When Nik was born, I had no identity as a mother. I had parenting ideas, sure, but they were untested, and mostly revolved around teaching good behaviour. When it came to nurturing, nutrition, activity, sleep... I had no philosophies or ideals. I really didn't know what we believed when it came to raising children.
I am still far from having all the answers, but I believe I have made a solid beginning. When we welcome our second child, I will already know at least some of what is important to us, and what kind of parents we want to be.
So here is my list of ten. Ten things I've learned, ten pieces of advice for the me of almost 3 years ago, ten rules for a new mom... Everyone has their own ten, and my ten may be different a year from today, as I am sure it would have been different a year ago.
My Ten:
- Do all you can to be able to breastfeed your baby.
- Food from scratch is better than food from a box.
- Anything you can reuse is better than something you throw away.
- The best toys don't need batteries.
- At night, do whatever helps everyone get the most sleep, with the least amount of tears.
- Say 'yes' when you can, and say 'no' when you need to.
- Yelling is never as satisfying as you expect it to be.
- Example is worth far more than words.
- Let them be little.
- There's always time for a hug.
