So a month after my wedding, my darling wife calls me up because she's not feeling well. I come home to a great big smile on her face, telling me she's pregnant. I'm gonna be a dad, AGN, holy shit.
So give me advice guys. I need to know all the tips and tricks!
Congrats man. That's exciting. I don't have anything to add because I don't have kids.
Congrats! Make sure to drink plenty of rich chocolaty Ovaltine!
Grats MSU!
In semi-related news, one of my younger brothers is also gonna be a father (making me an uncle, I found out recently and haven't gotten around to making a thread yet...at least I don't remember mentioning it yet here...)
Push her down some stairs.
Don't spend so much time earning money for them that that's all you are to your child. Revel in what you have created, love them, and they will turn out great.
OH! So, not those kind of suggestions...
Beat them and beat them often!
Just kidding. Nothing is going to prepare you. Just look into what you should expect to minimize surprises. Most of all what to expect during the delivery. Doctors are lazy and prejudice bastards who will try to push you into easy solutions that aren't often needed like C-Section. You may even consider having the birth outside of a hospital. My daughter was born at home(intentionally). Instead of spending 20-40hours (or more) at the hospital we spent them at home where it is comfortable and there is plenty of food!
You can have sex all the way up until her water breaks. Don't let her tell you any different! Be supportive of her and loving and make sure she gets off her ass! Being big, lazy and pregnant might seems like a good idea to her in the third trimester or so but 10(or 20 as my ex knows)hours of active labor will make her regret it. And who gets blamed? The guy who knocked her up! It's a marathon. You gotta train for it. Mostly being the man in the pregnancy is all about being supportive and keeping it exciting instead of, "Oh shit WTF is happening!!!!"
As for being a dad... You're going to be scared shitless. Once you start shitting again you'll still have no idea what your doing. Babies are easy. Just give them the love and attention and nourishment they need and learn to not cringe constantly at loud(very loud) crying and you'll be fine. And buy a shotgun. If it's a girl you'll need it and if it's a boy he'll want to play with it when they're older.
Congrats man! I am very excited for you!
Talk to your baby. Often. Even when they're very young and it doesn't seem like they register much other than needing to shit/piss or eat, what's really happening from their perspective is sensory overload. They're sucking that shit up immensely and it's your job to make sense of the world for her. Name things, have one-sided conversations with her, sing to her, and for god's sake please please read to her. It's a sad sad world when you can walk up to 20 strangers and have 15 of them tell you that they don't read for fun.
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Woah, thanks for the advice guys. We're definitely keeping the baby. I definitely agree with the beat them advice. Not for the sake of being an asshole parent, but to prepare them for the real world. I also plan on spending a lot more time doing things that they end up liking, unlike how my father was. I feel that family bond is much more important. Reading is VERY important. In fact, I'm probably going to read to them in multiple languages to really stimulate them.
My biggest concern is money. My wife is going through student teaching for this fall semester, and basically can't get a job while being pregnant and student teaching. She's due in feb, so she'll be done by the time our baby is due. But money for stuff....hmmm....