Bringing Baby Home

When I found out my husband and I were expecting our second child, my first thoughts went to how to prepare my 4 year old about the baby. Dude gets a lot (a lot!) of attention and we knew this was going to be a huge, life-changing event for him.

My son, being the observant guy he is noticed right away my stomach was growing and helpfully told me I was getting a stomach like Grandpa (Meaning it was really big. Ha! Honesty!). We read a lot of books on siblings and new babies, but the following are three of my favorites.

What's Inside Your Tummy, Mommy? by Abby Cocovini
An excellent book that is perfect for pre-schoolers so that they get a basic understanding of how a baby grows, what it is doing in there, and how it finally is born. My son was fascinated by it and I could tell it blew his mind that he had been like that once too.

One Special Day by Lola M. Schaefer. ill by Jessica Meserve
I picked this one up on a whim a couple of days before my due date. I couldn't have made a better choice. It begins by showing a boy with his grandmother waving goodbye to his parents who are driving off in a car. Then it chronicles all the various things this boy is. He is brave, he is wild, he is tall, he is funny, noisy, etc. But when his parents finally bring the baby home, for the first time ever he is a brother. It was sweet and timely and my son loved it because it was exactly what was going on in his life. The illustrations are beautiful and bright and the animals are completely endearing. The endpapers are also fabulous. The front shows the boy on his own, the back with his sibling having all sorts of fun together. I can't recommend this one enough.

Edwin Speaks Up by April Stevens. ill by Sophie Blackall
We've been reading this one post-baby. My son loves how Edwin is sort of speaking sort of doing baby-talk. He loves to point out exactly what Edwin is trying to tell his mother. And those ferrets! Does Sophie Blackall illustrate anything that isn't spectacular? I loved the soft colors, the retro feel, the ding-dang adorable ferrets (that I think are completely nasty in real life).

There are, of course, tons of books that deal with the emotions a new siblings bring, but these truly stood above of all the others.

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Book Source = Library Copies