Ooops I did it

ok, i did it, my wife is pregnant (or as my wife's GP said it: "there is a small chance that a tumor causes this positive test, but it's highly likely that you are pregnant")


so what next???


- any really good book recommendations for couples (and for fathers specifically?)

- top 5 things to do in the next few weeks? (folic acid, healthy diet, exercise, visit doctor (who?), kiss the mother once a day???)


appreciate your advice

Go out as many times as possible, sleep in at every opportunity, get drunk as many times as possible, go on holiday as many times as you can, watch every single TV show / Film that you ever wanted to watch, buy ear plugs, buy a decent camera. Don't panic, 9 months is a long time .....

There's a fantastic book you should read but I can't for the life of me remember the name. (I'm trying to ask a friend...).


Basically, this book tells you all you need to know to prepare for Fatherhood.


Some examples:


1. Push a piece of toast into your VCR machine.


2. Hide a chocolate biscuit under your sofa and leave it there for three months.


3. Scribble on your wall in different colored pens.


(the book might be the one called: "Fatherhood: The Truth" by Marcus Berkmann...)



Anyway, on a more serious note: have you decided which hospital you will deliver in, as you need to make your booking? Your GP will book for you, and different GPs deliver in different hospitals...


Your wife needs to take folic acid, once maybe twice a day.


She can also take "Materna", which is a vitamin supplement you can buy from Watsons or Mannings. If she has morning sickness and it makes her ill to take it, then she can forgo this until the morning sickness passes.


She can't clean up cat poo.


Be careful eating certain foods - ie. raw fish and meat (should be well cooked), soft cheeses that have unpasterised milk, not too much fish as it could be too much mercury, not too much processed meats, no alcohol or smoking. There's a long list of food items to avoid but it's her personal choice as to how much of this she wants to follow! You can just browse the internet...


My doctor says no sex until after the first trimester passes but I've never paid attention to that piece of advice! hahahahah


She can exercise, as long as it's something she's always done. And no impact sports where she could have a crash (like sailing, bike riding - could faint and hit the road etc). Some people say no jogging but I know people who've jogged and they're fine...


If you want to re-decorate, do it well in advance so there's no smelly paint or chemicals in the baby's room.


Take some lovely holidays before the baby comes along because after that, you'll have a lot of baggage...


Enjoy watching the baby grow and move in her tummy!!! :-)

thanks for that. looks good as a first step.


any other urgent things to watch out for?

Good advice slammy