The Modern Girl's Guide to Motherhood

With Matt laid up for the next few weeks, I HAD to get out of the house a few times. Friday, it was the library. After checking out the new releases section, I wandered over to the parenting/childcare section and got the Complete Baby Care video I wrote about earlier, Heading Home with Your Newborn, an updated Consumer Reports Best Baby Products, Cozy Knits for Cuddly Babies, and The Modern Girl's Guide to Motherhood.

TMGGM really could've been broken into two sections: one on prenatal/postnatal/newborn care, and the other on caring for toddlers. If you are having your first baby, you can get away with skipping around rather than reading the whole thing like I did. Most of the content is very worth the read.

It goes over:

• What you need to prepare for a new baby (I've come across about a half-dozen of these lists, and they all have slightly different things. My only recommendation on that is NOT to get one from a place like Babies R Us...they are pretty incented to get you to buy!)
• Labor, birth, legalities, postpartum recovery, and choosing daycare
• The first few weeks home, including dealing with visitors
• Feeding considerations
• Sleep patterns
• Baby care, emergencies, vaccinations, and milestones
• Instilling good behavior, communicating, discipline (This is one of the chapters I think is most helpful. I like the idea of redirecting with"yes" behavior instead of saying "no" all the time. "You want to throw the ball? Let's go outside; we don't throw the ball inside the house." I think the RIE method is worth looking into as well.)
• Breaking old or bad habits and potty training
• Recommended toys and games, playdates, and picking a preschool

I'd definitely refer to this book again once my baby is a toddler. And bless my library card; after reading this, I have a list of other books I want to check out. Matt thinks that by the time I actually HAVE the baby, I should qualify for a degree in early childhood care and education.