Free What to Expect the First Year by Heidi Murkoff Page A

pediatrician or family physician who’s a good listener and a clear communicator, who’s open to all questions and who’s nonjudgmental, who’s patient with little patients and their parents, and most of all, seems to really love caring for children … which, of course, most baby doctors do.
    Philosophy. You won’t agree with your baby’s doctor on every topic, but it’s best to find out up front (and before you make a commitment) whether you’re mainly on the same page with major issues. To make sure your baby care philosophies mesh comfortably with those of the doctor who may be caring for your baby, ask about his or her positions on parenting topics or trends you might be interested in, from breastfeeding to circumcision, attachment parenting to co-sleeping, complementary and alternative medicine to immunizations.

Chapter 2
Buying for Baby
    You’ve probably been itching to belly up to the nearest baby superstore or online baby registry for months now—maybe even before you had a belly. After all, those too-cute onesies (is that a matching hat and socks?), cuddly stuffed animals, and magical mobiles are hard to resist. But between the slings, swings, and strollers, the cribs and car seats, the burping cloths and blankies, the bibs and booties, buying for baby can get a little overwhelming (make that head-spinning), not to mention credit-card-maxing. So before you start sliding that card (or clicking “register now”), be sure to read up on baby gear must-haves, nice-to-haves, and probably-don’t-needs, so you can stock your little one’s nursery without cluttering it up—and without cleaning out your bank account.
Buying the Baby Basics
    With so many products to buy and register for, you may be tempted just to grab a virtual shopping cart and get started. But before you proceed to checkout, check out these baby buying guidelines:
    â€¢ Do your homework before you bring products home. Babies tend to bring out the impulse buyer in everyone—but especially in starry-eyed first-time expectant parents (and particularly in hormone-hazy moms-to-be). To avoid buyer’s remorse (when you realize that a newborn’s bottom is warm enough without prewarmed wipes or that 41 newborn onesies were probably 31 too many or that you didn’t really need Hollywood’s favorite jogging stroller when you don’t ever plan on jogging in Hollywood—or anywhere), think and link before you buy. Read online reviews, do comparison shopping, and tap into your most in-the-know network, other parents—including those on WhatToExpect.com . They’ll tell you like it is, and isn’t, when it comes to much-hyped and high-priced products and product features.
    â€¢ Shop for the right registry (or registries). Before you narrow down your layette list, narrow down the list of stores where you’ll be buying or registering for most of those goodies. Consider return policies (because you may end up with too much of a good thing—or find that some good things aren’t so good after all), restocking charges, whether purchases and exchanges can be made both online and in stores, and convenience (is there a brick-and-mortar store close to you and most of your friends and family?). But also ask around—your message board and Facebook buddies who’ve shopped this way before will be your best registry resources (or even have lists of their own must-haves they’ve shared—check out the “Love-it Lists” at whattoexpect.com/loveit . Though you may not be able to find one-stop shopping for all your baby needs, try to keep your registries down to a reasonable two or three by looking for sites or stores that carry most of what you’re signing up for.
    â€¢ Shop for baby in baby steps. Start with newborn needs (that will be plenty). Hold off buying gear you won’t need until later in your baby’s first year, when you’ll