What to Expect When Mommy's Having a Baby

Lil' Kay is very excited about the coming baby, and he has a lot of questions. I really want to get him involved in the entire process, so I set out to find a children's book that would talk a little about what's going on inside Mommy. My only caveat was that it needed to be not too graphic. I didn't want an complete sex education course, and I didn't need any pictures of the baby actually coming out of the mother. I'm trying to get him excited, not terrified.

After going through the surprisingly small selection of books at Borders, I came across What to Expect When Mommy's Having a Baby by Heidi Murkoff. The same author of the oh so popular What to Expect When Your Expecting book. I did a quick read through. No penises, no birthing pictures. Perfect! And it is a very good book! It anwers a lot of great questions, like how does the baby eat, why is mommy sick, and so on.

Obviously, the question of how did the baby get inside Mommy is addressed, too, but I found the explanation completely appropriate for my 5, almost 6 year old. It explains that Mommy and Daddy each have a piece of the puzzle. Mommy has an ovum and Daddy has a sperm. When they want to make a baby, Daddy puts his sperm inside Mommy, and it and the ovum combine to start the baby. Doesn't tell how Daddy does it, but that's okay by me. This is all accompanied by a cute little drawing of Mommy and Daddy sitting on the couch fully clothed with their arms around each other. Well, I think their feet are bare, but that's it.

So, the other night, I'm reading this book to Lil Kay for the second time. When we get done, he puts his arms around me in a very sweet hug. Then he pulls away and says, "Did I just give you my stuff?"

Think fast, Mommy!! "Well, it's a little more complicated than that, but it's not something you need to know about until you're older."

Today he's taking our first sonogram picture to kindergarten for show and tell. Can't wait for the note from the teacher...