Baby Book Club!

Achieverjo

I looked around and saw there wasn't a thread about baby and parenting books. Let's share our good reads!

"What to Expect While Expecting" - I thought it was ok... It's kind of boring and honestly I found it all online.

"The Expectant Father: The Ultimate Guide for Dads-to-Be" - I bought this as the same time as What to expect, and my boyfriend read all of it, and he's not a reader. I think it also helped him be more a part of the pregnancy too, because it explained everything that was happening. A++

"The Sh!t No One Tells You" - short and easy read. Talks about the unglamorous parts of motherhood with humor.

"The Happiest Baby on the Block" - pre-ordered new edition. Arrives soon.

"Caring for Your Baby and Young Child, 6th Edition: Birth to Age 5" - Arrives tomorrow.

mrstrax

My OB gives a copy of "Your Pregnancy and Childbirth" by the ACOG. I really liked it as a resource when we had a few abnormal things come up with DDs pregnancy (FGR, low fluid levels etc).

The two I bought were:
Mayo Clinic's "Guide to Your Baby's First Year" - highly recommended.

"The Nursing Mother's Companion" - some good information, probably not worth paying full price for.

Sarcasm101

In my humble opinion the only baby book worth reading is Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Baby.

briterfly84

Jenny McCarthy's Belly Laughs and Baby Laughs! 

Both are totally honest, totally hilarious, and totally true to REAL pregnancy and baby life!  Just make sure you aren't drinking anything while you read, you will spit it out while laughing!!

Also, Sippy Cups Are Not for Chardonnay by Stefanie Wilder-Taylor and Sh*tty Mom: A Parenting Guide for the Rest of Us

RoseShadow873

So far I have got 2 free books and my sister also bought me that "What to Expect..." book but I much prefer the "Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy" over the other 3 and am definitely planning to get their next book in the near future as mrstrax mentioned! The Mayo Clinic books seem really good. I am interested to see more recommendations though.

Sarcasm101

briterfly84 said:

Jenny McCarthy's Belly Laughs and Baby Laughs! 

Both are totally honest, totally hilarious, and totally true to REAL pregnancy and baby life!  Just make sure you aren't drinking anything while you read, you will spit it out while laughing!!

Also, Sippy Cups Are Not for Chardonnay by Stefanie Wilder-Taylor and Sh*tty Mom: A Parenting Guide for the Rest of Us

Ugh, Jenny McCarthy is the absolute worst. I would never voluntarily give her money. I read a few snippets of that book and I found it completely juvenile, just like her. 

jonesl12

A girlfriends guide to pregnancy was informative and in your face blunt. It had a few pretty funny sections and good suggestions .

momofmanyinthemitten

Happiest baby on the block
The baby whisperer solves all your problems (my fav)
Wonder week app (not a book, but it's better than the book itself)

ashdawn24

Sarcasm101 said:

In my humble opinion the only baby book worth reading is Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Baby.

Love this book!

klingonboxer

The mayo clinic book is AMAZING. I also loved the ACOG book. 

Right now I'm making my way through Parenting Beyond Pink and Blue, which is super good. I'm also reading Our Babies, Ourselves, which is full of really interesting info about babies around the world. It's pretty scholarly, though, so be warned. 

We've got a boy on the way, so next up for me are Raising Cain and The Achilles Effect. Also looking forward to Pink Brain, Blue Brain. 

Redefining Girly is fantastic if you want something a little less scholarly but still full of facts, especially if you're having a girl. 

I was not a fan of WTEWYE, personally: not enough science. 

My friends who've had babies recommend Ina May's Guide to Childbirth, so I've got that. Waiting until I'm further along to start it though!

(edited to fix mobile site html issues!)

mrstrax

Oh and in non-requested advice news, make sure to pay attention to your emotions with research, both in books and online. I found that the more books I read the more I heard "every pregnancy's different BUT many are like this" and then as a mom "every child is different BUT many are like this". Which just stressed me out when thing were different than "the but". I now have one book for pregnancy reference, one for baby's first year and one for nursing so I can't get myself all worked up when I wasn't showing at 20 weeks, or my almost 15 month old wasn't walking yet etc.

rschenck14

I agree this book was good and helpful Happiest baby on the block.  It may not work for everyone, but for us it was a life saver.

NachosAndPeaches

It's not for everyone and I'm sure I'll get flamed but I LOVED babywise. My son slept from 11-5 by 5 weeks, 11-7 by 7 weeks, and 8-7 by 10 weeks. And he happily and healthily thrived. And is still nursing occasionally at 19 months. It's definitely not for everyone but if you want a schedule etc it's GREAT.

NachosAndPeaches

Oh another book that has great information is the contended little baby. It's by Gina ford and I think pretty common in the UK. I didn't love that they give you a "time" for the schedule instead of just timeframes like in babywise, but a lot of the information is suuuuper helpful. Like she explains how putting your baby on a schedule can actually help milk supply paired with pumping, to prepare for the 10-14 day "wake up" when a lot of moms suddenly can't keep up and quit breastfeeding. I really recommend that one to read for the content more so than the "schedule".

spatter1

So happy this thread was started! I have been looking for book advice. So far just have ACOG's book but will probably get "you and your baby: pregnancy" by Laura Riley. I've heard good things and also know the author! Definitely going to check out some of the others mentioned and excited to get a book for hubby too! Thanks ladies!

iamrandom

This thread is awesome--thanks so much to all the ladies who took the time to provide recs!  Does anyone have any recs for books (or other resources) related to breastfeeding?  I'm planning to take a breastfeeding class, but I'd love some more information ahead of time.  

mrstrax

iamrandom said:

This thread is awesome--thanks so much to all the ladies who took the time to provide recs!  Does anyone have any recs for books (or other resources) related to breastfeeding?  I'm planning to take a breastfeeding class, but I'd love some more information ahead of time.  

