Praying for Your Child's Development - Body and Soul | Christian Parenting Book for Expecting Mothers | Perfect for Pregnancy Devotionals & Baby Blessings

I absolutely adore this book, but for reasons different than what other reviewers have noted. First of all, I found this prayer book to be much more gracious than a lot of others I've seen for expectant moms. During the first 5 weeks, Marla does not assume that all women will experience the same emotions regarding their pregnancies. For example, in week one she writes, "Whether the start of your period spells disappointment or relief, your body is hard at work readying your uterus for a baby." Then in week 4 she writes, "if you've been hoping and praying for a baby, you were thrilled to your toenails with the results on that little stick... If this pregnancy wasn't planned, you might be shocked, worried, or even scared. You'll need some time to process the news. And that's ok."The second thing I've appreciated about this book is the "scope and sequence" of Marla's prayers. It's as if she sat down and thought "Ok. What kinds of character traits / spiritual attributes do I want to cover in prayer during this pregnancy? Spiritual sensitivity, confidence, cheerfulness, vitality, individuality, the intellect, creativity... Ok, so which of those topic / prayers are most appropriate with each week of development?" Thus, by praying through the entire 40 weeks, I'm getting to cover a lot of ground in the wholistic prayers that I sense my baby needs.Finally (and perhaps most significantly), Marla connects my prayers for my baby with my own formation as a Mommy. For example, on the fourth week, she connects implantation with creating a nurturing home environment, so the journaling section prompts me, "What do you remember about the atmosphere of your childhood home(s)? Which parts would you like to recreate for your own children?" Similarly, she uses the formation of Baby's upper lip in week 10 to pray for kindness (which she relates to speech). Recognizing that many of Baby's habits and ways of being will be largely shaped by our modeling, Marla encourages me, "It's easy- especially when you're nauseated an exhausted- to be careless about the words that fly off your lips. Stop and think for a moment before you speak this week." And then the journaling section asks, "What are some kind words you could speak to specific people this week?" I feel like this combo- praying for Baby and working on Mommy- is exactly what I need as I prepare myself and my home for his or her arrival.The only thing that disappointed me (that perhaps can be rethought in another addition?:) is that week 3 would only be appropriate / helpful in retrospect. Prior to even the remotest possibility of a positive pregnancy test, the prayer begins, "Father, my baby is here! He exists! I believe with all my heart that life begins at conception, and my child has been conceived!" I know it ia true that this prayer is consistent with what is actually happening in the development of a pregnancy, but it is inconstant with a woman's experience of the pregnancy. I think I'm especially sensitive to this because after my first pregnancy was lost in the first trimester, I experienced 24 cycles before our second baby was conceived. So while I lived with the prayers of the first two weeks for a loooong time (which were very helpful and applicable), I found this third week to be quite discouraging and inappropriate. Even for a woman who becomes pregnant easily, she still has no idea whether or not she is pregnant in the third week. Perhaps a better emphasis would be on Baby's capacity to deal with the mysteries / uncertainties of life. Just my 2 cents:)But again, I think this book is just fabulous. Thank you, Marla Taviano!