Infants Books

How I wish a book like this had been available a few years ago! When I went through my devastating loss at 25 weeks gestation, the only books available were dry, impersonal books that attempted to explain the grief process and how to get through it. It was hard to get through more than one of those. This book lets you live it through real families and their experiences. It reads like a novel, but it is all true. Even if you have never personally had losses like these, you might someday know someone who will, and this will help you understand what to say - and most importantly, what NOT to say.

I could not put this book down. I felt like the author was reading my mind. The pain and devastation of losing a baby is indescribable, yet the author described it perfectly. She gave a heartbreaking, honest description of the range of emotions that bereaved parents go through-from the lowest point to having hope for the future. I cried and even laughed out loud in several parts because the situations described were so similar to my own. I especially loved the way she conveyed what she was thinking in different situations. This book is amazing!!! At the end, the reader is left with a sense of hope. I enjoyed reading this book so much, that I donated my copy to my Share group so that others can benefit from it!

As someone who lost a child at 23 weeks gestation, this book expressed what I was feeling inside.

We regretfully join a club that no one wanted to, but when you find out you are not alone, it eases the grief just a tiny bit and that is exatly what this book does.

Thank you for writing this book Monica.

The "Good Grief Club" is a honest and raw account of lives that have been touched by the unimaginable loss of their babies. It is wonderfully written and threads seven women's lives together. As a reader you are captivated by their stories and as a bereaved parent you are thrust into their pain, sorrow, grief and eventually, hope. It was very easy to connect with Mrs. Novak and I found myself sharing and relating to the darkness, heartache and tears and then one day, like them, seeing a light, a ray of hope and new joy again.

As a bereaved parent I've read many books about losing a child, but I highly recommend The Good Grief Club. This book is an honest account of what this "new" life is like for parents who have experienced a loss. At times the words on the page mirrored things that I have felt and thought, which I found reassuring. With her words, Monica Novak finds a way to convey to readers all of the complicated thoughts and emotions that go along with losing a child, while also instilling a sense of hope that one day the pain will begin to subside. I would recommend this book to anyone who has experienced the heartache of pregnancy loss, still birth or neonatal death, or to anyone who would like to better understand the grueling process of grief and how to help those that have experienced the loss of a child.

I bought this book while expecting our daughter, who we know will have to spend a fair amount of time in the NICU. I had never heard of the concept before, and after reading the book, am convinced that it is a wonderful concept and I can't wait to try it!

Kangaroo care is an excellent book for people with preemee's. It takes you through all the aspects of what is happening during the first few days or months of your young ones life. Nothing is left to the imagination.

Upon reading this book, one finds that it's very clear the author is extremely supportive of the use of Kangaroo Care to cure just about whatever may ail your premature baby. Despite the repetitiveness of this, the book is chock-full of just about everything you'd need to know about Kangaroo Care.

I also found it was quite informative in the realm of not only the care of preemies (and their signs of distress/contentment), but of full-term infants as well. So, if you're wondering how best to help your small and/or sick baby in the NICU, or are wondering just what benefits the act of such skin-to-skin contact can bring to both you and your full-term newborn, the book is a very good--and helpful--read.

I discovered this book in January, 1995, when it was very little known. My son was born 8 weeks premature in a Honolulu, hospital that had never heard of Kangaroo Care. He was transferred to NICU at a military hospital after 11 days so I never did the KC there, but I did pass my book on to my son's neonatologist in hopes that this would be available for future parents/premies. I did KC as often as I was able at the military hospital and my son came off all meds and monitors 3 wks after his early birth. All he had to do was gain weight. He come home a mere 4 weeks after his birth, and 4 weeks before he original due date! I continued to Kangaroo him at home, all day long some days and he gained so fast it was miraculous!
Two and a half years later I gave birth to a full term daughter but used KC again because, "it couldn't hurt" and we never suffered those backwards hours that newborns have and I bounced back faster after this birth because I was resting more. Kangaroo Care is worth buying, in fact buy two so you will still have one when you pass one on!! :-)

