The new addition to our family is fast approaching, and I'm starting to realize that I've completely forgotten what it's like to have a newborn. What I should really say is that I've completely forgotten all of the sleepless nights, bodily fluids and that time between 6 and 9 we called "the witching hour." This selective amnesia is something that has to be hard-wired into all of us, because really, why would somone who's been through it once want to go through it all over again? (And I'm not even mentioning the trauma of the actual childbirth, the memory of which keeps me eternally grateful that I'm a man.)
A friend of mine who's a brand new dad was telling me how the other day he took his inconsolable daughter from her beleaguered mother and tried to calm her down. Nothing was working, but instead of passing her back he decided to tough it out, and just to take the edge off he put in some ear plugs. Eventually she calmed down, and he avoided tinnitus.
I'm sure he's not the only dad who's done this, but he's the first one whom I've ever talked to. And I have to say I was pretty impressed with the simple practicality of the solution. So maybe as I'm getting ready this summer for our new bundle of joy, I'll splurge and get some with a cord.