For those who plan on having more...

[mimi_n_tre]

How long are you going to wait in between? Okay. I know I just had my baby, but the thought is on my mind. I don't think I would really mind if they were pretty close together, or if they were far apart like DS and this one is (6 years), but I don't really want them to be three years or so, and I don't want to be 80 when my last one leaves the nest (okay I'm exaggerating since I'm only 26...). While in the hospital, of course they had to ask what kind of birth control I wanted, and so I just said the pill, just to get them off my back. I have been taking them though.

I was thinking maybe a year and a few months or so. I told DH 2 years, but I don't want to wait that long really. I also want to BF for a year and don't want my milk to dry up, so that will be almost 2 years apart, if I get pregnant again right away....

What is your ideal spacing?

[Butter]

We had planned on having all our kids 18-24 months apart. Miss A and Mr. Man are 19 1/2 months apart. Mr. Man and Baby Boy are 4 3/4 years apart. Several factors changed our plans including me getting Lyme Disease. So our plan is for Baby Boy and #4 to be 18-24 months apart, but who knows what'll happen.

[PancakeGoddess]

not the thread for me!

I haven't even had this baby, but we are done done done.

But for us, 2.5 years is as close as I can go. My 9 and 11yos are very close now, but it was a hard start. For several years. These last two are going to be the same spacing, and I'm really bracing myself. I think it will be easier this time, but still very overwhelming - two babies, really.

[lotus.blossom]

I plan on spacing 4 years between children. I was an only child so I have no reference but my husband had a brother 7 years older. He said its nice to have an older sibling to help you out and look out for you. I want to have plenty of time to enjoy my first little boy and raise him for a while before we think about the second.

It all depends on your personality. If you want to have a quivverfull I say go for it! My cousin who had a baby 8 weeks ago is already thinking about the second. She had a brother who was just a year older and they were great friends.

[MrsSurplus]

LOL. My first and 2nd are 4 years apart. 2nd & 3rd are 2 years apart. 3rd and 4th (and final, we think) are 11 years apart. LOL. I think the 2 years apart worked better than the others.

[Quagmire]

My two will be 2.5 years apart. We'll see how that works out and decide from there, but I think it might be tough. In some ways DD is such a big girl, and in others such a baby. It will be difficult to keep it all in perspective when I have a newborn as comparison.

[Still_Snarky]

We're undecided as to whether or not we want more but fwiw, I'm really liking the 2.5 year space so far. DD is adjusting faaaar better than expected (thankyouthankyouthankyou) and we've been blessed with another very easy baby! I really wonder if we should test our luck on a third...

[TeaghansMama]

dd is 21 months but i was hoping to get pregnant sooner than i did. no plans to not get pregnant again... as quick as possible is fine with me. i'd like 4 total and i'm almost 37 so one right after the other is fine by me!

[Mama Poot]

I NEED at least two years, if not more. I got pregnant roughly two months after I had my first baby, so I need a break after this second one. I've completely forgotten what its like to NOT be pregnant. I do not own any non-maternity clothing, and I'm just going to feel weird not carting around a huge belly. However, I don't want to wait too long for the next one, because once I'm 30, I'm done. That's my rule. I'm 21 now, and I'll already have two boys here pretty soon, so that's a good start. But I would really like to have 4, maybe more But for now, Mama needs a break!!

[gumby74]

Mimi: I'm glad I am not the only one who is thinking of this already. Originally, we were thinking that we would wait at least two years, but I don't want to wait that long at all. Maybe it is because I miss being PG, but I also know it took us a long time to get Andrew and it will probably take us a while the next time as well. So, maybe we will just wait till he is a year old and then start the process again. It kind of scares me as well to think about what can go wrong with ttc, but when it goes right......we get a beautiful healthy child named Andrew. Ahh.......so worth it

[AidansMommy1012]

DS1 and DS2 are going to be roughly 21 months apart. Somehow, two just seems like a good number to me at the moment, plus DH and I have a few goals we want to accomplish before we even start thinking about another kid. At the moment, though, I'm feeling like two boys that close in age may be it for us.