Our full-term (37wk) son was in the NICU due to a birth defect. This method was explained to us as we started to be able to hold him and I was trying to teach him to nurse. All I can say is IT WORKS. He was able to go home at 6 wks when we were told he would probably be in for than 3 mos. min. When you think about it it makes sense...this baby was inside you and close to you for however many months you carried him/her. Don't you think dropping the child in a "box" with no human contact would be a shock to the system? I think that "normal" babies could probably benefit from this too. Lord willing, I'll get a chance to prove my theory. :-)

So, before I begin my review of this product, here's our background... our son who is currently 6 weeks has had to be sent to the hospital with gas pains so severe that the emergency room doctors were concerned that he might be trying to pass a kidney stone. Turns out he was allergic to soy, we had tried breast, standard formula and lactose intolerance formula. He had a negative reaction to all (including breast believe it or not, I went through tests also to determine what was in my milk even though I was on a mild diet.... cause was deemed later on to be for a substance need, our baby needed rice formula). So..... we tried just the rice formula with the children's mylicon with the VentAire bottles.... somewhat of an improvement, but our child was still needing to go to the doctor weekly for checkups without much success, our pediatrician would even call us daily to see how he was doing. Constipation was questioned, but was never an issue. Our breakthrough occurred when we took our son to a specialist appointment and the lady asking us if our son had excess gas since she noticed that Mylicon was listed as one of his meds. I stated quickly yes and told her of our ordeal. I was told that she was the grandmother of 5 children and a mother of 3 and had tried EVERYTHING to cure their extreme colic. The remedy they found, Hyland's colic tablets, Dr. Brown's bottles, and rice formula. After the doctor appointment I went to the store to give these products a try....... and it was like an angel had spoken to us. Our child could breathe again and was longer tense in the body, as he was making progress against constantly trying to push. I know that I'm being candid but I am hoping that this will help other parents and children that have been or will be in our situation. We are on day 4 of the product switch and WOW, he's a brand new baby! If these products can help a child who's been hospitalized, hopefully these can help yours as well. Pedialyte also works as well to help calm the tummy. I've been using tylenol every 5 hours (excluding when he sleeps) for the first week and have been continuing to use the Mylicon to help with the surface gas. Burping has never been an issue, but his burps and toots have become louder and more productive, sometimes just shifting him in our arms can help him to expel gas! I'll be making this post in numerous areas in hopes to help people.

Hyland's colic tablets, Dr. Brown bottles, Enfamil AR Lipil, infant's tylenol, gas drops is literally our formula to success.

I purchased this book after my son was diagnosed with GERD at 7 weeks old. I read it within 2 days and couldn't believe how many struggles and obsticles Roni and her family had to go through to get little Shae-Lynn diagnosed. I was fortuned and only had to see 2 doctors until he got the help he needed.
The book is awesome and I was crying with all the things that they had to go through, on some I just nodded my head because my son was the same way. And on other things I just felt so sorry for them and was thankful that my son's GERD wasn't as bad.
I'm also glad that they wrote this book so the public can see what parents of children with GERD got through on a day to day basis. I hear a lot from family that spitting up is normal and that he'll outgrow it but don't get the support that I need. Just too bad that they don't have it in german so my family could read it too.
Thank you so much Roni for writing this book and all the infos I got from it.

I wish I never would have been able to relate to this book, but when my son was born with reflux, finding Roni's website and ultimately reading her story helped save my sanity and get better treatment for my son through education. My son is expected to be one of the "lucky ones" who will *outgrow* his GERD by his first birthday. If only Shae-Lynne could have had that good fortune. But, if you can attribute a "reason" to a child being subjected to such horrors FROM BIRTH INTO CHILDHOOD, it MUST be so that her amazing mother and grandmother would become motivated to share their story and hopefully help others in similar situations. Having a sick child is a very alienating experience and learning that you ARE NOT ALONE is priceless. I can't thank them enough for writing this inspirational, informative and heart-wrenching book. Now we just need to get more people educated about reflux/GERD (far more than "just heartburn") and find a CURE, so that there will never be another "Shae-Lynne Story".