The nursing mothers companion was a helpful resource for me (I didn't read straight through, just the info I needed as it came up) but your best resources are going to be any local LCs. Our hospital has a monthly meeting and FB group that are lead by the LCs at the hospital and it's so nice for "is this right/wrong" type questions.

NachosAndPeaches

I would use kelleymom online for a BF resource!

iamrandom

Awesome, thanks!!

AmadorRose

I can't believe I missed this thread until now! I am with @Sarcasm101 on the Jenny McCarthy book and I'm certainly glad I didn't spend my own money on it. That pregnancy ended in mc and I haven't had a chance to read any books with this one. Does anyone have suggestions on natural birthing books? Classes on the Bradley method in my area are nearly $500 and I'm just not willing to spend that knowing how many diapers it would buy.

NachosAndPeaches

@amadorrose do they have a fb group? What about hypnobirthing?

AmadorRose

@NachosAndPeaches the hypnobirthing classes I've seen were more affordable (read - less ridiculous) but I'd like to learn both methods. I know they do Bradley classes online but I'm not sure my attention span could handle it. I figure if I need meds I'll take them, but I really want to feel like I gave natural birth a fighting chance. I'll have to look into a fb group once we've announced.

NachosAndPeaches

Ask if there's a military discount! Maybe call and play the military card. I've found the most random discounts from When DH was in the service. In fact my coffee bean still gives me the discount even though they know he separated! They say he served enough for a forever discount (they knew when he was deployed during DS pregnancy so I think that's why). I won't argue with them lol! Love them.

AmadorRose

@NachosAndPeaches I always forget about that! And now I want coffee...

thaisac1

I read the girlfriend's guide to pregnancy. I dont think it added anything. Now I'm reading Bringing up Bebe and I'm liking it so far.

NachosAndPeaches

@AmadorRose I should prob post this on fffc tomorrow but we fully plan on using our IDs when we go to Disneyland. They haven't expired and they don't know he separated! Plus he couldn't go the last two times I went bc deployed. So it's okay.....right? Lol

Also let me check if I have hypnobirthing book. My friend may have given it to me and i has no interest in going au natural. I don't mind mailing it to you if you trust me to not be a stalker.

AmadorRose

@NachosAndPeaches I won't flatter myself by thinking that I'm interesting enough to stalk. It's only crossing a line using IDs if you throw a fit at places that don't give discounts because you're "entitled" to one. Otherwise, you've earned it IMO.

NachosAndPeaches

I mean we would never do it now at like, restaurants or Home Depot. But Disney is pretty significant lol. And DH earned it not me!

AmadorRose

I've never had to sit at home through a deployment, so that's not my place to decide.

Poppy16

Besides the ones that have already been mentioned, Bringing Up Bebe by Pamela Druckerman is interesting. Einstein Never Used Flashcards is also very good. All Joy and No Fun, and Nurture Shock are also good. They are really less about how-to parenting, and more about thinking about our cultural values surrounding parenting. During pregnancy is a great time to think about what your parenting values will be once your child is here. 

Poppy16

AmadorRose said:

I can't believe I missed this thread until now! I am with @Sarcasm101 on the Jenny McCarthy book and I'm certainly glad I didn't spend my own money on it. That pregnancy ended in mc and I haven't had a chance to read any books with this one. Does anyone have suggestions on natural birthing books? Classes on the Bradley method in my area are nearly $500 and I'm just not willing to spend that knowing how many diapers it would buy.

I'm reading Ina May's Guide to Childbirth. I'm not sure if that's the kind of thing you're looking for, but I'm finding it very interesting and empowering.

Poppy16

@NachosAndPeaches I second your recommendation! Both my sons and all of the foster babies we got as newborns (like, 5? It's hard to keep track) were all completely sleeping through the night by 8 weeks, some sooner, thanks to Babywise. 

pinottoparenthood

@iamrandom I would wait as long as possible to take the BFing classes. In mine, they taught us different positions and it was nice to have it pretty fresh on my mind when the baby came! But it's also just one of those things where,e while it's great to be informed, you just have to kind of do it/practice to get the hang of it.

Agree that Kellymom is an amazing resource. There is also a breastfeeding board on the Bump that is great... and if you have struggles in the beginning, don't be afraid to ask for help and go to an LC sooner rather than later!

NachosAndPeaches

Oh the one thing I can say with breastfeeding classes is that they are great and informative, but when it comes down to it, don't worry about the names of the positions and your "form" etc. Do what feels natural!!!!

iamrandom

Awesome advice, ladies!  I really appreciate it.  I'm so worried about breastfeeding already--I just know that I really want to do it and I'm bizarrely worried about my breasts failing to work.  I've been dealing with infertility (conceived via IVF) and I think the experience has made me really skeptical of my body's ability to do anything baby-related.  

pinottoparenthood

Don't be worried :-) It's good to be proactive and dedicated, but don't stress about it. It will go how it goes!

Agoff1003

I just finished "Expecting Better" and loved it. It looks into the research done on different pregnancy topics (ie. Don't eat deli meat, don't drink coffee, bed rest, your chance of miscarriage at different times) and pulls it apart to get a better idea of what is really shown by research. Sort of nerdy, but I found it fascinating and a quick read. I also read "The Danish Way of Parenting" and it was really interesting, good info for people who may have older kids (DD is three) but not so applicable to babies. I'm trying to finish "Parenting Your Spirited Child", which is really good, but is taking me forever. I wish I had read this when DD was an infant, I started it when she was two and it perfectly described her as an infant. Really good resource for kids who are very intense (that's sort of a good way to describe a "spirited" child). I second the vote for "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child". I still re-read parts of that as needed.