Parenting: Experience Required?

Question from Joanna: I've been thinking a lot about having kids recently, something my husband, Mike, and I definitely want to do someday. But last night while we were out to dinner, I had this thought: "Wow, I can't imagine having a baby right now." I continued thinking about this subject while driving home and one of the main thoughts I had was, "Wow, Mike has never been around babies. Will he be scared when we have a baby that's ours full-time? I have a feeling I'll know what to do. I'm the oldest of five and have a pretty strong maternal instinct. But how will he feel?"He doesn't seem too concerned about it, says "We'll figure it out." I'm confident we will. That he'll be an amazing dad. And I actually can't wait to see him holding our future baby.  But I still wonder will he feel like a fish out of water? Will the learning curve be ridiculously steep? Since you are the only guy I "know" that has a baby, and are pretty reflective about the experience, I thought I'd ask you if you had similar feelings.

This is such a tough question and I've wondered many times if anyone is ever really ready to become a parent. Especially the first time around. I was lucky to have a nephew and three nieces before Rooney came along, and while it was good experience, nothing can compare to the responsibility that comes with having one of your own.

This was all too clear the first night in the hospital. The nurses took Rooney to the nursery so we could get some rest, but a few hours later, they brought her back. She was hungry and it was our responsibility to feed her. I knew we would be having to get up in the middle of the night to feed her, but when it actually happened after only sleeping for what seemed a few minutes, reality set in...there was no turning back.

My point is that you can and probably should read some books and gather information and whatever experience you can before having a baby, but you will never be fully prepared. I think it's important to have the "we'll figure it out" attitude and know that you are embarking on an incredibly challenging yet rewarding journey into parenthood.

Someone gave us the advice when we were expecting that we should volunteer at our church's nursery as a way to practice. I thought that was a pretty good suggestion, but we never actually did it.

Your husband is right, though. You will figure it out when the time comes. People have babies all the time and they are resilient. You will make mistakes. Your child will be fine. That's hard to accept, but it has been freeing for us as we figure this parenting thing out. We do the very best we can, and pray a lot!

How would you answer Joanna's question?