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I loved What to Expect When You're Expecting and What to Expect the First Year so it only seemed logical that I buy What to Expect the Toddler Years when my daughter turned 1. As with any parenting book, you have to take all the information in it and apply it to you, your child and your life. No book has all the answers. But this series comes close! What I love is that both sides of most concerns are presented (my child eats too much and my child doens't eat enough). I also appreciate that it includes common worries (how to boost language) as well as more obscure problems (pigeon-toes) that often end up not being as obscure as I thought! This is a wonderful book for first-time parents, grandparents, day-care providers, etc... A very practical guide to what to expect from your child.
I really enjoyed the What to Expect when Expecting and What to Expect the first year but I have a few issues with this book. I Don't like the fact that it doesn't give alternatives views on different types of parenting; on MOST things it seems to be biased and caters to the western culture we live in in the US which has a very different parenting style than nations around the world. I also didn't like the fact that it pretty much blatantly discouraged breastfeeding past one year of age. It had little advantages listed, and did not reference the studies that I have researched myself and know to be true about the benefits of extended breastfeeding (like immunities and the fact that in studies the children who breastfeed the longest are on average smarter and healthier the longer they breastfeed). The child-self weaning is pretty much absent. There are other things like cry it out method and such that I don't agree with. While I realize this is just my opinion, I think the book should offer alternative lines of thinking for parenting. I think things that are medically sound for the children should be outlined in the book- like the fact that extended periods of time of crying can cause increased blood pressure and stress hormones in the body and in extreme cases brain damage. I think this info should be presented to all parents so they can make informed decisions. Instead, all the book has is what to do once your child has already been traumatized by cry it out episodes (it suggests not making them cry it out anymore! Why Risk it in the first place?) The authors seem to cater very much to this western concept that babies need to be independent as soon as possible instead of caring about what the child wants and any type of attached parenting. About the only benefit I see is just having the guidelines on what, on average, my child should be doing at what age. Other than that I find it one sided on the information and have much better success researching on my own on subject matters.Read full review
I bought this because I wanted to see the step by step changes my baby was going to be going through in the months to come. However, I find that I tend to use this more like a general reference book... so if my baby sprouts a new tooth - I look up TEETHING in the back of the book and turn to the relevant pages RATHER than read the whole chapter for her 13th month. The book keeps stressing that babies develop at different rates and to not obsess if your baby hasnt hit a certain milestone that the book says is usually reached by a certain time. This is GOOD OVERALL ADVICE - but - like I said... I end up using the book by its Glossary more than reading chapter by chapter.
Just as the "What to Expect when your Expecting" it is very helpful guide to your toddler's first couple of years. I love the whole collection and my favorite part is the section on when your baby is sick. The only bad thing I can really say about it is that nobody should LIVE by the expectations of the book. Every baby is different and I mean EVERY baby. The book does mention that but really doesn't stress enough. It should only be used to get an idea of SOME of the milestones your child COULD be at. Some baby's are far more advanced and some don't even say their first word until they are 3 or 4 years old and that doesn't mean anything is wrong with them or that you need a specialist which a LOT of people would argue me about. Be proud your baby isn't average. Your baby may excel in other areas far faster then the average child may. My cousin didn't walk until he was 20 months old, or speak until he was 3, However he would draw pictures you wouldn't believe came from a toddler with depth perception and they thought he was Autistic and he is anything but. Now he play's football for the Bills and has an I.Q. of 143 and a Master's in Psychology. If that give's any frustrated parents comfort. Even if they don't speak that does not mean they don't understand every word out of your mouth so be careful what you say :) The book should only be used as a reference, not as a comparison guide. I know it's hard to see younger kids pass your baby by on the milestones they have in this book but just enjoy these years because they'll be talking your ear off soon enough and running circles around you Lol. As for the baby's that do have things like autism or mental growth development peoblems this book also has helpful sections on that too and EVERYTHING you read in the book should always be ran by your pediatrician. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do :)Read full review
This book is awesome (the whole series is great). Buy, borrow or do whatever you have to, to have these book (what to expect when your expecting, what to expect the first year). These contain so much useful information on all your mommy worries. One of the best resources is the medication dosing charts. very handy. I also bought the book by a famous dr. that our moms used and it just collected dust. Arm yourself with the best easy to read, easy to reference guide to being the best mommy you can be.
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