Moms on Call Books Review: Do These Guides Simplify Parenting?

The newborn phase can be overwhelming for first-time parents and veteran parents, as it can be an adjustment to have another human in the house, regardless of how many were there before. While some parents use their intuition to figure out when the baby needs to eat or sleep, others turn to resources to help them establish routines that help the whole family. One such program, created by two nurses, is Moms on Call.

According to their website, the program has helped over 900,000 families get better sleep, adhere to a schedule and have better overall family well-being and dynamics. Here's what you need to know about the resource, which is available via physical Moms on Call books, online classes, one-on-one support and a podcast.

Ready to try Moms on Call? Save 20% off all books with the code SUMMER20 from May 11 to May 31, 2025.

What you need to know about Moms on Call

I live in the southern part of the United States, where Moms on Call was founded, and to say it has a cult following is putting it lightly. Nearly every mom I talked to when I was pregnant with my first child in 2020 said that it was the most life-changing set of books.

They said I didn't need to do a ton of research because the Moms on Call method would have everything laid out for me step-by-step, from feeding and nap schedules to how to bathe an infant.

I started with the book series, specifically the Moms on Call Baby Basic Care 0-6 Months book. With my first, I was cautioned that the magic really couldn't happen until 8 to 10 weeks and not to try too hard to follow the schedule strictly before that. That warning was extremely helpful, as I am a type-A person who has never met a routine or schedule she didn't love.

The books offer easy-to-read chapters broken down into manageable sections such as sleeping, feeding, baby care and more. The text is encouraging with a light touch of faith-based parenting. It's not pervasive, so parents who aren't interested in faith-based approaches will feel comfortable with the books, too.

It feels like the co-founders and authors are friends, guiding you through the process, and they are trustworthy because they are nurses. The information is informative and sometimes genius, such as tips on how to bathe your baby alone (put a bouncer in the bathroom and put the towel on top of the bouncer!) or how to cut their nails (with their backs to you with no one else looking).

The best part of the books is the suggested schedules, broken up into sections based on ages, such as eight weeks to 16 weeks and six to eight months, for example. I've had a few copies of the book over the years, and both have been completely dog-eared on the "typical days" schedule pages, as they are what make Moms on Call so effective.

How does the advice hold up?

Moms on Call's advice really did change our family's lives by helping us establish sleep routines, feeding schedules and having an overall structure and rhythm where we knew what to expect as a family. This was especially important with me for my first child as I went back to work at about 10 weeks postpartum. Having a schedule that I could adhere to rather than trying to figure out wake windows made the entire process less intimidating.

Establishing Sleep Routines

Moms on Call never comes out and outrightly says that the method involves crying it out, but it does. Parents who are not comfortable with this can use some of their advice to modify the process, but I have had experience with two kids now and know that their methods work if you adhere to them.

It can be uncomfortable to let your child cry for a few nights, but in the end, everyone ends up happier and gets more solid sleep. My children both sleep from 7 pm to 7 am with very few wakeups.

If you have children who will be attending daycare, it might be hard to keep a perfect Moms on Call schedule, but as they say in the book, "what happens at daycare, stays at daycare," and I've found this to be true with both of my children. For example, my 10-month-old takes only one 2-hour nap at daycare, but at home, she seamlessly falls back into her Moms on Call-approved two-nap schedule.

Not all children are the same, so it might take some trial and error. There are additional support options should you need them. For example, my first baby never really had to cry it out, which was a blessing.

However, my second baby needed more thorough sleep training and a more gradual approach, or what Moms on Call calls "soothing rounds." I engaged with a Moms on Call sleep consultant for email support for 30 days. It made a world of difference and both of my babies were sleep trained fully by 18 weeks or so.

Feeding Schedules and Nutrition

Feeding schedules are incorporated into suggested daily schedules by age, which makes it easy to know what to expect. They also help with transitioning to solid food, telling you how much formula or breastmilk to put into a sippy cup to allow your child to get used to the concept. They offer helpful tips that first-time parents might not know, such as the fact that your child's daily ounce intake will significantly decrease as they begin to eat more solid food.

You can adapt as needed, such as with the bottle/nipple type, if you are formula feeding. However, I quickly learned with my first one that they 100 percent know what they are talking about and their methods work.

So, by the time I had a second child, I knew not to question any of the products they recommend, such as their swaddle or pacifier. If you seek further support through a one-on-one phone call or email, they will ask you if you are using the recommended products, so be aware of that.

Daily Routines and Structure

The best part of the Moms on Call method is the "typical days" pages at the back of the book. They outline wake times, typical number of ounces of formula or breast milk, feeding times and nap times. There is a 15-minute grace period, and they are very encouraging if you somehow get off schedule.

You can adjust schedules however you see fit; I've heard of a lot of teachers adjusting the wake and sleep times based on their early morning schedules, for example. So long as the general structure and gaps between feeds and naps are the same, I find it flexible. I also know how well their methods and schedules work, so I very rarely endanger a good night's sleep by extending a nap too long or keeping them up longer than they need to be.

Handling Common Parenting Challenges

The Moms on Call Baby Basic Care 0-6 Months book does not have discipline or developmental milestone chapters, but the toddler book, called the Moms on Call Toddler Book does.

How does Moms on Call advice compare to other parenting books?

There are lots of infant parenting methods out there besides Moms on Call, such as Taking Cara Babies and Precious Little Sleep. But I really liked how Moms on Call created a schedule for me, taking away the math of having to do wake windows or worry that my 10-month-old is going to be awake til 9 pm.

With my first child, I tried a hybrid mix of Taking Cara Babies and Moms on Call, but with my second, I went straight to Moms on Call because I knew how effective it was. I don't think that there's a "right" or "wrong" way to sleep train or lay out a schedule, but Moms on Call worked best for me.

I'm a working mom who had postpartum anxiety and was completely overwhelmed by the idea of parenting and by the idea of sleep training. (It's also helpful that the method is so popular where I live that most kids I know are on the same schedule!)

Who should—and shouldn’t—buy these books?

The Moms on Call method isn't a one-size-fits-all method for sleep training and baby schedules, but it does work for most families with some flexibility built in.

Best for:

• First-time parents who are overwhelmed by conflicting advice and who want structured guidance
• Parents who prefer step-by-step routines that adhere to times, not wake windows
• Parents who want to sleep train to get better sleep
• Working parents who want to sleep train before they return to work
• Parents who are OK with their children sleeping in a crib before age one, as this is a key element
• Families struggling with sleep training, feeding schedules and daily routines who need immediate, practical and clear solutions
• Families who are OK with faith-based or spiritually-based parenting guidance

 Not ideal for:

• Parents who like flexibility and a more intuitive approach
• Families who are not OK with the cry-it-out method
• Families who are not OK with light faith-based advice

The bottom line

I'm such a devotee of the Moms on Call method that I claim the books as a baby registry gift every chance I get. I find their schedules to be regimented enough to help with the predictability of the day-to-day of having two kids, yet flexible enough for me to accommodate our family's specific needs. As someone who suffered from postpartum anxiety, having a resource like this was immensely helpful in making me feel confident as a new mother.

Parents who are open to the cry-it-out method will have success with Moms on Call, especially if you follow their advice to a tee, but it's doable if you want to put your own spin on it, too or ease into it slowly.

The one-on-one support option via phone call or email is an incredible resource to have for any additional troubleshooting. You can even book time with one of the founders for a "direct from the horse's mouth" approach! I recommend this resource to everyone, as sleep is one of the most valuable things you can have as a parent.

Save 20% off all Moms on Call books with the code SUMMER20 from May 11 to May 31, 2025.