When You Were Inside Mommy

My 28 month old son loves this book. When we first got it, two months ago, he received the information with wide-eyed wonder. Now, he is able to "read" the book himself, reciting the simple sentences himself from memory while looking at the pictures. We are expecting a new sibling next year, and our thought was that before our son should know or could understand that a new baby was inside mommy, it would be helpful for him first to know and understand that he was once inside. Small kids are ego-centric by nature, and knowing it was about him really helped. I have not been able to find a better book to accomplish this job. I'd recommend it without reservation to anyone looking for a first book on the facts of life. The language and material are approached in a simple, direct, age-appropriate way.That said, there are some things a parent might want to know before purchasing this book:1) As the cover illustration suggests, the book features a two-parent, heterosexual family with one child. The family has a light peach skintone. The sex of the child is not explicit, but the illustrations lean toward implying he's a boy.2) The book does not address the sexual act, sperm, or eggs. This is somewhat good, because the material is enough for a small child to digest without adding that to it, but it makes things a bit confusing. A two page spread reads, "In the beginning you were just one tiny cell. Half of the cell came from your mommy, and the other half came from your daddy. That cell was smaller than this dot! ." The illustration shows the mom and dad holding together halves of a construction paper heart. This confused my child and made him think we could create a child by making a collage.3) The book uses accurate terms in some cases: uterus/womb and umblical cord are examples. However, it avoids others, namely, vagina. Instead of vagina, the book says "special opening." "Fetus" is avoided, much less awkwardly, through the second-person narrative style. (A fetus was not inside Mommy; "You" were inside Mommy.)4) The book assumes vaginal birth at a hospital, assisted by doctors and nurses.5) The book does not show any detailed nudity. There is an illustration of the baby being lifted from between the mother's knees, but her vaginal area is covered by a sheet and the child, while naked, is positioned in such a way that genitals and buttocks are concealed. The child is clean, not bloody or vernixy. The next spread features an imaged of a swaddled baby nursing from his mother's breast, but the illustration is really only the suggestion of a breast with no visible nipple. If your child is not exposed to breasts or breastfeeding, I don't think she/he would be likely to recognize that this is what is happening.6) There are images on several pages of the fetus inside the uterus at various stages of development. They are like colored, artistic renderings of sonogram images or cross-section anatomy texts. They are cute, and not scary in my opinion. My son loves to look at them, and it really helps him to understand gestation.

I was so glad to find this book. My son is 5, and we didn't want to explain anything too graphically but wanted him to have some idea before his baby brother comes. He was asking some simple questions and this book had the age-appropriate answers for him. It tells and shows just enough if you're not looking for a thorough anatomy lesson for a preschooler.

We got this for my 2 year old since we are expecting another baby in a few months. This is the first introduction to "where babies come from" or new sibling info we gave him. He likes the book a lot and requests it.The book doesn't actually get into new siblings at all, it's all about the current child, how they grew inside mommy and then was born. It doesn't get into sex at all, it says something about the baby starting as a tiny cell, and half the cell coming from mommy and half from daddy. I like that it uses more or less correct vocab; the baby grows in mommy's uterus, not in mommy's tummy. It does say that the baby comes out through an opening between mommy's legs, no anatomy there. It also talks about the baby getting food and air through the umbilical cord and shows a few cartoon pictures or different fetal stages.Overall I thought it was a great introduction for younger kids. Older kids could probably use more detail, but it's a good start without opening up too much. I also liked to start with this rather than a big brother type book, since the concept of having a new baby in a few months definitely seems harder for my toddler to grasp. This would also be good for toddlers who weren't having new siblings but were just starting to ask about other babies.

Just what we were looking for. I have a daughter who is going on 3 that was asking a lot of questions about the baby that is growing inside Momma. She was asking things like 'is the baby cold?' and 'is the baby hungry?' and 'Will the baby have a belly button?'. We wanted a book that delt with these sorts of questions on a factual basis but at a level she could understand. This was perfect!!! The story talks about how the baby is in the uterus or womb and how the baby grows and gets fed. Also about how long it feels waiting for the day to arrive hehehe. This answered a lot of her questions and gave us the opportunity to cover other questions about the baby in a good context. Also things like 'how the baby was made' and 'where he baby comes out' are beautifully avoided. On the 'labor' page it just says something along the lines of when the baby was ready the baby came out of a special opening in Mommy that is big enough for the baby. NICELY DONE! I highly recommend this for inquisitive young children that are waiting for a new sibling or just has questions about where they came from.

I have wanted to get a book about a baby growing for our two-year-old, as we are expecting another baby. Most books about the "facts of life" are written for kids a little older, but this is perfect for her. It uses the words "uterus" and "womb," although it does not use "vagina" (it says "special opening" instead, so we just say vagina because that's how we roll). It mentions breast and bottle feeding, although it does not discuss c-section vs vaginal delivery, so that might be confusing for a kid whose mom has/had a c-section. It also does not address how conception happens, which is just fine for us. I agree with others that the construction heart could be confusing for a kid, but that section is a little beyond our kid anyway. She mostly likes the pictures of the baby growing. Also see I'm A Big Sister or I'm A Big Brother by the same author for a nice companion piece if you are getting this for your soon-to-be big sibling.

Highly recommend this book! Helped explain things perfectly to our inquisitive 4 1/2 year old!

Good quality book and quick delivery. My four year old has been asking a lot of questions about how babies come out, and this satisfied her questions. It tells enough without going into details. It can prompt discussion that is appropriate for the level your child is at.

love this book. My son asked me when do I come from, and this book help me to manager the early sex education. He loves the book and I read it over and over, he is never tired of it. And he now understands he is from mama's tummy. I really like Joanna Cole's book.

Great book, makes it easy for kids to picture what's going inside Mom. My boys aged 4 and 2 ask to read it often.

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