Customer Reviews

Girlfriends' Guide to Baby Gear (Girlfriends' Guides)

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a great book for first time mom's. Its easy to read, short and to the point, entertaining and full of information and what you need, how much you will need and what you dont need.
There are great overviews of different baby necessities and safety devices. As well as what you want to splurge on and what you can get away with skimping on.
I would definately reccomend this to anyone who is about to venture into a baby superstore for the first time.

I got this book as a gift during my recent pregnancy (I just gave birth to my first baby on May 27). Since this was my first baby, I was unsure of what stuff I needed and what stuff was unnecessary. The book was somewhat helpful, especially concerning some of the bigger ticket items that first time moms think they need.

I didn't agree with everything they said in the book - specifically about hand me downs. The authors seem to think that you should never under any circumstances get a car seat from a friend - but I think if you know the person well and know the history of the seat, there is no reason why you shouldn't accept one from a friend. I got mine from someone I knew well who took great care of hers. I had the police department check it over and install it, and they said it looked fine as well.

Most of the information in the book was very useful to me when I was putting together my baby registry. It's very overwhelming trying to figure out what all you need and the book helped narrow it down quite a bit. I was able to get most of the things I needed without wasting people's time and money on unnecessary items.

The book is also very easy to read. The author has a laid back style that is goes over the information in a fun and light-hearted way, making it easy to understand and comprehend. I highly recommend this book - it was definitely useful for me!

I'm pregnant with my first baby, and recieved this book as a gift from my mother-in-law after reading The Girlfriend's Guide To Pregnancy. It seemed like every website I went to had this HUGE list of things that were baby "essentials" and most of the lists disagreed on quantities of items. Sure, Vicky Iovine makes for amusing reading but there's some invaluable practical information in here for those wanting to put together a concise list of the things they absolutely need, and what they ought to steer clear of. Those reccommending Baby Bargains seem to be missing the point - I didn't need to know *where* to find baby products. I wanted some solid, reliable information on what I would need, backed up by safety information and insights. I'm glad that I have this book and would reccommend it as a gift for other first time moms.

This book is one of Iovine's more updated texts which thoroughly covers all aspects of baby gear....from the nursery to what you'll need in your diaper bag. It is honest and realistic and provides MANY tips along the way (i.e. "diaper rash redux"...where she desribes 5 methods of preventing and curing it). Iovine also includes many money-saving suggestions, as well as names of brands (and often locations) of products that she recommends. I've read several of her books, and this, by far, is the most enjoyable and helpful to a mom preparing for twins!

I am the mother of a one-year-old and recently purchased this book for a pregnant friend. I read the book before giving it away and wish I would have had it a year ago. It's easy to get overwhelmed when shopping for baby, especially when you are clueless but I think this guide would really help. It cuts to the chase and helps you focus in on what you really need. It recommends some brands where necessary and tells you what you need, what's optional and what to skip. After just completing my first year of motherhood, I consider myself a pretty good expert on babygear and I agreed with most everything in the book. A big plus is that it was released just a few months ago so everything is up-to-date. I would recommend this for all first time mothers-to be.

This book is a great place to start for new moms who have no clue what all their baby needs. Its not really a good source of information if you have an idea of what you need and are looking for some specifics. It also tended to suck the fun out of baby shopping. The Girlfriends' approach is uber-pragmatic. If you strictly went by what this book said, you would only have a few articles of baby clothing on hand before your baby arrived, would only outfit the crib with just a sheet and probably wouldn't own a swing because its not 'necessary'. Just because your baby doesn't 'need' something to survive doesn't mean you shouldn't have it on hand. You're going to be changing your newborn's outfit about 10 times a day and if you only have 6 onesies on you, you're going to be sorry. Take the ideas from this book and multiply them five-fold so you're aptly prepared for when your baby arrives. I also disagree with the part about only putting your baby in a swing or exer-saucer long enough for you to eat a sandwich. Its not neglect for your baby to spend an hour happily swinging away while you get housework done.

I love reading her books, they're so entertaining. I bought this one a couple of weeks ago, along with the Baby Bargains book and Consumer Reports for baby gear. I thought it was a pretty good overview of what all you need and don't need. She doesn't go much into specifics of brands and items, which is where I find the Baby Bargains book useful. However, when she does, it's interesting to see what Baby Bargains and CR thinks of the same items. Overall, I'd recommend it as a quick read for getting an idea of what you need. But for specifics as to what to add to your registry, I'd depend more on Baby Bargains.

~This book was really helpful esp. for first time parents. As Vicki says several times in the book, new parents/grandparents are often lured into the world of baby boutiques. After reading this book (I advise BEFORE your shower and BEFORE baby comes) I took back lots of stuff and didn't register for certain items at the authors advice. Now my son is 13 months old and let me tell you....I don't think he missed out not having the fancy baby bedding set, the baby wipe warmer, or the designer baby~~ clothes. She is REALLY right on target with her baby gear suggestions! GREAT READ!~

Since announcing my pregnancy, I have been given books from several friends and family members regarding everything from pregnancy to nursing to the terrible twos. I ended up flipping through each book once and never picking it up again. Yesterday, a friend gave me this Girlfriend's Guide. My husband and I happened to be on our way to the baby store to shop for car seats, and the timing couldn't have been more perfect. Without this book, we never would have been able to navigate the jungle of car seats without going insane. In addition, it made us feel like we were prepared to look at cribs and other baby items--we just referred to the book whenever we had a question about what was good, what was unnecessary, etc. It was a godsend. This book got more use yesterday than all of my other baby books have in the past several months! I am determined to give this as a gift to every expectant mother I know.

I really liked this book a lot. As an expecting mom I am already getting a lot of advice about what to get and what not to get, but this book solidified that advice and added to it. It's very no-nonsense and I think gives very practical advice about what you should buy new and what you can borrow or buy used from other people. We had been given an older crib and after I read this book, I did some measuring and checked for recalls and found out it had been recalled. We will definitely be purchasing a new crib for our baby.

I loved the tone the book was written in and I also very much appreciated the list in the back of all the things you should get done around the house before the baby gets here - most of the list mentioned things I hadn't even thought of. I also appreciated that the book gave more general recommendations about equipment rather than "buy THIS model of stroller" because model numbers and features change so quickly.

The only gripe I have about the book is that it makes the assumption, in many places, that a person will be having more than one child. We are not going to have more than one, so there was certain advice in the book that didn't apply to us at all, but it was easy to skip over those parts.

All in all, this is a great book and if you are like me, intimidated at the thought of trying to walk into Babies R Us and pick out the right gear, it's a must-have.