Or does anyone have any recommendations for books for a 2 year old that opens the whole subject of giving birth, especially at home, that does not refer to eggs or other fantasy type images?
We would love to get Alice a book that explains and covers the subject of birthing as she is quite fascinated and loves (don’t know if that is the right word) watching ‘home birth’ on Sky tv and similar things. I want to embrace this as I am hoping this time round we actually get to stay at home and that she will be around to see her little brother come in to the world
I can’t comment on the title above and haven’t got any recommendations, however, I was thinking and I’d be really happy to make an illustrated board book or similar if you like, that way you can dictate the level of detail and how you would like it explained. PM me if you are interested.
My mum sent that one for J’s Christmas present. He seems to quite like it, and was pretty unphased by the pictures of the placenta etc, although he wasn’t quite sure what to make of the picture where the baby’s head appears between the mum’s legs while she’s standing up.
I quite like the fact that it’s one of the few ‘new baby’ books I’ve seen which doesn’t have the mum disappearing off to hospital to have the baby, since it’s not what I’m planning to have happen this time either. However, he does now seem to think that he has to help me push the baby out!
We also have a copy of “There’s a house inside my Mummy”, which is also very simple, and quite nice, without any hospital trips or weird imagery.
I have a book at home by Sheila Kitzinger (can’t remember the title right now) that is a book that photographs the development of the baby in utero all the way through to birth and breastfeeding. It might be a bit graphic because it is photographs not illustrations….? Also, I have some ethical qualms because I don’t know how the pictures of the baby in utero were obtained without being intrusive iykwim…. I got it in a charity shop though… and Kitzinger shouldn’t be supporting intrusiveness or trauma but you never know!
This one is very simple and not graphic but does give an idea of why mum needs to rest more and whats going on. Doesn’t explain anything about the actual birh process though.
Which is more indepth. It is told from big sisters viewpoint and she describes her mamas homebirth. It has a couple of illustrations of the actual birth process (not real pictures iykwim, can’t think of the word) but is still lovely and gentle and I think it describes totally the birth process we all strive for. I was really happy with this one for the boys (who were then just under 4 and 3 years old) and felt it gave just the right amount of information whilst leaving the door open for further questions.
Oh and editing because I just glimpsed your last sentence….......a little brother, how exciting for you all.
Becks
We also had both of those for DD when I was pg with DS, and she *loved* them. And she did end up seeing DS born, in the bathroom and really took it in her stride.
We have ‘Hello Baby’. Have only really started looking at it with DD this past week, we both quite like it. None of the ‘comical’ diagrams of conception… just covers labour and birth.
We picked up ‘mummy laid an egg’ and ‘i know a secret’ from the charity shop early on, and borrowed a couple of others from library this week. Each of them has given me ideas of how to talk to her about whats happening inside now and what will happen when baby is ready to come.. but the illustrations in most are a bit too cartoony and bit too detailed for my liking. Most do refer to hospital and waiting for mummy to come home, so I tend to be selective and skip a few pages (if I can get away with it without DD noticing) Like you, We’re hoping to have her at home with DD there to share it.
I quite like the look of Runas Birth.. may have to order that…
xxx
Thank you for all of your replies, they have been really helpful
B, think that may be too graphic…Alice would probably love it though
Becks thank you for the offer to borrow the books that would be great, will pm you.
Had seen both of the titles on Amazon but wasn’t sure…will definitely order ‘Hello Baby’ as well I think for Alice’s birthday so it gives her a couple of months to read it and get her head round it, to be honest I think the only thing that would freak her out was if I started screaming and howling, didn’t happen last time and hopefully not this time
Good luck to everyone else broaching this subject, I found even though I don’t necessarily agree with all that happens watching the health channels on Sky was a good way for me to show Alice images that weren’t too graphic but still showed everything if that makes sense. She is always fascinated and has a good chat and sign at the tv and gets me if she doesn’t understand or is confused.
Children are amazing aren’t they? So much more open to understand than I sometimes give her credit for
Hello baby is so lovely, I love the wooly socks (as well as all the lovely homebirth pics obv!!). Runas birth is nice too, very steinery toys, little wooden animals, children playing outside with found things, both these books were much more real to our DS as they show family life he is more familiar with. Unfort I couldn’t have my homebirth in the end so DS was very disappointed he didn’t get to see Eliza arriving like the siblings in the book, but he has a great understanding of birth etc (which freaked out a few inlaws, he he!!!!)
Despite the cover picture, inside it shows a nursing mum (twice - once just incidentally in the background, which i thought was lovely!), a baby in a sling, a family cooking a veggie meal, and co-sleeping with the older sibling (although bizarrely, not with the new baby!). It was a while ago, but if I remember corectly, i think the family were using cloth nappies too. No words, so you can make up your own story. I would definitely buy it for Grace if we did end up having another one.
