When you buy a new car or an appliance it comes with an owners manual that tells you how to care for the new item. It tells of all the features and also what you have to do to make for a long healthy relationship.

Having a baby means raising a child. Raising a child is the most important job you will have. When a baby is born it doesn't come with an owners manual, there are no required classes to attend and tests to take like when you got your drivers license. Hopefully before you have a child you had a good role model to have learned from but whether you did or didn't this is one job that is on the job training. I learned how to be a parent by trial and error. Each child and parent is different and what works for one doesn't work for another. One thing that I learned from my own dad was that I didn't like the way I was treated. I could have done the same thing and I tried with my first child and realized that if I didn't like it then neither did my child. I then decided to treat them like little people and if I would not want to be treated that way then I was certain they wouldn't either. I treat my children the way that I would want to be treated. This doesn't mean that I am there best friend because that won't work either. I need to discipline and nuture so that they will grow up to be the best people they can be.