What a Mom Wants

A Tale of Two Snacks

There is nothing better than a story about finding a hot dog.

Well, except for a story about a dinosaur who bakes cookies.

Think about it. You are a pigeon with an extremely large eye and an appetite. You are walking down the street, minding your own business and - kapow! - a perfectly yummy, steaming hot dog for the taking. You look left. You look right. No one is around. The hot dog is yours! But then you are ambushed by a little duckling who is trying to get a piece and well, that's where the fun starts. It's a classic struggle. Like Darth Vader vs. Luke Skywalker. Like Rocky vs. Mr T. Like my jeans vs. my thighs. Epic. Titillating. Requiring mustard.

Or.

You live in a small town where a dinosaur named Edwina (snazzy name and an equally snazzy pill box hat thankyouverymuch!) helps people in your community cross busy intersections, change light bulbs in those very-tall street lamps and bakes chocolate chip cookies to boot! I have no idea why dinosaurs are extinct. You would think the karma alone from the baking of cookies for others would secure dinosaurs a place in the food chain for about a million gazillion years and then some. But a boy with a very long name and a whole lot of attitude is determined to convince everyone that Edwina is in fact, extinct. Poor Edwina! Too bad she dies in the end.

Just kidding.

This is a children's book and I am not a spoiler!

Mo Willems' books The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog and Edwina, the Dinosaur Who Didn't Know She Was Extinct are clever, well-illustrated and fun. Oh! and they also have a moral at the end. Nice!

Mostly my four-month old chews on the pages and then closes the book, but I know that when she is a little older and wants me to read the same books to her over and over and over again, we will be reading something we both like and enjoy. And even better, I won't have to explain to her why I don't give a damn what a Brown Bear sees.

There are so many children's books out there. Doesn't it make a whole lot of sense to find something the entire family can enjoy? Young AND old? Well, not old...early thirties-ish? Mo Willems' books definitely have a place in our home, our hearts and most importantly, our funny bones!

- Kim

More Like Baby 911.

When I started to go to my regular prenatal appointments, I spent a lot of time waiting in the exam room for my OB. After rifling through the drawers for drug samples and crafting an exact replica of the Parthenon out of tongue depressors, I came across a book titled Baby 411: Clear Answers & Smart Advice for Your Baby's First Year.

Now, if you are like most people, you immediately judge books by their covers - like I do. So naturally, my first thought was,"This garish font and obscene purple cover will never match my People magazines on the coffee table!" I opened the book anyway and browsed though some of the content. I liked it. Simple questions followed by simple, but thorough answers.

As the weeks wore on and out (like my increasing waistline inevitably did), I would look forward to picking up the book during my appointments so that I could read more about what lay ahead of me. I liked the format. If I had a specific question and didn't want to read all of the what-ifs, the index pointed me in the right direction. It was a true reference book. But if there was something that I wanted more information about, I could read the entire section and get a more well-rounded view. The language was clear, nonjudgmental and lacked the condescending tone that most baby guides ladle out so liberally.

So I bought it.

And when the stork delivered our little bundle of joy, that book saved our life.

There are complete sections on: Preparing for Baby; Care and Feeding; Sleep, Development and Discipline; Sickness and How to Avoid It; and First Aid. I have found the individual chapters on Breastfeeding and Sleep extremely helpful.

The best part is that this book is written by REAL moms. And when I say REAL, I mean REAL. I am not talking about moms who iron their baby's disposable diapers or have enrolled their fetus in Driving School already. I am talking about practical moms who know what's important and focus on the care of your child and your sanity.

If you are looking for a reference book that you can get quick answers from or if you enjoy the prose of  a more traditional book, Baby 411 delivers. Look up the info you need or read each section through, start to finish. The information is up-to-date, thorough and relevant - three things your wardrobe will never be again.

-Kim

New Parent Guide

When the little guy was just weeks old, I was looking for information. Real life useful information and for the most part I think I found it.

This book: 100 Things I Wish I Knew In My Baby's First Year: Keys To Making Parenting Easier And Your Baby Happier has been very helpful. It was written by parents who had three children within one year! I figure with that kind of baby experience I can learn a thing or two from them. Even though the days, and weeks get easier and easier I still pick this book up every once in a while for help.

- Tess