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WFMW: Greatest Parenting Advice

From Rocks in my Dryer: "Today is Works-For-Me Wednesday:  The Great Parenting Advice Edition, in which you share your best tip for imparting wisdom and character in the future generation of citizens.  Or keeping everyone in one piece, whichever works for you."

And so I am about to impart my great advice . . . . actually allow me to ruminate a moment . . . . I've got tons of advice- not all of it great!  What keeps popping in my head has to do with babies- I don't have one anymore (infact Mr. Conductor is no longer even a toddler but a preschooler- gasp!) but we just welcomed Baby Girl S into the family last week and my cousin had a baby boy late last night and we've got a baby shower @ church this evening. And at the family reunion this past weekend we did a lot of yapping about babies and such . . . .
The best advice I was given and that I pass down is simply this-- do not allow baby's schedule to dictate your life. Your baby should fit in your schedule. When I was pregnant with Maiden a dear friend said to me that Mr. Steady and I could continue to do the things we enjoyed- that there really wasn't anything we did that we couldn't now bring the baby along with. After she was born we did find it to be true and what a relief! We went shopping, out to eat, and on hikes and to visit friends (the only thing we didn't really do was go to the movies - but now we were too poor anyway!). Maiden went to bed a bit before we did and got up when I did in the mornings. My schedule became her schedule. The same held true for Sassafras and then for Mr. C.
Now I look and see my brother and his wife struggling to live within the confines of the schedule they have set up for J and now trying to "find" Baby S's routine and make it work within J's routine and their own. They are a bit fried.
Another extra bit of advice: Prayer is the most important "weapon" in our parenting arsenal. Period.
I'm sure there are more incredible and Wowzer tips than mine right over at Rocks In My Dryer. So go on over and click away.

Yep!

12:54 PM, 2007-Aug-1 .. Posted by Jonash2004

I think it's very true about the schedule thing. :) I did sort of nurse on demand, but Samuel quickly learned to sleep wherever and whatever we were doing!

Ashley

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2:15 PM, 2007-Aug-1 .. Posted by Rhen

Very good advice and a strategy we use in this house!!!
All for His glory, ~Rhen

So very true!

4:29 PM, 2007-Aug-1 .. Posted by Kellyn

So very very true! You have to have flexability when it comes to your child, but your child will learn flexability as well!

Thank you very much for this advice!

4:58 PM, 2007-Aug-1 .. Posted by April in RI

I have wondered what is the best way - my dh and I are hoping to be blessed with children, and I want to know how best to manage them without making dh frazzled and myself a wreck. I have seen it done other ways - my sister had her son 5 years ago and we have only been able to eat out at restaurants/ go to evening events with them for the last two years! I really missed it!

Blessings,
April