Everything new comes with a learning curve. But having your first baby feels more like navigating an entire mountain range. No matter how many books you read or how many friends you have with kids, there is always something new to learn when it comes to your own. I knew, of course, that I would learn a lot when it came to parenthood and babies. But the lessons I learned in my daughter’s first year surpass anything I could have imagined.
10 Lessons Learned in Baby’s First Year
1. I learned to be patient.
“Patience is a virtue” is something we are told from a young age. But I truly don’t think I grasped its meaning until I had my first baby. Your child will test all of your limits daily. Through those tests, I’ve learned to keep calm and handle situations with more ease. In addition to practicing patience in everyday life, I learned to be patient with my daughter’s milestones. After a full year of her growing and changing, I’ve learned that she will do things on her own time, and me pushing milestones to happen faster won’t make a difference.
2. I learned that every kid is different.
Comparison is an evil side effect of parenthood. It’s hard not to look at other kids in a similar age group and not compare them to your own. I spent so much time worrying about my child’s development during the first few months. I’d see other babies her age sitting up or pointing and fret over the fact that she had yet to master that skill. A year later, as you run around me in circles and babble my ear off, I know kids do things at their own pace. While some kids may walk before their first birthday, some may still prefer to crawl well into their second year. The comparison may always be in my mind, but in my baby’s first year, I’ve learned that it doesn’t do any good to compare.
