As a new mom, when you bring your baby home, it can be overwhelming to have such a little person dependent on you. Figuring out those baby care basics and how to best care for your newborn is not always something we just know. Whether this is your first child or fourth, the first few weeks with a newborn are both divine and exhausting.

There's a lot that goes into newborn care, and you'll receive advice from just about everyone. Here are some tried and true tips that have come in handy for new moms.

1. Trust your instincts.
No one knows your baby the way you do. If you feel something is not right, trust your instincts. If you believe your baby needs something in particular, go ahead and provide your newborn with the care you feel is right.

2. Get rest.
You will need all the energy you can muster to care for your newborn, especially in the first month or two after birth. Work out a schedule with your partner that allows you both to sleep and take care of your baby at night. During the day, rest when your newborn sleeps. Don’t be afraid to ask trusted family and friends to care for your baby for a few hours if you need to get some rest.

3. Ask for and accept help.
If you have friends and family close by, ask for help and accept it when offered. Let them do your laundry, bring you meals, and hold your baby. You need to put all pride aside and face the fact that you can't do it all by yourself.

4. Focus on your baby.
Concentrate on that precious baby of yours. Give him lots of attention and deepen your bond. If you have older children, include them as best you can in caring for their new sibling -- they also need your attention and love.

5. Sing to your baby.
Regardless of what you think of your singing voice, sing to your baby whenever possible. You can sing anything from classic lullabies to modern-day songs. The point is for your baby to hear your voice, which fosters healthy baby development.

6. Hold your baby a lot.
Cuddle with your newborn. Hold your baby close to your chest. Rock your baby. All these things will strengthen your bond and help your baby feel safe and secure.

7. Relax the rules.
Give yourself plenty of time to nurse, comfort, and bond with your baby, keeping other activities to a minimum. Don’t put pressure on yourself to cook every day and keep the house spotless. If you need to eat sandwiches or cereal for dinner one night, so be it. The key is to make this time as stress-free as possible -- there will be plenty of time later to return to your regular schedule.

Most of all, enjoy these early, precious days with your baby -- they pass too quickly.

Photo by Jimmy Conover on Unsplash

You’ve read a number of parenting books, scoured the Internet for advice, and drilled your doctor. Still, motherhood is apt to throw some surprises your way. Here, some parenting advice you may not have gotten when preparing for your baby.

Parenting tip number 1: Babies don't always sleep when they're tired.
It defies logic, but a tired baby doesn’t always equal a sleeping baby. In fact, an overly tired child tends to be irritable and hard to settle. The trick is to look out for signs that your baby is tired and to put her in her crib before she gets overly sleepy. Some signs that your little one is tired are: clenched fists, yawning, eye rubbing, making jerking movements, or pulling at her ear. If you miss the signs, don’t despair. After your new baby is a few months old, she'll probably start learning to self-soothe, which will make it easier for her to go to sleep on her own. And if you do get desperate, a car ride, a stroll around the block, or a gentle rock in your arms will often help send her to dreamland. 

Parenting tip number 2: Germs are everywhere.
When you become a new mom, you suddenly start noticing how germy and grimy everything appears. You’re constantly ready to catch a dropped pacifier in midair, and you’re always wiping down your baby at the first sign of any spills and messes. While it’s true that some exposure to germs early on can help strengthen your child’s immune system, no one wants a sick baby on their hands. Practice smart germ control by insisting that anyone who holds your new baby do some hand washing first. Also, keep friends and family who are already sick away from your baby, disinfect your home on a regular basis, and clean your baby’s hands (and your own) frequently. But remember: Some germs are unavoidable. Don’t panic if you see your child put his playmate’s toy in his mouth -- there’s only so much you can do.

Parenting tip number 3: Learn a few baby soothing techniques.
When your new baby is fussy, you’ll need to know how to calm him down and relax so that you can both feel better. Babies are all different and like different things, but a gentle massage may be an effective way to soothe your baby and comfort him when he’s upset. Try warming some lotion in your hand and starting at his forehead, working down along his nose, cheeks and chin, and finishing at his neck. Another way to soothe your new baby is to put him in a sling to keep him close while you go about doing things around the house.

Being a new mom can fill a woman with self-doubt, and it's perfectly normal to have those fears. Just remember that your own instincts can be your best weapon against fear. Each time you encounter something new and cope with it, the experience will help turn you into a more confident mother.

Your new baby was born into a different world than you were, so it makes sense that baby safety advice has changed in the last few decades, too. While your family and friends will likely dole out baby tips, it’s possible that their well-intentioned pointers could actually compromise your baby’s safety. Here are three outdated pieces of parenting advice you can feel free to ignore.

Outdated baby safety tip number 1: You will spoil your baby if you pick him up too much.
Someone may tell you to let your new baby cry it out, but it’s okay to give this piece of advice a pass. Newborns usually cry because they have a need -- whether it’s a diaper change, a feeding, or just a cuddle -- and soothing your baby helps him feel secure and loved. The truth is, babies simply cannot be spoiled. In fact, the more consistent you are at meeting his needs before he’s 6 months old, the less demanding your baby will be later on in life. So the next time you hear your baby crying, feel free to shower him with love and attention.

