Observations as a father

Today it is Sonja’s two-month-day and I figure it could be good to take some notes of what I have observed during the two first months as a father. In 30 years I have most likely forgot what it was like.

• You quickly learn to do things with one hand since you have one hand busy holding a baby (and the head!) on your arm. Surprisingly many activities can be done with one arm, including figuring out why a raspberry pi camera does not work and watching TV series and reading magazines and so on.
• You learn to do things “one at a time” if you are both at home, i.e. one person takes a nap/snack/dump meanwhile the other one looks after the baby.
• It is possible to take care of the baby between feeding sessions meanwhile working if you have a decent headset and can solve issues by talking.
• Everything, yes everything, takes long time with a baby and a trip to IKEA followed by a walk can be the adventure/challenge of the day.
• Walks are indeed useful, especially to make the baby fall asleep and get some rest. Since Sonja sleeps well in the stroller I have taken more long walks than ever. With a sleeping child you can do a lot and the dog gets happy meanwhile “for free”. I don’t miss any issues of the Economist or the interesting podcasts. Since I can easily do the walk on my own, Tanya can take a nap or do something else meanwhile.
• If you thought you had limited “me time” before the baby is born, it won’t be more afterwards.
• TV series, and a media player that plays next episode automatically, is excellent as some kind of entertainment for daily repetitive tasks like feeding the baby.
• Since the mother is devoting a LOT of attention and energy to the baby, there is little or no time for arguments or discussions. If she want’s something, figure out the quickest and best way to do it.
• It is an excellent time to start following American events, like sports (e.g. NHL/NFL), since it might make you feel like you get something “for free” when you are awake at 4 am.
• When the baby is unruly and does not stop screaming for hours during the night despite “food/temperature/diaper/whatever check” and your work day is quickly approaching, imagine that the baby will remember and remind you of your actions 20 years later. Getting frustrated and stressed out won’t help anyone.