March 2018 Moms
historeliza
member
Books and Blogs
historeliza
member
I read the terms and conditions about how we should post, so I hope that this is appropriate. If not, I can remove this...or move to another thread.
As most of us are getting somewhat settled into our pregnancies, I thought it night be a good idea to start a thread on favorite pregnancy or parenting books/blogs/websites.
As a ftm, I know I am lost in the shuffle of literature out there. I figured if people would like to share books or sites that worked for them, they might want to share.
Again, this is my first time posting a thread, so I hope I did it right!
As most of us are getting somewhat settled into our pregnancies, I thought it night be a good idea to start a thread on favorite pregnancy or parenting books/blogs/websites.
As a ftm, I know I am lost in the shuffle of literature out there. I figured if people would like to share books or sites that worked for them, they might want to share.
Again, this is my first time posting a thread, so I hope I did it right!
Re: Books and Blogs
(Edit for typos)
Recommend both!
Not as pertinent for the moment but my boss just gave me her copies of The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding and Super Baby Food (if you plan on making your own). She and others both said they were great resources for them!
Also if you have a Half Price Books where you live, GO THERE for baby books!! I got my Mayo Clinic book for $5.99 and it's in perfect condition.
For pregnancy, I followed the pregnancy calendars on Alpha Mom and Pregnant Chicken each week. This time, there's a short podcast Pregnancy Confidential that I listen to each week.
I also second Kellymom for breastfeeding, and for sleep I LOVED all the free content on The Baby Sleep Site.
@kalawa - it's a long blog lol I follow them on instagram, too! it's a supportive site that helps empower women to make informed choices on their birth and pregnancy. Here's a brief summary from their site:
"Birth Without Fear began as a simple passion to let women know they have choices in childbirth. It then evolved to become an inspiration and support to women and their families through their trying to conceive, pregnancy, birth and post partum journeys. Pull up your chair and join us for laughs, great conversation, healing and triumphs as we all celebrate birth and motherhood together."
*They have topics on EVERYTHING! Give it a quick skim if you ever have time. I found it extremely helpful being a FTM!
Married: 5.27.16
Baby Boy Due: 3.18.18
I've heard mixed reviews on any books that say you have to do things a certain way or with a certain schedule. What always worked best for me were books that explained baby's physical and mental development and baby's needs at certain stages of development (like growth spurts or sleep regressions), and then I gathered "tips" from books/blogs and figured out what worked best for the baby based on his particular needs/personality, kind of combined approach of using suggested methods but also customizing them for us.
The sleep book I liked the best is The Natural Baby Sleep Solution, the author has a Ph.D. in neuroscience and she explains baby's brain development and how baby's natural sleepy/alert cycles work, it was very helpful and worked great for us. I've heard good things about The Wonder Weeks for general baby development, and they also have an app. I know there are great books on breastfeeding out there, but in the end I wish I had just taken a class or watched a video ahead of time, the complexity of breastfeeding was one thing I wasn't prepared for.
Once baby was born, the BEST resource I had was a local breastfeeding/new moms group. It was at our local hospital, once a week, run by a lactation consultant and you could go and breastfeed (or bottle feed) and ask any questions about breastfeeding, baby, being a mom, etc., and it has a separate private online group where you can post questions and other moms will answer. It's great for both getting information and getting support, I learned so much more there than I did in any book. Ask your hospital or doctor's office if they know of groups like that in your area, I can't recommend it enough.
LFAF February Siggy Challenge - "Favorite TV/Movie Couple"
DD: 10/17/13
TTC#2 Actively: 10/14, NTNP: 01/14
Left-Sided Hydrosalpinx (cause: genetic abnormality, TREATED 11/16)
http://www.fertilityfriend.com/home/396b04
Other books I enjoyed were:
Bringing Up Bébé
Guide to Childbirth by Ina May (side note: she is a huge hippie so some of the birth stories are kind of cringeworthy if you're not into that whole thing)
The Wonder Weeks (another side note: there is also a Wonder Weeks app that correlates to your babies due date, and tells you week by week what's happening with babe and when they might be more fussy or learning new skills, etc. It's amazing and was dead on for my son).
The Wonderful Art of Breastfeeding
ETA: I chose On Becoming Baby Wise.
EDD March 12, 2018
Also, Pregnant Chicken is one of my favorite pregnancy blogs.