Dad's Guide to Pregnancy - from clueless to awesomeness

The team at DIYFather.com is proud to announce the publication "Dad's Guide to Pregnancy For Dummies". The 170-page book contains the latest information, resources and cheats to help new dads master dadhood. This book is the closest to a manual for babies you'll ever get your hands on! It's also the most compact book on pregnancy info for dads - you can easily read the entire book in less than 2h! From clueless to awesomeness in 2h ... it doesn't get much better than that! The book is available in all high street and online book stores from 1 February 2012 for only $19.95 (!)

Ladies - this is the perfect gift for you man! Wouldn't you want an involved father who knows what he's doing look after your child? Yeah - well it's a small gift for dads but a huge gift to mankind! Let's face it ... this book is probably the only credible baby related present you can get away with for Valentine's Day anyway - so go get one!

For those who want to know more - here's a quick overview

#1 parenting secret revealed for new dads

What is the #1 most important parenting rule in the world ever? Most of us experienced dads know this but some new dads might not be aware of the unwritten law of parenting. Revealed here on DIYFather.com for the first time in the history of dadkind:

NEVER GIVE ADVICE TO PARENTS WITH CHILDREN OLDER THAN YOURS

That's it ... nothing else matters. There's a few variations to this rule though (depending on your profession)

• Consultants: Don't give advice to other parents with older children unless you are getting paid for it
  
• Software Developers: If lastname(parent(B).child) = "Dotcom" exit();
  else if get_age(this.child) > get_age(parent(B).child) do dump_advice();
  
• Plastic Surgeons: Don't give advice to other parents with children prettier than yours

10 tips you must know to stay fit during pregnancy

Stay fit during pregnancy (yes pregnant mums, you too! :-) ).
Exercising in pregnancy is great for you and your baby, as long as you are sensible and follow some guidelines. Not only does exercising release endorphins which will make you feel great, it is also great to prepare your body for labour and birth. Many studies have shown that mothers who are fit generally have a far easier labour and delivery than mothers who are unfit. It doesn’t have to be a lot of exercise, but every little bit helps. Below are some tips for exercising while pregnant. Please note though, that for both yours and your baby’s safety, you should always consult your Lead Maternity Carer (LMC),or the medical professional overseeing your pregnancy if you are not in New Zealand, about what exercise is appropriate for you to do while pregnant.

Delivery suite - signs help!

Not sure how many babies have been born in a car because the dads (or drivers) driving a mum in labour to the hospital got lost. Even if you manage to make it to the hospital in time it can take ages to find the right building and entrance. Let's face it ... if a male driver is involved he won't ask for directions ... so signs help. Loving this one which is the only of its kind I've ever seen (in Wellington, NZ). Why aren't other hospitals using a sign like that!

Moms ... print this out and position conveniently at traffic lights or entrances to your hospital :-)

Enjoy,

Stef

Another baby monitor for iOS devices

Looks like smartphones are the new baby monitors – there are a number of super popular apps on pretty much all smartphone platforms that allow parents to use their phones as baby monitors. No surprises there ... we all carry around smartphones these days so why not make use of them as baby monitors when we're away from home (or even when at home). I've recently come across a very popular one called "Best Baby Monitor" (voted top 3 in parenting apps by babble.com) which is really easy to use and has a few features I haven't seen anywhere else. So I thought it was worth a giving it a quick DIYFather app-titude test.

50 Foods Every Pregnant Woman Should Eat (updated)

Re-blogging this article which was originally posted by us in 2010 - particularly useful for Christmas (and other festivites like Easter, Thanksgiving, etc that involve lots of eating and drinking). The following list is based on nutritional guidelines from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA's Food Pyramid), with specific boosts to certain nutrients (relevant for pregnant women) such as iron, folic acid, fiber, Vitamin C, protein, calcium, Vitamin A, magnesium, and a few others.

1. Iron Supplements
According to the USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion, normal, healthy pregnancy diets do not usually supply enough iron for the blood of both fetus and mother. Mayo Clinic recommends 27 milligrams a day for pregnant women.

2. Kidney Beans

Newborn Parenting for a New World

"If you haven't heard about "Dads The Word" check it out now! We've been working with Ross and her team for many years and her programme for new parents ("Newborn Parenting for a New World") really is one of the best around. If you've ever been frustrated about upskilling your childcare skills (or find books just way too dry) give Ross' programme a shot! Compared to many other parenting education DVDs, videos and apps "Newborn Parenting for a New World" is not only very practical but it's also pretty funny!

In 28 minutes the "Newborn Parenting for a New World" DVD shows you how to:

• Settle a crying baby
  
• Bathing a baby
  
• Step by step guide and tips on nappy changing for both baby girls and baby boys
  
• Feeding a baby
  
• Baby massage
  
• Dressing your baby
  
• And SIDS prevention

The ultimate parenting test for pre-conception dads

Alright pre-conception dads ... here's your chance to find out whether you've got what it takes to be a parent. Follow these 14 simple tests.

Test 1 - Preparation

Dads-to-be:
1. Go to a local chemist, tip the contents of your wallet onto the counter and tell the pharmacist to help himself
2. Go to the supermarket. Arrange to have your salary paid directly into their account.
3. Pick up a newspaper and read it for the last time in peace.

Get your partner to:
1. Put on a dressing gown and stick a beanbag down the front.
2. Leave it there.
3. After 9 months she can remove 5% of the beans.
4. Ask her how she feels.


Test 2 - Nights
To discover how the nights will feel:

1. Walk around the living room from 5pm to 10pm carrying a wet bag weighing approximately 4 - 6kg, with a radio turned to static (or some other obnoxious sound) playing loudly.
2. At 10pm, put the bag down, set the alarm for midnight and go to sleep.

Birth Plans

Many parents are asked to make Birth Plans during the last stage of their pregnancy. As dads we love plans of course (why ask for directions when you've got a map ...) Well, here's the problem - you can't really plan a birth. What you want might not happen and what you dread might happen (or the other way round). Whatever happens happens. At the end of the day you just don't know beforehand how things will pan out and no one else does either. At a certain level birth is mysterious.

Rodney's home birth story

Everyone has "the" list ... you know the one, babies coming and magically this list appears "things to do". No matter how hard you work and toil over this list it just never seems to get smaller ...

So 9 months after starting on this list, (ok I had a few days out fishing) it was Saturday morning and all I had left was to plant 5 trees and fix the house.

I had been woken at 2am to be told that my wife had been having very mild contractions since 7pm the night before, but don't panic as this was the third time and baby was still a long way off. The midwives were due at 10am for a checkup.

10am rolls around the midwives arrived and we timed the contractions at about 30sec long and around 10 mins apart. Armed with the information that when they last 45sec and 5 min apart that we should head to the hospital. Yes this was originally supposed to be hospital birth, but the fact that this letter is in this magazine you already know the outcome…

Back to the story; 10.30am and my wife and I are in the back garden with the final job on the list. She is only there to supervise, while I am digging planting and timing the contractions. Just after 1pm the first contraction that went aver 45 sec came. Quickly finishing the last plant and fixing the hose, my job was done and the list complete.