Well, OK. We didn't get *kicked out*. However:
Matter-Eater Lad and I took a parenting prep class on Saturday. It seemed like not a bad idea. The class overall was fine--not overly serious, and the content was good for MEL in particular, who has never really encountered an infant before (although? Diapering a doll is really NOT AT ALL like diapering a live baby. Also, when MEL was trying to swaddle the doll, he banged the doll's head into the wall about four times. Not a good sign.). About 2/3 of the way through the 4-hour class, the instructor showed a video about how to deal with a crying baby that was really all about not shaking your baby and preventing shaken-baby syndrome. Fine so far--this is completely reasonable. I was amused that the video appeared to have been filmed in 1992, but again, no problem--I was quietly amused. The problem came when, about ten minutes into the video, the narrator mentioned that sometimes a breastfed baby cries because of what you are eating while the camera ominously zoomed in to Coke, onions and cans of beans piled on a counter. This was VERY FUNNY for some reason. In fact, most of the class laughed at it. But then I seriously *could not stop laughing*. The video had moved on to talking about the horrible things that can happen if you shake your baby. I *could not stop laughing*. It took me about ten minutes to get myself under control. If you say "never shake your baby" to me, I START LAUGHING. It's just not right. MEL and I are totally going to get ourselves kicked out of the childbirth class.
