Congratulations are in order.
You’re going to be a parent! Or you already are, and you feel like it’s a constant learning curve. Either way, there’s a book for that, one to help you survive this life change, one to help you be a better parent, one to keep you laughing – like, say, these great books on parenting…
Having a baby today is not like it was when Mom was a new mom. Still, she may be a big help in that department, and “Hiccups: A Pediatrician Mom’s Guide to Surviving Your First Year of Parenthood” by Diane Arnaout, MD, FAAP (Bloomsbury, $26.95) could also answer lots of questions.
So you bring Baby home – and then what? This helpful book, written by a pediatrician who’s also somebody’s mother, takes you through those first days with the kind of comfort you’ll need, all the way up to your child’s first birthday. Best of all, Arnaout writes about caring for your infant, but there’s equal time paid to taking care of you, too.
No doubt, you’ve harbored hopes and dreams about being a parent for years. So did Jess Hilarious and in her memoir, “’Til Death Do We Parent: Raising My Kid with His Dad” (Black Privilege Publishing / Atria, $28.00), you’ll see how it goes – or, as it might turn out, sometimes doesn’t.
Before becoming a mother, Hilarious was a stand-up comic and an actress with expectations of marrying the man she’d loved since high school. Having a baby first, she figured, would make the dream solid, and so she got pregnant but things had to be reconfigured.
So did the relationship with her son’s father, and this is her story. It’s a tale of co-parenting, sorting out feelings and realities, grown-up relationships and the absolute love of a little kid whose needs have to come first. Mothers of littles who live separately from Dad will especially want this book.
And finally, if your child is a bit older and you worry that they’re also a lot bigger, then “Your Child is Not Their Weight: Parenting in a Size-Obsessed World” by Joey Skelton, MD, MS, FAAP (American Academy of Pediatrics, $19.95) is a book you’ll want to read.
A healthy child is paramount, of course, but if you’ve been told that your kid needs to shave off a few pounds, you might feel embarrassed. It could change things in your entire family but here, Dr. Skelton takes a calmer look at childhood obesity and weight. Learn how to talk to your child about eating and exercise (it can be fun!), how to know when body image is unrealistic, and how to deal with the rest of the world when your son or daughter needs to lose weight. It’s a book that’s timely and helpful.
And if these parenting books aren’t enough, then head to your favorite bookstore or library. The staff there can point you to entire sections on pregnancy, childbirth, infants, and raising kids. They’ll hand you what you need, or help you with its order.
