It was the eminent philosopher W.H. Phillips who observed that becoming a parent is "Like conducting Beethoven's Fifth in front of a full house at Royal Albert Hall while reading the score for the first time."
As one parent who was raised by his children, this writer concurs, so we can offer little advice to new parents Will and Kate. Is "The Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care" still in use? Millions if not zillions of babies, now with children and grandchildren of their own, were reared by the precepts of Dr. Benjamin Spock, but today, everyone under sixty thinks Spock is a Vulcan with pointy ears. (And there were some parents who disagreed with Dr. Spock--"What, we shouldn't flog our kids?")
There is undoubtedly a market for a new guide--"Parenting for Dummies"--but it has yet to appear. So Will and Kate, you're on your own...bringing up baby.
P.S.: "Bringing Up Baby" is a classic 1940s comedy with Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn. The baby in this case is a leopard. Much easier to deal with.
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