Before he met his son Israel David, Derick Dillard from 19 Kids and Counting has never changed a diaper to save his life. But his son's arrival has turned Derick from a novice into an expert pretty quickly, and this new dad is now sharing his experiences with his son, and what he has learned from it.
"My son Israel nursed 20 minutes, threw up four times, and went through three diapers... all within the span of about an hour and a half last night," he wrote in the Dillard Family Blog. "I'm sure this scenario is all too familiar to millions of parents who, at one time, have had the joy of caring for their infant child."
Derick admits that the learning curve has been "steep" since Israel David was born, and he described it as a "fast and furious transition."
"Unlike my wife, I only have one sibling, my brother Dan who is 24, and there are no kids under 18 in my extended family," he shared.
At the same time, Derick has formed a deeper respect for fathers after experiencing the early stages of fatherhood for himself, because he has come to realise what very hard work it is to care for an infant. However, he considers the experience rewarding and he "wouldn't trade it for anything".
Since babies cannot talk or walk, Derick has had to figure out the hard way how to make his son happy and comfortable, and he joked about the list he runs through.
"Whenever he's crying, I've started just going down a list of possible solutions: 1) Ask him what's wrong, and then remember that babies can't talk 2) Change diaper 3) Burp him 4) Bounce him 5) Give him to momma Jill to feed 6) Repeat until crying stops."
It seems like both Derick and Jill are quite impressed with each other's parenting skills, and Derick called his wife Jill a "champion" in motherhood while Jill considers Derick already a "pro" in taking care of Israel.