 

Outdated baby safety tip number 2: Your baby needs complete quiet to sleep.
Common wisdom once held that babies need a hushed household in order to get the rest they need. Turns out that they are actually used to hearing background noise from their time spent in the womb. So go ahead and run the vacuum during naptime if you like. The humming of the machine may help ease your baby to sleep, and you can get some cleaning done while he rests.

Outdated baby safety tip number 3: Your baby should be put on a strict feeding schedule.
It was once thought that babies should be fed every four hours after leaving the hospital. The belief was that feeding on demand -- in other words, whenever a baby was hungry -- would spoil a baby and even increase the risk of contracting an intestinal infection. Now, however, many doctors recommend against setting a feeding schedule and suggest following your baby’s lead when satisfying his hunger needs. 

Baby care advice has certainly evolved over the years. What hasn't changed is that parents want to do everything possible to keep their baby happy and healthy.

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As your child ages, you’ll be looking for and encouraging many different aspects of her development. A lot of milestones will be largely driven by your child (her first words, her first steps, etc.), but some, such as learning about responsibility and what it means to be part of a family, will have to come from you.

Luckily, chores are a great way to handle that. When you ask your child to take on certain tasks, you’ll help teach her about routines and problem solving, as well as promote independence and self-responsibility, all of which will help contribute to her self-esteem. Here are some ideas for introducing chores to your tot.

Start small. You can’t expect too much at this age, but even the tiniest tasks can help your toddler feel important and contribute to the family. For example, when you fetch the mail, ask your tot to come with you and have her carry a couple envelopes back to the house. Or give her one spoon to pop into the dishwasher after dinner. She’ll feel proud to help out.

Make it fun. Turn chore time into game time by using a timer. Set it to three minutes and challenge your toddler to see how many toys she can put in her toy chest or how much dirty clothing she can toss in her hamper before the buzzer goes off. By age 3, you can even help your child make her bed, racing to put the pillows in their place before the timer goes off.

Be a team. Kids this age love to be near and copy Mom, so take advantage of your little shadow! At dinnertime, give her the soup spoons to carry over to the table and show her how you put one in front of each chair. Or have her help match socks while you fold laundry. One exception: Stick to doing chores solo if you’re using any chemical-based cleaners.

Start a routine. Young children thrive when following a schedule, so stick to the same chores every day at the same time. For example, give your toddler the regular evening chore of helping to put the bath toys she played with back into a basket. Doing this task just before her bedtime routine begins will help signal that it’s time to wind down.

Of course, involving your toddler in chores may increase the amount of time they take (and make more of a mess, too), but remember that this is a learning process. Before long, your preschooler will be a pro at helping to clean her room or putting her dish in the dishwasher without needing to be asked!

Once you’re ready to start feeding solids to your baby -- usually when he’s between 4 and 6 months old -- one of your top questions may be whether to buy your child’s baby food or make it at home. Both are fine options, but if you do choose to go the route of homemade baby food, know that it can be a fun and tasty choice for your new baby! Let these tips get you started.

Invest in the basics.
Preparing homemade baby food doesn’t require expensive equipment. All you really need is a blender or a food processor, a chopping knife, and ice-cube trays if you want to freeze extra batches of food. The fancy baby food you see in stores may look appealing, but in most cases you can get the same quality using the cooking tools you already have in your kitchen.

Consider cleanliness.
Your new baby’s immune system is still developing, so it’s important to wash and scrub fruits and veggies before cooking them, keep a clean preparation surface, and store foods appropriately. If there are any leftovers in your baby’s bowl after he eats, discard them to avoid contamination.

Cook what you eat.
A simple way to prepare homemade baby food is to cook for your baby the same food you’re eating, when safe and appropriate. If you’re having, say, a sweet potato with your fish dinner, throw another sweet potato in the oven for your baby. Don't add any salt or seasonings to your child's portion, and make sure the food is lukewarm when you serve it so it doesn’t burn his little mouth. For young babies just getting started eating solids, you'll need to mash or puree the potato.

There are certain foods to avoid when making homemade baby food. Spinach, beets, turnips, carrots, and collard greens may contain levels of nitrates that are not safe for young babies. (These vegetables are safer in commercially prepared baby food because manufacturers test for nitrates.)

Start small.
There’s no need to whip up a culinary feast for your baby -- in fact, the simpler, the better. Remember to introduce only one food at a time, waiting at least two or three days before you introduce another, so you can watch for a possible allergic reaction. Your little one will gobble up these yummy baby food concoctions:

• Apples and pears: Bake or steam peeled, cored apples and pears until tender. Cool and puree until smooth.
• Green banana: Peel a ripe banana and avocado with the pit removed. Mash together until smooth (no need to cook!).  

For the first year of your baby’s life, breast milk or formula should be your baby’s main form of nutrition, so don’t be worried if your baby isn’t taking in too much of your homemade baby food. For now, just enjoy teaching your baby about the wonderful tastes of different vegetables, fruits, and other foods.