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A Dude's Guide to Baby Size: What to Expect and How to Prep for Dads-to-Be
The viral video star behind Dude Dad offers a humorous and heartfelt guide to helping expectant fathers survive and thrive during the wild ride that is forty weeks of pregnancy.
Numerous apps and books exist to help expectant parents understand their baby’s development by comparing their unborn child to a raspberry or a stalk of broccoli, but Taylor Calmus takes issue with that. First off, your baby is not some wimpy little vegetable. Your baby is a hardcore little lug nut who is straight-up growing organs on a weekly basis. Second, how big is a stalk of broccoli? And what the heck is a kumquat? Clearly this situation calls for a better approach. Enter . . . A Dude’s Guide to Baby Size .
• At week nine, your little shredder resembles the circumference of a guitar pick.
• At week twenty-four, your budding jalapeño is the size of some concession-stand nachos.
• By week thirty-four, your little lopper is now the size of a sixteen-inch largemouth bass that weighs four to five pounds!
This book is full of fun facts about your growing baby, advice on how to help Mom-to-be, as well as ideas and encouragement for you on your journey from Dude to Dude Dad.
Buckle up for a wild ride full of maternity metaphors, gnarly playlists for all the special occasions, new parenting tales, dos and don’ts for expecting dads, and even an entire chapter dedicated to beef brisket!
Numerous apps and books exist to help expectant parents understand their baby’s development by comparing their unborn child to a raspberry or a stalk of broccoli, but Taylor Calmus takes issue with that. First off, your baby is not some wimpy little vegetable. Your baby is a hardcore little lug nut who is straight-up growing organs on a weekly basis. Second, how big is a stalk of broccoli? And what the heck is a kumquat? Clearly this situation calls for a better approach. Enter . . . A Dude’s Guide to Baby Size .
• At week nine, your little shredder resembles the circumference of a guitar pick.
• At week twenty-four, your budding jalapeño is the size of some concession-stand nachos.
• By week thirty-four, your little lopper is now the size of a sixteen-inch largemouth bass that weighs four to five pounds!
This book is full of fun facts about your growing baby, advice on how to help Mom-to-be, as well as ideas and encouragement for you on your journey from Dude to Dude Dad.
Buckle up for a wild ride full of maternity metaphors, gnarly playlists for all the special occasions, new parenting tales, dos and don’ts for expecting dads, and even an entire chapter dedicated to beef brisket!
- GenresNonfictionParentingHumor
176 pages, Hardcover
Published May 10, 2022
40 people are currently reading
80 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
May 2, 2022
I received this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.
I just ADORE, LOVE, the Dude Dad videos. My husband and I watch them together and we always look forward to new videos. From happy ones to silly ones to sweet ones. We are fans! So when we learned about the book we were both really hyped, it sounded hilarious and we needed it. Imagine my delight when I was browsing Netgalley and saw the book there. Oh my gosh, you don’t know how much hoping and crossing my fingers and praying I did. I got the book! And it was just as wonderful as I had hoped. Will definitely buy it for myself and my hubby when it comes out. Then he can also read it (and I can read it again).
A lot of pregnancy books indeed go for fruits or whatever else is sweet/cute, but not Taylor. Oh no, I was so looking forward to each week and see what item he would select then. To tell us how big the baby is at that moment. From a BB to a Six-Pound Brisket to Small Yippee Dog. I just laughed so much, sometimes saying out loud (which made my husband laugh): “Oh Taylor, no, you didn’t just compare your baby to x.” I loved his choices, very fitting!
But the what size is your baby in x item/food/etc. isn’t just to show you how big it your baby is that week. Oh no, with each item/food/etc. we also get a wonderful chapter inspired by that item/food/etc. With inspiring stories, anecdotes about Taylor’s parents and youth, about his kids, about Heidi and relationships, and so much more. I really enjoyed learning more about Taylor and I loved the anecdotes. Like with the circular saw we read about the tree house his dad made, about his family, about the tool and what it does. It just all clicked together.