This is a must read for anyone with a child suffering from GERD or for health professionals to understand the family componet. Ms MacLean puts a human voice on this terrible disease which is misdiagnosed many times with parents living in guilt and dispair trying to find help for their children. We assume all children will eat but those with GERD don't nescessarily. Its a 24/365 job trying to makesure your child will thrive. Thank you for putting your experience into words.

Roni and Jean have done an amazing job of telling their story and spreading the word about infant GERD. Your heart will ache for Shae-Lynn as she struggles to eat and grow, and you will triumph at the spirit of these women.

The book has wonderful information about GERD and is written is a way that even a tired parent can understand.

My son was diagnosed with reflux at 4 weeks of age and I found Roni's online community as I was searching for answers. I later purchased her book and am glad I did!

My niece's baby was born at 28 weeks. Needless to say, this was a shock and a scary time for them. I saw this book and thought it might bring some comfort to her and her husband. She said the book is great. Brings tears to her eyes, but she can relate to all the stories that she has been reading.

I could relate to every story having been in all those situations. Being a parent of a micro-preemie is an isolating feeling. It helps to know there are others who are out there going through the same thing you are and are surviving it!

Many people don't realize that micropreemies do have a solid chance to survive and enjoy relatively normal lives thanks to modern medicine and the love and dedication of parents and NICU nurses. But with Mr. Smith's book, it takes the reader right into the lives of people who have experienced the birth of a very premature baby, and -- without sugarcoating it -- shows how these miracle babies are wonderful examples for all about the fight for precious life!
Every hospital neonatal intensive care unit should have this available by the case for those who need the support and positive reinforcement when confronted with what can be a perilous situation.

Parents facing the suspense and stress of premature childbirth can take heart by reading this! In fact, it should be in the waiting room by every hospital's preemie ward, so anxious parents can read these stories of tiny bodies with enormous courage. Tim Smith has told the tale of his own daughter's bravery, and the tales of other families going through this difficult experience, with insight and warmth. This is a must-have for anyone who needs to believe in the power of the human spirit.

I thought that the book "Miracle Birth Stories Of Very Premature Babies" by Timothy Smith was a well crafted and welcome addition to the world of medical literature. As I was reading, I felt like I was in the hospital with each set of parents, going through their triumphs and defeats with them.

One strong aspect of the book is that it is written for the average person, in basic language that we can all understand. The medical information provided is relevent and accurate, but we are not bogged down in medical and hospital terminology. Medical journals and texts are often written in a very dry, academic tone that is hard to get through. Also, as I was reading I also felt that I was learning information about a controversial topic without being preached to.

We have all heard things about this topic through magazines, television news, newspapers, tabloids, etc. Smith is a veteran newspaper reporter and it shows. Each story is special in their own situation, and the different families are tied together in a nice way through a common cord of compassion, mutual experiences, and hopes for the future. I wish that premature birth parents in hospitals everywhere could receive this book. It is truly inspirational and lets them know they are not alone.

I loved this book for my grandson. The one problem I had with this book was the DATED photographs!

Mr. Rogers creates a great book for young children who've recently become big sisters or brothers. There is a fair representation of some of the things big siblings might be feeling especially about sharing their parents. The color photos are good, but the clothing everyone wears is dated, fortunately little ones don't mind when you read it with them. This is a really good book for new big siblings.

As one might expect from a book authored by Fred Rogers, this is a sensitive and frank account of changes a family undergoes with the arrival of a newborn.

The New Baby is a book that discusses the feelings that older siblings can have toward a new baby. In the typically simple, direct style that Mr. Rogers uses on Mister Roger's Neighborhood, Fred Rogers helps a child understand that both the baby and he/she are special. He also offers the assurance that parents have enough love for every child in the family.

The book has warm photographs of family members interacting with babies. These are useful in discussing what it will be like to have a baby in the house. I think this is an excellent book to read with children who are soon-to-be brothers or sisters.

We received this book as a gift when we were expecting our second child. It is a great book for parents to read to very young children who are expecting their first siblings. The only drawback is the dated pictures. If they were updated, it would be flawless!

