5 Important Lessons Adults Can Learn From Babies
Forget life coaches and wellness seminars – all you need to know about life’s most important lessons can be learned from little humans who do nothing but eat, sleep and poop for a living. From extreme multitasking challenges to checking our egos at the door, babies humble us in ways that nothing else can.
1. IT’S OKAY TO GET DIRTY
As adults, we are conditioned to think that we have to be clean all the time. But spend 24 hours with a newborn and pretty soon you’ll have milk stains on your shoulders and every other kind of stain you can imagine elsewhere. That’s why we have washing machines. It’s okay to get dirty here and there. Every parent understands the explosive diaper stage, and they make for the funniest horror stories later on.
2. MULTITASKING IS A SUPERSKILL
Babies teach us to multitask better than anything else. Having a mini dictator with biological needs that must be met on demand forces us to balance and prioritize life’s everyday responsibilities in an entirely new way. No one wants a hungry/tired/fussy baby. To alleviate the discomfort of any or all of these things combined you need to structure feedings and naps as much as possible – both for you and your babe’s sanity (see number 3). If it doesn’t stick right away, don’t fret. And once you’ve figured a schedule out in the comfort of your own home – be your own personal hero and try doing it while juggling leaving the house.
3. THE ONLY CONSTANT IS CHANGE
Adults typically become creatures of habit and – as most parents know – with babies, the only constant is change. Some days are better than others, but those really challenging days keep us on our toes and when the good days come around unexpectedly, they are that much sweeter. Babies teach us to appreciate both.
4. MODERATION IS KEY
Babies will make you stick your foot in your mouth for all of the things you vowed you would never say or do as a parent. No screen time, no sugar, no wiping snot with your bare hand. It’s a wise person who once said ‘never say never’. But moderation is key and every kid is different. There may be a time when your kid will only eat if it’s in the bath tub (not the most civilized place for dinner, but if he’s eating, well that’s a huge win, right?). Babies teach us that stringent rules are made to be broken. And in the end, nothing will be harmed – except for maybe a bruised (adult) ego.
5. LOVE IS ALL THAT MATTERS
Just when you thought you could never love something any more than you already do, there comes a baby to flip your definition and scope of love on its head. Babies teach us that we have the utmost capacity to love deeply and unconditionally. What other kind of feeling could make us gaga enough to merit all-day baby voices, buying strollers that cost as much as cars and starting a college fund even before leaving the maternity ward?
Above all, babies teach us about love (Pixel-Shot / Shutterstock.com)