Next to those anecdotes/inspiring stories we also get a lot of information on the baby and what is happening that particular week. What kind of changes are happening in the baby, and also in the wife. How to anticipate what is happening, to what to do during the weeks, how to prepare, to also what not to say (which had me laughing and nodding along), and much more! I loved how he explained everything, not a boring speech, but instead a really fun explanation that was really in style with how he does things in his videos.
There are also quotes from Heidi, playlists, and some other fun tidbits~
It doesn’t happen that often, but in this book? It felt like Taylor was just grabbing a chair next to me, popping open a beer, and then lay the whole pregnancy stuff out for me, in his way, the dude dad way. It was perfect.
All in all, this book will be loved by many! I can feel it. It is inspirational, funny, sweet, adorable, made me cry, and I would recommend it to all.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
I just ADORE, LOVE, the Dude Dad videos. My husband and I watch them together and we always look forward to new videos. From happy ones to silly ones to sweet ones. We are fans! So when we learned about the book we were both really hyped, it sounded hilarious and we needed it. Imagine my delight when I was browsing Netgalley and saw the book there. Oh my gosh, you don’t know how much hoping and crossing my fingers and praying I did. I got the book! And it was just as wonderful as I had hoped. Will definitely buy it for myself and my hubby when it comes out. Then he can also read it (and I can read it again).
A lot of pregnancy books indeed go for fruits or whatever else is sweet/cute, but not Taylor. Oh no, I was so looking forward to each week and see what item he would select then. To tell us how big the baby is at that moment. From a BB to a Six-Pound Brisket to Small Yippee Dog. I just laughed so much, sometimes saying out loud (which made my husband laugh): “Oh Taylor, no, you didn’t just compare your baby to x.” I loved his choices, very fitting!
But the what size is your baby in x item/food/etc. isn’t just to show you how big it your baby is that week. Oh no, with each item/food/etc. we also get a wonderful chapter inspired by that item/food/etc. With inspiring stories, anecdotes about Taylor’s parents and youth, about his kids, about Heidi and relationships, and so much more. I really enjoyed learning more about Taylor and I loved the anecdotes. Like with the circular saw we read about the tree house his dad made, about his family, about the tool and what it does. It just all clicked together.
Next to those anecdotes/inspiring stories we also get a lot of information on the baby and what is happening that particular week. What kind of changes are happening in the baby, and also in the wife. How to anticipate what is happening, to what to do during the weeks, how to prepare, to also what not to say (which had me laughing and nodding along), and much more! I loved how he explained everything, not a boring speech, but instead a really fun explanation that was really in style with how he does things in his videos.
There are also quotes from Heidi, playlists, and some other fun tidbits~
It doesn’t happen that often, but in this book? It felt like Taylor was just grabbing a chair next to me, popping open a beer, and then lay the whole pregnancy stuff out for me, in his way, the dude dad way. It was perfect.
All in all, this book will be loved by many! I can feel it. It is inspirational, funny, sweet, adorable, made me cry, and I would recommend it to all.
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
January 10, 2023
I already followed Dude Dad on YouTube, he announced this book right before we started trying for our first baby, and we got pregnant two months after it came out. Pretty decent timing.
My husband immediately loved this book, he thought it was hilarious and relatable! He tried to follow along with my pregnancy week by week, but he kinda failed. So I need to nudge him to read it all. I read it all in one day at the start of my third trimester, lol.
So this book takes you week by week through pregnancy, and each week, like apps, will compare your fetus' size to something. This chooses some pretty weird objects, but things that dudes tend to know. Though we did find this book to be very American. Taylor also uses the object of the week as a metaphor or segue into something related to parenting. Often it works well, sometimes it's a bit of a stretch. While pretty stereotypically dude, there is good advice on how to be a good father.
