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HELLO, EXPECTING MAMAS! If you’re looking for a great stocking stuffer for an expecting mama, or you are one yourself, here it is! Expecting Better by Emily Oster is by far the best book for pregnant moms. This book was such a lifesaver, and it helped calm my nerves so much being pregnant with my first. But I also, on many occasions, referred back to it when I was pregnant with my second!
Honestly, I live and breathe Emily Oster. She is so thorough and easy to read, and she helps take the guesswork out of pregnancy and motherhood by giving you the information and helping you help yourself to make decisions. Parenthood is one wild fucking journey, and Oster gets it. In fact, she wrote her books as a product of her own pregnancy and journey as a mother (um, hello, role model)!
Oster essentially goes through a data review of the common pregnancy questions (foods to avoid, what to drink/or not, etc.) and gives you the tools to make the decision for yourself. It is VERY easy to read and understand, even if you have no clue about any research methods or data. Oster explains the flaws in the studies and then tells you what decision she made.
She’s like a Real Mama Girlfriend, giving you good advice by laying out all the data for you. She’s judgment-free and really just wants to help you make the best decisions for you and your family. I have loved ALL of her books and will be doing reviews of her other ones as well. But if you’re looking for something real and data-driven to make smart decisions for what is right for your family, Emily Oster’s Expecting Better is the book for you. Click this link to get your copy in time for the holidays!
Book review
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We live in a condo building in the city, and when I was pregnant with my daughter, my downstairs neighbor was also pregnant with her first! So we often commiserated on how terrible morning sickness was and how we were somewhat grateful to be pregnant during a pandemic so we could teach from home.
We also exchanged book recommendations. She suggested I read this book called The Happiest Baby on the Block by Harvey Karp. I was obsessed with reading anything and everything I could before my daughter was born (heck, before I was even pregnant!). So I had it ordered on Amazon as I walked back up the steps.
Now this book is crucial to any new parents out there. It honestly gave my husband the bullet point basics he needed to soothe a baby. You don’t even have to read the whole book if you’re strapped for time (like your baby is OUT and already screaming!). There’s a middle section you can skip to and get the basics.
But of course, I was reading this months in advance, and like the nerd I am, I read the whole book. I don’t half-ass stuff that makes me super anxious. I am obnoxiously thorough. The scariest thing about having a baby was not changing the diapers, how to hold them, bathing them, or giving them a bottle. I have a nine and ten-year difference with my two younger siblings, so I was not a stranger to those things.
The thing I struggled with the most as a parent was feeling like I wanted to “know it all” and to “get it right.” I couldn’t possibly leave a book unread that could help me be the best mom I could be.
So I read it all, no shortcuts for me. Was it worth it? Yes. Was it necessary? Not really. Was it fascinating? YES (cue nerd emoji).
You learn all about the “fourth trimester” and how you just need to mimic the womb outside the womb. For example, the importance of noise (white noise), swaddling, sucking, and motion. Honestly, my husband (who has not read a single thing and gets all the abbreviated versions from me) said that this was by far the most helpful information I had given him. Other soon-to-be parents I recommend this book to also tell me that they find it incredibly helpful and feel so much more confident being able to soothe their baby.
This book is a game changer. Click here for my affiliate link!
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Out of all the pre-pregnancy books I read, this one is GOLD. When my husband and I first started seriously discussing having a family (see earlier post, “From The Beginning”), I fell into a deep spiral of anxious thoughts. I kept thinking, “shit, my life is over.” No more travel. No more late nights. No more sleep. Oh, the sleep! How I will miss you, Sleep!
This book is honestly the only thing that grounded me. I read it months before we even started trying to have a baby. Pamela Druckerman is hilarious and so real. She essentially is detailing her life living in France as an ex-pat and her experiences raising her children there. Coming from a Greek immigrant family, there were a lot of threads of similarity between French parenting and Greek parenting.
There were little nuggets of wisdom that I still remember and guide my parenting to this day. Like trying not to say “no” as much as possible so that it counts when you do say it. Or having larger overarching rules, with lots of wiggle room for children to still have freedom (and then ultimately increasing how much they listen to you…sort of). Like saying you have to try everything on your plate, but you don’t have to eat it all, or you have to stay in your room after bedtime, but you don’t have to sleep.
