Today is July 2. Today we're supposed to have a child. However, said child decided to come a little early. A whole month early to be exact. So, here I am one month into fatherhood1, and I thought it was about time that I start sharing some of the wisdom I have gained in my adventures in parentdom.

1) Fathers of little boys must be like Boy Scouts.

As the father of a newborn, you get the pleasure/honor/duty of changing many diapers. I have never changed a girl's diaper, but I can't imagine that it is nearly as dangerous an activity. I have found that when changing a boy's diaper, you are putting yourself and the boy at risk. The Boy Scouts of America have the motto "Be Prepared", and when changing your son's diaper, you must be prepared like a good Boy Scout. You need to have a new diaper ready to be applied, and you need to have an extra wipe close at hand. Newborns don't have control over their bodily functions. So, you have to be prepared for about anything.

I have not suffered a direct hit, though several people have. This can be attributed to me covering the boy's urination device with a wipe while performing the routine cleaning and maintenance on his under carriage. I did leave him completely uncovered once as I walked across the room to retrieve more supplies, i.e. diapers, only to return to find him and the entire changing doused in his fluid. Another time, I got to experience the deuce while in transition. I had placed the new diaper under him, and removed the old diaper, but before I could finish the cleanup and get the new diaper latched on, he let it go. I quickly pulled the new diaper closed to limit the damage. I've found, the more prepared you are the less collateral damage you suffer.

Going into parenthood, most people, men especially, think that changing diapers is going to be gross, and I was no different. However, for some reason, changing Palmer's has never been a problem. It's odd. From the beginning, I just started doing it without thinking. I have actually found it quite gratifying. When he's crying, and I change him, and he stops crying, that makes me feel good.

More to come later. Oh, yeah, and I am going to finish my story. Maybe pearl of wisdom number two will have something to do with time management in parenthood.

1. back This month has went by quickly. Yesterday, when I looked at him, he looked big. He's gained a little over a pound, but I guess that is pretty significant when you start out at 7 pounds. It would be like me gaining 36 pounds last month.

Labels: baby