Hello Baby Blog

Over the course of pregnancy (and before) I have read a LOT of books.  Some of them I loved and some were just okay.  Here is a list of my favorites.  These are the ones I’ve re-read time and time again.   The ones I will be going back to when I need help.

Baby Bargains

The best at helping you figure out what baby stuff you really need.  There is a TON of baby stuff out there.  Stores want you to buy it all.  But Baby Bargains helps you keep the budget under control by getting only what you need and by helping you find the good quality items so you don’t have to re-purchase the same thing in 3 months.

Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy

If I could have only one pregnancy book, this would be it.  It has a week to week guide, an extensive look at testing, labor, newborns.  Basically everything you need in one book.  I also love the chapter on different pregnancy symptoms.  You can look up a symptom you are having and it tells you if it’s normal, what you can do to help alleviate the symptom, and when to call the doctor.  Each month also has a chart telling you what things you should call the doctor about and what things are totally normal- don’t worry.  This helped keep my freaking out to a minimum.

Pregnancy To-Dos

My favorite pregnancy organizer.  Helps you make lists and more lists.  Keep track of Dr appointments, gifts received, day care interviews, pediatricians, registry lists, and more.

What’s Going on in There

My favorite book on baby’s brain development. It goes into great detail about all the ways the brain develops and what you can do to help it along the way. I love all the clinical case studies and examples. If you only wanted to read one book on development, this would be my recommendation.

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Dr. Spock's Baby and Child Care

Dr. Spock’s Baby and Child Care is a 967 page encyclopedia of all things baby. It has the answer to virtually every question a parent could ask. Dealing with homosexuality and homophobia? Page 460. How to treat a fever? Page 707. Straining with stools? Page 71. See, everything!

I must admit I haven’t read it cover to cover. I don’t think it was meant to be read that way though. I read the sections on newborns and the first year. I figure by the time I get past the first year I’ll just use the handy index to figure out how to deal with puberty and toilet training. It’s good to know that I have a resource of answers any time I may need.

My only argument against this book is that you can pretty much google this stuff to get the answers. However, google obviously isn’t a doctor and will give you 206 different opinions. This book serves as an easy one source for general questions. It doesn’t go into depth on each issue so this isn’t a one book library. I would still recommend a few books that go into detail on child care.

Note: There are many different versions of this book. Don’t be cheap by buying the 2nd edition – the medical community’s verdict on things have changed drastically over the years.

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What’s Going on in There? : How the Brain and Mind Develop in the First Five Years of Life is another book about brain development in children.  It goes through all the 5 senses and how they develop from in utero through childhood.  Then it goes into motor, social and language development, among other things.  I have truly enjoyed reading this book.  I have learned so many cool things that I would read aloud to my husband.  Like how cool is it that spinning in an office chair with your baby in your lap helps their vestibular development??  Or that babies really love your breast milk after you eat garlic??  Or that babies can recognize their mother’s face among other female faces within hours of birth??   This baby development stuff is amazing.

The book is very detailed and refers to many clinical and psychological case studies.  It does not gloss over issues or give you broad generalizations.  Sometimes I felt like I was back in neurobiology or psychology classes.  In fact some of the cases I remember learning in my classes.  So if you are not into the science behind brain development, this book is not for you.  But if you like to know the details and find yourself asking “why?” then you’ll love this book.

My husband keeps asking me “how many times are you going to read that book?”  The truth is I’ve only read it twice, but I’ve read it much slower than I typically read books because I am so interested in it and I want to remember all these cool things.  Now that I’ve read it twice I’m hitting myself in the head for not using a highlighter the second time.  I kept thinking I was going to resell it, so didn’t use a highlighter.  However, now I think this book will be a permantent part of my library (a merit few books attain).

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This is another pregnancy organizer, similar to Pregnancy To-Do’s.  This one has a bit more content, with information for each section.  It allows you to keep track of your prenatal appointments, interviews, shopping list, packing list, and more.  I found the lists in this book to be more extensive and in depth than the lists in Pregnancy To-Do’s.  This could be a good thing, but in general I found that I prefered Pregnancy To-Do’s because it was simpler and easier.  I liked the way 40 weeks + has a calendar in the front that you fill in dates with, and I also like the way they divide the book into categories with tabs.  This one also had a weight gain log that I missed in Pregnancy To-Do’s.  I ended up using both of these in conjunction.  However, I think I relied on the Pregnancy To-Do’s as my work horse.  And If i had to pick only one to have, it would have to be Pregnancy T0-Do’s.  This was is also more expensive by $9, and that’s important.

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Pregnancy To-Do's

This isn’t a book that you read, it’s a spiral bound notebook with lots of neat lists that help you stay organized during pregnancy.  I have definitely gotten my use out of this book.  When I was going through the agonizing process of finding a daycare, I used this book to interview different daycares.  I used it to interview my pediatrician, to keep track of my dr visits, to make registry lists and lots of lists, lists, lists.

In addition to being very useful, it’s so darn adorable.  And it comes with these sticky tabs to keep track of important pages.  It also has a pocket in the back to keep papers.  I kept all of our ultrasound pictures in the pocket.  My one wish?  A weight log.  I realize not everyone wants to log their weight gain, but I’m crazy like that.

