Beauty 4 Moms

Expecting parents have plenty on their plates in the months and weeks leading to a newborn's arrival. While the immediate needs such as proper furnishings, infant care education, and securing the necessary supplies are important, it's critical that parents-to-be take the time to think about the future. After all, a baby is only a baby for so long.

Take a look at the cost of college today. Now try and imagine what it will be two decades from now. Establishing a college fund for your child is more important than ever. Even if the traditional brick & mortar university experience isn't the prevalent form of education in 2030, whatever replaces it is sure to require a pretty penny to pay for.

But don't forget about the learning itself. For instance, the best time to learn a second language is when you are young. If bilingualism is something you and your spouse desire for your child, then start thinking about how to implement that into their life from the moment it begins. With that said, it's equally important that you make sure you don't wind up expecting too much from the growing brain of your newborn.

In addition to education, new parents need to be thinking about the long-term health of their children. Not only should you be ensuring your newborn child is fully covered by your current healthcare plan, parents of the 21st century ought to be taking advantage of the wide range of revolutionary preparedness measures achieved in pediatric science. Look into umbilical cord blood banking benefits among other such breakthroughs.

Finally, new parents need to be looking ahead as far as the art of parenting goes. Don't just be learning how to take care of an infant – they grow way too fast for you to be focusing only on the relative fun stuff. Know how to handle your toddler talking back to you year before he tries to pull it off.

It's hard to take care of every task set before an expecting parent even in the eight-to-nine month window you have to prepare. With that said, it's critical that new parents take the proper steps to prepare for the future. After all, newborns will inevitably always grow up.

Thanks to Amanda G. for this guest post!