Make a positive transformation in your home as you let go of fear-based techniques and embrace the philosophy of positive parenting. Filled with practical examples, personal stories, and nuggets of hard-earned wisdom, The Newbie's Guide to Positive Parenting has everything you need to change your parenting paradigm and enrich your family life. If you are desperately missing the close bond you once had with your child, if your days are filled with tears and frustration, this book is for you. The relationships we build with our children last a lifetime. Ultimately, love is the only leverage we have with our kids. Fear-based parenting only works as long as it can be physically or emotionally enforced, but love is a more effective motivator over time. Through being kind and firm, consistent and empathetic, we allow our children optimal development. When the child-rearing is done, the loving bond you have built is what will make your relationship with your adult child fruitful and enjoyable. Positive parenting keeps that relationship intact while teaching and guiding your child to his or her fullest potential.

    The truth is, moms don't have to accept the chaos or resign themselves to the attitude of -this is just the way it is.- By God's grace, every mother can purpose not to settle for anything less than His pattern for motherhood, and His pattern is victorious, triumphant, and glorious.Now, women who first met Leslie Ludy in When God Writes Your Love Story and Authentic Beauty can continue journeying with her through the realities of motherhood. Leslie will encourage, inspire, and equip moms to be successful in raising their kids, managing their homes, and keeping Christ at the center of their mothering. Written from the perspective of a mom who is currently -in the trenches- with several young children at home, Leslie will help guide readers to become mothers who are set apart for God's purposes.

    Pregnant women are told to avoid cold cuts, sushi, alcohol, and coffee without ever being told why these are forbidden. Rules for prenatal testing are similarly unexplained. Moms-to-be desperately want a resource that empowers them to make their own right choices.When award-winning economist Emily Oster was a mom-to-be herself, she evaluated the data behind the accepted rules of pregnancy and discovered that most are often misguided and some are just flat-out wrong. Debunking myths and explaining everything from the real effects of caffeine to the surprising dangers of gardening, Expecting Better is the book for every pregnant woman who wants to enjoy a healthy and relaxed pregnancy.

    Do you automatically cut toast into fingers? Appreciate finger painting as much as fine art? Hear "no" a million times a day? If the answer is yes, then Toddler Tactics is for you. Being the parent of a toddler can be exciting, inspiring, and exhausting—all at once! Your adorable little baby has now become a moving, grooving tot with attitude, and it will take all your patience and skill to deal with these changes. Parenting expert Pinky McKay explains what to do at each stage of development and offers fuss-free advice on communicating with your toddler discipline and good manners, good eating habits, routines for play and sleep, toilet training, and family dynamics. Toddler Tactics is bursting with practical strategies for making the toddler years the exhilarating experience they should be.

    She is tired and heavy and worried, and she wants her wine and caffeine back. But then, at a routine checkup, her doctor frowns at her chart and says, “I’m worried about a couple of things”—and unpleasant suddenly seems like paradise. What follows is a harrowing, poignant, and occasionally hysterical journey through premature motherhood, from the starting point of “leaking a little protein” to the early delivery of her tiny daughter because of severe preeclampsia and the beginning of a new chapter of frightful, lifelong love.Half a million babies are born prematurely in the United States every year—almost one every minute—each with a unique story, and Hopper eloquently gives a voice to what their parents share: the shock, the scares, the lonely nights in the neonatal intensive care unit, the fierce attention to detail that makes for sanity and craziness, the light of faith, the warmth of family, and the terrifying attachment. Through it all runs the power of words to connect us to one another, as Hopper draws on her gifts as a writer first to help her navigate this uncertain territory and then to tell her story. With candor, grace, and a healthy dose of humor, she takes us into the final weeks of her pregnancy, the this-was-not-part-of-the-plan first weeks of little Stella’s life, and the isolated world she and her husband inhabited when they took their daughter home at the onset of a cold Minnesota winter. Finally, frankly, Hopper ventures into the complicated question of whether to have another child. Down-to-earth and honest about the hard realities of having a baby, as well as the true joys, Ready for Air is a testament to the strength of motherhood—and stories—to transform lives.

    Incorporating everything that's new in pregnancy, childbirth, and the lifestyles of parents-to-be, complete with a preconception plan, information on choosing a practitioner, birthing alternatives, second pregnancies, twins, making love while pregnant, and coping with common and not so common pregnancy symptoms.

    They show how the Christian faith is lived out precisely in our ordinary relationships, and how a biblical understanding can equip us to move away from common confusions and dysfunctions to persevere in love.Written with sensitivity and wisdom, Family Vocation addresses the perennial problems and joys of family life and provides a compelling paradigm for creating loving families in the face of cultural pressure.

    When children have a listening companion who hears, acknowledges, and encourages their early experiences with God, it creates a spiritual footprint that shapes their lives. How can we increase our capacity to engage children in spiritual conversations? In this book Lacy Finn Borgo draws on her own experience of practicing spiritual direction with children. She offers an overview of childhood spiritual formation and introduces key skills for engaging conversation--posture, power, and patterns--from a Christ-centered perspective. "When we are fully present and open to another, we will be changed," Borgo writes. "Indeed, as you listen to God with a child, the child will lead you into a fuller experience of God's love and acceptance." In this book you'll find:Sample interactive dialogues with childrenIdeas for engaging children with play, art, and movementPrayers to use togetherWhether you are a parent or grandparent, pastor or spiritual director, you will find this to be a friendly guide into deeper ways of listening.

