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Summary: This book will ruin your life
Review: Do not buy this book. It is a fantasy that you can make a newborn baby adhere to a strict schedule. You can't program your baby to behave so that it fits into your schedule - forget it. This author is a danger to all new mothers who are having a challenge settling into their new life - she falsely claims they are controllable creatures that will adapt easily to a pattern - it is rubbish and you will only make yourself miserable by trying to live by these ridiculous rules.
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Summary: I am the envy of everyone I meet with kids!
Review: How much is due to the schedule and how much to my baby's genes and my care I do not know. But I have a feeling that things would be very different if I hadn't found this booK! Before I found this book, I started off (before the birth) by reading the Baby Whisperer by Tracy Hogg, which I loved. It is full of sensible advice but no strict schedules or anything. It was a great start. Then, my baby suddenly started sleeping through the night at 9 weeks, the night we arrived in England from the US. I think the 6 hour time difference knocked him onto the right schedule!! During that first week In England (I was there for 3 months) he started waking up earlier and earlier and I thought, oh no! So I went to a bookstore there and found The New Contented Little Baby book and started reading. At first it scared me as I am not one for strict schedules, however, I AM organized so it got my attention. I decided to try it and although it pretty much started working right away (the principles are simple, especially the "no more than 3 hours sleep a day and at certain times only) it was work to follow it every day. I rebelled inwardly a bit to begin with as it made it more difficult to go out and about for any length of time. However, now I work my day around his naps and feeds (I do feed by bottle out of the house) and I don't really feel restricted at all. In fact, I love having that 2 hour period from noon till 2pm to get stuff done. I also run my own business from home so it's valuable work time! The most important result of this book has been that our baby is very happy and contented (as the book title suggests) as he knows what's coming next! This in turn means that my husband and I get all the sleep we need (we put him down at 7pm and we have to wake him around 7:30am with never a peep in between) which makes for a happier time for all. We have even had loud parties and nothing wakes him! I cannot urge people strongly enough that a schedule is so important and this is from a non-schedule person! I have since recommended this book to other friends with babies who were losing so much sleep and they have loved it. Read this book, it could save you from insanity!!! :)
Rating:
Summary: Read this for you and your baby's sake
Review: The first thing you wonder when you become a mom is how you read the mind of a baby. Well, Gina Ford comes close to a mind reader of babies than anyone that I can think of. In Singapore, I don't believe many of the doctors I have come across actually spend much time caring for babies, so I have to take much of their advice with a hefty pinch of salt. People who call her advice cruel to babies obviously have not read it cover to cover as I did in my first months with my baby, and nothing that I did based on her advice caused any distress to my baby that I can see. The other thing of course, is that if you discipline yourself to follow the advice it actually gives you a chance to catch some zzzzs yourself. One bit of advice I'd like to get from her though is what happens to people who have more than one care giver for the baby - in an Asian context you have possibly two sets of in-laws positively fighting to help the working mom care for the baby. How do you manage to keep with the routines? Or get THEM to stick with them :)
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Summary: A fantastic book!
Review: This book has been our "bible" since day one with our son, who's now 10 months old. I got this book originally from the UK, now it's been updated over there, and finally available over here. I can't say enough good things about Ford's book. To some people, her approach is dogmatic and rigid...to me, she's organized and practical. Here's what's happening with our friends, who let the baby control the day: One has a 13-month old, still driving her around in the car to get her to go to sleep. Not my son, he's been sleeping through the night since 7 weeks, and 7pm-7am since 12 weeks. Never hear a peep out of him. I have another friend, her son won't take a nap unless she lays down with him. Is she nuts? Another friend has a boy who refuses to eat anything but Cheerios, all day long he nibbles on them. Not my baby, who eats three solid meals a day and never fusses. What's really striking is when the kids all get together. It's so obvious how confident and content my baby is compared with the other toddlers who tend to be clingy, whiny, and fussy. Some people think you must forego any sense of freedom in order to be "trapped" by Ford's "strict" schedules. I admit we did follow the routines pretty closely for the first six months, but now our ten-month-old is so solid in his 12-hour overnight sleeping and his three meals, I can make all kinds of adjustments during the day and it all evens out in the end. When we travel,even overseas he's a dream, quickly adapting to new time zones and new surroundings. If you follow this book, you DO have to make a big committment, especially for the first few months, but believe me it's well worth it. Then later you can sit back and just smirk at the other dopes who are losing sleep every night with a fussy baby, and trying desperately to wrestle control of their lives back from their baby.