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Playful Parenting

Playful Parenting by Lawrence Cohen, Ph.D. explains the importance of play in a child’s life and how you can use play to get through to kids on their level. Cohen is a psychologist that uses play therapy. With all the importance on learning and I.Q., many people have begun to think of play time as wasting time. This book shows you why that could not be farther from the truth. Playing helps children learn, helps their confidence, social connections, communication, and so much more. Play is a child’s work, and it is important stuff.

One thing I really enjoyed about this book is all the stories about the author’s play experiences with different children. He gives lots of examples how play helped different children through something in their life. Wether it be bullying, loneliness, trust, or any other trouble – play can help children deal with their feelings and cope.

While I did enjoy this book, and I am glad I read it, I think it is more fitting to read when you have children that are at the play age. I know I will forgot most of the play exercises before I ever have a child old enough to play. I will keep this book in my library and re-read it when I have a child that is the toddler age.

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The Happiest Baby on the Block

The Happiest Baby on the Block by Dr. Harvey Karp reveals the 5 S’s to make your baby sleep happily. I am probably the least qualified person to review this book since I don’t have a screaming infant that I need to make happy. yet. I will re-visit this review once I have the ear bleeding crying experience.

In my limited experience this book SEEMS like it was great and I am planning on implementing all 5 S’s pronto. The evidence Dr. Karp gives in his book all makes sense and in theory I believe this method would calm an infant. The book has great reviews everywhere you look. Most of the parent reviewers claim this method worked on their bundle of joy.

The book is an easy read, and I bet even a sleep deprived, insanity driven new parent could read and absorb the information needed. The book introduces five S’s (swaddling, side/stomach, shhhing, swinging, sucking) and explains in detail how to perform each S successfully. One criticism I read about this book stated the information in the 288 pages could have been condensed into a short essay. While this may be true, I think the full book is necessary to understand the importance of all the S’s and how to do each properly. Like Dr. Karp says, you have to do each step correctly, in order, and with the correct intensity. Overall I was very happy I read this book. I feel it will help prepare me a little to at least know what to do with a crying baby… instead of crying myself.

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The No Cry Sleep Solution

The No-Cray Sleep Solution by Elizabeth Pantley is a great alternative to the “cry it out” method. I am already dreading the sleep-deprivation brought on by an infant. So I welcome any ideas to help a mother get more sleep by letting baby get more sleep. I’ve never read any of the “cry it out” books, but just the science behind that method tells me it is not the method I want to use. Many of the books I’ve read talk of the importance of letting your infant know you will respond to their needs. As I learned from my reading, distressed crying in babies set of the hormone cortisol. When you respond to the baby by picking it up or attending to it’s needs, this cortisol is quickly turned off. However, letting the child continue to cry raises the level of cortisol higher and higher. In the long term, people who had high levels of this cortisol often suffer with anxiety, depression, and general oversensitivity to stress. After learning the scientific ramifications of crying it out, it just is not something I am willing to subject a child to.  Maybe I’ll change my mind later; I may end up being a big fat hypocrite.  Who knows…

Having said that, the no cry sleep solution gives parent’s a way to help sleep train their baby that is loving, nurturing, and safe. The book gives you one part for newborn babies up to four months, and another for babies four months to two years. Some of it was common sense but the part that made the book was the strategic plan to get more sleep. I really liked the way they approached the problem. First you audit the babies sleeping habits, make a few suggested changes, keep a log and then re-asses after ten days. They even provide you with a personal sleep plan worksheet. I am very happy I read this book and I feel like I will be well-armed when I do have a baby that won’t go to sleep

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The Science of Parenting

The Science of Parenting by Margot Sunderland had such good reviews on Amazon that I was really excited to begin reading. I expected it to be scientific and intelligent based on it’s title. However, I was really disappointed once I started reading.

The book is filled with pretty pictures and LARGE magazine style text. The actual content could probably fill 20 pages of a regular book instead of the 288 found here. I felt like the book was pre-digested and distilled down to be idiot-proof. I could be wrong, but I would think anyone reading a book on the science of parenting, and interested in raising intelligent children would not need this elementary school style book.

Yes, this book does discuss some of the important psychological studies that have been done in the field of child development. However, the book assumes you couldn’t possibly understand how this crazy scientific process works, so it glazes over some of the most interesting studies and dumbs them down to the point of dullness.

Overall I much preferred both Einstein Never Used Flash Cards and What’s going on in There, which talk about these interesting studies in much more depth. I must give a disclosure though- I do have a scientific background and I am insanely interested in the details, so it’s possible that someone just wanting the big picture summary might actually enjoy this book.

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Jo Frost’s Confident Baby Care: What You Need to Know for the First Year from America’s Most Trusted Nanny covers all the basics of taking care of a baby. I was quite pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this book.

I have watched the show and am always amazed how great she is with kids and how fast she is able to turn around a family. Of course my husband reminds me that THIS IS A TV SHOW and there are probably out takes of her yelling at those damn bratty kids. But on TV she is always great, and Nanny Jo is comforting and reassuring even in her writing.

Since she seems so ridiculously perfect, you might expect her tone to be of the greater than thou tinge. And yet, she writes with a style that is very humble and helpful. She reminds you that “it’s okay” and that you will feel like you are at you’re wits end at time – but that it’s okay – breathe.

If you already have lots of experience with infants, this book may not be as helpful to you. However, I see an infant as a completely foreign alien creature and I have no idea how the little alien works. So I really needed a book like this. She teaches you how to swaddle, what to feed baby, how to calm baby, etc. Now I feel that I know a little more about this creature called baby.

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