What I've Been Reading...

So remember when I used to talk about all the books I read?

And how I wanted to read a book a week?

HA!

For the past year, all I've read are pregnancy and child raising books...or that is how it feels anyway! Here is a rundown of what I've read and how I feel about it in general...  And forgive me for being really detailed on some and not on others - I'm a bit tired this evening :)

What to Expect... - for a rundown of all of their books or to check out more of their resources, go to www.whattoexpect.com. I read "What to Expect Before You're Expecting," "Eating Well When You're Expecting," and, of course, "What to Expect When You're Expecting."  I also have the app on my phone because I like to see which vegetable Cam is this week (it compares your baby's size to a fruit or veggie) and because they have forums where people are just ridiculous.

I did tell a lie.  I didn't read the entire second one on the list.  I read about half the content and didn't read the recipes in the back.

So - the good stuff - All of these books give you lots of details in a very conversational way.  You learn things (that I will not discuss here) that you never even knew were possible - ranging from trying to get pregnant to breastfeeding and beyond.  They also encompass many different situations or possibilities - like they touch on medicated and natural childbirth, bottle and breast-feeding, etc.  So fairly specific information about lots of topics that have to do with pregnancy.

And the not so good stuff - these books jump around ALOT.  There is not a page that does not have an excerpt or little box that strays away from the paragraph form of the book.  I'm a bit OCD, so this just bugged me to have little interruptions on just about every page.  What this does accomplish is it makes the book a quick read by breaking up the monotony of just paragraph after paragraph.

The other part that bugs me is that this book is so popular (I mean, they are making a freaking movie by the same name) that people take it as gospel - an example would be a popular concept is gaining 1 pound a week after your first trimester.  So if you gain more or less, you feel like you are doing a terrible job at being pregnant and you'll in turn be a terrible mother...well maybe only I felt that way...but the point is you should talk to your doctor about how much weight you gain and eating in a healthy fashion. Period. No secret dieting shame when you're pregnant.

Speaking of gospel, the next book I read was "The Pregnancy Bible."  One word - INTENSE.  So take all of the fluffy stuff and give a pregnant woman a textbook with a baby on the cover.  Dang.  I had to take a couple weeks off because there was so much information.  Holy cow.  This book is great because it has a lot of the same information as the "What to Expect" books, but in a much more scientific manner.  I would suggest it over the "What to Expect" books just because of the shear (did I spell that right) amount of data in it.  And it isn't that hard to read...

Books on Natural Childbirth

I haven't blogged about this yet, and I think I will at some point in time, but, at this point, I'll just say that I am planning on a natural childbirth and preparing myself for it now.  We are taking the Bradley Method classes, so these books have been "assigned" to read (we totally don't have to read them, but I'm an overachiever (freak) I guess) - they basically correspond with what we are learning in the class and you can read them as an extra bonus if you want.  So - I'm just going to run down the list...

"Husband-Coached Childbirth" - I'm about halfway through this one, only because I'm a bit pooped on reading about the whole childbirth thing.

"Natural Childbirth the Bradley Way" - I actually really liked this book - except there are 300 nudey pictures from the '70s.  I had my glucose test and took this book with me not realizing this and was too embarrassed to read it in the waiting room.  Content = great.  Nudey pics = not so much.

"Ina Mays Guide to Natural Childbirth" - 1/2 natural birth stories, 1/2 book on giving birth.  I have only made it through about half of the birth stories and I had to stop.  I have a bit of a short attention span and it was a little hippy for me.

Philosophies on Child-Rearing

I have nothing better to call this category of books, but I think these two fall in the same space - "The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding" and "On Becoming Babywise."  These books are total polar opposites on how to raise your kiddo.  I can't comment on them without sounding like I am bashing the parenting styles represented by each of them, so I'm just going to keep that part to myself for the moment.  I feel both have great information and hope to land in the middle of both of the philosophies - there, politically correct blogging :)

Misc. Pregnancy Books - I told you I was crazy.

"Get Ready, Get Pregnant" - It has been a long time since I read this one, but it was a lot about preparing your body and your home for being pregnant.  So healthy eating and living basically.  It did go into a diatribe and made me fearful to drink water from any source (more on that at another time), but I remember it being OK (a little dry if memory serves me correctly).

"Pregnancy Dos and Don'ts"- this book is alphabetized, and since I have Google, I don't really need it.

"Your Pregnancy MD - The First Trimester" - this book is one of my favorites.  It is written by a doctor and not slanted at all (in my opinion).  It takes you week by week through your symptoms, what the baby is doing, what your body is doing, risks, tests, etc.  I highly recommend.

"The Everything Green Baby Book" - It was OK.  I'm sure I could have taken more away from it and will probably read it again at some point.  It's been a while since I read it.

"One Year to an Organized Life With Baby" - I am reading this right now and wish I would have heard about it sooner.  Basically, it takes you through your entire pregnancy and gets your booty organized with one small project a week.  It. Is. Awesome.  It is the only book I read that takes into account that we are humans and we have messy houses, un-filed papers, chaotic closets, etc.  I definitely want to read the rest of her books about being organized with finances, work, and life in general.  Anyone surprised?

"The Birth Partner" - I haven't read this one yet - I honestly forgot I had it...

Ok - that is my rant on baby books.  If I can give one piece of advice, read something. Even if you aren't a reader, even if you know your husband won't read it (mine won't), find a resource and find out what is going on with your bod and your baby.  It is overwhelming at first, but by the time 20 or 30 weeks rolls around, you'll be glad you did.

B

Ps.  I also watched "The Business of Being Born."  I had never seen a childbirth, so that was a wake up call - but it is about natural childbirth and the recent history of childbirth in the United States.  I will warn you that it is slanted to natural childbirth and against medicated childbirth, so keep that in mind if you don't live in that camp and would find that offensive.