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Parenting

Baby And Fatherhood

How to Prepare for Fatherhood

Many men are overwhelmed when they first learn that they are going to become a father. Once they get over these feelings, they will be flooded with excitement about fatherhood and having a baby.

The following are some tips that are going to help you to prepare for fatherhood.

Learn How to Relax and Get Some Sleep
One of the first things that you should do when you learn that you are going to be a dad is learning how to relax more and get more sleep.

There is a good chance that you are not going to get much sleep the first few months after your baby is born, so it is a good idea to make sure that you get that sleep that you need now.

It is also a good idea to be well rested and to know how to quickly relax when you bring your new baby home from the hospital.

Get Involved
When you are having a baby, it is a good idea to become as involved in the process as possible.

Attend classes about becoming a dad, go to appointments with your significant other, and learn about how you can help.

Setting up the nursery is one way of helping and one that will bring you closer to the reality that you are going to be a dad.

Consider Parenting Classes
It can be hard to know what to do with a new baby.

One great way to learn how to do things is by taking a parenting class.

These classes can teach you about options that are available to you like:

  • cloth diapers vs. disposables,
  • vaccination administration and timelines,
  • formula feeding vs. breast feedings,
  • natural birth vs. medicated birth, and more.

There is so much useful information in these classes that they can help you to determine the things that you want for your new baby.

Look at the Books
There are so many parenting books out there that it can be overwhelming to look at them or even to try and choose one.

Talk to your healthcare provider about the one that they suggest for a new father.

Then pick up that book and spend some time reading it.

The chances are that you are going to learn a few things that you did not know that will be helpful to you when you become a dad.

Talk to a Certified Car Seat Specialist
Before you have your baby, it is imperative that you go and speak to a certified car seat specialist. You will want to discuss the proper way to install the car seat in the vehicles that you have.

You will want to practice this and have them check it for you.

You will also want to know how to place your newborn into the car seat properly.

Ask if they offer classes or if they will teach you and let you practice with a training doll.

Discuss Fears with Someone You Trust
All new dads have fears going into fatherhood. Each dad that you know probably had just as many fears as you do.

Obviously it is not a good idea to talk about these fears with your significant other, especially when she is pregnant.

So take the time to go and talk to someone that you trust like a good friend or a family member who is already a father.

This can help to relieve these fears and help you to learn how to handle certain situations with grace.

Talk to Your Baby While in the Womb
While your baby is in the womb it is a great idea to talk to him or her.

You can also sing, play music and do a variety of activities while your wife is pregnant.

This can be a very rewarding time for you both and it is a great time to start to build your bond.

Make a Birth Plan
One of the final ways to prepare for your child to enter the world is to make sure that you have a birth plan and that you are aware of the decisions that your significant other has made.

Make sure to discuss your own concerns for both her and the baby when things come up and make sure that you are both well educated as to your decisions and the options that are available for you.

Bonding with Baby for Fathers

Most new fathers come into the whole new father thing without a lot of experience with kids.

Their partner’s probably did some babysitting, and most likely the guys didn’t.

So a natural question I get a lot which is,

“What am I suppose to do with this thing “now that we got this baby around?”

And the first thing you need to prepare for, is the first couple months are going to be tough.

They’re not going to do anything. You’re going to be standing on your head and telling jokes and doing things.

You’re going to get no response from your child. As the child gets older, you’ll be able to get more response.

It really is all about spending time together.

And paying attention to what’s going on with the child.

That, the time that you spend is where the relationship building comes from.

You’re not going to be able to tune in at age two and say, “Okay, now I want a great relationship.” So it’s the simplest things.

Making the baby a part of your life. You plot the baby in a stroller and you go to the grocery store.

Think of all the fantastic things you can learn in a grocery store. I remember doing this with my kids.

“Look. Here’s a kiwi. “That feels really cool doesn’t it? ”

Here’s a coconut and that feels different.”

Just those kinds of things build the relationship between you and your child.

You get used to the baby.

Baby gets used to you.

And that’s really what it’s all about.

Fatherhood

My best advice for a father bonding with his daughter, personally my daughter’s three right now.

It’s really important for me to take an interest in things that she loves.

They may not necessary be my passions, but I let her comb my hair.

I let her put fake makeup on. I sit down to imaginary meals with her.

I do things that she really loves.

If it’s bracelets and necklaces, we’ll sit down, and we’ll do some of that stuff together, or we’ll go out and shop for something like that.

One thing that I did specifically for my son is every time we went to a new city or new place, I’ll buy him a patch.

Putting on a duffle bag to give to him later. At the same time, for my daughter I would look for things like charms for her bracelets.

Maybe it’s a doll from some of those places we’ve been.

And I think she really loves some of that stuff.

Fatherhood

The thing that I bonded with my son the most was holding him.

And there was this spot where he would snuggle up against me and hold me.

That, he felt like he was a part of me.

That we were bonding.

He was just there.

And he meant to be right there. And it was a certain specific spot.

He would wiggle into that spot, and I’m holding here because it was here.

This was not, It wasn’t here; it wasn’t here.

He’d just get right and to this day, he still, even though he’s big, he still looks to get into that, and puts his head in that spot that we connected.

Fatherhood

That started when he was a newborn.

As found on Youtube

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