So I just found out that my wife is pregnant, go us, congratulations etc, etc.
Since this is my first what tips do power users have to smooth out the transition, clearly omnifocus is going to be needed to stay on top of the tasks, it might finally be worth upping my calendar game to fantastical?
I remember in one show the guest was talking about preparing kids to be CEO’s not secretary’s, so with that said what do people see as being the skills of the future, as a software engineer my child will get exposed to code, automation and dads craziness. But what else can I do to make sure they have the best shot?
Tips, thoughts, suggestions, comments all welcome.
Pro tip: Just get rid of alll your tech and spend your leisure time sleeping!
I have 1 child and another one expected for next month. I’ve personally didn’t get rid of any of my fundamental tools, and instead of changing tech workflows that I rely on and are second nature, I’ve put the mental effort on being more flexible and aware of the priorities and availability. My workflow structure and open mind to be agile, helped me in the first months when my son was born. Will adopt the same strategy this time.
But what else can I do to make sure they have the best shot?
Just relax and enjoy every moment. As soon as you realise they’re grown ups!!!
I would highly suggest moving anything that’s not already collaborative that can be to be. For example, a shared calendar, shared shopping lists, shared to do lists, etc. According to my parents just before I was born they switched to a shopping trigger list - this is an A5 printed list where they circle what they need as it comes up, then before they go shopping they check everything else crossing off what they don’t need - they still use it today and I’m 27! While this exact example may not be practical for you, trigger lists and checklists are really helpful when you’re tired or juggling lots of things at once.
Besides the points above I’d advise to put everything you can in the cloud & maximize your ability to get work done on your phone. You’re going to want to be able to work at odd times and places.
Congrats man! Life will change forever, but mainly in a good way
I know it will take some time until this little bundle of joy will be walking, but just start making it a habit of putting expensive electronics and other items you care about out of reach. They tend to get real fast, real quick.
My wife and I use a shared IOS Reminders and calendar. Also you can look at Apple Music if you use it for music for the baby and as the baby gets a little older YouTube kids and YouTube is great , cause it will help the baby to stop crying sometimes. And small blue tooth speaker to play music from your phone. Also we use a Nest camera as the baby monitor, I enjoy checking it from work. There also also other cameras that are $20 on Amazon.
Always happens that’s a good one actually. Start thinking about your photo management workflow. I spent a good amount of time finding duplicates and sorting out photos of his first two years. Especially because you’ll be getting photos from different sources (cameras, your mobile phone, your partner’s, family members, etc) and each one is super important and completely different from the others (2 years later this selection is much easier LOL)
Congratulations! As a father of four I have a few new baby tips.
Make sure both of you spend plenty of time bonding with your child.
The newborn stage will pass sooner than expected. Enjoy it as much as you can. You won’t sleep much.
Get your baby on a schedule as soon as possible. Vital!
Use Day One or some other journal to keep track of changes, feedings, and sleep so you know about what to expect and when.
Sleep when your baby sleeps.
Take turns with your wife, figure out something that works for you so one of you is getting a good nights sleep.
When your baby is fussy and crying, it’s almost always one of these things:
She needs a diaper change
She’s hungry and needs feeding
She’s fed, but she needs burped.
She’s tired and needs some sleep
It’s possible that your baby might have some kind of low tolerance for her milk or formula, you might have to try a few different things till one works.
Swaddle your baby, they love it.
Make sure they get used to sleeping in the crib. The crib is where they sleep, when they are awake they get out of the crib. Goes along with the schedule mentioned above.
Play with your kids every chance you get. Too soon they’ll be grown and won’t care to play anymore.
Finally, you’ll find times when none of this works and you are so frustrated you don’t know what to do. It’s ok. Take a deep breath, know that you can do this. You’re going to do great.
I remember the show you reference. I was struck by that comment as well.
Couple of things:
I thnk what others have said is good advice. Be with your kid. Enjoy the moment. The early years go by quicker than you think. “What can I do to give them the best shot?” - my two cents? A solid childhood that is NOT overly tech ridden. I work in mental health. There’s a lot of tech obsession, anxiety, suicidality. It’s not a 1:1 cause by technology but having a good attachment to your parents, good emotional health? Critical. Just a thought that governs my own parenting concerns.
@RosemaryOrchard said it well: look at collaborative tools. We used shared notebooks in Evernote for “scanning” in the field doctor’s visits, injuries, artwork, kaiser cards - anything and everything that might be needed or wanted between two parents.
Shared photo streams. 1 we use for sharing between spouses. 1 we use for grandparents. It disseminates videos better. Plus, not all photos/videos are best seen on facebook.
Be mindful of your photo storage and backup solutions. The lifeblood of any parent that I can think of. We pay for whatever apple wants to charge to make sure our photos get backed up. We also download all originals to our imac. We also print “the best of”… In my opinion, photos on paper is the proven technology that has survived 100+ years. Will jpg last for 100 years? Likely. But it doesn’t hurt to print photos. We use mpix.
Fantastical is great but for my wife and I and any situation we find ourselves in in workplaces - we just go with vanilla: google calendar web interface.
Love this thread! I’d echo the previous comments on spending as much time with your kid and being in the moment with them (put the phone down and turn the tv off).
Here are some things working for us:
Amazon Echo - Shared Shopping list - We’re a mixed (iOS/Android) house and use Amazon Alexa for our shopping list. We have a mix of echos (show, dots, etc) scattered throughout the house. You’ll find the best times to add something to the list are when your hands are full.
Shared google calendar
Shared Evernote Notebooks. Doctors, Daycare forms, family trips.
Google Photos backup and family sharing. This is great I can see all photos taken by me and my wife backed up to the cloud. We pay for storage for high quality backup, but the free backup is good too.
Budget through YNAB - Kids can be expensive. My wife swears everything is too cute and I’m convinced that every kid/baby tech thing will make our lives easier. The budget keeps us both on track.
Read lots of books with them (even though they won’t understand) and stick to daily/nightly routines.
One book I cannot recommend enough is Happiest baby on the block. The sleep tips are the best.
The other book (I bought it on Kindle) and app that I can’t recommend too highly is The Wonder Weeks. It’s an empirically / observationally grounded forecast of when & for how long your baby is going to be going through neurodevelopment changes and hence really cranky. Calculation is based on due date, not actual birth date, and I have found it to be accurate within a day or two, and in terms of content (i.e. what new behavioural changes to expect after a “leap” etc.).
that’s a good one actually. Start thinking about your photo management workflow. I spent a good amount of time finding duplicates and sorting out photos of his first two years. Especially because you’ll be getting photos from different sources (cameras, your mobile phone, your partner’s, family members, etc) and each one is super important and completely different from the others (2 years later this selection is much easier LOL)