The book isn't very scientific, but it does include some more medical facts with sources and a short bibliography in the back. Not all books do that, certainly didn't expect it for such a humorous book!
All in all it's pretty decent, definitely get it if you're a Dude Dad fan, and it'll make a great gift for a dad to be.
My husband immediately loved this book, he thought it was hilarious and relatable! He tried to follow along with my pregnancy week by week, but he kinda failed. So I need to nudge him to read it all. I read it all in one day at the start of my third trimester, lol.
So this book takes you week by week through pregnancy, and each week, like apps, will compare your fetus' size to something. This chooses some pretty weird objects, but things that dudes tend to know. Though we did find this book to be very American. Taylor also uses the object of the week as a metaphor or segue into something related to parenting. Often it works well, sometimes it's a bit of a stretch. While pretty stereotypically dude, there is good advice on how to be a good father.
The book isn't very scientific, but it does include some more medical facts with sources and a short bibliography in the back. Not all books do that, certainly didn't expect it for such a humorous book!
All in all it's pretty decent, definitely get it if you're a Dude Dad fan, and it'll make a great gift for a dad to be.
March 23, 2025
Very lighthearted book about what to expect during pregnancy from/for a man’s point of view.
Very fun and cute analogy’s while also speaking about the seriousness of the changes happening in the mothers body
I would recommend it
Very fun and cute analogy’s while also speaking about the seriousness of the changes happening in the mothers body
I would recommend it
January 6, 2023
Fun and informative book. Definitely bro-y but not as toxically masculine as it could have been, so that’s a plus.
January 31, 2024
Bad enough it was almost satirical
June 3, 2024
My wife really enjoys Dude Dad's videos and we are having our first kid, so she got this book for me. I have to admit that Dude Dad is very, very much not my thing. There is a brand of lifestyle youtuber like Dude Dad, the Holdernesses and so on that are, frankly, a completely different reality from the one I live in. I love my wife though, so I read the book recently on a flight.
It isn't bad, and if this is the first parenting book you read, it has some helpful information. The humor and style was grating to me, though. I heard it said that toxic masculinity is that every man thinks he is funny, and that came to mind just about every paragraph of this book. There is good information here, and for what it's worth it does seem like the author actually does love his family which doesn't always seem the case for the type of person who makes the content he does, but if the author and I were venn diagrams, we would be two almost completely separate circles. The humor is very Frat Bro and periodically it feels like a drag performance of a straight man. There is an audience for this, hence Dude Dad's relative fame, but the shtick is immediately exhausting for me and it was really difficult to want to dig in long enough to find the good information.
There are definitely worse books about parenting written by men for men, but only just.
It isn't bad, and if this is the first parenting book you read, it has some helpful information. The humor and style was grating to me, though. I heard it said that toxic masculinity is that every man thinks he is funny, and that came to mind just about every paragraph of this book. There is good information here, and for what it's worth it does seem like the author actually does love his family which doesn't always seem the case for the type of person who makes the content he does, but if the author and I were venn diagrams, we would be two almost completely separate circles. The humor is very Frat Bro and periodically it feels like a drag performance of a straight man. There is an audience for this, hence Dude Dad's relative fame, but the shtick is immediately exhausting for me and it was really difficult to want to dig in long enough to find the good information.
There are definitely worse books about parenting written by men for men, but only just.
March 15, 2022
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Netgalley & WaterBrook!
Taylor Calmus, known for his Dude Dad viral content, brings this humorous pregnancy guide for expectant dads. This book is broken down into trimesters and weekly information.
Taylor’s brand of comedy is easily identified throughout A Dude’s Guide To Baby Size. (If you have ever seen any of the Dude Dad videos, you can practically hear his voice while reading.) Although this guide is presented in a comical way, it contains plenty of important tips for both new and veteran dads.
