Preparing for a New Baby

1. Get excited. Becoming a parent is a big deal.
   
   
2. Talk about what you expect as far as gains and losses.
   
   
3. Talk to your partner about what being a parent means to you.
   
   
4. Keep doing some of your couple rituals to nurture your relationship.
   
   
5. Don’t lose focus on your partner.
   
   
6. Support your partner in doing things they feel they must in order to prepare for the baby.
   
   
7. Discuss how you will manage money, particularly if one of you is taking time out of the workforce to care for the baby.
   
   
8. Create time, even if it is just 30 minutes a day, when one of you takes sole responsibility for the baby, so the other partner can have some free time.
   
   
9. Talk about how you will manage discipline, jobs and commitments when the baby comes. There may need to be some rules set or adjustments made.
   
   
10. Consider everyone else’s advice and follow your own.