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Summary: Of course you are intelligent enough to adapt this to suit
Review: you and your baby. We weren't religious about it and it still worked very well, although you are probably best to stick to it fairly closely at first and then loosen up slightly as you go along if you prefer. Get all of you used to the routine then tinker if you like - rather like following a recipe for the first time then adding your own ingredients once you've got the knack. I suspect that anti-routine parents who have reviewed here have not actually read the whole book but thrown it out the window in disgust at the principles (as I did when I first came across it!). You need to really look at the whole thing, not just the routine lists at the end as many great points and tips are scattered throughout. She is certainly not cruel - if she were, how come parents fight like mad for her to come and work for them and always want her back? I can say with confidence that I have never been cruel to my daughter and she is a very happy little girl. Learning to go to sleep at an appropriate time without needing endless props, rocking, car rides, pacifiers, feeding etc is an absolute gift for a baby - how stressed do adults get when they lose this ability to get to sleep successfully when they are tired? How frustrated would you be if you relied on someone else doing certain things in order for you to get to sleep? This is a skill that needs learning by most babies and Gina shows you how to gently teach them this. My daughter never got hysterical using her advice - that's the point. She did when we were trying endless other methods that eventually all stopped working to get her off (rocking, feeding, walking around, swings etc) and this was what felt cruel as we were not meeting her needs and becoming frustrated and cross. Gina Ford is NOT a parent and because of this she has been able to work with literally hundreds of babies under the age of 1 yr -hence her rather prim language but also her wealth of experience beyond any parent. Do you really need her to tell you to kiss and cuddle your baby??? I already knew this. If my daughter needed an operation, I'd rather go for a surgeon who has done thousands of ops rather than one who has 3 kids of his own - she is a professional giving professional advice. We were doing OK without a fixed routine until our daughter hit about 3.5 months when her patterns went bonkers and so did we - what we needed was someone who knew what they were talking about to give us something firm that we could actually follow. I also could not believe that 'my' daughter (so unique, incredible, special etc) could fit into a set routine according to her age but we tried it out of desperation and it worked a treat. Gina really does know what she is talking about. I did not find her anti-breastfeeding although did not agree with her formula top-up suggestion. In fact, she is keen that the parent gets plenty of rest and decent food - both of which are a big help to b/f mothers. I hated the idea of this book but loved the results - it was the best thing I could have done for my daughter and we'll be doing it again for no.2. Poor sleeping babies have a strong link to PND in mothers, marital breakdown and stress/depression in general. Why is this seen as such a good thing? Show me a baby that enjoys getting overtired and having exhausted parents...then tell me that this is cruel. If babies could settle themselves easily and meet their own sleep needs, then this book wouldn't have sold a single copy. You are the parent and it is your job to equip them with skills they are going to need at the appropriate time and this has got to be a great thing for any baby to learn. Try it and then judge when you are the better parent with the happier baby - you'll see results within 2-3 days normally. She even gives her phone no out and she does call you back if you have any questions - free of charge.
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Summary: Thank you Gina Ford, this book lives up to its title
Review: This book was recommended to me by a friend from the UK. It contains a schedule from 2 weeks to 12 months. The schedule is designed to fit the babies natural needs, it is not a rigid every 4 hour schedule. On the contrary as it evolves every 2weeks to 2 months or so. The schedule basically ensures that the baby gets enough milk and naps during the day so it can sleep through the night. I have to admit that we had a hard time making our baby follow the schedule the first 3 months but it gave us something to go by which made us a lot more confident. At 3 months, all of a sudden she followed the schedule, slept through the night from 7 to 7 and is just a very contented baby ever since. What I liked about the book:
- Breast feeding advice was terrific (expressing and how to wean the baby -- worked very well for me ).
- Schedules are clearly explained no misunderstanding possible.
- For each period, Gina Ford suggests what to do socially with the baby and how the baby's feeding and sleeping habits are supposed to evolve.
- The book is small and to the point (in a military style) which made it very easy for my husband to read and understand. We were therefore on the same page on how to care for the baby, and minimized the number of "what are we suppose to do now?" questions. Thank you Gina Ford, I don't know what I would have done without this book. I look forward to getting your next book!
Rating: 
Summary: A great book -- if taken with a grain of salt!
Review: I read this book and implemented the "schedule" with great skepticism. I was most decidedly against schedules and wanted my baby to feel his way to a routine felt comfortable with. HOWEVER, the principles in this book changed my life. By incorporating Gina's theories (not all of them, mind you) and getting my son on the schedule (I did this in a much slower and more compassionate way than Gina suggests--my way takes longer but I think it made the baby more secure)I was able to identify his needs and was much more in tune with him than before. By getting adequate rest for myself and feeling more confident, I became a better and more attentive mother. I had to adapt the book in different ways when my second child arrived, as she had different needs, but several of the ideas worked for her as well. Try combining this book with the concepts found in the baby whisperer book to find a happy medium. I have given this book to many friends after spending time making margin notes (eg: "what do you mean, IRON the baby clothes?!?!?") and all of them have loved it as well.
If you are and exhausted parent--try it for two weeks and see if your AND your baby (it's a partnership, remember) aren't happier!
Rating:
Summary: Harsh and insensitive
Review: If you are more concerned with making YOUR life easy than you are with raising a happy, healthty child then this is the book you want to read. It is overly concerned with how to make a baby fit into your life, rather than teaching you how to raise your baby with compassion and kindness. I would recommend The Baby Book by Sears and The No-Cry Sleep Solution by Pantley instead.
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Summary: This book is fantastic!!
Review: We were given this book by our friends who recommended it. After reading some reviews, we were skeptical of the concept, but decided to try it as we were totally oblivious as to how to be parents!! Anyway, our 5 week old had no schedule, but since then we used the concept of the book and it worked amazingly well! We did not do the black-out curtains or swaddling, and adapted some of the other recommendations, but we follwed the feeding and sleeping schedules and they were excellent. Plus, it gives mommy some predictable time to get other things done in life! You dont need to follow it exactly to the "t", but if you find that your baby responds well to schedules (which ours definitely does!), then find the schedule that works best for you and your baby and it works like a charm!. A definite "read and recommend" book!!
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Summary: Tried it and it Worked
Review: My son was born in March and spent his first 2 months crying and unhappy. At about 2 1/2 months I read this book and tried out the routine appropriate for his age. It fit like a glove and I realize now that my son needed much more sleep than he was getting, which I suspect accounted for his unhappiness. Parents of course need to exercise judgement with raising their babies, but this book was helpful to me as a new mother in that it provided guidelines for what a typical day should be composed.
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