Druckerman essentially did something for me that What to Expect When You’re Expecting could never do. She gave me a sense of calm through stories and examples. Honestly, I stopped reading What to Expect When You’re Expecting (though I still had the app and watched the videos) because it was overwhelming me with information. It felt like I needed to memorize a bunch of facts in order to be “good” at mothering, and that was just the pregnancy portion. The 12,000-page (I exaggerate) book doesn’t even cover what the fuck you’re supposed to do when the baby comes out!
Druckerman, thank you. You kept this mama sane. Even before she was a mama. Run to get you a copy of this bad boy. It is WORTH IT.
Blog Archive
- Stubborn Babe
The newborn phase is tough. Sleepless nights; waking every three or so hours; operating in a haze of confusion and anger; hating my husband for not being able to bear and birth children (I mean come on…my… Read more: Stubborn Babe - Lovevery Play Subscription Kits
I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post. Mother’s day is upon us! Do you know of any expectant mothers? This is the perfect gift idea or registry item! I’m a teacher. That means… Read more: <strong>Lovevery Play Subscription Kits</strong> - Poop Chronicles: Gifting Shit
When becoming a parent, you should’ve known that your role was synonymous with poop. If you didn’t, let this be your shitty wake-up call! If you’ve read one of my previous posts in this category, you already… Read more: <strong>Poop Chronicles: Gifting Shit </strong> - Picture Perfect
Ahh, the holiday season. Where you get beautiful photos with family and friends showing you how wonderful their children are shaping up to be. Spectacularly crafted cards that line your fridge, doorway, or maybe even a fancy… Read more: Picture Perfect - The Poop Chronicles II: Shit Eventually Happens
If you’ve read my previous post, you know that parenthood is all about dealing with shit. Literally. Shit. Though my daughter is notorious for her poop crib painting (see the previous post here), my son has quite… Read more: <strong>The Poop Chronicles II: Shit Eventually Happens </strong> - Sicky Bedtime
When your husband has to go into the office, and you have to bedtime by yourself, and they are both sick… Get dinner ready; Aria yelling because she’s hangry; Rio screams; hold Rio; don’t finish my dinner,… Read more: Sicky Bedtime - Sickland, Many
Being a pandemic mom honestly has a few perks. I got to be home the entire time I was pregnant with Aria for over a year. And we got to spend her first year of life essentially… Read more: <strong>Sickland, Many</strong> - From the Beginning…
It all started in January 2020. My husband and I were in Napa for New Year’s, and according to our timeline, we were planning on having a child that year (I know you’re out there thinking, “this… Read more: From the Beginning… - Regression without progression? A tale of a tired mama
Have you ever heard a parent talk about their child’s “sleep regression”? Just nonchalantly say something like, “oh yeah, we went through a terrible four-month sleep regression,” or “just wait until that sleep regression.” It always seemed… Read more: Regression without progression? A tale of a tired mama - Parental Torture
I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post. Did you ever wonder if parenthood is for you? Do you like action films? Then, see any torture scenes, delete the assailant, and add your friendly… Read more: Parental Torture - The Poop Chronicles I: Painting Shit
I feel like no one really told us the truth about parenting. None of the things I read and people I talked to told us what it’s all about: shit. I mean that, literally. Feces. Poop. Crap.… Read more: The Poop Chronicles I: Painting Shit - An Hour in the Life of a Real Mama (stream of consciousness)
I finally get both babies on a schedule where they nap at the same time…give Aria lunch, keep Rio awake in the bouncer, change Rio’s diaper, put Rio down to sleep, change Arias’s diaper, put Aria down… Read more: An Hour in the Life of a Real Mama (stream of consciousness) - Welcome!
Become a parent, they say. It’ll be fun, they say. As I type this, my one-month-old just got to sleep, and my 18-month-old just woke from her nap. I maybe have time to write a sentence before… Read more: Welcome!