[ksjhwkr]

I really like that Seth and Amelia are 2 years apart. However, I don't want to have another summer baby So...I am thinking that we will start trying either right before she turns 1 or right before she turns 2. It will probably be the latter, since I haven't even had a period since I got pregnant with Emma (4 years!!!), so we'll see. I would love to have a winter or spring baby...so yeah. You can tell I'm still in the thinking stage here.

[witt]

we are done too
three is my limit

we planned 2 1/2yr gaps each time but i had a miscarriage between no 1 and no 2 so ended up with an 2 yr 11month gap rather than the 2 1/2 yr we'd planned. I have 2 1/2 yrs between no 2 and no 3 and I think it's quite a good age gap.

I don't know really but the motivation for getting the baby years out of the way is a factor. But for me, anything smaller than 2 years age gap would be hard hard hard! plus yes I want my babies to get a decent run of the breast and to get their baby time!

[ashtree]

I think we will try for another in just over a year-making the kids 2 years apart. I was really close in age to my younger sister (14months) and we were great friends-I hope for the same with my children.

[writermommy]

We're done too! This is our fourth baby and the largest spacing I've had. My first was 21 months old when her sister was born. My second was 2 1/2 when the third dd was born. My third dd will be 4 in October, so this is the longest I've gone without having a baby. IMO, there are benefits to both. The closer spacing is nice because they do play very well together. Yes, they fight, but they do share a lot of common interests. On the other hand, I think it's nice that my third dd got to be my baby for almost 4 years. She didn't have to grow up as fast as her sisters did, since she was the baby. She is VERY attached to me, which I think is just her personality, so it worked well for her that we waited until now to have another. I should say we never really planned any of it. Our first was born after six years of infertility and the others just came when they came. It all works out.

[midwestmom]

We are definitely done, but as far as spacing....I had 4 kids in 3 yrs. Pretty crazy by most people's standards and it wasn't planned that way, but I wouldn't change it for the world. I did want my kids fairly close in age really for their benefit. My oldest two are 13 1/2 mo apart and inseparable. They have a built in best friend already. It is really amazing to watch. All four will be so close in age that they can truely grow up together. I think it makes family events/vacations more fun too. Everyone is different though. This works for us, but I know it wouldn't be ideal for many people.

[annarosa]

my two are 3.5 years apart - I think dd#2 will be much easier than my first - so I'm kinda thinking maybe 2.5/3 years before the next one

[Mama2 '05'06]

This will be my second and they will be 14 -15 months apart depending on when this little guy decides to make his appearance. I think that maybe 18-24 months would work out better but we'll see. I haven't even had this one yet and I'm thinking a winter baby would be nice next time!: I wonder what dh will say!

[Yin Yang]

We are DONE, period. Vasectomy on its way...........

Our kiddos will be 3 years apart and I can already tell it's the best choice we made.

[Mama2ABCD]

only my 3rd child spacing was actually planned. and that age gap is 2 1/2 yrs. but, my favorite age gap is my 1st two. they are 16 mos apart, both boys. i love it. it might have been harder work, i really don't know. i know tandem nursing played a big role in making it seem ideal for me. they are now 6 and just about 5, they are a year apart in school, they wear the same clothes, they are best buds, etc. and some sports they can play on the same team together.
getting periods back while nursing can play a big role too, and i don't understand how my period came back so quick after the 1st child (5 mos postpartum) as he nursed on demand all the time exclusively. i guess that makes #2 so special and i was chopping at the bit to get pregant as soon as my first was born. my other periods took about 15-16 mos to get back.

i think there are benefits to all age gaps, and probably disadvantages. I'm very pleased with the age gaps in my family (the last 2 will be 2 1/4 yrs). I don't think there is a magical formula.