Birth 2.0

Dave in ‘habitual blogger doesn’t blog for ten days’ shocker

I’ve gone long enough now… this is ridiculous. Sometimes big things happen in your life and they’re so big that you’ve just got to take stock and take it all in. I haven’t even taken all that many photos (for me) – it’s like a form of stage fright or something.

Since Elsie was born our life’s been a whirlwind of gentle activity and we’ve had such a great and memorable few days. So many visits have made us slightly jaded but not worn out, and it’s so great and important to share these times with family and friends. Elsie’s arrival into the world also came at the start of Lily’s half term holiday, so the activity level has been bolstered by all the goings on of a busy five year old in the house.

Some things that have really started to sink in during the last few days with us.

  1. The two siblings are wildly different in so many ways already, but share a lot of common traits, too
  2. People are so incredibly generous when you have a baby. We’ve been dumbfounded by the generosity – it’s just incredible and it really humbles you
  3. Not having bosoms is a great way of getting plenty of rest with a newborn baby
  4. Real nappies are actually easier than disposables (we waited until Lily was a couple of months old until she had real ones – we’d been hoodwinked – like most of us are – into thinking that ‘disposable’ means ‘easy’. Think about it – a walk to the bin vs a walk to the washing machine. You’re already going to the flipping washing machine with baby grows anyhow. No brainer.)
  5. Champagne and other sparkling wine produce is dreadful for the head. Why, oh why do we bother? It doesn’t even taste nice. Utterly pointless and it’s probably more fun and better for you to inject hard drugs.
  6. Men in India (some subcontractors working for / with me) go more clucky and gooey over births and children than people in England. Women in England do it fine, but men here generally ‘congratulate’ rather than wanting to look at the baby. I’m probably as guilty – it’s an odd cultural thing that real brooding seems the reserve of women in our country
  7. The birth announcement is no more. Flickr, SMS and the blog were an ace way of reaching so many people. Welcome to birth 2.0