Baby Books...

[KimberleyDawn]

Hi!
I've been reading everyone's posts without responding for a couple of weeks now and today I thought I would just jump in with my question and meet everyone.
I was wondering what baby books people thought of as their "bibles" during the 1st year. It has been 10 almost 11 years since my last child and everything has changed soooo much.
Kim
Mom to 10yr. old Chris and expecting #2 Feb.16, 2003!

[mamahill]

First of all, congrats! DD is only 5 months, but I have loved "The Complete Guide to Breastfeeding" and "What to Expect the First Year." I don't use the BF book quite as much, though every now and then I look something up. It was a constant companion for the first 2 months. The WTE books are very informative. I love the month-by-month details. Good luck and congratulations!

[candybomiller]

Congrats!

I have to say that when my son Matthew was born, I read all the books and tried to follow all of the (often contradictory) advice. That ended up almost landing me in the hospital. I stressed over everything so much that I started giving myself anxiety attacks. Once the doctors decided I was all right, they told me to throw out all of the books and just trust my instincts. Now Matt is three and a half months and I'm loving being a Mom.

I guess my point is, read the books, but don't take everything as gospel. It probably helps that you have another child whereas Matt was my first and I had no idea what to do about anything.

I do love reading the Girlfriends Guide books, but I know a bunch of people who didn't like them at all. I guess it all depends on your sense of humor, etc.

Another more medical book I consult is the Baby's First Year we got free from the hospital. It's not here right now, but I can post the info on it later, if you are interested.

Best of luck to you!
Candy
-SAHM to Matthew Nicholas, born 5/22/02

[KimberleyDawn]

Nice to meet you! Thanks for the advice and you're right because this is not my first I know how to go with my gut but at the same time too much has changed in 10yrs.!! I was reading a post yesterday that said it was no longer necessary to sterilize bottles or the water (that was unheard of when I had Chris!!!) so I thought maybe I should get a book and do some reading. What to Expect the 1st Year is from 1994 and I was wondering if there was a more current edition of it or if that was it because I know they came out with a 2002 edition of the book What to Expect When You're Expecting. Anyway, any other suggestions you guys may have are welcome because I am now 17wks and starting to gather all the necessary baby supplies.

[egoldber]

My three "bibles" have been:

1) What to Expect the First Year: I think it is a great all around book. Not everyone likes the WTE books, but I think they are well written, well rounded and practical. You may want to wait on this one. They just released a new version of What to Expect, so they may be working on revising the First Year book also.

2) The First Three Years of Life (by Burton L White): He is a child development researcher and expert. His advice is more (obviously) about how to encourage appropriate development for your child, in the areas of physical, mental and social development, with a heavy emphasis on social development. Depite being an academic, his advice is extremely practical (based on 30+ years of observing children in home settings) and his advice is based on research and not his own opinion. When he does give an opinion, he clearly states it is his opinion (which I like). He also has another book that I also have (and like) called "How to Raise a Happy, Unspoiled Child", but he just spends more time talking about the same concepts as in his first book, so I would read "The First 3 Years" first.

3) Child of Mine: Feeding with Love and Good Sense (by Ellyn Satter): She is a pediatric dietitian and her book discusses feeding your baby from birth through age 5 or so. Her book is also research based, rather than her opinion (although she does have her pet peeves). She gives the most balanced discussion of breast and bottle feeding I have seen. She also has a TON of VERY practical information about introducing your baby to solids and how to encourage healthy eating habits from the get go. This is NOT a "how to make baby food book".

These are 3 books I have read cover to cover and referred to again and again over the last year. I also like the Girlfriend books, but more for fun rather than serious info. I have the La Leche League Breastfeeding Book and thought it was a waste of money. It seemed like it tried to convince you how great breastfeeding was without much actual practical information. Many people like the Sears Baby Book, but I didn't like his Pregnancy Book, so I never read it.

But you can read too much, I agree! I have read a lot of books and a lot of the info is contradictory. These books all agree with the basic advice I have been given by my pediatrican, so I feel very comfortable with these books.

HTH,

[ct]

Congratulations!! My 2 favorite books are Caring for Your Baby and Young Child - Birth to Age 5, Steven P. Shelov MD, Editor (it's from the American Academy of Pediatrics) for general baby info and Your Child's Health by Barton Schmitt MD for illness/problems. When I was pregnant with DD I got a bunch of books from the library to browse, but ended up buying these 2 based on recommendations - I've never felt the need for any others. I did a lot of browsing and recommendation reading on Amazon.com too before I purchased them - that may help you too. HTH and best wishes to you...

ct

[brubeck]

I also liked the AAP book (Caring For Your Baby And Young Child) and the nice thing is that it does go up to age 5 so you can use it for a little longer.

I an generally a fan of the Girlfriend books, but found that The Girlfriends' Guide to The First Year was pretty lame and didn't compare at all to the others. The only good parts were what to do in the hospital and how to select a pediatrician, and all of this information would have been better suited to the Pregnancy book. I will say that the Girlfriends' Guide to Toddlers is awesome though (roughly 1-4 years).

[Melanie]

The Baby Book by Dr. Sears - hands down! It was turned to many a-3-am for advice.



Mommy to Jonah

[KimberleyDawn]

Thanks! I'm at the library right now getting all these books to see which I like the most before I buy any.
Kim

[ScrapNancy]

I love Ann Douglas's Books. She is the coauthor of The Unofficial Guide to Having a Baby. A couple of months ago she came out with "The Mother of All Pregnancy Books" - Absolutely great! And I was delighted last week at the bookstore to find the brand new "The Mother of All Baby Books", a guide to baby's first year. It looks great too.

Nancy