The Essential Breastfeeding Log (with TWO giveaways!)

UPDATED WITH TWO WINNERS!!!

A little while back, Lori and I were approached to read and review a couple books. In those couple, was The Essential Breastfeeding Log. Newly pregnant, and COMPLETELY freaked the f* out over it, this book was definitely something I knew I'd be considering for the FUTURE, but at the time, it just wasn't something I could even BEGIN to wrap my head around. So thanks to a very flexible publicist at Ballantine Books Publicity, we were able to work out a little delay for me, and two freebies for some of you (now that I *AM* ready)!

As for the actual book (The Essential Breastfeeding Log: A Feedings Tracker and Baby-Care Organizer for Nursing Moms by Sarah Bowen Shea and Suzanne Schlosberg), well let's start with the aesthetics. For me, buying a book is about two things - one, does the content look like something I'd be interested in? And two, does the cover art appeal to me? And by appeal I mean that I have a completely subjective preference for SIMPLICITY - books with too much going on, or books that look too girly and/or frilly, well they're the books I tend NOT to buy because accurate or not, the cover art can tell me the book may not be my style, even if the CONTENT tells me it IS.

But on both questions, this book scores. First, it's about breastfeeding, as well as TRACKING your breastfeeding - both things I plan to do. Second, the cover's simple and clean, and not something I'd be embarrassed to leave out accidentally on my COUNTER, and have a friend or even a HUSBAND of a friend find it. It's orange with polka dots, and only has a tiny baby photo on it - nothing too over the top, nothing screaming with cheese.

Moving on from the aesthetics though, this is where I get more picky. Because if a book claims it's going to help me TRACK something, or be a place where I dump a LOT of writing into, then it absolutely MUST be spiral-bound, and the spiral binding must seem like it will HOLD UP to all the flipping and flapping and folding and unfolding it will go through. It also has to have PLENTY of space for notes, it should probably adjust its spacing over time if it's about something I'll get BETTER at or CHANGE over the course of time, and it HAS to let me fill in my own dates. This book does every single one of those things, and it does it WELL.

This book though isn't just about TRACKING your breastfeeding progress - it's useful in other ways too. It starts off with some breastfeeding basics, it includes some troubleshooting tips, and it even has cool facts you may not have known about breastfeeding. It also does something I think will be really important for ME as a new mum - it includes space to write notes about my exercise, my weight loss, and even my "me" time or stuff my partner is or ISN'T doing. And while I doubt I'd use this as a journal for stuff going on with the husband (the space is limited), I really like the concept that I could have a single dumping ground for little notes I want to remember about this whole breastfeeding experience - like maybe the first time he brings me wine after I feed, or the billionth time he takes Tiny B to back to bed for me so I can read.

All in all I'd give The Essential Breastfeeding Log: A Feedings Tracker and Baby-Care Organizer for Nursing Moms two thumbs up. I will be keeping a single copy for me to use 5 or so months from now (yay!), but I'll also be giving two copies away to two lucky readers!

GIVEAWAY INFO

As noted above, I have TWO additional copies of The Essential Breastfeeding Log - and they'll be going to TWO lucky winners from comments/commenters below! Using random.org, we'll select a winner and let the winner know in this space (and by email if provided). We'll then privately gather your mailing address and ship them off to you.

For additional entries, you can retweet this post by using the "Retweet" button at the bottom of this post, by linking to this post off your own blog, or by adding the All Thumbs button to your blog. Just be sure to let us know you tweeted or linked to us so we can give credit where credit is due.

Entry cutoff is Saturday June 13th, 11:59 PM PST.

AND THE WINNERS ARE: Emily and Amber.

Congrats ladies, I will contact you shortly to arrange shipment!

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