As new parents, we had many questions and very little answers. There is so much to learn about taking care of a baby. In our times of need, where did we turn to for answers? Facebook and Google.
When we googled our question, sometimes we would find helpful answers on parenting websites and forums, but it takes a lot sifting through information. I preferred going to Facebook for answers because it allowed us to ask questions to people that we knew personally (and trusted). Facebook gave us quick access to dozens of parents that knew what they were doing. Whenever we had a baby challenge, we’d post our question on Facebook and soon received much good advice and experiences.
With all the good input we received, we wanted to share it with other new parents. We’re starting a short series called “Facebook Q&A about Parenting” where we’ll post the questions we asked and the answers we received. We’ll also share what we ended up doing and how it worked out for us.
Here are the questions we asked:
1) Should we use Cloth Diapers or Disposable Diapers for our baby?
2) When did your baby start sleeping through the night?
3) How do you get rid of Baby Boogers?
4) How do you train your baby to start sleeping through the night?
5) How do you calm a crying baby?
A short note about using Facebook Lists:
I’ve learned that many of our single friends like seeing cute baby photos but are not interested in the details of parenting. To be sensitive to our single friends and to avoid boring or grossing them out with our parenting questions, I created a Facebook List and added only our friends that are parents. Whenever we post a baby question, we only post it so that our Facebook “Parent Friends” List can see it. Using Facebook Lists allows me to post group-specific information (i.e. events related to my church) or interest-specific information (i.e. sports facts and musings that only sports fans would find interesting).