If HH6 breast feeds (highly reccommended) then here is what we did. At night when Slice 1 wants attention (to one of the four mention things above), he/she will let you know in a loud and thunderous WAAAAAAAA! At that time Airborne, YOU get outta bed, change said slice elements dirty wet, poopy diaper, hand off to HH6 for feeding, then go back to sleep. She will feed, burp and lay slice 1 back down. REPEAT every 4 hours. Hooah?

The first time baby sleeps ENTIRELY through the night on its own, you and HH6 will wake up four or five times during the night and go check on Slice. This is normal. After a few nights of that, you will get back on regular sleep schedule.

Teach that baby a few american sign language signs.(not that lame baby signs crap) Recommended are :Sleepy, milk, (for food or hungry), and dirty diaper (or just dirty), if a baby can get it's point across to you, he/she will be a much happier baby. I know, my daughter, Pink 5 is deaf and we started with her right away. She was a much happier baby then little MM11C.

Best of all enjoy watching that little baby turn into a fat toddler, then a skinny little kid...........

LOAD CLEAR! LOAD CLEAR!

"Your job is my hobby!!"

Two boys, with a third on the way, and a girl, and I have yet to get fire-hosed by the little guy.  Just make sure your wife KNOWS you're there to help her.  If it's her first too, she'll be doubting herself, as will you.  But I'll give you the same advice my dad gave me as I was holding my oldest, in the hospital...

"Do your best, listen to your wife, and, for god sakes, don't let him turn out like you" 

Lastly, pay attention to mom.  The baby blues suck for everyone, most of all her.

"He that hath no stomach for this fight, let him depart"

http://www.savingforcollege.com/

"Hundreds of thousands of American servicemen and women are deployed across the world in the war on terror. By bringing hope to the oppressed, and delivering justice to the violent, they are making America more secure. "
George W. Bush

Great advice.  If you can, take at least one week off (two weeks even better) and don't let mama do anything.  You do the cooking, cleaning, and everything else mama would normally do.

More great advice above.  A big +1 on breastfeeding.  While it will revoke your privileges for about a year, I sincerely believe that it is the healthiest way for the baby.  In addition, it will help shrink the uterus during those first days after birth, and the bonus mama will love is: It will make her lose weight much quicker.  It's a smart choice financially as well.  However, all these are only secondary to the baby's health.

My routine is identical to the one MM11C mentioned.  I thought I was the first one to come up with it.  You wake up, change the baby, hand off to mama for feeding, and go to sleep.  She feeds, burps, and puts the baby back down.  For whatever reason, me putting the baby down never worked.  Those extra few minutes of sleep you will allow to one another will be needed.  This routine will definitely help you keep your sanity.

Things to buy and tips:

What to Expect When You're Expecting is an awesome book.  It cannot be overrated. 

Educate yourself: Most hospitals offer courses and seminars for new parents--take advantage of them.  You will not be considered a homo for doing so.  They really pass out some good information.  Womack had a great program when I was in Bragg.  Not only do these seminars prepare you for emergencies, but knowing what to expect in certain circumstances will reduce stress and make your life much easier.

Wipes: What I have found to work for is paper towels; bear with me.  Bounty works best.  Cut the roll in half and find a plastic container (tupperware type) in which the half will fit.  Fill the container one or two inches with water and add a little baby shampoo.  Then place one half of the roll inside and let it soak the water.  Add more water if needed until completely soaked.  Remove the cardboard from the center of the roll, pull the first square from the middle and voila.  The benefit of this is no scents or extra chemicals on your babies skin, gentler texture of wipes, and more economical.

Start shopping for a good doctor.  If you get a negative vibe for whatever reason, walk away.  There are plenty of competent and amicable pediatrics out there so don't settle for anything less.  A good one will take time to explain a lot and answer questions.

When you hear "sleep through the night", that generally means 4-5 hours when regarding a baby.  Be happy with it.  Secondly, help the baby get in a schedule.  Keep noises and lights on as normal during the day.  Keep noise down and lights off during the night.  This will help the baby adjust much quicker.  My third boy is three months old and for the past week has been sleeping for 10-12 hours straight.

Lastly, congratulations, brother.  There's no joy like the birth of your child.   I'll see if I can get my wife to chime in as well.

"If the Tenth Amendment were still taken seriously, most of the federal government's present activities would not exist. That's why no one in Washington ever mentions it." – Dr. Thomas E. Woods, Jr.

Defend the Second Amendment

On the serious side I would say to get on WIC if you aren't already. They help out with diapers and other stuff. It really helps cut down the cost. The HH6 looks at it as welfare but I think its great. I tell her that we pay for millions of other lazy people to go on welfare so its the least the govt can do for an honest working person.

Congrats on the new one. We are do for one in November; hopefully I'll be here for it.

"The sergeant is the Army." - General Dwight D. Eisenhower

WIC helps with diapers?  Good call, I forgot that one.

I think we've been shorted all these years.  WIC is basically run by a lot of the companys that yo cab get the food from (Kraft, etc.)  We got more milk, eggs cereal, pnut butter, and juice than we knew what to do with.  It's not welfare, but we saved Thouands of dollars over the years on healthy food like that.

"He that hath no stomach for this fight, let him depart"

Great advice folks!  Keep it coming!  As many of you know, I need all the help (psycological etc) that I can get!

Do you listen to yourself when you talk; or do you just fade in and out?