Y NO HABRÁ MÁS...Por eso nos era muy importante un nombre especial... Y lo encontramos en este libro !

para que el de tu bebè suene lindo en cualquier paìs y en cualquier idioma ...

PRECIOSO !

picked the name that marked with perennial beauty the life of my daugther...

VERY WELL DONE

have names from this book...
It's a really fine collection !

POR SU BELLEZA Y PORQUE SE ESCUCHAN LINDOS EN CUALQUIER IDIOMA !
Elige cualquiera y pronúncialo en inglés, en italiano, en lo que quieras..¡Y ES BELLO !!

The Mom's Choice Awards® honors excellence in family-friendly media, products and services. An esteemed panel of judges includes education, media and other experts as well as parents, children, librarians, performing artists, producers, medical and business professionals, authors, scientists and others. A sampling of the panel members includes: Dr. Twila C. Liggett, Ten-time Emmy-winner, professor and founder of Reading Rainbow; Julie Aigner-Clark, Creator of Baby Einstein and The Safe Side Project; Jodee Blanco, New York Times Best-Selling Author; LeAnn Thieman, Motivational speaker and coauthor of seven Chicken Soup For The Soul books; Florrie Binford-Kichler, Founder of Patria Press, Inc.- an award-winning independent publisher and Member of The Children's Book Council; Tara Paterson, Certified Parent Coach, and founder of The Just For Mom Foundation(tm) and the Mom's Choice Awards®. Parents and educators look for the Mom's Choice Awards® seal in selecting quality materials and products for children and families. This book has been honored by this distinguished award.

Too often our views of parenthood come from what we see on the big and little screen: Woman tells man she's having his baby, followed by the birth and its afterglow. Then...nothing. But Oh, Baby! tells it like it is, looking at both the joys and the challenges. With its questions for discussion and suggestions for taking action, this book is both thought-provoking and practical. I highly recommend it for those who are new parents, pregnant, or thinking about getting pregnant!

Reviewed by Regan Windsor for Reader Views (1/07)

Few parenting books tackle the emotional and relationship impacts of becoming a parent. "Oh, Baby!" does an amazing job describing the entirely new level of love you experience with your baby, the enormous sense of responsibility, and the many challenges you will face in various aspect of your new role as parent.

Focusing on "7 Ways a Baby Will Change YOUR Life in the First Year," the book is separated into seven aspects of your life that will be impacted with the birth of a baby. However, each section is further broken down into four to six subsections giving the reader sixty-seven ways a baby will potentially change your life! Each subsection includes questions to help stimulate thoughts and invoke discussion to help the reader assess the emotional and logistical challenges they have encountered and/or overcome. Suggestions are provided to encourage the new parent to become creative in overcoming straining relationships, internal and external conflicts, and spirituality.

The seven sections covered throughout the book include:

A Baby Will Open Your Heart Like No Other Can or Ever Will
A Child Helps You Develop a Durable, Reliable -and Authentic- Sense of Self
Love, Marriage, and a Baby Carriage: Surviving and Thriving as a Couple
Making a Living and Raising a Child, A Baby Will Change your Views -and Goals- on Both
A Baby Creates Family Ties -and Bonds That Bind
A Baby Will Cause You to Examine Your Beliefs - and Question Your Faith
Friends and Your Baby: You'll Make Many Friends and Lose a Few!

While it is easy to plan for and adjust to the logistical implications of being a parent, the emotional impact can be a shocking new discovery to parents. "Oh, Baby!" is not only a tool to help prepare the new parent for the challenges to come, it is an excellence source to revisit as you face each situation and are looking for guidance and understanding, or even just the reassurance that you are not alone in it. An excellent resource for new and pending parents and especially useful for parenting groups!

'Oh Baby!' should be mandatory reading for pregnant or brand new parents. This practical and realistic manual (riddled with true life accounts) helps prepare new parents for the challenges and delights of parenthood.

