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PaperclipPerfector  3mo ago (text post)   2673 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for April 20, 2025

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

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A couple of baby books that I thought were worthwhile. Our first was born about 6 months ago.

  • The Baby Owner's Manual (Borgenicht) - A comprehensive guide to the practical things you will encounter with the baby (How much do they feed? How many diapers do they go through a day? What are typical weight/height percentiles? How do you clean the baby?)
  • The Happiest Baby on the Block (Karp) - Talks about the behavior of newborns and how to calm them down/put them to sleep.
  • Baby Meets World (Day) - Explains baby behavior through their eyes, so you can understand their behavior better
  • Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child (Weissbluth) - All about sleep for babies and children. I only read the sections for <1yr olds. A bit lengthier than it could've been. It is remarkable how challenging it is to get some children to sleep.
  • Your Baby's First Year (Altmann) - A reference book, given to us by our pediatrician. The "official" medical guidance that our pediatrician dispenses is consistent with this text.
  • What to Expect when you're Expecting - I did not read this but my wife did, my understanding is that this is the gold standard for pregnancy books.

The learning curve to taking care of a baby (speaking for the first six months, and assuming your baby does not have any special needs) is incredibly simple. I went from never having touched a baby in my life, to being able to feed, change, carry, swaddle, burp, put to sleep, etc. within a week or so.

Thousands of years of evolution have given you the tools for this - read a couple of books, talk to parents or grandparents for family-specific topics, and you'll be good. Wishing you the best.

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