Why Ashley Iaconetti Says Going From 1 Kid to 2 Is 'So Much Harder'

According to Ashley Iaconetti, nothing can prepare a person for being a parent of two — not even parenthood itself.

“So many people told us that zero to one was going to be the hardest, and we definitely find one to two so much harder,” Iaconetti, 37, exclusively told Us Weekly on Thursday, July 3, while discussing Chicco’s first-ever potty training line of products.

“We were saying that it seems like your lifestyle, like, maybe changes more from zero to one,” she continued. “But like, the chaos is definitely the one to two.”

Iaconetti and husband Jared Haibon welcomed their second child, a son, on July 22, 2024.

“Say hello to Hayden Cruise Haibon. He was born at 2:29 p.m. on July 22, 2024, and weighed 8 lbs., 7 oz. at INOVA Fairfax Hospital,” the Bachelor alums told People at the time. (The pair also share son Dawson, born in 2022.)

“Baby is healthy and so is Mama! Seeing Dawson meet his little brother for the first time was as precious as we always imagined the moment would be,” the couple continued. “Dawson is full of love and kept petting Hayden.”

Nearly a year into life as a mom of two, Iaconetti says the transition is ongoing.

“It’s so hard because, like, yesterday, Dawson wanted to play outside and we [had] just come home [from] the grocery store and Hayden hadn’t eaten for hours,” Iaconetti told Us on Thursday about a recent moment that highlighted how difficult the transition from one child to two can really be.

“I was, like, so stressed because there’s just one of those torn moments where it’s, like, I want to — my kid so sweet,” she continued. “He wants to play football outside with me on a summer night, but then I’m thinking about the other one in there who’s about to start freaking out. I know if I don’t make him dinner right now and then, yeah — it’s just, like, this emotional pull where you want to have the undivided attention and just, like, love equally and have the quality time with both of them.”

Iaconetti went on to explain that as a mother of two she “always feel torn,” especially because a “first child” is always going to “have this emotional, emotional pull on you.”

“They’re so cognizant of what’s going on,” she added.

Despite the difficult transition, Iaconetti says her firstborn has embraced his big brother role.

“He’s been very good since the very beginning,” she said. “It was just unbelievably cute, the way that he just took to him. Like, he was holding him week one. He is very affectionate, and he’s never really been annoyed with Hayden.”

She added, “1,000 percent Dawson is Hayden’s favorite person, and I love that. That’s what I wanted. I’m like, ‘Please like your brother even more than me.’ He thinks he’s so funny. He just loves getting attention from him. And Dawson just kind of, like, thinks of him as his doll.”

While navigating life as a mom of two has been challenging, Iaconetti said tackling the often difficult art of potty training was a relatively breeze thanks, in part, to Chicco’s official, new product line of potty training products. The Toddler Training Toilet empowers 2- and 3-year-olds to “take the lead with a realistic flushing sound that reinforces routine,” while the compact, travel-friendly 3-in-1 Potty Training System “serves first as a potty and then transforms into a toilet topper and step stool once little one is ready to take on the real toilet.”

“Potty training, to me … it was fine. It wasn’t as difficult,” she said. “You know what I’m dreading more? Getting rid of the pacifier.”