Keep 'em clean, keep 'em fed, keep 'em near you (they can wander father as they age), do your best.
That pretty much sums up all the advice, I think. Good luck, kids are fun.
edit: You have time to get a puppy, now; and learn to deal with all the shit on easy mode. When the baby happens the puppy will be the perfect age to be an actual help watching the baby, and help raise the kid.
> Keep 'em clean, keep 'em fed, keep 'em near you (they can wander father as they age), do your best.
> That pretty much sums up all the advice, I think. Good luck, kids are fun.
Agreed.
> edit: You have time to get a puppy, now; and learn to deal with all the shit on easy mode. When the baby happens the puppy will be the perfect age to be an actual help watching the baby, and help raise the kid.
What is this insanity? Don't do this. I love dogs, but a young dog + a baby is a recipe for disaster. They do not help raise babies.
We did something similar for our second-to-last baby, mostly because our previous dog died and we wanted to decrease the chances that the new baby would be allergic. But a dog generally just fights for your attention (increasing your stress) and, worse, will wake the baby up occasionally if the dog is one that barks at visitors.
We'll have to agree to disagree on the dog question. Our catahoula was very attentive to our daughter, but she was the youngest of an established pack, and as such "puppy duty" fell to her anyway. In addition she was an especially mothering example of the breed.
That pretty much sums up all the advice, I think. Good luck, kids are fun.
edit: You have time to get a puppy, now; and learn to deal with all the shit on easy mode. When the baby happens the puppy will be the perfect age to be an actual help watching the baby, and help raise the kid.