Which parenting books?

[CBB]

Can someone point to me which parenting books are good? Different parenting philosophies? Any good parenting website?

Thanks so much!

[new_mommy25]

My bible was the Dr. Sears Baby book. I refer to it all the time.
http://tinyurl.com/5b6d3

If you are planning to breast feed I found The Nursing Mothers Companion very helpful, especially in the early days.
http://tinyurl.com/5erow

[brittone2]

I love Dr. Sears too!! :)

I recently read and enjoyed "Playful Parenting" by Cohen.

The series "Your One Year Old" (they also have your two year old, etc.) I think it is by Ames...this is a good book for learning what behavior is age appropriate, what to expect, etc.

How to Talk so your Kids will Listen and LIsten so your Kids Will Talk (unsure
of author)

"Raising your Spirited Child" (Kurcinka? I think?) is good even for mothers of babies who aren't necessarily "spirited" LOL.

I also stumbled upon a website that i've found really, tremendously, immensely helpful. It is www.gentlemothering.com . It is an attachment parenting site, but has a "Christian" slant (not normally my thing, but trust me on this if you can...) . In any case, the woman who moderates their Discipline board is IMHO *Amazing* . She has great ideas for avoiding punitive discipline without being permissive, which can be tough to do!! I really really can't say enough good things about her input on that site. Again, the "Christian" aspect of the website isn't for everyone, but even for my non-religious self, I didn't find it to be problematic. I wished when I was working before DS (I worked as a pediatric physical therapist) I would have come across the discipline site there because it would have been incredibly helpful to me in my job. Many of the strategies the moderator advocates are things I picked up from various trainings, etc. at work, and they are really helpful. Can't say enough good things about it can I, LOL ;) Best of all, since it is a website, it is free :)

[iujen94]

Another vote for the Nursing Mother's Companion - that book was a lifesaver!! If you are going to breastfeed, buy it NOW (don't wait until you need it at 3am!!) Also, I loved, loved, loved How to Solve Your Child's Sleep Problems by Dr. Ferber (I forget his first name -- he's the "Ferber" in the "Ferber method" of getting your baby to sleep through the night). I also liked the What to Expect books -- although I didn't agree with all of their advice (they were a little more "serious" than I am), they are incredibly thorough and a really good reference. FYI, as to the references to Dr. Sears, I also love him, although I've only used his website -- www.askdrsears.com. www.parents.com (as in Parents magazine) also has a lot of great info. Good luck!!

[lizajane]

it really depends on your style of parenting and in what direction you want to take your family.

dr sears has great factual information, but also very opinionated information that leads a new mom to think she has to be an attachment parent "or else." i didn't care for "the baby book's" parenting recommendations. it made me feel as though i was a bad parent if i ever put my child down (which led me to insanity, until i read something else that allowed me to put him down.) but did appreciate the learning milestones information and recommendations on how to interact with your baby at different ages, for example.

secrets of the baby whisperer was very helpful to me and changed our lives for the better when we adopted the "eat, activity, sleep, your time" method. schuyler was MUCH better off when he didn't nurse himself to sleep all day because when he did, he would spit up in his sleep, he would wake up after only 15-30 minutes, he would fuss from not getting enough sleep at one time, etc etc. and i never got any rest because he never slept long enough for me to nap or even prepare a snack sometimes. but when we switched him around to sleeping THEN eating, he started taking REALLY long naps and he was VERY happy when he was awake. this book drives a LOT of people bonkers, but i stand by it. i think it is great.

healthy sleep habits, happy child (marc weisbluth) is a MUST HAVE for all parents, i think. even if you do not care for the sections on cry it out, he has fantastic factual information about babies' sleep needs. his 2 hours of awake time rule was SO KEY for us. schuyler was a very sleepy baby who could not stay awake for more than 1.5 hours at a time until he was 5 or 6 months old. it was REALLY great to know that he was normal and that he did actually need that much sleep to be happy.

i had the womanly art of breastfeeding, which wasn't all that helpful, really. i skimmed through it and got some good info, but it wasn't a good resource for me. honestly, though, i don't really remember. it was a pretty rough time when i read it.

super baby foods is a nice resource on feeding solids and on making your own baby food. it is definitely over the top, but i took it with a grain of salt and ignored the parts that were just too much to handle.

[Jenn221]

My DS is 4 months and I am also wondering what reference books I need to buy. What are good books related to starting solids? I was looking at the Super Baby Food Book, but I'm not necessarily worried about organic and homemade foods. Would it still be worth buying? I know that pps have mentioned some good sleep-related books. I am not ready to worry about training yet, but I would like to know a good reference if I need it. Anything else that would be helpful and I have not thought about? TIA.