Best Advice for New Dad

[T-y-ler]

Just as the title states, my wife and I welcomed a baby boy into the world recently and wanted to see what folks best advice was or if you could go back and give yourself advice when you were just starting out as a parent. Already proving to be one of our most challenging but rewarding adventures in life

 

[survivalistd]

Don't jump every time the baby cry's especially when put to bed. Let a boy be a boy.

 

[TSimons9]

Go out of your way to help your wife with everything that you can with the baby.

Enjoy the little moments.

Take lots of pictures/videos.

 

[flathead#2]

Keep a constant eye on them, especially when outside.
My son, now 21, would just take off running at completely
random moments.
Scariest time was when I looked away for maybe 5 or so
seconds and found him 2 houses away in a boat in their
back yard.
That took appx. a month off the end of my life.

 

[Drenalin]

Don't get so focused on the kid that you forget about your wife.

 

[Wprinkle]

You will eventually sleep again in a few months!! They are way more durable than you think. Buy your formula from the European side of the industry. (We used nestle from Italy its cheaper too) also do some research on liver mixed with their first solid food!!

To avoid ear issues we propped the "head" of his crib up about 2" so fluid could not drain to the ears. Had zero ear issues.


I was a first time new dad 18 months ago and everyday is better than the last but it goes fast!!

Also the helmet thing is total BS don't do it.

 

[KyleR1985]

The good is way better than anyone tells you. The bad is way better than anyone tells you.

It goes way faster than you can comprehend, or prepare for.


If you’re a good father, Your free time will be splintered and fragmented, especially early on. Accept it, and take several irons out of the fire in preparation for it. Otherwise, they’ll be taken out for you, in a less enjoyable way.

Smile and say I love you too much.

 

[pods8 (Rugged Stitching)]

Having your first kid is a shock because now you are taking care of a kid versus yourselves but if you ever have additional kids you will look back and realize how easy it was, relatively speaking, to have 1 kid and 2 adults. Take it all in stride.

 

[flatlanderhuffandpuff]

Congratulations! Soak it all up. It goes faster than you can imagine.

Help your wife with everything you possibly can.

Don't allow yourself to be frustrated to a point of doing something you can't undo. Sleep deprivation can hit some people harder than others. A crying baby doesn't always need attention right away. Give yourself a time to get a grip.

Look into the Ferber method for sleep training when the time comes. It comes later but made such a big difference in our nigh time routine. Firstborn was falling asleep by himself within 3 days.

 

[bozeman]

1- read the Bible to them daily and pray over them.
2- don't forget your Wife....big changes in life and to her body physically/emotionally (see to her needs)
3- give your child(ren) experiences NOT things (one day all we will be is a memory, so make them good memories)
4- enjoy it all, even the late nights of crying and trying times as you will quickly look up and be staring at a grown man (my son just graduated high school and it seems like was I was holding him at bed time just last week)

I pray for wisdom for you and your wife! Blessed to be a parent of 2 children. They are indeed a blessing from above.

 

[taskswap]

Father of 5 here, with a slightly different take. You'll get a lot of advice from a lot of folks and mostly it's good, but it can also be exhausting just wading through it. Lately I've distilled mine down to this:

Care. Try.

That's it. Just those two things already puts you ahead of 90% of the other parents out there. Every child is different - and so is every parent. There's no single magic formula that makes the whole thing perfect. Just love them and do your best. You'll do great.

 

[Hnthrdr]

Congratulations! Just know that it’s normal to get frustrated at times, but remember the kiddos have 0 emotional regulation and are reliant on you and mom for staying alive. Look into to sleep training (takingcarababies) I have 2 under 3 yrs old and they sleep through the night every night. The more you can help your wife out the more she is likely to want to help you get back to doing stuff that you love. Try to take time for each other. Lastly make sure you cherish it cause it does go by really fast! Have my 3rd coming late October and it’s all kind of a blur

 

[bz_711]

Have as many kids as you can afford
Take them all on outdoor adventures - the littlest things are huge (hiking, playing in creek, looking for worms, catching fish)
Do not get caught up in the club/travel sports hype...school sports teams are plenty, you never get those young years back
Show up to everything they have!
Make their life so that they still want to come over and hang out when they are adults!

 

[kpk]

Take videos. Lots. Those 5 and 15 second clips are priceless and you can always grab a still photo from a video. Back them up.

Little things that may mean nothing to you may mean the entire world to them.

 

[Billogna]

CONGRATS!!

Buy a pallet of baby wipes! Diaper sizes will change... baby wipes are eternally useful!!

Secondly. Be the person you'd like them to be. Kids are both sponges and mirrors. I've learned more about myself since becoming a parent than I ever knew before then. They have as much to teach you as you do them!

 

[sndmn11]

Start a mutual fund right now, put regular deposits in monthly, ask the "gifts" for birthday/holidays be contributions to that "college fund".

 

[mgray34]

Don't say "no" when they ask you to do something with them.

You can be their friend but you also have to be their parent. They don't always coincide, but sometime you have to be the adult in the room.

 

[Hnthrdr]

Start a mutual fund right now, put regular deposits in monthly, ask the "gifts" for birthday/holidays be contributions to that "college fund".

I do monthly for my girls, baked it into the budget, man it’s gonna be a big blessing at 25 when they get the accounts

 

[StuckInTheEast]

Most of the sentimental stuff has been mentioned so I'll add something practical...
Save early and save often,what ever you can afford, $25/month/week...whatever. Put in high yield savings and just keep adding. Take a chunk out now and then and Open up a brokerage account with them as beneficiary.
Compounding interest is a magical thing.
Wish I had saved/invested more for myself at a younger age but we are setting kids up well.
When it comes time for college, trade school, that first house you'll have a big chunk to throw at it to help them start off on solid footing.
Nothing in this world is getting cheaper. The way things are now and where they are headed this type of planning can make a huge impact on the finacial stress/burden so many young adults are facing.
Other than that...be kind, be patient...try not to yell...but don't take any BS either and always make sure they know who's in charge.
Cherish those younger years, the innocence of childhood fades far to quickly in the modern world.
Congratulations! Best wishes of health and happiness for you all!

 

[KsRancher]

Love is spelled T-I-M-E.