Helping me become the type of mom I want to be
594226
Saw Hal on The Today Show and then attended a seminar of his a couple of days later (found his schedule at his website).  I wear the bracelet (see "screamfree.com") that I got at the seminar as a daily reminder to keep my cool.  As silly as it sounds, it works and I'm becoming the type of mom that I've wanted to be -- no longer giving in to the stress and raising my voice when my pre-schooler raises his.
If you feel you give into the stresses of life and aren't being the type of parent you always wanted to be, I highly recommend reading the book and attending a seminar.  Thanks, Hal!!!!
3358542
What a fantastic book for a new mom. I wish it had been available when I had my first child. I struggled to fill my days with more than diaper changes and nursing. Like many moms I wasn't prepared for the identity crisis that came with my new bundle of joy. Getting out of the house and staying active is a great way to beat the mommy blues. I will definitely be giving this as a shower gift!
3897801
Such an easy read for busy moms. Full of practical, helpful and encouraging information and insights. I could put it down and pick back up where I left off with no problem. Short simple chapters make this book very easy for a mom to read. I love that I could glean something for everyday from each chapter. :-)
3382435
I really enjoyed this book. As a mom who has struggled with a 3 year old who has temper tantrums often and is strong willed, I need help.

There is a lot of useful ideas in this book and the author leads you through several exercises to help you become a better parent. I think the portion on looking at your own thoughts and behavior on a daily basis was particularly helpful. You  cant realistically expect a perfectly behaved child when you are constantly snapping at your children and running negative thoughts through your mind. You must model the behavior you want your child to display.

One idea that I really like is the time in instead of a time out. This is a time for you to sit with your child and both calm down and assess what is going on.

I can tell you from personal experience that yelling and losing my cool with my daughter only escalates the tantrum. However, the other day when she started to meltdown, I took a deep breath and sat down at her level. I calmly explained that she could not throw a toy when she is angry. I gave her a hug and told her I loved her and she said, Ok, mommy. And that was it. No tantrum. I was amazed. I didn't feel like a crappy mom for yelling and losing it and she avoided a full blown tantrum.

This approach to parenting works. It makes you feel like a better parent and your child feel more loved. What can be better that? Thank you Rebecca Eanes for helping make being a mom easier and helping me love myself in the process!
483778
This book is full of wonderful ideas and insights that would help any mom.  I am reading it for the 2nd time and finding new things!
767754
I am a working mom, but have still found this book to be a wealth of great ideas, advice and inspiration! The writer's voice is that of a close friend (or relative)and the personal stories of other moms provided make me feel as if I am having coffee with a group of friends-- discussing the challenges and triumphs of motherhood. I, personally, appreciate the biblical/christian point-of-view, as my utmost goal as a mother is to bring my kids according to the word of God-- that they might be bright lights for His glory!!
4930668
I am a mother of 2 and an amazing husband who has ADHD and loves his things.  I am on this minimalist path and this book was great for me to be able to isolate myself from my husband and his habits.  This is a process for sure, and getting kids on board is not always easy.  I just give them a choice.  Do you need all those things or would yo like to take a vacation this year.  It's amazing how quickly they can learn to make these choices.  I thought the book was easy to read, very helpful, and I reference back to it regularly when I need some redirection.  I have applied it to everything in my life.  At one time I wanted a beach house, now I see how much that would just complicate my life and make it more stressful.  I really can really see how stuff can own you.  I love to travel, and now I think being on this path can lead me to be able to enjoy the things that really make me happy.
825777
I was gearing up for the birth of our first child and had my mind set on natural, intervention-free childbirth. I read a lot of books and did a lot of research on the "best ways" to naturally labor. This book was helpful for me. I didn't really appreciate the beginning of the book which talked about scary hospital tactics but the exercises in the book were helpful. The nutrition section was helpful but I didn't really stick to it. Overall the book made me feel encouraged that I could do this and my body can do this. It was really helpful for me and my birthing partner (husband) to review different positions and calm ourselves during labor. Its a helpful book and easy to read. After all my research I was able to have a natural, intervention-free childbirth which was so amazing. I can't imagine any other way now! I really think my research and reading helped me to labor effectively. I would recommend any natural mommy to do their research and get familiar with all the labor techniques since you never know what will be helpful for you specifically during labor.
1721162
I truly enjoyed ready Tracey Eyster's book Be the Mom.  I honestly picked it up to peruse it enough to give a review to some coworkers.  However, I was drawn in by Tracey's easy manner of speaking, her wit, and her openness about her successes and failures as a mom.  Before I knew it, I had read the whole thing.  The thing I find interesting is that I'm not a mom, but I still found lots of sage advice for my marriage. I realized many of the mom traps apply to wives whether or not they are moms. Furthermore, I hope to be a mom someday.  Tracey's book reminds me that I'm not going to be perfect, but I can be prepared knowing the traps that I will find myself in and how to recognize them.  The book is lighthearted as it tackles serious matters.  It's an easy read, and it's encouraging.  So, if you know any moms, expecting moms, or hope-to-be moms, I recommend you get them a copy.  I think they'll love it.
2556798
Jill Smokler's book makes me want to be a LESS better mother. Woo hoo! Her confessions about parenting give moms everywhere permission to give up trying to be Ideal Mom, learn to make peace with their perfectly imperfect selves and find the humor in the insanity that is parenthood. As a longtime fan of Jill's blog by the same name, I found Confessions of a Scary Mommy filled with similar SOL (Snort Out Loud) moments that have you nodding your head in agreement, not to mention familiarity. Yes, I do my kid's homework for her sometimes! Yes, I've let the kids fall asleep in front of the TV! Yes, some days I have no clue what I'm doing! A-MEN!!! The book packs plenty of juicy tidbits from the Scary Mommy Confessional, but the true lure is Jill's voice: funny, friendly, smart, real and full of extreme extreme honesty. Jill is the anti-Tiger mom. She's not here to  push mothers to get their kids to be their best; no, she's here to help us survive.
3792976
This book has a lot of practical tips to help get you started facing your own biases, and bringing another member into your family with other backgrounds in a caring and sensitive manner. I enjoyed learning real methods I could employ right away and it helped answer questions I otherwise might have trouble answering. I also liked the vignettes from the authors lives. This is a book that is definitely helping to shape my adoption.
1211403
I really enjoyed this book. I'm due in the next few weeks with my 2nd child, but the info in this book is really good despite that. While most of the information that Erin shares is not new to me, it's presented in a format that is easy to read and understand, especially with my brain fatigue that I'm already experiencing. I opened up the book and went right to the chapter on Breastfeeding (I wasn't able to with my first so I thought I'd read up on it hoping that we'll have success this time around) and it was great. She puts in her own personal success and offers suggestions for products that helped her and her friends. Each chapter is well written and has just the right dose of information laced with humor to give you a laugh when you have been running on less than 3 hours of sleep. I love that she also puts in a Bible verse and a prayer in each chapter related to what the topic is, I plan on writing some of those prayers out in my journal to remember if I'm having a rough time with welcoming the new little addition to our family.
3349338
If you are interested in EC but are unsure where to start, this book is a great resource. Andrea's tone of flexibility and consideration for various factors is motivating. I didn't feel that I had to fit into a specific lifestyle to be successful.

