The Contented Baby's First Year: The Secret to a Calm and Contented Baby Hardcover – Import, January 1, 2007

There are so many things wrong with this book I don't have time to list them all, but here are a few:If you plan on breastfeeding- this book is NOT for you. Forget the recommended "nursing on demand", you gotta get this baby on a schedule right away! To compensate for the guarantee that this will ruin your supply, Ford recommends pumping early in order to compensate for growth spurts so you can stay. on. that. schedule. She also offers advice as to how long baby should be feeding on a side, which undermines breastfeeding because not all women are the same. Some may need to nurse longer or more often, some may be able to nurse quickly and go long periods of time without doing so. She also states that at a certain point the baby will only need to nurse from one side; this is just completely unfounded advice, based on nothing more than opinion. By the end of the book she says the baby (now 1 year old) should be completely weaned from the breast- but it's ok to use a bottle instead. This goes directly against AAP and WHO recommendations. It's probably good to note that she is NOT an IBCLC.Other quick items that are just blatantly bad advice:- Diluting formula with cows milk (never ever ever mix anything else with formula!)- If baby is not eating enough solids, reduce his intake of milk/formula to the minimum amount needed to make him hungry enough to eat what he's given- (7 months) If baby can't make it through the 12 hr sleep at this point, add a "top up" feed at the 6:15 feeding time. So basically stuff/overfeed baby so that he follows the schedule. (If you are STILL breastfeeding at this point, mother probably has low supply according to her)Looking through this book, I can say that *I* would have a hard time following this regime *as an adult*. For those who might say that it's just a recommendation and they wouldn't follow the schedules to a "T": Good for you, but I'm not going to assume everyone who picks up this book will realize that these hard schedules are not a good idea. Ford mentions occasionally that if the baby is hungry, feed it. But at the same time she pressures the reader into pushing that baby into a schedule, and tells them that if the baby is crying and it's not "time" to feed them yet, they probably aren't hungry anyway! That might be the case for a 1 year old, but not a 1 month old!Lastly, Ford treats all babies as if they are the same. She sets specific times for eating and sleeping, as if all babies are to have a strict bedtime of 7pm-7am. There's a reason why there are so many "get baby to sleep" books around- because babies do *not* sleep according to the arbitrary rules we set up for them. That is perfectly normal.I'm sure that Ford has all the best intentions with this book, and I'm sure that her experience as a nurse has showed her these things worked for her. But it's very dangerous advice as she ignores the needs of the child. I also am highly suspicious that the babies she looked after were truly content- being submissive does not mean content, which is the true goal of this book.

4 years ago I had another version of this book (same title) by Gina Ford as well, it is smaller in size and not hard cover. It has month by month exact hourly schedule on what to do with baby each day and it had been a life saver for me when I had my 1st one. Followed the schedule exactly and 1st year was a breeze. Sometime during the move I lost that book and I thought I found again on Amazon, ordered and when it arrived I found the content has the same idea but not exactly the same, am missing the hourly schedule that I loved. This version is Good guide, but I still prefer the older/other version.

I got this book after reading a few others which only had general information. This book contains specific valuable advise for new parents. If you are having trouble getting your little one to sleep through the night this book is for you! I don't believe in CIO technique and this is a much softer approach to raising your child. Attachemnt parenting friendly book :o) This is the only book that I have read that I would actually give as a gift. All your questions about baby's food, schedule, sleep, physical development, play, and more will be answered but note that this book doesn't cover any medical issues for that I read 'Baby 411' although 'Baby 411' suggests CIO and other techniques I don't agree with the basic info for shots and medical conditions is fantastic.

This book was an absolute pleasure to read. When I was seven months pregnant, a friend recommended this book. He has three children that have slept through the night, as a result from this book, he claims. So of course, I was quite eager to have a read. Extremely comprehensible and constantly reassuring. I sincerely refer to this book as, My Baby Bible. Genuine gratitude to Gina Ford.

if you have the calm content baby book this is only an addition. But a monitor to see what your baby should be at. And a few little hints and tricks and milestones for the age groups.

The book is in good condition as described.Nice photos and helpfull details.

I like the details she gives - but it's really rigid as far as structuring a babies day! Maybe too rigid.

A concrete guideline for new mum and dad!!

I know a lot of people think Gina Ford is over the top but this book really helped me when my first baby came along. I knew nothing about babies and was reading so much conflicting advice. 5 weeks in I was on the verge of ppd and this book saved me. Thought me how to get my baby to sleep and he was the best sleeper once I started following this book. From 8 weeks he slept from 7pm to 7am every day. My next two babies haven’t been as good sleepers but then I haven’t been as good at following her routine. I would highly recommend this book for any first time mother who feels lost and overwhelmed.

Ah Gina ... GINA GINA GINA!!! *sigh* i bought this book as a new first time mum & got really stressed out when I couldnt keep up with your strict program. My mother in law actually threw this book in the bin !Now I look back at this & laugh... what a load of tosh.Buy The Baby Whisperer instead its much more sense!

Love Gina... although she's a bit like Marmite... you'll love her routines or find them just far to regimented. Everyone parents differently but I personally found her advice incredible and it worked a treat for my little ones. With both my children I started Gina's routines from 3.5months and had them sleeping through the night 7pm-7am with three clockwork naps a day within two weeks. They certainly were contented little babies! Fed amazingly, weaning and recipe advice was great (also recommend Annabel Karmel). Reassuring advice on all topics. Highly recommend!!

Cannot be more thankful to Gina then I'm now. When my baby was born she could sleep only in my arms and wanted to breastfeed 30 times a day. By the 8 week I became exhausted, I opened Gina's first book and it immediately gave results. This book compliments the Contented Baby by focusing more on child development than eating and feeding. I also like that I don't need to read the whole book right now but do it month after month. Thank you, thank you, Gina, my baby's first year has been super content and I am a confident mum enjoying baby, work and life.

Could be better. I bought this rather than the New Contended Little Baby Book, but the routines are not clear in this one. I do like the GF routines, and they did make things a lot easier for us initially, but this book on its own isn't enough.