Best Pregnancy and Baby Book

Anything by Dr. Sears
A thinking woman's guide to a better birth - Henci Goer
Ina May's Guide to Childbirth - Ina May Gaskin
Birthing from Within - Pam England and Rob Horowitz

Belly Laughs was great...even my husband enjoyed a few chapters...a lighter look at what pregnancy is all about : - )

I enjoyed the book by the Mayo Clinic. Also, What to exepect when expecting, but personally, I liked the Mayo Clinic better.

Congratulations!!

The Girlfriend's Guide books!! HILARIOUS and helpful at the same time. There are parts where she would say, "Now hand the book to your husband so he can read the next paragraph" and it might talk about not taking personally if you snap at him in labor or something, but she makes it funny. :)

definitely 'What to expect when you're expecting'. It was very useful. I also used pregnancy websites that were also very informative. it's good to stay informed because a lot of the time your dr./nurse doesn't always give u all the info.

I really liked From the Hips by Rebecca Odes. It covered a lot of interesting topics (like the history of breastfeeding) and explored how you'll feel about yourself after having a baby in a funny, realistic sort of way. It gave me that "you're not alone" feeling about topics where I had anxiety.

Congrats and Good Luck!

I loved the book "Pregnancy Sucks." They also have the guys version "Pregnancy Sucks for Men." Everyone gets "What to Expect When You are Expecting" and it's very helpful and easier to read than "The Pregnancy Bible" but there are better pics in "The Pregnancy Bible." Good luck!! I hope you have an easy pregnancy.

Armin Brotts books. They are written for the
father, but I found them perfectly to the point.

The Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy--by far, in my opinion, the most informative pregnancy/childbirth book.

The Baby Book--Dr. Sears--great resource for the 1st year.

The Happeist Baby on the Block--Dr. Karp--This book saved my sanity for the first few months!

I have a toddler now and use Toddler 411 ALL THE TIME. There's also Baby 411 which I've heard is great! I'll get that the next time around.

the what to expect series-goes through toddlers

I Love the PORTABLE PEDIATRICIAN it goes from birth to 5 years and covers everything in a very easy to read format by age. I also like BABY 411 because it is broken down by topic instead of age for a brief synopsis of stuff like sleep issues, feeding, potty training etc.
My mom gave my hubby "The Expectant Father" and it has excellent info on stuff like saving for college, taxes,wills & trusts etc. that NONE of the other books even mention as well as the usual stuff from a Dad's point of view.
The Girlfriend's Guide is funny and entertaining but no newsflashes.
Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child might be a good idea to read BEFORE the baby comes to get a jump start on your sleeping plans. I wish I'd read that one ahead of time ;)

Hi there,

These have already been mentioned, but wanted to suggest them again:

Ina May's Guide to Childbirth - Ina May Gaskin
(kind of crunchy granola book, but love how it made me feel more prepared for the birth and feel empowered instead of afraid)

The Girlfriend's Guide to Pregnancy
(really funny look at pregnancy)

Mayo Clinic guide to pregnancy
(like it better than "What to Expect When Expecting")

Dr. Sears baby book, I think up to 2 years
(really helped when I was freaking out about things :)

Also, the BabyCenter weekly emails while pregnant. I don't like he ones they send after your baby is born as much.

Congratulations!

H.

your pregnancy week by week , was invaluable during my first pregnancy.

By far - 'The Grilfriends Guide to Pregnancy' is the best book to introcude you to what goes on with your body during pregnancy - and I was in tears laughing so hard, it was really liek sititng down with some great girlfriends for support. I found mine at a thrift store - its at least 10 years old so I'm sure you can get a copy cheap!!

"Your Baby's First Year Week By Week" by Glade Curtis and Judith Schuler was the most useful GENERAL baby book that I read. There are better books out there, of course, on sleep techniques or colic or such, but this book is great because it explains what your baby is going through each week, what milestones s/he is hitting, what s/he is learning, etc. My husband and I would sit down once or twice a week and read about the upcoming week, and it was fun to talk about what our baby was doing and to see the things we were observing there in print, either in a "Ah, he already did that this week!" or a "That's cool, that he'll be learning that next week," or even a "Thank goodness! It's normal!" sense each week. ^_^

the best advice I used for the baby came from "The Baby Whisperer"--
"Start as you mean to go on"
great thoughts for day-to-day with a newborn

Dr. William Sears - Healthiest child in the neighborhood. And also "what to expect when you are expecting" Congradulations to you!!

The Wonder Weeks --every mom should read it!

I love The Baby Book by Dr Sears, it has all the answers, and so practical

Pregnancy Week by Week only has a few pages per week to read so it is an easy read but packed with info. A funny book that I loved was Belly Laughs by Jenny McCarthy (this is where I learned that it is common to poop while you're pushing! :))

Belly Laughs was hysterical! I loved it and even made my hubby read bits of it bc I could say, "see, being this crazy hormonal is normal!" haha Medical books don't exactly say that. And the most helpful book to read about caring for the baby is Happiest Baby on the Block. Hands down, it was a life saver!! Congrats and best of luck! :)

My favorite book was "Your Pregnancy Week By Week". It has descriptions of the changes that your body AND your baby's body are going through. It also has drawings of what your baby is looking like each week. It has really good tips for Mom. My husband enjoyed this book, too.

It was also really helpful with helping our daughter understand what was happening. It helped answer her "what does the baby look like questions". It made her brother more realistic to her, she understood better about why she couldn't sit on my lap as easily, why my belly was moving, and made her feel more involved as a Big Sister. She was more protective of my abdomen and her brother because she understood that there was a person in there. She was almost 2 yrs 11 mons when we found out about being pregnant and 3 yrs 8 mons when our son was born. While she wasn't asking in-depth, technical questions, it helped us answer he questions on her level without giving info she wasn't interested in.

The "What To Expect" Series is also really good. The first book that I read was "What To Expect When You're Expecting". The series continues with "What To Expect The First Year" or maybe "...The First Five Years", I believe, and goes on with the older ages. They have calendars and other co-ordinating items.

If you are expecting: Cangratulations! If you're in the planning stages: Good Luck! and Have Fun Getting There! ;~>

I loved "Baby Bargains" by Denise Fields and her hubby to help figure out how to spend my money wisely.

"Baby 411" was probably my most often used resource for the first year, and now I'm using "Toddler 411" regularly. Those two are both by Denise Fields and Dr. Ari.....hmmm...can't remember her last name! Sorry!

Now that I'm pregnant with my second, I'm reading a lot of child birth books - I was fortunate to have an unmedicated vaginal delivery with my first and would like to do the same with this one. If you're inclined to do the same but not able or interested in doing a home birth, check out "Homebirth In The Hospital" by Dr. Kerr.

Ina May's Guide to Childbirth is absolutely wonderful.