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There’s nothing that can prepare you. Just take a deep breath, enjoy it, and don’t overprepare.

One piece of advice though: ask for help. Don’t be shy. Western culture prizes independence. This is not a time for independence. Ask the grandparents to help even if they don’t offer it. Pay for babysitting. Get lots of help. It takes a village is absolutely true!

(Oh and it’s absolutely ok to ask for help just so you can have fun)

1 comments

I agree with this a lot - asking for help can be tough when you're used to solving your own problems. Paying for help - such as a regular house cleaner if you can afford it - is totally worth it.

One thing that we did that was unreasonably helpful was to sign up for a meal kit service (we used Good Eggs, but I assume there are loads of them around). It just meant that we had less decisions to make about food, and removed a lot of friction there.

Last thing - try to sleep when the kid is sleeping. Better to do that than catch up on TV.