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If I played guitar I'd be Jimmy Page.



Lately I've been:
Making my own bulk batches of flu shots: youtube.com/watch

Talking to expectant parents about cosmetic surgery for babies:
video.google.com/videoplay

Recently a friend asked me to recommend a book to buy for a pregnant friend. Here's what I narrowed my response down to:

Read early-mid pregnancy:

-Gentle Birth Choices by Barbara Harper, and/or
-A Good Birth, a Safe Birth by Korte and Scaer

(either one helps you assess whether your caregivers are competent and appropriate, and get an overview of what normal, healthy pregnancy
and birth really look like)

If they choose hospital birth, frankly, they're gonna get sliced-and-diced unless they hire a doula and read:

-The Thinking Woman's Guide to a Better Birth, by Henci Goer
(I'm serious. It's a war zone. The c-section rate is nearing 30% for OB-GYN patients. Among women who plan homebirths, something like 4% end up with a c-section, and their morbidity/mortality rates are far, far lower.
Not to mention more success in breastfeeding, less postpartum depression...)

Useful throughout pregnancy:

-The Natural Pregnancy Book by Aviva Jill Romm
(great for dealing with all of the weird symptoms and pains that come
up, figuring out whether they're normal or something to get checked out,
and home remedies to help get through it)

Late pregnancy, when childbirth is looming large and terrifying:

-Spiritual Midwifery by Ina May Gaskin (packed with birth stories,
both reassuring and realistic. Pregnant women DEVOUR this book)
-Birthing from Within by Pam England (self-help for mentally/emotionally
preparing to survive birth itself, includes some cool art therapy ideas)

For a dad/partner interested in being useful during the birth:

The Birth Partner by Penny Simkin (good for planning and preparing him/her
for the event, tips for what the mom may appreciate when the time comes)

At any point before birth, to decide about Vaccinations in time:

-Vaccinations: A Thoughtful Parent's Guide by Aviva Jill Romm
(a huge topic to sort through! this is the best book on the subject)

Have on hand by the time of birth, best to read beforehand, too:

-Bestfeeding by Renfrew Fisher and Arms
(Nursing can be really tricky at first, and this book is the most useful
one for learning the ropes and problem-solving. Everyone should have this
on hand. There are lots of pictures, and they do a great job explaining
the finer points of getting comfortable and confident.)

For baby care:

-The Baby Book by William Sears
(Oh, the questions that come up!! This is a fantastic all-around book
for babycare. All of his books are great, actually: The Pregnancy Book,
The Birth Book, The Breastfeeding Book, The Fussy Baby Book... some have a
tiny Christian tinge to them here and there, but ignore those moments,
and they're great. Which reminds me, the "What to Expect..." books totally
BLOW. Avoid them- they're heavy on pointless fearmongering, sprinkled with pretty questionable advice.)

For health questions as the baby grows:

-Naturally Healthy Babies and Children by Aviva Jill Romm
(An alphabetized reference book with tips on how to deal with the
random things that come up: puking, fevers, rashes... We refer to
before anything else.)

Oh, and to hire a doula, send them to DONA or ALACE.

And come to think of it, they'll barely need books if they start
hanging out in the forums section of Mothering Magazine's site:
www.mothering.com/discussions/index.php
(And by the way, a subscription to that magazine is a great gift, too)

Or, if you want a generic all-in-one book,
the best one that covers all of these bases, but less deeply,
is
Pregnancy, Childbirth, and the Newborn, by Simkin, Whalley, and Keppler.