, and of course there is the college savings issue.

That being said I cried when I packed up my maternity clothes and sent them to a friend and snapped at dh when he casually said he could go for another one after watching a google ad.

UsedToBeGoldie

we didn't decide... it happened when we got pg with twins the 2nd time

i'm glad it happened because otherwise I think we would have stopped at 2 kids... i had a horrible 1st pregnancy and only wanted to do it one more time... and we really don't have space for 3 kids in this house- but we make it work now because we have to.