5 Things I never thought I would do as a parent

5 Things I never thought I would do as a parent

Before I had a child I didn’t have much knowledge about different parenting styles.  I knew there were certain things I wanted to do, like breastfeed, but there was lots of unknown things.  I remember my friend telling me that her son often came into her bed in the middle of the night, I remember saying ‘oh you’ve made a rod for your own back’ and thinking I would never ever do that.  I also thought I would never be the type of person who buys lots for their child, but when you see something you or your child loves, how can you leave it there?!

Here are the 5 things I thought I would never do as a parent…

1. Baby-led Weaning

I had never ever considered baby-led weaning.  All I had ever known was babies being traditionally weaned.  I don’t think I actually knew anyone who had done baby-led.  On Facebook I noticed a girl I had done my nursing training with was doing BLW and I looked into it a bit more.  I decided after reading up about it that it’s what we should do, I chatted to Stu about different types of weaning, and he agreed that it seemed best for us.  It was definitely worth doing!

2. Co-sleeping

We didn’t intend to co-sleep at all, it was just a bit of an accident.  When Oliver was teeny tiny and spent most of the night feeding I took to feeding him lying down.  I always cleared a space for him, moved any bedding away from us etc. and I dosed whilst he fed.  In the mornings he always got into our bed when Stu got up for work and we slept for a few more hours.  Once he got a little bit bigger, he used to get in bed with us when he wouldn’t settle and he loved snuggling in.  It wasn’t something we ever set out to do but it was something that worked for us.  Nowadays, he doesn’t often come in our bed to sleep.  It’s pretty rare, but when he does I love the snuggles!

3. The Jumperoo (and all the other plastic fantastic!)

I remember seeing the monstrosity that is the jumperoo and thinking ‘I will never buy one of those’.  How wrong I was!  Oliver was such an active child it was what he needed, and when one popped up on a local selling site I thought why not!  He loved it and it was a staple piece in our home for at least 2 months.  It’s now sat in the loft awaiting it’s next user.

I hate plastic and noisy toys, wooden ones are just ten times better in my eyes.  But of course Oliver loves them so they have made their way into our home.  The main problem is we have a Barnardo’s charity shop in our village, it’s solely dedicated to all things children, and overtime I go in there I leave with something.  For a pound or two I can’t leave it if Oliver takes a liking!  The other problem is Oliver’s massive Thomas the tank engine addiction, if we walk in a shop and he sees something with Thomas’ face on it he shouts and points.  In most shops I just ignore him but if it’s in the charity shop I give in straight away!!

4. Babywearing

I had never heard of baby wearing before I had Oliver.  I had asked for a Baby Bjorn sling from work as my leaving present, as I had thought it was a good idea for when we went on walks etc. where a pram wouldn’t go.  Through a Facebook breastfeeding support group I found this whole world of babywearing.  Oliver was a baby who loved to constantly be held and I instantly knew it would be something that would work for us.  I started with a stretchy wrap and then Baby Bjorn, then once he was bigger I moved on to an Ergo 360.  Oliver went through a month or two when he would just scream every time he went in the buggy and the Ergo saved my life!  Nowadays we still use it on walks and occasionally when we’re out.  I use it in the back carry and Oliver loves it!

5. Have SO many clothes

When I found out I was having a boy I thought it would be fine, his wardrobe would be small because there isn’t lots of nice boys clothing like there is girls (god help my bank balance if I ever have a girl!).  Well after a lot of shopping around, I have found my favourite stores and Oliver now has a VERY healthy wardrobe.  That and a lot of people gift clothes.  He’s such a midget that he’s mostly still in 9-12 month clothing, so all the winter clothing I had bought in the sales in 12-18 months is far too big still!  I’m just hoping he fits in them at the other end of the summer!!

What did you think you would never do as a parent?  Let me know!

