It’s no secret we are expecting a baby later this year and of course the first thing we did was find as many books as we could read about it to help my 3 year old adjust to the idea and changes that are inevitably starting to happen.

Baby Comes Home by Debbie Driscoll is a realistic look at what an older sibling might go through when this new very needy member of the family comes home. In the book the older sibling runs upstairs and hides when the baby comes home, walks away from a resting mom and misbehaves for attention. Slowly even though she is trying to get bad attention the baby gives her older sister good attention and she warms up to the newest member of the family. My son was funny reading this book, the thing he noticed above all things was that a baby had a pillow” You don’t put pillows in babies cribs!”  my little safety man! The book gave us a lot to talk about from me needing to nap, to everyone cooing over the new baby and even about how he will feel when he has to share mama with a baby. Good book, worth a look!

Julius, the Baby of the World is such a funny book that I actually called my mom the day I bought it to read it to her over the phone. The book is about Lily who is adjusting to her new role as a big sister. The thing is Lily isn’t adjusting well, and it’s hilarious because it’s so true ! So often books depict older siblings happily welcoming babies into their lives and that just isn’t always the case. Lily is not happy, she unlike her parents do not think this baby is special and she is openly hostile to Julius. I laugh out loud every time I read this book, I particularly love when Lily tells a passing pregnant mouse that she will regret being pregnant. I think this book opens the floor for a real talk about feelings when a new baby comes, it’s important to remember just because the big people are excited doesn’t mean the little ones are too!

Back into Mommy’s Tummy by Thierry Robberecht made both my son and I laugh hysterically, mostly because it was incredibly relevant to us. In the book a little girl asks to go back into her mommy’s belly for her 5th birthday.  She wants to stay close to her mom, never have to go to school, stay up as late as mom does and even tells her mom if she wants to see her she can go get an ultrasound and she’ll wave hello. The absurdity is awesome, and the sentiment is bang on. Late in the book we discover that mom is expecting and she asks if her daughter is worried about her loving the new baby more. I love how the author and illustrator Phillippe Goossens use humor to get to the heart of it all. My son is incredibly attached to me and this book really opened up a great dialogue about having to share my snuggles, and love.

Baby on the Way by William Sears MD, Martha Sears RN and Christie Watts Kelly  has been the very best baby book we’ve found. It explains much of pregnancy from nausea, to aching feet and even nesting. It also describes labor in a really kid friendly non intimidating way. I love that it explains that in mommy’s belly is a baby holder called a uterus. My son has been asking me how my uterus is since reading this daily for the past week. Explaining contractions, that others will likely be taking care of them for a little while and what mommy is doing when she is not with you is all really useful. It also goes on to explain what babies will do , like nursing, crying and what that funny crinkled thing is on it’s belly!  The book also offers many many resources for expectant parents.