10 things I've learned about parenting in six short weeks..

1.  Never say never.

2.  As in never say, "I would never co-sleep with my baby".  Because pure exhaustion and a baby that won't sleep unless held in your arms leads to sleeping baby in the Moby, which leads to sleeping baby in Moby wrap and mom laying down on the couch to sleep, which leads to sleeping baby in Moby wrap and mom sleeping in her own bed, which leads to "Awwww....screw it kid... just get into bed with us".

3.  Said sleeping in bed with baby will lead to frantic searches over the Internet at three in the morning questioning if co-sleeping = bad parenting.

4.  Breastfeeding in the side lying position in bed with baby = new mom bliss and lots more new mom sleep.

5.  Realizing that baby will sleep through the night someday and today is not that day.  Expecting baby to sleep through the night at six weeks = unhappy parent.  Going with the flow and enjoying three am feedings = happy parent.

6.  Breastfeeding is hard!  Cluster feeding and growth spurts will make a mom question their milk supply and sanity.  But it's worth it!  Take it a day at a time and use Milkworks, one of our greatest resources in Lincoln.  Also the website http://www.kellymom.com/, will help to calm a new mom's anxieties about cluster feeding.

7.  Cloth diapering is fun!  Once I learned a good wash routine, thanks to the Rockin Green website, it's been a piece of cake.  We are so lucky in Lincoln to have another great resource, Circle Me, a cloth diaper store.  Visit them and buy lots!  They are so knowledgeable about cloth diapers and have a great selection.

8.  Don't have expectations about what kind of parent you will be.  As soon as little Miss Clara came into our lives, she blew all of those expectation out of the water.  I never expected it to be so hard to be physically away from her and just want her to be so close all the time.

9.  Parenting is fun!  Watching Clara change everyday and become full of personality is the best job in the world!

10.  Seriously....sleep when the baby sleeps...  Experienced parents will preach it, but new parents must follow this golden rule.  Who cares about laundry and dishes, just sleep!