    In this optimistic, solution-packed book, KJ asks: How can we change our family life so that it is full of the joy we'd always hoped for? Drawing from the latest research and interviews with families, KJ discovers that it's possible to do more by doing less, and make our family life a refuge and pleasure, rather than another stress point in a hectic day. She focuses on nine common problem spots that cause parents the most grief, explores why they are hard, and offers small, doable, sometimes surprising steps you can take to make them better. Whether it's getting everyone out the door on time in the morning or making sure chores and homework get done without another battle, How to Be a Happier Parent shows that having a family isn't just about raising great kids and churning them out at destination: success. It's about experiencing joy--real joy, the kind you look back on, look forward to, and live for--along the way.

    Women are making massive strides in gender equality, edging out men as the new majority in the workforce. But, because of their brief window for childbearing, this also means a drastically shifting paradigm for motherhood and family planning. In this 2nd edition, Lehmann-Haupt has updated the inspiring, honest account of her own efforts to reconcile modern love with modern life with the latest medical research. In Her Own Sweet Time will resonate with a generation of young women who want it all—career, family, and the perfect partner— but haven’t yet figured out how it all fits together. Join Lehmann-Haupt as she interviews women and travels the world to explore and understand the new frontiers of family.

    The parent has become unavailable, the teen responds in kind, and a negative, often destructive cycle of communication begins. Well, the truth of the matter is, you can physically be right next to someone and still not really be available to them. If you need them to be something they’re not, if you are harsh, criticizing and judging, if your anxiety is center stage, then you are not truly available.The available parent of a teenager is open to discussion, offering advice and problem-solving, but not insisting on it. He allows his child to make some mistakes, setting limits, primarily where health and safety are concerned. He never lectures – he is available but not controlling. The available parent is self-aware, and keeps his own emotions in check when dealing with his teen. He is unconditionally loving and accepting, and open to new and different ways of thinking. As such, he is neither cruel nor dismissive, ever. The available parent is

    It is easy and helps parents become more successful too! Mother of five and successful entrepreneur Dani Johnson has coached and mentored tens of thousands of clients to become successful and without exception, their biggest stumbling blocks to achievement were the things they learned while they were kids. Dani is uniquely qualified to write this book because of her first hand perspective and experience as a success coach and speaker. The book will help adults discover solutions to why they have struggled throughout their lives to reach the success they desire and also show them how to groom their own kids for success in life. Grooming the Next Generation for Success is jam packed with easy-to-understand and apply principles and proven practices that give parents, and anyone involved with young people, practical ways to raise children who are successful now and will continue to be as adults. Teaching virtues such as respect, honor, obedience, and financial responsibility while young guarantees lifestyle success in adulthood. Instead of fumbling through life, success becomes a natural occurrence rather than an accident that they hopefully run into.

    Parenting is stressful, children are insane, and you’re only human. Carla Naumburg, PhD, a clinical social worker, was so at a loss with her daughters that she found herself Googling “how to stop yelling at my kids” during a particularly grueling evening. That moment led to this book—a short, empathic, insight-packed, and tip-filled program for how to manage your triggers, stop the meltdowns, and become a calmer, happier parent with calmer, happier kids.How to Stop Losing Your Sh*t with Your Kids not only explains why we explode at our children but also teaches us everything we need to know to decrease stress and increase patience, even in the most challenging family moments. Based on recent research and evidence-based practices, and written in the warm, funny, instantly relatable tone of a parent who’s been there, the book guides even the most harried parents toward a new way of engaging with their children. Readers will come away feeling less ashamed and more empowered to get their sh*t together, instead of losing it.

    It’s just that a little psychopath who walks through life 100% convinced that he or she is the center of the universe does not care that you have a heart, a mind, or a soul. You are simply a skin-covered robot tall enough to reach the candy on top of the fridge. And clean up the rage-vomit when you make the fatal mistake of cutting off the crust on your toddler’s toast. (Or not cutting it off—seriously, you can’t win.)Includes:The theory of toddler evolution Mealtime (AKA Hell)Your unraveling lifeAnd how not to die inside

    A hilarious memoir of coming to grips with motherhood, from one of Australia's funniest writers.'Mothers. those women with purses the size of meat trays that hold an entire deck of school portrait photos and a chequebook, make a casserole without a recipe, make the tightest bed you'll ever sleep in and only swear under extreme duress. How, how, would I go from me to that?'At 24, Meg Mason was newly married to a man 'essentially indistinguishable from a young Matt Damon' after landing her dream job, writing for the times in London. What could possibly go wrong? A holiday in Greece, an accidental shortage of birth control, and eight months later she was sobbing on the side of a road over trading her career for something she knew zip about.On October 8, 2003, she invented motherhood by Having A Baby. On October 9, she discovered a bunch of women had done that already. But still they couldn't tell her how to do it. Thanks to a helpful neighbour, she knew that convincing a newborn to take a bottle by letting it lick a Dorito first to 'get more thirsty' didn't always work, but not what to do when your child won't sleep for roughly two years in London or in Sydney, or how to remove your hand from a stroller - after you've superglued it to the handle. Hair-raising, terrifying and hilariously funny, along the way she discovers that being a mother, however disaster-prone, just might be the only thing that she is truly irreplaceable at.'Mason is a comic natural, her admissions of ignorance are achingly funny and provide a tonic for anyone feeling the struggle' Better Homes & Gardens'In between the amusing anecdotes, the author grapples with issues that many women will identify with - work, relationships and family life - with warmth and honesty.' Courier Mail