 

3 Little Buttons
The Pramshed
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14 Comments

  1. May 30, 2017 / 8:07 pm

    Speaking from where I am now… before child I was never going to have a child that answered back, if they were naughty we’d soon sort that out! Oh how wrong was I?! I hadn’t got a frickin clue! Parenting is the easiest thing to have an opinion on when you haven’t done it before, so I have learned. Anything goes when it comes to bringing up a kid. You have to do what’s right for you at that time, sod anything else! Great post lovely. Thank you for linking up to #TriumphantTales, I hope to see you back again next week 🙂
    Jaki recently posted…Triumphant Tales Linky #13My Profile

    • May 31, 2017 / 7:52 pm

      Definitely, nowadays, it’s whatever we can do for an easy life!

  2. May 31, 2017 / 5:21 pm

    I do ALL of these things with my son Leo and, like you, many of them I swore I would never do when I had children. It’s amazing how much easier it is to theoretically parent hypothetical children isn’t it! Thanks for sharing and making me feel like a normal mum! #TriumphantTales

  3. May 31, 2017 / 6:50 pm

    Love this. We really are clueless before we actually have children aren’t we. We have all the best intentions but they soon go out of the window when the reality of having children sinks in. Haha #TriumphantTales
    Sam – Stressy Mama recently posted…Stuck in the Depths of the WildernessMy Profile

  4. May 31, 2017 / 9:27 pm

    I’ve never thinking about babywearing as well! and co-sleeping? yes we are doing it as well:D
    #DreamTeam

  5. May 31, 2017 / 10:04 pm

    Yep, I never thought I’d co-sleep. Cygnet is now nearly three and climbs into my bed at some point between midnight and 4am every night. He always goes to bed in his own bed but always wakes up in mine in the morning. I don’t know how it started. I just know that I didn’t have the energy to have the battle of returning him to his own bed every night. Pen x #TriumphantTales
    Pen recently posted…Solitude, isolation and loneliness as a single motherMy Profile

  6. June 1, 2017 / 4:00 am

    Ha! I think it’s easy to have strong opinions before you have a baby, but things can quickly change once they arrive. Sometimes you just have to figure out what works best on the run! #fortheloveofBLOG

  7. June 1, 2017 / 4:01 am

    Ha! I think it’s easy to have strong opinions before you have a baby, but things can quickly change once they arrive. Sometimes you just have to figure out what works best on the run! #fortheloveofBLOG
    Dad recently posted…Dude, Where’s My Car (Keys)?My Profile

  8. June 1, 2017 / 4:01 am

    Ha! I think it’s easy to have strong opinions before you have a baby, but things can quickly change once they arrive. Sometimes you just have to figure out what works best on the run! #fortheloveofBLOG

  9. June 1, 2017 / 4:02 am

    Ha! I think it’s easy to have strong opinions before you have a baby, but things can quickly change once they arrive. Sometimes you just have to figure out what works best on the run! #fortheloveofBLOG
    Dad recently posted…Dude, Where’s My Car (Keys)?My Profile

  10. June 2, 2017 / 4:20 pm

    i did all the above when i started parenthood 25 years ago, but we didn’t call it by those names it was just something we all did. y the time my 3rd child came along i had more clothes than i could possibly use, but they were mostly hand me downs and gratefully received
    #TriumphantTales

  11. June 2, 2017 / 7:43 pm

    I never thought I’d ever be a parent, let alone think about the things I’d do! Weird isn’t it? I tried BLW and baby wearing, but not much. I’ve just winged it the whole way. Thank you for linking up with us at #fortheloveofBLOG!

  12. June 4, 2017 / 7:38 pm

    Yes to the jumperoo and all that plastic. I remember thinking no way, but of course they all end up at home don’t they. I very nearly bought one of those baby seat rockers that mimic the motion of being in a car. Luckily hubby stopped me! LOL. Fab post! #DreamTeam
    Annette, 3 Little Buttons recently posted…It’s time to get your bits out – gulp!My Profile

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