Heading Home With Your Newborn: From Birth to Reality, 2nd Edition Paperback – July 13, 2010

Being a neonatal nurse, i thought i knew what to expect when it came to having my first baby. I was so confident, that I didn't even bother reading any parenting books before our baby was born. And, boy, was I clueless! I had no idea how hard it was to have a newborn baby in our home, away from the hospital and my wonderful colleagues as resource persons. I was so desperate for a "baby manual" (which obviously didn't come with the babe), and went searching on amazon. I came across this book, read the reviews, and anxiously awaited for its delivery. As soon as it came, i devoured it and read as much as i could. I loved it! It was concise, easy to understand, very informative and helpful, and really helped me through my baby's first year. I almost read the whole thing in a few days, and kept on referring back when I had questions about stuff like baby poop color and frquency, temp, skin rashes, sleep, eczema, teething, starting solids, how much should the baby be eating st certain ages, etc, etc. Great book, highly recommended. Be sure to buy and read this booknbefore the baby comes!

I sat down and read this book in one day. It was very informative and kept my interest for all 300+ pages. Being a first time mom I wanted all this info and soaked it up like a sponge. That said, I have also done quite a bit of research on my own prior to reading this book, and do not think it is perfect. You will have to supplement some of the subjects it barely touches on. For example, when it comes to trimming your baby's nail it just says you hopefully have a nurse to show you. As for neutrality, it does a very fair job with formula and breast feeding. No matter which you're doing it gives a fair overview. The same cannot be said for disposable versus cloth diapers. Cloth diapers are only mentioned as an alternative to disposable, but not delved into at all. It doesn't mention types of cloth diapers, how to use them, etc. Also, it is very one sided on vaccines. When it comes to potentially dangerous ingredients, it only lists thimerosal as a potential ingredient, and says it isn't dangerous anyway. If you are skeptical about vaccines, this book only gives you one side instead of both which isn't fair to making an informed decision. My biggest con about the book is it does not cover your options after birth. The vitamin K shot, skin to skin contact, delayed cord clamping, etc. are not addressed along with birth plans, and the Hep. B vaccine is not seen as an option, but a given. Overall I will be referring to this book for things like bathing, what's normal and when to call the doctor, baby temperatures, poop concerns, calming a crying baby, how to clean your baby (besides basic bathing), and rashes. I found the later chapters about delegating pictures, videotaping the birth, and creating mementos rather useless as most women would think of these things beforehand and decide what they were and weren't comfortable with, and keep what they wanted to remember from the hospital without 'shadow box' instructions. It just seemed like a trivial add on compared to all the info given in the rest of the book.

I bought this book after seeing it recommended in a magazine and read it cover to cover before my baby was born. I felt so clueless about how I was going to know what to do after my son was born, but this book gave me the confidence I needed to trust myself (and realize that it is okay to ask for or find help when I need it!). This book is an easy read, and that's saying a lot coming from someone who does not at all enjoy reading! It is enjoyable and thorough and the authors do not push an agenda. They simply offer information regarding common concerns of new parents in a well-organized format.On a separate note...I sincerely owe my breastfeeding relationship with my son to this book because the authors (without endorsing either breast or bottle feeding specifically) encourage new mothers in the hospital to stand by their decisions. My son would not latch in the hospital and the RN told me I needed to bottle feed him after only one failed attempt, but I remembered what I read in this book and told her that I really wanted to breastfeed. A month later, my son finally learned to latch on his own...and we did it without a bottle...thanks to the advice in this book!

I purchased this book on the recommendation of a friend and new mom. Out of all the books out there that claim to help you prepare for your little one's arrival, it is a daunting task to figure out which one will best suit you. I am really happy I went with "Heading Home with Your Newborn" because the doctors conversational tone is at once authoritative, comforting, and friendly. I started the book when I was about 7 months pregnant, hoping to feel more and more prepared as I read on and my due date approached, and I really do feel more confident with the information presented here. I recommend this book for the first time mom who may know a thing or two about babies, but wants that little bit of extra confidence going into her first try as a mom. I think this book could equally benefit new dads, and plan to highlight certain sections for my husband to read as well.

Many baby books are either intended as a reference that you can search for specific info or are just so long that you can't possibly take it all in and are therefore really only useful as a reference. I wanted a book that I could read cover-to-cover that would give me the basic information I'll need on a regular basis, and the most common danger signs that I should be aware of. This book was perfect for that; a good read to prepare yourself if you're expecting or just home with your newborn. I now feel like I know the essentials of feeding, bathing, comforting and at home medical care, and when I should and should not be contacting a doctor for at least the most common medical problems I'm likely to face as a new parent. Also, not at all preachy about the behavioral aspects of child-rearing, which I've come to really appreciate compared to some of the other baby books out there.

This book was incredibly helpful to me as a first time mum. I would highly recommend it. It went into just the right amount of detail into a wide range of topics and covered pretty much all the things I worries about in those first few weeks. It would definitely be a gift I would buy for any of my friends if they got pregnant. Usually I would say 'why buy a book, the internet has all the information you need plus its free' but in this case I would make an exception

I haven't finished this book yet, but I am a soon to be first time mom and I have found this book very helpful. It has information on the most important stuff that you need to know when you bring your baby home. I feel a little more prepared.Another good thing about this book is that it keeps your attention. Its not a boring read or like reading a text book.I would recommend this book to new moms.

Ho dato una valutazione alta perche' lo meritaE' il lettino giusto per bambini dopo i cinque mesilo consiglio ai genitori che vogliono tenere il loro bimbovicino, e non solo in un altra camera, quandosono ancora cosi piccoli e bisognosi di attenzionie sicurezza!

This book had a lot of good information for new parents, like us, who had no idea what to do with their newborn after going home! A lot of it ended up being the same information we got from our prenatal class, and it was reassuring to get that consistent message from both sources. This would be a good book for anyone who never took the prenatal class and does not know much about baby care. It is up to date and easy to read. I would recommend it to any new parent.

Being a first time and someone who isn't surrounded by many babies, I found this very comforting. Knowing there are many options for a singular experience and many different ways of handling situations. I found this book very open to different peoples parenting styles and it wasn't very opinionated which I felt many other books were very strick in their opinions.