'Oh Baby!' covers how a baby will change you, affect your relationship, your career, your family, your social life, and your spirituality. The book is for both Mom and Dad and is very interactive with 'Questions for Discussions' sections strewn throughout the book, where both partners can discuss and write about what they've just read.

Parenthood is something that has to be experienced to fully understand, but 'Oh Baby!' does a splendid job getting new parents prepared for what's to come, minimizing the inevitable shock.

One might think I know all there is to know about a baby's first year, just having my third child. Wrong! Reading through Oh, Baby, I found myself agreeing with others as they described the various feelings you experience during this first year. I also found myself remembering the first years of my first two children and some of the hurdles my husband and I faced, and I realized that many other couples face the same things.

The authors do a wonderful job addressing the emotional and physical demands of having a child under the age of one in your house. They break the book up into seven chapters, discussing not only the challenges, but the ways a baby will enhance your life and your relationships with others. One chapter deals with how a baby will cause you to examine your beliefs and question your faith, while another addresses how to survive and thrive as a couple.

Scattered through the book are wonderful quotes on parenthood, marriage, and babies. Each section ends with wonderful discussion questions to help you examine your thoughts and feelings. The "Take Action" boxes sprinkled throughout provide great ways in which you may apply what you have read to your life.

Oh, Baby was an easy read, and I enjoyed all the anecdotes collected from various couples. I could identify with so many of their stories. Whether sharing the first year of life with your first child or your third, you will appreciate this delightful book. It offers something for all parents.

by Kara Flathouse
for Story Circle Book Reviews
reviewing books by, for, and about women

but very good. No complaints other than it could be even thicker to cover even more areas.

Lots of helpful information on many important topics that parents of every preschooler are concerned about.

Incredibly insightful with real life solutions to issues every parent faces. The authors do a fantastic job of addressing what appear to be complicated issues (and often times are) and are able to provide solutions in a way that makes sense so that you will always remember what to do and their wisdom will become your own.

This is an excellent and easy read for parents of young children. It is full of solid, practical advice and loads of wisdom about preschoolers and the preschool experience that I have not seen in other books. It would make a much appreciated addition to most young parents' library - tuck it in with the other books on baby care for a really useful baby shower gift!

This is a Must Read for anyone with children between the ages of 2-5. The authors give sound practical advise that will benefit any parent. If you have to pick one book on parenting this should be it.

"Rattled" is a book full of practical and helpful information geared toward moms of newborns, written by a mom with the experience to back up what she writes about.

"Rattled" covers the time from pregnancy through the first year. The book is broken up into five parts, with each part split into chapters. Each chapter is further subdivided into sections such as "S.O.S-Spiritual Opportunity to Savor", which is a short devotional, "First Aid Kit" a bulleted list of practical tips, "Faith on Fire" which is a brief prayer, a few study questions, and "Food For Thought", a small sidebar (information printed off to the side) of facts and figures to supplement the chapter.

Dads aren't forgotten in this book either. She devotes pages to the equally important role of dad, for new baby is as much of an adjustment to dad as it is mom.

This book goes beyond child rearing advice and includes chapters on how mom needs to take care of herself as well.

What sets this book apart, in my mind, is Trish's honesty in writing about her own mothering experience. She includes in the book her own ups and downs, good experiences and mistakes. She also includes a chapter on miscarriage, having suffered through several of her own, a section on baby's first year and what to expect and a section with helpful links for surviving your first year. A book that I would've found helpful when my own mom journey started years ago.

Trish Berg is funny, serious, and right on target. She speaks from the heart, and from personal experience. This book is full of wonderful advice for the new mother, or anyone expecting a baby, even if she's a pro at giving birth. There are a lot of books out there about parenting, but this one shines. Berg has the ability of making the reader feel right at home. Great writing style, and a terrific sense of humor. This one is recommended.

