What to Expect the First Year, Second Edition

It's been 12 years since I read this book, but I still remember how often I referred to it with my first child. If you're concerned about your young one's sleep, feeding, crawling, babbling, weight gain, illnesses, or any of those very real worries of a new mother/father, than this book is a must! I hope it'll give you wisdom and reassurance when you need it most!

Very helpful for my first pregnancy, answered all my questions and even addressed some that I did not even think about. I would highly recommend getting this for first time moms or even mothers who have had multiple pregnancies.

A must have for sure. I bought this when I knew I was going to become a parent. I wanted to learn as much as before the due date. I kept it even after children grew older. It is such a great reference; I later gifted it a friend when she became pregnant! So, it can be a great gift too!

I think this book is pretty informative. It covers most of the common questions new parents have, month by month (such as Child Care options- month 3), and also includes some good resouce chapters at the back (Common Illnesses etc). It also includes developmental guidelines for each month, which is helpful.Just a few Negatives - The opening paragraph covers development in a particular month. I really wish that this paragraph covered more, and that it was broken down week by week, instead of by month. I think new parents are generally fascinated to learn what development is taking place in a particular week. If the book was broken down this way it would help parents refer to it more and they follow thier child's development more closely. After I read the book at the beginning of the month, I feel like I dont' need to look at it again until the next month comes around.Another suggestion would be outline the number of weeks that fall under a particular month. Example - Instead of just having "The Third Month' as the chapter title, have it as "The Third Month - weeks 9-12" instead. This was done in the Pregnancy book and I found it very helpful.

Wonderful information for the first-time parent. Goes over milestones to watch for, vaccines that may be due, what you as a parent can do at different developmental stages.

I read what to expect when you are expecting and thought it was the greatest pregnancy book ever. It was right on with all the things I was experiencing and explained all the things I had fears or concerns about and helped me to be more excited about the whole pregnancy. I was not disappointed with this book. It was just as good at helping me understand my baby's needs and why he was doing certain things and when. I would never have realized that by trying to sooth my son with every idea people threw my way when he was fussy, I was overdoing it and 'over stimulating' him. After a couple of really bad eveings, and some desperate reading, I found that by going from one trick to another it was working against the very effect I was going for. The book suggested just sticking to one thing that worked in the past like rocking and waiting it out for a while and to not give up on myself or my baby so quickly and move on to anther idea. This book helped me realized that everything I found to be frustrating or scary was perfectly normal and even better, my feeling frustrated or scared was a very normal feeling felt by most moms. If you ever think that maybe your not cutting it as a mom - and most new moms will from time to time - read this book and find that you are doing just fine!

I hated all baby books and pregnancy books when I was pregnant - they all seemed overly sentimental and totally useless. Then a friend gave me this for the first year - SO incredibly helpful!I am a doctor, but still had so many questions after taking my baby home from the hospital. For the first 6 months, my husband and I would read this weekly. When my daughter went on crying jags, it would become part of our routine - feed, burp, swaddle, change, and read What To Expect in the First Year.It addresses everything and is very reassuring. The book is also very open minded and weighs the pros and cons to different schools of thinking. It offers you both sides, or several options for dealing with something, and then lets you decide.Some people like the cry it out method, some people hate it. This book talks about both and largely refrains from judgement. Without being useless! I found it truly helpful for all both random and very important questions.Best baby book you can buy! Good luck new parents!

Bought a new hardcover copy for $10 extra and received what is obviously a used copy. It came wrapped and boxed nicely, however, 3 pages have someone’s underlining in it. Luckily, the text is still legible, but if I new I would receive a used copy anyway I would not have paid extra for the new hardcover version.