WHAT I’VE LEARNED

SKILLS NEEDED

• Patience, organization, knowledge, common sense, the ability to wake up in the middle of the night and the ability to allow mistakes.

PATIENCE

• You need patience when caring for a child. With a baby, you don’t know what it wants when it’s crying. The baby can’t talk to you and tell you. You have to figure it out. If you don’t have patience, you will get frustrated with the baby and that is how shaken babies happen.

ORGANIZATION

• It is essential to be organized when taking care of a baby. You have to know where the diapers and bottles (if bottle fed) are. You can’t lose these items. Otherwise the baby will continue to cry and you will get frustrated.

KNOWLEDGE/COMMON SENSE

• You have to have knowledge of what to do when babies cry. You have to know not to drop the head back or rough handle the baby. You need to make sure the baby knows you’re there to take care of them.

WAKING UP IN THE NIGHT

• Taking care of a bay will require you to wake up anytime in the night. This ties back to having patience with the baby. You also have to learn to put the baby before yourself. It can’t do anything by itself. You have to take care of it.

ALLOWING MISTAKES

• Everybody knows that no one is perfect, especially not a baby, it’s going to make mistakes. But a necessary skill for every parent is grace. It’s allowing your child to make a mistake and learn from it, while still supporting and encouraging them.

Any child can’t fend for themselves, you’re their caretaker. You’re basically their slave. Whatever you do when you become a parent, is for your child, no one else. You’re their life, make it worth while.