I enjoyed reading this sometimes humorous approach to parenting the first year! I thought it was great how she brought out the fact that all babies are different. They have different personalities and will like different things. Just because your first baby hated the swing does not mean your second baby will not live in it! It is a great small handbook that would be great to give at baby showers!
Everyone has different views on childrearing, infant sleep, breastfeeding, and other things and even though I parented very different than her, I found her approach very informative and helpful. The encouragement to step out when you do not feel like it and find a mom's group is very helpful advice. It feels so good when you finally admit to another mom that you had a bad day and ate cereal for dinner and the mom next to you says "I did that yesterday!!".
She has great tips on exercise and the attitude towards exercise. Exercise should not be to get "your body back" as you are a mom now and may never have the same body, but to be healthy, to feel good and be around to raise your children!!
To sum it up, this is one of the sweetest, non-condemning mothering the first year books I have read! You will enjoy it and laugh along with Trish as she recounts her early mothering of each of her four children. There is small study questions at the end of the chapter which are really nice as well!

Although I am past my first year with my daughter, I do plan on having another first year with a baby. This book was very insightful, touching & humorous. I recommend it to all new mommies & even to mommies that have already been through one, two, or four first years! I love the 'First Aid Kit' & all the tips that Trish provides. It was refreshing to hear that she isn't a perfect mom & makes mistakes, because I certainly am not either & have made plenty mistakes. The bible stories & prayers are wonderful & I love how she incorporated them into her book. I plan on buying this book for any of my newly pregnant friends, so that they may have reassurance that every mom experiences the same things that they are experiencing.

Trish's charming writing style makes parenting sound like fun, and problems solvable. The book is filled with insightful and sometimes humorous, sometimes touching, stories about her own family (she is mom to 4) and things other moms have told her.
She offers so many good things in this book, like Mommy Truth No. 5 "You will make mistakes", and goes on to write "I see true love and compassion in my children's eyes."
One chapter to put into practice is Discovering Camp Palooza: Finding Fun In the Everyday. If you have a question for parenting babies, answers are here. How to establish good relations with in-laws. Whether to work outside the home. This is a great book for new parents to read.

This by far, was an amazing SIDS book. It's been almost a year since we lost Jacob to SIDS, and I still go back and re-read the book. It's so hard to find people that could relate to your SIDS loss, and this book is full of them. I HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend this book.

I've been through this loss. Chances are, if you're searching for this book, you have just experienced your own loss. READ this book.

If you have lost a child to sids then you must get this. It was recommended to me and it has been a valuable tool. It is fully of case studies, answers to questions you wont have thought of and usefull information on how to try and get through this.

Horchler and Rice give comfort, encouragement, and insight to the issues that surround Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and Infant Death. Families who have suffered the devastating loss of a baby will find many questions they may have answered among the pages. The topics covered bring a sense of normalcy and healing to the bereaved as the authors guide the reader down the path of surviving their loss and again finding joy in living.

The SIDS Survival Guide was my beacon of light during the darkest part of my life. My son, Dominic, passed away from SIDS on April 10, 2001, at only 4 1/2 months young. I began to reach out and search for all the information I could find on SIDS, drinking it all in by the bucket. A few months after he died, I found "The SIDS Survival Guide", and am so incredibly thankful. There was so much information, so many stories so like my own. I shed many tears while reading it for the first time, and even now, when I go back to read sections, I still cry. I am now expecting our second child in June 2002, and am scared to death. But knowing that I am informed about SIDS is somewhat of a comfort to me; in a way, I am as prepared as I can ever be. I would recommend this book to anyone expecting a child, who has a young baby, or knows someone who is or does.

My husband and I lost our son to SIDS in September of 2000. Our souls have been torn. The grieving process over his death has been draining. I recall little over the past 4+ months since his death. The one thing I do recall is thinking I was going crazy. I had wished their was another SIDS survivor I could speak with. Someone who could possibly relate to what my husband and I were going through. Someone who could understand our emotions. I searched under the keyword SIDS and found this book. I have not read the book in its entirety. I have read the sections I have needed at the particular times in my grieving. This book has helped me confirm that I am not going crazy. What I am feeling, though very personal, is normal. I feel this book is a neccesity for any parent who has to suffer this terrible tragedy. I have placed an order of these books in my babies memory to send to my state SIDS Coordinator in hopes that other parents may find comfort in its contents. Thank you Joani and Robin.