I want to pick up a medical guide to give as a gift for an upcoming baby shower. I know I relied on a medical guide to help me when my oldest was a baby and toddler, but I haven't used one much in the past few years and wouldn't know which one to choose. I'm hoping some of you can give me recommendations. Thanks!

By Mommierenee on Tuesday, July 6, 2004 - 02:51 pm:

American Academy of Pediatrics makes an excellent one. I think it's the best! Here's a link to it:

http://www.aap.org/pubserv/babybk.htm

Also, the "what to expect" series makes one called "what to expect the first year". That book helped me a lot!

By Kate on Tuesday, July 6, 2004 - 03:24 pm:

My absolute fave and highest recommended one is 'The Portable Pediatrican For Parents' by Laura Walther Nathanson, MD. What I love about it is the EMOTIONAL aspects of a child that she includes, and her 'portraits of the age' where she starts each age chapter with a typical scenario of a typical child and parents at that age. Very enjoyable, HELPFUL book. And yes, it has all the medical stuff in there, too, including how to pronounce terms so you sound intelligent to your doctor's office. If you look it up on Amazon and read the reviews you'll see how much everyone loves it.

By Coopaveryben on Tuesday, July 6, 2004 - 04:38 pm:

I had "The First Three Years". It had common childhood illnesses, games to play with baby, stages for baby, etc. I liked it a lot.

By Coopaveryben on Tuesday, July 6, 2004 - 04:38 pm:

I also like the "What to expect" series.

By Emily7 on Tuesday, July 6, 2004 - 05:44 pm:

I like "The Portable Pediatrician", it is sitting on my desk right now.

By Sunny on Tuesday, July 6, 2004 - 05:51 pm:

Thanks for the suggestions! I'm going to check them out.

By Lauram on Wednesday, July 7, 2004 - 12:55 pm:

My "bible" is the Boston Children's Hospital "The New Child Health Encyclopedia."