Some days, I’m totally on it. My husband and I are completely in sync. Bath time is a cinch. We anticipate Little Man’s meltdowns before they happen. We’re ready for his next stage of milestones with pureed food, humidifiers for colds, baby gates for a baby on the move. Parenting? I got this.
And then you’re hit with the milestones that leave you baffled. “Will he ever sleep through the night?” “Am I producing enough milk?” “You want me to discipline him? You mean I can’t just give him everything he wants?” It’s usually not until 3:00 in the morning when I realize I don’t have a clue what I’m doing. Like, at all. And I don’t even know where to start to figure this out. Parenting? I don’t got this.
Our DMB moms have shared their recommendations for the resources they go to when they’re all out of ideas. You don’t have to use all the ideas prescribed by the “experts”, because not all kids are the same, but they help you create a foundation to start addressing the issue. Because, remember? I don’t have a clue…and they claim to!
The First Year
- What to Expect the First Year provides a great baseline with a month-to-month guide of the most common things to anticipate from your infant.
- Baby 411 was dog eared and sticky noted with our first! –Dana Palacios
Breastfeeding
- Ina May’s Guide to Breastfeeding reading just a few chapters of this one and you’ll feel like an expert on breastfeeding. This book is full of advice and helpful answers to all sorts of questions.
- La Leche League’s The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding provides helpful information for moms from all lifestyles: moms of multiples, working moms, SAHMs and WAHMs. It will help you get started with breastfeeding.
Sleeping
- My Baby Sleep Guide is a sleep index by STYLE of training and AGE of children- she gives an overview of just about every ‘method’ of training from no tears to cry it out…etc. –Nili Bueckert
- Happiest Baby on the Block! We swear by the 5 S’s! –Dana Palacios
Introducing Solid Foods
- Annabel Karmel’s New Complete Baby and Toddler Meal Planner which I loved when I was a clueless new mama starting solid foods. Now I laugh that I needed a cookbook for baby purées, but it took all the guesswork out of starting solids and helped ease my sleep deprived mind. –Megan Harney
- Baby-Led Weaning was one of the few I fully read and referred to as we went. –Katy Walter
Development & Discipline
- How to Talk so that Little Kids Will Listen is a book suggested by Dana Palacios and “is an essential emergency first-aid manual of communication strategies, including a chapter that addresses the special needs of children with sensory processing and autism spectrum disorders”.
- The Whole Brain Child is really for any child with an immature brain (which is like 0-18 yo) but is helpful to understand and cope with the developing toddler brain and all its oddities. –Dana Palacios
- The New Strong Willed Child is the updated classic for understanding discipline strategies for your kiddos.
- Parenting with Love and Logic is great for some kids’ personalities, unfortunately not for all kids. –Dana Palacios
