As Eleanor's due date (February 15) and what will most likely be her day of birth (February 7, during double-overtime of the most exciting Super Bowl that ever was) approaches, people often ask, "Are you ready?"
I have no idea! And that probably means NO, right? I mean, we own some diapers and some really tiny clothes. But really, how do you get ready for a baby? We don't have many babies to hang out with (though a big shout-out to Leks and Brennan!), so we've really just attempted to read a lot of books, follow some blogs and watch movies about babies and parenting.
Books
The Happiest Baby on the Block - I worry that reading about swaddling and actually swaddling may be somewhat different
What to Expect When You're Expecting - Hey, there are a ton of things to worry about when you are pregnant! Want to learn about them?
The BabyCenter Essential Guide to Pregnancy and Birth - Probably the most useful book I have. It is PACKED with information and gives the weekly updates on baby's and mom's changes, including the ever popular "what fruit does your baby resemble this week" info. She's really a watermelon at this point.
NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children - This is the whole, "don't praise your child" book featured in the Times. Good stuff. Though I will never say that to Eleanor.
The Baby's Owner's Manual: Operating Instructions, Trouble-shooting Tips, and Advice on First Year Maintenance - very fun baby care book from Karen. Lots of clever pictures and language that makes you feel like you've bought a new car as opposed to created a human, which at times is a very welcomed notion. Raising a human is scary! Keeping something well-oiled and clean seems more manageable.
Your Pregnancy Week by Week, A Father's Guide - Even though I got this for Ryan, I definitely read it to make sure that it was as sympathetic to the pregnant woman as I wanted it to be. It was. I appreciated the suggestions to be patient at crazy hormonal crying fits and to give a lot of massages.
Your Baby's First Year, Week by Week - Another, "there could be a lot of things weird and gross and wrong with your baby" but good to hear that a lot of the gross stuff goes away and is normal. I guess?
The Cave Man's Guide to Baby's First Year - Ryan?
Movies
Pregnancy for Dummies
The Business of Being Born
Childbirth from Inside Out
Child Development: The First Two Years
Infant Massage: The Power of Touch
The Medicated Child
Growing Up Online
Anything that was at one point a "Watch Now" movie on Netflix in the "Pregnancy & Parenting" section, I watched. The only one I would've bothered to watch without that subscription is The Business of Being Born, which I made Ryan watch as well. I really credit the film with getting me interested in doing some research on my own about childbirth and the kind of birth experience I wanted to have. It lead to me to take the Bradley Method Childbirth classes and got me to the point I am now: attempting a natural delivery in a hospital with a midwife - the best of both worlds.
Blogs
Giving Birth Naturally
My OB Said What?
The Skeptical OB
Science and Sensibility
Nursing Birth
Stand and Deliver
Unnecesarean: The Blog
The Feminist Breeder
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Just like an educator to read and watch everything that you can about a topic before it happens. I think I would have jumped ship had I read/watched that much stuff - it would have freaked me out.
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