No one should feel guilty about spending $50 on a dress, Aimee. Plus it's so purty.

sj, I found that most pregnancy books were pretty ideological. We had one good one that was just about what parts of the baby were developing at what time but I can't recall what that one was called. Much as I hated it, I tended to consult What to Expect most often because it was so easy to use, but I also rolled my eyes a lot.

One book I loved was Happiest Baby on the Block because it gave actual useful advice on how to soothe and calm a newborn. Plus it was written by the doctor who gave Franny her first exam.

sj, I found that most pregnancy books were pretty ideological. We had one good one that was just about what parts of the baby were developing at what time but I can't recall what that one was called. Much as I hated it, I tended to consult What to Expect most often because it was so easy to use, but I also rolled my eyes a lot.

Thanks. What about blogs websites, etc? Especially what to eat and not to eat? I'm going to try to adjust my eating habits starting now.

One book I loved was Happiest Baby on the Block because it gave actual useful advice on how to soothe and calm a newborn. Plus it was written by the doctor who gave Franny her first exam.

I just bought that book for my cousin from her registry. Nice to know it is a good one.

I think I only ever used What to Expect when I was pregnant the first time, for the same reasons Burrell mentions (and also, wow, that was pre-internet for us), but I love and wholeheartedly recommend Your Baby and Child by Penelope Leach when it comes to baby care. Sensible and straightforward and wonderful.

wholeheartedly recommend Your Baby and Child by Penelope Leach when it comes to baby care

Oh yeah, that's a good one too. I second Amy's rec.

What to eat also turns out to be a bit ideological, which means you have more wiggle room than you think. Like here in the States we caution against rare and raw meat including fish while the Japanese continue to eat sushi while pregnant, and in France they worry about raw vegetables. I think if you just eat healthy foods mostly and take a good prenatal supplement you're fine. Be sure to get your folate up now, before you get pregnant.

Pregnancy, Childbirth, and the Newborn is a pretty standard book - more modern, IMO, than What To Expect. [link]

We had one good one that was just about what parts of the baby were developing at what time but I can't recall what that one was called.

Was it What's Going On In There? [link] I found that to be certainly the most interesting read while preparing for Ryan.

In other Ryan news, the duck eggs at his childcare have started hatching! They have five ducklings from eight eggs so far. (The other three need to hatch tomorrow, or else they're pretty much not going to.) Ryan is quite thrilled.

Was it What's Going On In There?

I don't think so. Not sure what it was called. Feeling like I hallucinated it right now.

sj, how exciting! Good luck to you and TCG.

I got a bunch of books from the library when I got pregnant; you might want to do that and see which ones seem most helpful to you. One that I liked a lot in the beginning was a day-by-day visual guide by DK, probably similar to the ones billytea and Burrell are talking about. I ended up buying What to Expect, though I probably used it less than I thought I would. I also had The Mommy Docs' Ultimate Guide to Pregnancy and Birth, which I got a copy of at work because we had reviewed it; I probably wouldn't have bought it on my own, but I ended up using it quite a bit (as much for reassurance as for practical info).

As far as websites, the one I went to most often was this funny, snarky week-by-week guide that I found via the Bloggess. In the later weeks she had a bunch of good info on things like what you actually need to get before the baby comes, what to pack in your hospital bag, etc.

Also meant to send hugs to smonster. I'm so sorry both you and your sister are having a rough time right now. And FWIW, I always like hearing about what you're doing and how things are going with you, even if the answer is "not that great."