8 Books for New Big Sisters

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When I wrote about Grace's big sister gift, several readers emailed to ask why I hadn't included any big sister books in the backpack.

The simple answer is that I've gone well overboard in that area, and we have a handful of big sister books already.

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Here are the ones that we like:

• What to Expect When the New Baby Comes Home by Heidi Murkoff

  This book is very detailed. It explains why the baby needs so much attention, why it needs to be fed, why it can't do anything by itself, and on and on. Grace has never sit down to listen to the entire book, but she does really like to read a page here or there. This is a great, great book, and Grace actually chose it at the bookstore.

• I'm a Big Sister by Joanna Cole

  I just love Joanna Cole's books. This is a small book that explains in simple and positive terms how babies and big sisters are different. At the end of the book, the big sister realizes that she is special and unique and that her parents love her for it.

• When You Were Inside Mommy by Joanna Cole

  I've talked about this one before. We love it. It's not about the new baby, but about the reader growing inside of Momma's belly. It helps small children to understand what happens as a baby grows inside her momma as well as the changes that the mama goes through. This is one of Grace's favorites.

• I'm a Big Sister! by Ronne Randall and Kristina Stephenson

  This is similar to the Joanna Cole big sister book above, but it's more in depth and meant for an older big sister. It talks about how cool it is to be big and how much a big sister can do, but at the same time, validates that the big sister wants to be a baby again.

• The New Baby from Usborne Books

  This one is much less emotional than the others. It explains what happens when a mom and dad go to the hospital to have a new baby. There are no assumptions about it being good or bad to be an older sibling.

In the interest of not going overboard, I am not buying any more big sister books.

But if I did buy another book or two, it would be these:

• The New Baby at Your House by Joanna Cole

  This one looks awesome! It explains that having a new baby can be hard and sometimes kids don't like it. I want to have this one on hand just in case we run in to problems.

• What Baby Needs by William Sears

  A lot of our parenting decisions are based on Sears' Attachment Parenting model, so I think this book would be helpful in explaining what's going on in terms she can understand.

• Babies Don't Eat Pizza: A Big Kids' Book About Baby Brothers and Baby Sisters by Dianna Danzig

  The Amazon reviews on this one are mixed, but I think it looks really good.

What big sister or new baby books have helped your older children adjust to a new family member?