Newborn Care Class

Last night my husband and I went to a newborn care class. It was important to me because my husband has no nieces and nephews. As we talked with the nurse and doctor, I began to feel as if I was the only one there who had ever been around small children. I have a large family and many friends with children. It never occurred to me that many people are so focused on their personal lives that they don't interact with others much more. But I digress. The basics of the class covered, feeding, umbilical care, washing, clothing, medical care and crying. I was very proud of how well my husband interacted with the doll but he was extremely slow. I reminded him that sometimes he will need to take on the responsibility alone and hopefully he catches a little speed as he becomes more experienced. An interesting topic that I enjoyed was why and how we swaddle babies. It's mainly for calming the child down, but should only be done the first couple of weeks. Below are some simple directions for swaddling your fussy newborn.

How to Swaddle
1. Fold one corner of your blanket down.
2. Place your baby in the middle of the fold.
3. Pull the left side across the baby's chest, then lift your baby's left arm and tuck the blanket under the body.
4. Bring the bottom of the blanket up and tuck it into the first swathe.
6. Pull the last corner of the blanket across the baby's chest, securing the left arm near the body.
7. Tuck the blanket under your baby's back as far as it will go.

If you are having trouble, go the this link and follow the pictures.