Being a Parent (Being a Parent)

Member Name: danables

Product:	Being a Parent
Date:	27/10/08 (30 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: laughter, seeing your child grow up, reaching milestones

Disadvantages: Hard work, you dont always know the answers and you often make mistakes

Parenting is a continuous learning experience, its trial and error and just when you think youve mastered for example a routine, a sleep problem, eating habits or potty training, along comes a new obstacle or challenge for you to try and figure out.

Books can only advise you, you can take bits that you think might help you and adapt them to suit you but no book can ever give you all the answers, or solve all your problems, and there is a lot of conflicting advice out there, just to really make things difficult for you.

Unfortuanately, children dont come with a manual, each one is different and what techniques suit one person may not suit another, and going "by the book" dosnt always work either.

I will use myself as an example. With my first baby I began formula feeding at 3 months, according to the formula box it said I should be feeding a child of 3 months 6 oz and they should have 5 feeds a day. I took this as gospel and when my daughter would cry I would assume that it couldnt possibly be hunger as she had been fed just 2 hours prior and I ended up being stressed myself and with a very upset baby too.

With my second I learnt, if hes crying and Iv tried everything else just to feed him and ignore what the formula box says.

I base my parenting around how me and my husband have been brought up, advice my parents, and my husbands parents give me and techniques used by friends, but mostly its by trial and error.

I think the main advice I can give is to be relaxed about it, try not to worry about if your children havent reached a certain milestone yet - ask yourself if they are likely to be having the same issue in a few years time for example are they are likely to still be in a nappy at aged 15?, no, well dont worry if they are almost 3 and still havnt mastered the potty, just be patient and realistic, and try not to compare your child to your friends children.

We arnt all supernannys, so try not to judge other peoples parenting skills either, you dont have their children!

Parenting is very rewarding, its hard work and you need nerves of steel but its an expereince I wouldnt trade in for anything.

Summary: It all happends so quickly so cherish each day