The first weeks of a baby’s life are wonderful and life-changing, but also hard. Here’s a guide on how to manage life now that everything has changed.
Calming the Crying
Any parent who is struggling with knowing how to take care of a baby wants to know how to calm the crying. Well, for starters, babies cry when they need something.
It’s up to you to decipher what it is they need. Stay calm, take a deep breath and check all the possible things (hungry, wet diaper, poopy diaper, sleepy, gas, and teething).
I will also note that there is a thing called purple crying where babies cry and nothing you do will get them to stop. It’s important to note that if your baby keeps crying and you are getting frustrated, set your baby down in a safe place and take a minute to gather yourself.
Even if that means walking away from the crib. I have done this with both of my kids a few times because being a parent is hard. It’s ok for babies to cry, just stay calm and things will calm down before you know it.
Feed, diaper, sleep, repeat!
Now that we have tackled the crying, let’s move on to another important part on how to take care of a baby: feed, diaper, sleep, and repeat.
This is the best way to describe what life will be like in the beginning. It will seem like the same thing over and over again, but that’s just how it goes.
Your baby will probably eat every 2-3 hours and should have at least 6-8 wet diapers. I found making a note of when baby eats and has last had a diaper helpful in the beginning when I was trying to establish a routine.
Also, it helps you start to see a pattern and then you know what your baby might be needing by looking at the last time they ate or had a diaper change.
What you do is simply log down every time you change a diaper or feed your baby and soon you will see a pattern that you can get turned into a schedule!
Tummy time
If you want to know how to take care of a baby, tummy time is crucial! It helps build their neck muscles so they can hold up their heads. It also helps build muscle in their arms and legs. Not only that, tummy time helps wear your baby out so he or she can sleep nice and long.
When I had my first child, my daughter, I started tummy time the first day home from the hospital. You don’t necessarily have to lay baby on the floor, you could let your baby do tummy time on your chest while you hold him/her. Now, while they are young, don’t expect them to want to do tummy time for too long (maybe 5-10 minutes max) unless you hold them while doing it.
See related content: Tummy Time Advice
Playing with baby
The last thing to remember when wanting to know how to take care of a baby is to play and interact with your baby. They need love too!
Playing with a baby can simply mean getting on the floor and encouraging baby while he or she is doing tummy time. Or baby talk! It’s not really what you are doing so much as that you are simply making them a priority and giving them all your attention.
It can be hard to know how to take care of your baby especially in the beginning few weeks. Just remember these important points to calm the crying, feed-diaper-sleep-repeat, tummy time, and playing with your baby.
It will be hard, no doubt, but try to have fun and enjoy your little one. As always subscribe for more sweet advice from one mom to another, and share this with all your friends who are new parents.
