Maybe this is your first baby…or your third, but all you Dads better read this!
Its not easy for us women…this whole baby thing! We have to carry and grow a little person inside us for 36-42 weeks. Sometimes it feels like there is an alien inside us taking over our bodies! We get kicked, punched, morning sickness, morning sickness that lasts all day, sleeplessness, feeling uncomfortable, bloating, and we can even occasionally have an accident.
Then the even more fun part comes…labor and delivery (and sometimes c-sections). We get to go through hours…and sometimes days of labor! The pain can be down right unbearable at times. All we want is for it to hurry up and be over! Then we get to push this wonderful little human out! It can all be rather exhausting!!!
After that is the recovery. Not only do we have this sweet, amazing little baby to take care of, but we also have ourselves to look after and help recover from the birth. There is pain, blood, sore nipples from breastfeeding, more sleeplessness, and dirty diapers.
And there you are Dad, holding your new little one for the first time! Ten tinny fingers…ten tinny toes!!! And you look at your amazing baby’s mom and you start to wonder what you can do to help. Here are some ideas:
- Make sure Mom has everything she needs to recover. This might mean running to the store to buy her some pads, but you will be a hero in her eyes.
- Make sure Mom takes it easy! She needs to rest to make sure she is recovering right, and this goes for both vaginal and c-sections! Help out around the house as much as possible, and it doesn’t hurt to have family come and help as well.
- Food! Help with the cooking, or see if family and friends can take turns dropping off easy to re-heat dishes. Mom’s will also snack a lot and need to drink lots of water, so keep a jug full of water for her and have health snacks within arms reach.
- This is an important time for Mom and baby to bond, but remember you are part of the family! Spend time together as a family starting now! You may feel left out at first, but there are a number of ways for you to include yourself. Snuggle up on the bed together and be a backrest for Mom while she feeds the baby, help change those dirty diapers, hold the baby while Mom goes and takes a shower…
- You might also want to consider getting Mom a push gift. That’s right…it’s an actual thing with an actual name…push gift. Even if she didn’t push the baby out, she still deserves something special! She carried and brought a baby into this world, so get her a little something to let her know how amazing she is. It could get a necklace or a ring…maybe something with the baby’s birthstone in it (I would suggest waiting till the baby is born. If the baby comes early or late it could be born in a different month then the due date month). It doesn’t have to be anything super fancy! If you get something in silver instead of gold it can be a lot cheaper. If you are a little more on the crafty side you could maybe make something like a photo collage or something cute for the baby’s room.
There might be some sleepless nights at first but those first words, those first steps, that first drawing make it more then worth it!!!
sailorwifeandmomma 