26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
If only this book had been available when my son was a baby!, January 14, 2004
This review is from: The Wonder Weeks: How to Turn Your Baby's 8 Great Fussy Phases into Magical Leaps Forward (Paperback)
This book is *exactly* what every new parent wants: a guide that tells exactly why your baby is fine one week and freaking out the next. We all know about the physical growth spurts at 3 and 6 weeks and then 3 and 6 months, but there isn't anything else that tells you when developmental spurts are happening. Until now. As soon as I got this book I went back and looked in my journal from when my son was a baby, and all his fussy weeks matched up with the ones in the book! If I'd had this book at the time it would have been so much easier just to roll with it and not wonder what was "wrong".
IME the best thing about this book is that it doesn't tell you how to be a perfect parent, or give you some focacta plan you have to follow exactly to make your baby turn out the right way. Instead it just tells you why your baby is doing what s/he is doing, so you can have patience and not worry that there's something wrong with either you as a parent or your child.
I just ordered two more to give to new parents I know. This is my one constant shower gift. I can't believe this book hasn't gotten more press than it has, because it would really be a lifesaver for any parent with a baby under the age of 1.
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18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Helpful but Repetitive, June 7, 2009
I recently purchased The Wonder Weeks to try to help understand why my 4 month old daughter was going through a horrible sleep regression. I found the book to be reassuring--knowing that some things are phases rather than the "new her". As expected, she went back to being more predictable after the new developments. It's helpful to know when the next developmental stage is coming and when it will be over.
Having said that, what to expect is pretty much the same at each of the 8 stages. They do talk about what new skills will be learned and some activities to help develop those skills. But otherwise the chapters are quite repetitive.
I paid $22 for this book. That made this the most expensive baby book I purchased. I'm not sure it was worth that price. I would have purchased it used if available.
If you just want to know when to expect the fussy periods, go to The Wonder Weeks website and download their chart from the extras section. To me, that was the most valuable part of the book.
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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Frustrated, irritated mommy? Fussy, clingy baby? Read this !, January 21, 2003
This review is from: The Wonder Weeks: How to Turn Your Baby's 8 Great Fussy Phases into Magical Leaps Forward (Paperback)
Finally, this book is available in the US. I've been relying on a bare-bones (bullet list) translation from the Dutch version. And relying on it A LOT.
Every parent I know has wondered at some time what happened to their baby, why they are so clingy all of a sudden, why they cry for apparently no reason, why they stopped sleeping well, why they stopped eating well, why suddenly nobody but Mommy will do... who took their nice baby and replaced it with THIS baby? And whose fault is it? "Did I spoil him," they ask, or "Should I punish her?" Will I get better results if I stop responding to all these senseless demands? They look for answers, and get all sorts of advice from others, much of it less than helpful - but they don't know what is going on, so they can't filter the advice effectively.
This book has the answers to all those whys, and the reassurance that you are neither crazy nor at fault.
My patience expanded dramatically when I realized that it wasn't ME, it wasn't my fault, it was just a stage of development for my son. It helped to know that he was actually scared and needed me, and was not pretending or manipulating me. It helped to be able to look forward to the genuinely exciting new knowledge and abilities at the end of the stage. It helped to know that if I supported him, the phase would progress and end. I felt sane, and normal, and knew that other moms went through the same thing. PHEW! :)
I've passed the info on to countless other parents, all of whom have wished that the book was available in the US. I even contacted the publisher of the version in New Zealand, but no luck. Now, this PRICELESS resource is here, and the second I found out, I bought my copy. You won't regret getting your own. Get it before baby is born, so you can catch those early "Wonder Weeks" and start getting in tune with how they grow, how their brains develop, and what it means for you. Get it anytime your child is fussy, clingy, frustrated, or has disrupted sleep or eating patterns. Get it if you or some parent you know is pulling out their hair, worried that they've spoiled their infant, or desperate to understand what is going on inside that wonderful and challenging little head.
This is honestly the most useful info I've read on the first year (and a bit) of baby's life. Wonderful stuff!
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