Comments on: Why I don’t read parenting books

By: LeapFrog Tag Reader Giveaway | What About Mom

LeapFrog Tag Reader Giveaway | What About Mom — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 06:27:06 +0000

[...] imagine that we were ever so overwhelmed by the needs of one child. But we were, and when we asked our good friends how they managed to keep their son entertained on the flight, they showed us their [...]

By: Last Christmas I wa-a-asn’t strong | What About Mom

Last Christmas I wa-a-asn’t strong | What About Mom — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 06:49:54 +0000

[...] enough to make me wish I could follow Suzy’s pre-emptive Halloween strategy. She tapes a You’ve Been Booed ghost to her window in late [...]

By: Wani

Wani — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 16:43:57 +0000

I love that last part about the talking stick vs spanking stick! I think its a nice idea… but seriously, I do not understand how anyone could honestly go through raising a child completely without ever feeling the need to use spanking as a form of discipline. Spare the rod… you know the rest.

Wanis last blog post..WFMW – Sketches

By: WFMW: Use the word “sex” in your Mr. Linky caption | What About Mom

Wed, 22 Oct 2008 03:41:40 +0000

[...] This can be a post actually about sex (Am I the Only One?) or a post about your morning routing (The Unsexy Morning Routine). Sometimes it’s tricky, since the linky caption is supposed to be only four words long (see [...]

By: Rebeckah

Rebeckah — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 20:29:48 +0000

Very great advice! Thanks for the reminder!

By: A Frugal Housewife (Blessed)

A Frugal Housewife (Blessed) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 22:10:45 +0000

How come I get the feeling that if I did that my Hubby would immediately admit me to the insane asylum? He’s usually the cause of my craziness in the morning! Going to bed earlier and having things laid out the night before really do help though.

A Frugal Housewife (Blessed)s last blog post..Works For Me Wednesday – Handle the Laundry Once!

By: Jerri

Jerri — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 19:28:49 +0000

I agree. It’s not fun, but mornings go so much better if you get up earlier than the family. Also, laying out clothes the night before cuts down on a lot of stress.

I don’t think everyone yelling like Tarzan would de-stress any situation!

Jerris last blog post..Works For Me Wednesday-Cheap Moisturizer

By: Jane

Jane — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 18:56:31 +0000

Adrianne — Well, it does involve making sure the hunger/diaper/tired issues are taken care of first (Let’s hear it for routines!), then you read to them and give them attention for a short while. And then you train them to independently play by IGNORING them. Works well.

Milehimamma — I think you can tell how many kids someone has by their tolerance of magazines/books like this.

Tonya — That seems like the beauty and the curse of homeschooling. Can be less structured, but, that leads to being . . . less structured.

By: Tonya

Tonya — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 15:41:44 +0000

Lately I have been trying to get to bed earlier and getting up earlier. Man…….that is hard. We homeschool so we don’t have to get up early. And it is so easy to get into a routine of staying up late and sleeping later–but I’m trying to reverse that.

Tonyas last blog post..~What Works For Me Wednesday~

By: Milehimama

Milehimama — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 14:21:26 +0000

When I had my first child, I loved those magazines. Couldn’t get enough of them.

Now that I’m a seasoned general in the trenches, I can’t stand them.

Milehimamas last blog post..Where’s Mrs. Wilt?

By: Aunt LoLo

Aunt LoLo — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 13:46:43 +0000

Fabulous advice.

By: Sherry

Sherry — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 12:53:09 +0000

Routines help me, too. I feel like my day goes so much better.

Sherrys last blog post..Wordless Wednesday – Pucker Up!

By: Grammy

Grammy — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 05:29:11 +0000

My kids are grown now. But wish I had advice in magazines like that. Thanks. Have a great day Grammys last blog post..My refrigerator make me happy.

By: The Apron Queen

The Apron Queen — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 04:07:59 +0000

Me Tarzan. You Jane. Aaaahhh Aaaaaaah!!! My kids would bust a gut laughing at that one! Maybe they reallly would forget about being stressed out for a min or two. ??

By: Adrianne

Adrianne — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 19:06:33 +0000

Jane, your kids have independent play? For an hour at a time? What does that mean? or look like? Seriously? Let’s trade children.

By: Jane

Jane — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 04:45:11 +0000

Nicole J. — Yeah, it actually is a great idea to stop what you’re doing and do something out-of-the-ordinary to sort of hit a “reset” button. One thing I’ve noticed with each of my three kids is that if they’re cranky (and not also tired/hungry/wet), the sure bet (after they’re not nursing any more) is to sit and read to them. If I put aside what I’m doing for five minutes and give them my undivided attention, I can then plan on another hour of independent play.

If their whole morning routine isn’t working, a lot more intervention is required, and that’s kind of where I thought this little idea went wrong. It sounds like the perfect tension-breaker for after you’ve done the underlying hard work of making sure they’re taken care of, you know? Even if you do have the perfect schedule (which needs constant adjustment), meltdowns can still happen, and this might come in handy then.

By: Memarie Lane

Memarie Lane — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 22:33:05 +0000

My midwife always has a stack of free Mothering magazines. The last one had an article about “gentle discipline.” This mom was playing ball with her two little boys and they kept getting upset and fighting. So she had them sit down and told them that the ball is a “talking stick” (why not a talking ball?) And whoever had the talking stick could talk while everyone else had to listen. And then each boy got his turn with the “stick” to talk about how he felt about his brother and the ball and the incident that had occurred. And then there were rebuttals and such, and then they sang a song and hugged.

I prefer my spanking stick.

Memarie Lanes last blog post..Marie Du Jour

By: Nicole J.

Nicole J. — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 22:21:44 +0000

I find the suggested activity equally inane, but I do recognize the kernel of truth/helpful advice inside it. Reconnecting and acting silly to get everyone out of their funk/rush/bad mood/whatever will change the pace of the morning and at least have everyone smiling while they rush towards the rest of their day. Reminds me of suggestions in Playful Parenting, a good parenting book I would recommend. Nicole J.s last blog post..Stuff of interest to thinking mamas

By: danielle

danielle — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 15:28:42 +0000

I read that article too and laughed when I read that. I wonder if anyone started doing the Tarzan pound in the morning after reading that…probably not.

danielles last blog post..You’re Cute…

By: Jane

Jane — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 15:25:50 +0000

Tracey — Yeah, it was a cute idea, seductive in its simplicity and ease. And it might even work, once.

Brock — Hah. I’m thinking if I let them beat on my chest, it’d probably work.

Marianne — Hmmm. Only problem is, I usually know WHAT I should do, it’s just that WHAT I should do is hard or inconvenient or boring. (How boring is it to go to bed early? Eck.) Wondering if there’s a market for hard/inconvenient/boring advice?

Compulsive Writer — Oh, yes. I salivate in anticipation of the day when all of mine LEAVE THE HOUSE at a regularly scheduled time. Even if we have a beautiful morning (I think we had one a couple years back), it is a relief when the school run is done.