In April 2008 we found out we were expecting another baby. This time, despite a few scares early on, things were going well.
We were still struggling with George’s behaviour, he would have prolonged temper tantrums, throw things, and bang his head against the wall, smear the contents of his nappy over the walls and carpet and then mash it in. Leaving the house became an ordeal as he would resist wearing clothes, and physically tear them to get them off, dressing him could take up to two hours, by which time we had missed the toddler group we were going to.
George had a good vocabulary at this stage and had been attending sing and sign classes since he was 7 months old. He could sign over 100 signs and this was a huge help sometimes in understanding some of his tantrums that seemed to come from nowhere.
We also noticed he didn’t play in the same way other children played with toys. He lined things up, removed the rubber tyres from his toy cars but resisted any sort of imaginative play.
As my pregnancy progressed and we sought more advice for George we were fobbed off with the “it’s because you are pregnant he is acting up” excuse, along with the “terrible twos” spiel. By now we were feeling that it was more than that.
Henry arrived 11 days early on Boxing Day morning. We carefully planned the introduction to George later that day to make sure he felt included and didn’t feel pushed out. So far so good, he was thrilled with his new brother.
