Babytalk Magazine - The Babytalk Insiders Guide to Your Babys First Year

This book is not intended as a substitute for the medical advice of physicians. The reader should regularly consult a physician in all matters relating to health, and particularly in respect of any symptoms that may require diagnosis or medical attention.

Text copyright 2008 by The Parenting Group, Inc.

Illustrations copyright 2008 by Hachette Book Group USA, Inc.

BABYTALK is a registered trademark of The Parenting Group, Inc.

All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

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First eBook Edition: February 2008

ISBN: 978-0-446-51150-6

RAVES FOR

Babytalk

FROM THE EXPERTS...

We read Babytalk magazine with each of our eight babies, and weve been writing for Babytalk for more than twenty-five years. Millions of children throughout the world are better off because of the terrific resource this magazine is for new moms. Keep talking, Babytalk!

WILLIAM SEARS, MD, and MARTHA SEARS, RN, co-authors of The Baby Book

With just the right balance of humor and reliable advice, Babytalk does a terrific job of giving busy new parents the information they want and need.

Sesame Workshop

Babytalk magazine is a trusted source for no nonsense, solid advice for new parents.

ALAN FIELDS and DENISE FIELDS, authors of the bestselling Baby Bargains

New moms have an endless stream of questions, and Babytalk has concise, entertaining answersthe magazine is a must-have baby accessory.

SAMANTHA ETTUS, editor of The Experts Guide to the Baby Years

Babytalk magazine is an excellent resource, providing parents the information that they need from late pregnancy throughout the first year of life.

JODI A. MINDELL, PHD, author of Sleeping Through the Night

... AND FROM NEW MOMS

I love Babytalk magazine. I love that there is real advice from real moms. The advice is always something I can actually use and not some old wives tale. There are great articles, and the magazine is fun to read.

Danielle, Indianapolis, IN

I love Babytalk magazine because even a seasoned parent (we have four children, ages six and younger) can learn a thing or two with each issue! The columns are great, the features are cutting-edge, and the covers are just so cute!

Shanna, Elk Grove, CA

I love Babytalk because of all the input from real moms. Sometimes I wonder if authors of parenting books and magazines actually have children, because their suggestions sound noble, but are utterly absurd when put into practice. I know that Babytalk has ideas suggested by real moms.

Susie, Boise, ID

Why do I love Babytalk magazine? Because its a mommy-girlfriend who tells it like it is and its always there for you! The articles and advice on babies and mommies are so helpful to me, and they make me feel like Im not alone. I usually get two or three copies, one for my office at home (Im a work at home mommy,) one for my bathroom, and another one just in case a mommy friend needs it!

Andrea, San Jose, CA

I love Babytalk magazine because it makes me feel connected with other moms and their babies. I find it comforting to know that there are other moms out there who experience the perils and joys of motherhood like I do.

Elizabeth, Centreville, VA

One bitter January day in 1997, seven months pregnant with my second child and sitting at my desk daydreaming about the magical but mythical maternity leave that all moms-to-be manage to convince themselves is ahead, I received a phone call that steered my career in an unanticipated direction. Having spent much of my professional life employed by, and then freelancing for, a competing publication, I was surprised to hear the voice of Janet Chan, the new editor-in-chief of Parenting, and editorial director of the Parenting Group, which includes Babytalk. That conversation evolved into a decade-long relationship with Janet and her talented staff, as well as with Susan Kane who took the reigns at Babytalk two years later. I owe the better part of my career since to all those involved in that chain of events, as well as many terrific and fun editors on both the Parenting (Lisa Bain, Linda Rodgers, Josh Lerman, to name but a few) and Babytalk staffs (lots more on them to come).

Still, I owe my biggest debt of gratitude to Susan Kane for giving me the opportunity to nurture and mold this very important offspring in her own impressive career. That she trusted me with such a precious and humongous baby of a project still surprises me when I think about it, not to mention the sheer fact that we actually managed to get it done relatively on schedule. Susans endless cheerleading and pep talks along the way, even when I knew well that she was at least as stressed as I was, were a significant factor in my ability to maintain both my momentum and my sanity the past year and a half. Im continuously amazed at how she manages to maintain her level of passion and perfection in all she does every day. Susans vision of, and endless aspiration for, Babytalk is the singular secret to its success.

My co-author, Kitty OCallaghan, was also a pure pleasure to work with. I envy her ability to take the most mundane moments in motherhood and twist them into side-splitting tales that reassure, entertain, and remind us that life with kids is really quite the same for all of us, no matter how different and special our families are. I couldnt have asked for a better partner, and I hope her talents for both writing and parenting have rubbed off on me at least a little.

Of course there were many other players within the Babytalk family who gave me endless assistance, advice, and support. They include our research editor, Jennifer Geddes, who is as sharp a woman and mother as she is a reporter and fact-checker, which is to say extraordinary. It is because she has backed me up on this book that I sleep at night. I also want to thank Executive Editor Lisa Singer Moran, Managing Editor Maureen Shelly, and Senior Editors Patty Onderko and Christina Vercelleto, all of whom were quick to lend a hand, an eye, a tip, or a less-used adjective when necessary. Im also grateful that they each, at times, overlooked the fact that I was often late with other deadlines because of the book (and that I never hesitated to whine about it).

I am also indebted to Assistant Editors Margaret Williams and Caitlin Stine, who were on top of my every e-mail practically before I hit the send button, gathering research, rounding up the many, many mom quotes that are the true voice of Babytalk, posting polls on our Web site, and generally helping me make every brilliant middle-of-the-night brainstorm actually happen. Margaret Williams, in particular, must be thanked for completing the tremendous but thankless task of pulling together our gargantuan resource list as the final manuscript deadline was looming and I could no longer tell my