Crying, screaming, colicky newborns are a fantastic opportunity for dads to go to a nice bar, er, to actively engage in parenting and to share the soothing duties. Be a hero to mom, and rock out with your newborn. Daddy Clay and Daddy Brad share the secret techniques they developed late at night, half awake, and drooling on themselves while muttering curses about how they got tricked into this whole fatherhood thing. This video brought to you by sweetpeace by Graco. DadLabs Ep. 253 The Lab.

DADDY BRAD: It’s got to be the most compelling sound on earth.

DADDY CLAY: A infant’s cry resonates with a man’s very testosterone, and it says to him: RUN FOR THE HILLS!!

DADDY BRAD: Which is why, in this episode brought to you by the Sweetpeace from Graco, we’re talking about fighting that urge,and helping to calm and soothe your baby.

DADDY CLAY: But not in a mushy way. Taking turns with mom to comfort the baby is a completely practical parenting move. From birth on, it’s important for babies to learn that there is more than one way to calm down.

DADDY BRAD: If you fall into a pattern of handing mom the crying baby, then she will have to always be the one that handles the crying baby. And that is going to lead to burnout.

DADDY CLAY: Take turns and the baby learns to be more flexible -- particularly important that you share the night time fussing with a nursing mom -- otherwise night time is all about snacks.

DADDY BRAD: You’re gonna lose sleep in the short term, everybody’s happier long term.

DADDY CLAY: Don’t go for the straight handoff. Here’s a couple tricks that have worked for the DadLabs guys.

DADDY BRAD: Squats! Gentle deep squats seemed to soothe my oldest. By the time he was one, thighs like Lance Armstrong.

DADDY CLAY: My kids were collicky -- which is a bitch by the way -- and seemed to becomforted by a football hold. Face down, kind of goobing on my arm, some counter pressure on the belly worked well.

DADDY BRAD: There is also the chin tuck -- works better without a beard. Try a kind of low, quiet, rumbly voice. I would talk about important values I wanted to teach the kid.

DADDY CLAY: You’ll need some time for trial and error to find out what works for you. Remember you can’t MAKE a baby quit crying or go to sleep. Which can be really frustrating. Keep your cool. Be zen, and the kid will pick up on it. Chillaxed dads make for chillaxed babies.

DADDY BRAD: Sometimes babies cry no matter how cool you are. As a backup, you may need to switch to the baby soothing gear. The most elemental is the rocker. Gliders are cool and comfy, but really pricey.

DADDY CLAY: Then there are your swings, bouncy seats, and of course The Sweatpeace. These pieces can be really helpful in getting the baby soothed. It’s never a good idea to depend on one method exclusively. Keep encouraging the baby to be flexible.

DADDY BRAD: That’s all from the lab this week. If you’ve got a dad solution for baby soothing, please drop us a comment and you’ll be automatically entered into our weekly giveaway.

DADDY CLAY: This week we’re giving away...wait for it...a Sweetpeace, the coolest baby soother around, so let us hear from you. See you next week in the lab.