I am a mother of 3 and I found this book to be both hilarious and instructive. I love the unique and creative way Taylor describes the baby’s size at the beginning of each week. The “dude” friendly definitions are helpful and straightforward. I like that he also included birth playlists towards the end of the book. The section with “things she’ll say” included with each trimester is absolutely accurate.
A Dude’s Guide To Baby Size would make a fun baby shower gift. Both dads and moms will enjoy this book. While I was already familiar with Dude Dad , I don't think that it is necessary to have previous knowledge of his material to appreciate this book.
Taylor Calmus, known for his Dude Dad viral content, brings this humorous pregnancy guide for expectant dads. This book is broken down into trimesters and weekly information.
Taylor’s brand of comedy is easily identified throughout A Dude’s Guide To Baby Size. (If you have ever seen any of the Dude Dad videos, you can practically hear his voice while reading.) Although this guide is presented in a comical way, it contains plenty of important tips for both new and veteran dads.
I am a mother of 3 and I found this book to be both hilarious and instructive. I love the unique and creative way Taylor describes the baby’s size at the beginning of each week. The “dude” friendly definitions are helpful and straightforward. I like that he also included birth playlists towards the end of the book. The section with “things she’ll say” included with each trimester is absolutely accurate.
A Dude’s Guide To Baby Size would make a fun baby shower gift. Both dads and moms will enjoy this book. While I was already familiar with Dude Dad , I don't think that it is necessary to have previous knowledge of his material to appreciate this book.
May 4, 2022
The concept may be a wee bit reductive--I'm not sure if men really need a special explanation of all things baby suited to their manly manliness, but, putting a pin in that, this is a very good book. Again, perhaps a little stereotypical (the frequent, quivering references to mood swings make pregnant women sound like hysterical she-beasts), but the underlying information is solid and detailed and the musings on babies and fatherhood were enjoyable to read. If someone relates to this style and tone and finds it a helpful, enjoyable reference, why not?
Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review!
Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review!
September 2, 2022
Dude Dad is one of the few content creators that I follow. I got the book to see if the comedy comes across as well in the written word. (Sometimes comedians aren't as funny without the verbal delivery, facial expressions, etc.) I read the first few chapters and skimmed the rest (considering I'm not a dude, nor am I expecting), and I am happy to say the humor is definitely still there along with the sweet sentimental bits that we love from Taylor. The pregnancy information is true and way more relatable than those What to Expect books. If you're pregnant, give this book to your man.
June 5, 2022
A really fun book. As a dad of three, the book came a little late but I wish this book had been available before my first. I have followed Dude Dad on YouTube for a few years and love his content and now his book.
September 23, 2022
Was a fun read. The big positives are that Taylor hits on lots of memorable points and guidance that are crucial for being a new dad. My only real qualm is that a fair amount of the content is already on his YouTube channel.
June 27, 2022
Great book funny and helpful
August 6, 2022
Awesome read.
April 12, 2023
Well written with practical advice and some good classic Dude Dad humor. Short readings on a weekly basis that kept me excited to read each week during the pregnancy.
June 22, 2023
A little less personality and assuming what kind of person I am, and a little more telling me what I need to do and know.
The metaphors were pretty good, though.
The metaphors were pretty good, though.
December 3, 2023
Humorous and informative. Worth a read.
December 4, 2023
Yet another book aimed at men that assumes they're incompetent idiots and praises them for doing the bare minimum.
November 5, 2025
Great short book with funny stories and examples of what to expect during pregnancy. An enjoyable read.
October 25, 2024
Dad Dude is funny to be sure and some of his humor makes it into the book. I'm perhaps not in a good place to judge its true merits because I'm five kids in and didn't read it to learn, just to be entertained, and at that it was ok.
July 3, 2022
I follow Calmus’s YouTube channel where he makes funny videos about parenting and home repairs. Since we’re expecting baby #3 right now, I figured this would be a good book to read this pregnancy. It was mostly stuff that I already knew from previous pregnancies, but I enjoyed Calmus’s humor and parenting advice.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews