FWIW, I also feel that 4 years is a good spread if your 1st child was...a handful. Most 4yos are relatively self-managing in various ways. This can be hard to foresee or understand with a 2yo, or even a 3yo. If he/she is in your bed, though, I recommend getting him/her out before baby arrives. Two kids with labor-intensive "requires parent" lengthy bedtime routines (obviously babies do) or a need for a parental body in bed to sleep= crazymaking. What happens if one parent is gone? Seen it too many times. Super hard on families.