Hospital activity for older siblings

hjmommaplus1 · September 2016

DD will be 2.5 when this LO arrives. Im having a scheduled c-section and anticipate being in the hospital for at least 4 days afterwards. I found a cute idea on Pinterest to make a "big sister" bag to have at the hospital to keep DD busy. (See the below picture courtesy of Pinterest)

Did anyone else plan ahead for activities to keep your older kids entertained on their visit(s) to the hospital? If so, any suggestions?

leighry · September 2016

That's a really cute idea. I had 2 of my last 3 during flu seasons and wasn't allowed any visitors under 18.. fortunately I worked at the hospital I delivered at and was able to get my first daughter in for a quick visit (long enough for her to see the baby and take a family picture) when I had my 2nd because she was a section and I was there for I think 4.5 days. However my 3rd was a vbac and my older 2 never visited because I was there for only 2 days.. so I never needed anything like that.

bzzrbee28 · September 2016

I love this idea! My DD will also be a little over 2.5 and i had always planned on getting her a gift from baby brother (as well as her giving a gift to baby brother) but i couldn't figure out what i could get her that she would get excited about. A bag of small goodies might do the trick!

I was worried about flu season stopping her from visiting but im not sure when that starts. i know when i had my daughter in early march it was flu season so im hoping it starts after November. She is so excited - I would love for her to meet him right away!

MrsMaryK2016 · September 2016

I don't have kids yet so maybe my thoughts on this are irrelevant but is having activities for her really necessary? I mean how long is she really going to be there? Maybe an hour max before grandma (or whoever) takes her home? I wouldn't think much more than what you'd take to a restaurant to keep her busy would be necessary.

TheBorg7of9 · September 2016

No, I am not planning on bringing the older kids to the hospital.

bzzrbee28 · September 2016

For me it isnt so much for the activities for her to do. It's more of a coping thing. We've been talking about the new baby coming to live with us and prepping her for whats going to happen. Part of that is that she is picking out a gift for baby brothers birthday. We also heard from moms who have gone through it that its nice for DD to receive a gift from DS too.

Muscatmommyof4 · September 2016

I've never brought activities for my other kids while visiting in the hospital for me the reason for them coming to see their new baby sister or brother is to bond and see mommy is okay while she's not at home for a few days. And like another person said they are not visiting for long periods of time so I never found it necessary.

MrsBigTime · September 2016

We're planning a gift from baby sister, and part of the gift will have some quiet activities she can use whenever (I'm thinking when I'm nursing) and if she uses those in the hospital, that's fine, but I'm not getting anything specific for the hospital.

shevaCC · September 2016

My kids "got gifts for each other" to celebrate DS being born and DD becoming a big sister. DD's gift was 2 playmobil sets -- school bus and playground. It was really nice to have something new and engaging that she and grandma could play with in the hospital, then later at home.

They were there for 3-4 hours shortly after he was born, and the next day while I was getting ready to check out to go home. During that time the nurses came in several times needing to check my vitals or DS's, and do his hearing test, etc. so I wasn't always able to focus on her.

hjmommaplus1 · September 2016

MrsMaryK2016 said:

I don't have kids yet so maybe my thoughts on this are irrelevant but is having activities for her really necessary? I mean how long is she really going to be there? Maybe an hour max before grandma (or whoever) takes her home? I wouldn't think much more than what you'd take to a restaurant to keep her busy would be necessary.

Im not sure. Activities may not be necessary but I wanted to be prepared enough to avoid disturbing the rest of the hospital

arcticseal-2 · September 2016

MrsMaryK2016 said:

I don't have kids yet so maybe my thoughts on this are irrelevant but is having activities for her really necessary? I mean how long is she really going to be there? Maybe an hour max before grandma (or whoever) takes her home? I wouldn't think much more than what you'd take to a restaurant to keep her busy would be necessary.

This is about right. It's a visit to meet the baby and then when the (bigger!) family is getting ready to head home. That was what happened when our second came and will probably roughly happen this time.

camcbeth · September 2016

I'm taking a sibling prep class with my 3 year old in a week. That's about all I was going to do. I might be the bad parent by just turning on the tv in the room or handing her an iPad if she gets bored. I was debating on the gift from the new baby too.
I've included my first in a lot of baby prepping stuff and spent extra one on one time with her while prepping her that things will be a bit different.
The only bag I've thought about is her to-go bag to send off with her when we drop her off at a friends house at go time.

atcwag · September 2016

Cute, but I don't think DS will be at the hospital for any length of time. Maybe an hour just to visit new baby and see mommy...

fiscally3 · September 2016

We bought each of the older siblings a book to read to them in hospital (of any topic, not baby related). I read to them while they visited for under an hour each day. A friend left snacks for them. That was all we really needed when visiting. With my second we tried having my first there longer but it was a disaster, unless you have no choice I won't recommend it.

ArtlessIbex · September 2016

My DD will be 6 and will be there for the birth and some time afterward. I am packing an activity bag for her. She has her erasable drawing tablet in it, and some of those reusable sticker boards from Melissa & Doug so she can make little scenes. Throw in a couple of books and snacks (she's got food allergies) and she'll be all set.

MollySm · September 2016

My daughter was 2.5 when her baby sister was born. We got her a gift, and a gift to give her sister. She visited for maybe an hour, mostly enjoyed inspecting every inch of baby sister, and sat through a bunch of pictures. I don't imagine we'll have the girls come for much longer this time. They'll be having too much fun with Gramma/aunts and uncles.

Jami90 · September 2016

I think this is a great idea! My youngest will almost be 3.5 on my due date. Something like this would surprise her. We're doing a sibling class next month.

rencontrezmoi · September 2016

I'm doing something like this for my 3.5 year old. She is so energetic and wants constant entertainment- I don't think she'd last 5 minutes in the hospital room without something to occupy her. I'm planning to pack basically the same things as the photo- a snack or two, a few Usborne acitvity/sticker books (I'm a consultant so I have a bunch), a big sister shirt, *possibly* a new toy (I'm considering a Vtech camera, but not sure if this is overkill, lol)

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