The story so far

Some backstory on the origins of the (yet to be completed) book You’re Doing Great, Baby by Jeff Edwards (my husband) and Beth Taylor (me).

In 2012 Jeff and I started writing a picture book for new parents. We didn’t know exactly what it was about but we knew we had something to say to new parents:

• You’re doing great
• Be kind to yourself – having a baby is a major learning curve
• Early parenthood can feel lonely and overwhelming
• It’s hard work being a baby – they’re going through a massive learning curve too
• When you and your baby can hang out and just ‘be’ together it feels really great
• Your child is your greatest teacher
• You are your child’s greatest teacher

We also knew all the things we didn’t want to say to new parents:

• Advice about feeding, sleeping, eating, teething or developmental milestones

We made notes and talked about it at the end of the day once our son Leo was asleep. Jeff turned what we came up with into rhyme during his trips to and from work on the train.

I tried to convince Jeff that he needed to illustrate the book and he resisted. Eventually he relented because we wanted to work on the book together rather than bring someone else in. I called him ‘the reluctant illustrator’.

Then we had a big break because I got pregnant again and was exhausted all the time.

And then Clem was born in mid-2014, and we decided that we had even more to say to new parents, so we started working on the book again.

Once our eldest started school in 2015 it was all go! Jeff finished a first draft of the illustrations and layout and I started experimenting with watercolours so I could colour his illustrations.

And now we’re looking into book printing options, planning a crowd funding campaign and working on finishing the book. It’s very exciting.