Bringing a newborn baby home from the hospital is exciting, terrifying, daunting, wild, busy, crazy and everything else. It’s a whole new experience that you’re unlikely to be prepared for – even if this isn’t your first (every baby’s different). We’re going to share our top tips for new dads to help you make the most of this special time.
Provide emotional support
Telling your partner she’s beautiful is a great tip for new dads and will help her to start feeling normal again. After carrying and growing a baby for nine months, her body is nothing like it used to be and so it’s likely that she may be feeling more than a little self-conscious. Provide her with the emotional support she needs, maybe even add how proud you are of what she’s achieved. She’ll definitely appreciate it.
Frozen meals and takeout menus
Especially during the first few weeks, no-one is going to feel like cooking. Not you or your partner. Many pre-empt this and prepare by batch cooking meals for the freezer before labour thus providing you both with an easy system when baby arrives home. Stocking the house with an array of takeout menus is another great tip for new dads.
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Read More:
How to Create a Cozy & Safe Nursery for Your Newborn Baby
Simple Tips to Safe Co-Sleeping with Your Baby
5 Newborn Sleep Facts Every New Parent Should Know
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Take photos
Mum might be so preoccupied with making sure everything is right, that she misses out on the opportunities to photograph your newborn. Especially considering every time she gets a few moments to herself she’s likely to just want to rest.
Try and capture as many moments on camera as possible. She might not appreciate it at the time, but in the future she’ll be grateful.
Night-time feeding
It’s likely to be a big shock to the system when you have a newborn who cries constantly throughout the night. It can quickly become frustrating to a new mum if she is left to deal with the night-time feedings when her partner is enjoying an uninterrupted nights’ sleep.
A great tips for new dads is to offer to help with night-time feeds. At the end of the day it’s the thought that counts, and even if you help maybe one or two nights a week, alleviating that additional pressure will go a long way.
Ask
With your new mum feeling so worn out it’s important to ask her what you can do to help. It’s likely that your partner is still thinking about how she can juggle the baby and other stuff that needs doing in order to keep everything running smoothly.
Helping out could be literally anything from warming up the milk for the next feed, making an appointment with the doctor or doing some of the chores. There’s always going to be something that she needs a hand with but she’s going to be reluctant to ask for help – nobody wants to think they’re not able to cope. By stepping up first and asking what needs to be done helps to ease the pressure and tells her that you’re a team.
Sources:
https://www.babble.com/dad/babys-first-week-at-home-invaluable-tips-for-brand-new-dads/
http://www.artofmanliness.com/2013/12/11/new-dad-survival-guide-the-skillset/
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