Also, Andrea shows you how to get started with ECing your baby first, then talks about the philosophy and history later in the book. This was valuable for me as a mom of a young baby because while the background information on EC is definitely important, I just wanted to know what to do next!

Although it is titled "Go diaper free" I appreciated the clarification NOT to let your baby go naked all of the time. There's a certain observation period where you watch their natural rhythms and signals to see when they'll go, but after that you continue with your baby in a diaper, training pants, underwear, etc. The title was a motivating factor for me a little later on though, because as a part time ECer, by 10months I was honestly done with diapering (not literally but I didn't look forward to it)! I think my daughter was too as diaper changing became a time that she didn't seem to enjoy no matter how much I would sing or make silly faces. Once we became more full time, she showed preference for using the potty, especially not to have poop on her bottom.

The tips on "generic timing" (times that a baby will probably go for you, given the opportunity) are also very helpful. They really increased the level of successful catches in the potty. I also appreciate that Andrea formatted the book by age of the child and gives guidance on how to start or re-start at various age ranges.

The book, the resources and online community have been very helpful and a great tool for us!
2774069
This book helped me develop a parenting disposition that I find to be supportive of my daughters independence and easy for me to stick to. It helped me learn how to reframe situations so that I can be more present for her instead of also getting emotionally caught up in a moment of stress. Additionally, it gave my husband and I a shared vocabulary for discussing our parenting styles and her development. We did have lots of recent experience with small babies and children prior to having our own, and I do attribute that to our ability to put the ideas in this book into action.
654946
I absolutley loved this book!  Arlene writes as if she were telling you this infomation over a cup of coffee.  It has a friendly tone and everything is very easy to implement.  Moms from all walks of life could benefit from reading this-even if you think you are handling motherhood well, there is always room to get better!  The book is broken down into 5 'Keys," so you can pick one and focus on that area, or if you are like me you will want to read it all from beginning to end (which was very easy-I did not want to put the book down)! My favorite part is each day she gives you an "energy boost," which is a small action step to take or an encouraging word.  This was the first book I read by Arlene, but I will definitely be reading more!  Thank you Arlene for helping me become a Happier Mama!
449726
Absolutely LOVE Clean Mama!!! She has turned this pulling my hair out momma into an organized relaxed momma. The process is easy to follow. I follow on Pintrest, her blog, receive emails and love the book. I adore the simple break down of how to do things so I'm not running around from room to room. I stay focused on 1 area at a time. Helps me break things down so everyone in the house knows what they need to do. I love the advice on clean products so we aren't using so many chemicals in our home.
2116808
I ordered this book in the midst of one of my "oh my god how am I ever going to be ready to take responsibility for another life form" freakouts.  The idea here for me was to get something that would be constructive and distract me from the anxiety of impending motherhood (the rest of the time I'm fine I swear) long enough to get a registry started.
This book not only got me started on the right track, it helped me learn what items I wanted to research a little more before getting out there, and I actually built up some much needed "I'm going to be an awesome mom" confidence.  When we went to the baby superstore (you know the one) it didn't seem as frightening, with all the choices for everything you never knew you wanted or needed.  I was able to lead my hubby around the store with opinions I had formed myself as a result of the recommendations made in the book (they rarely make a specific recommendation, rather they tell you the options for you to weigh what is important to you).
The book is funny, quick to read, easy to skim back through as a reference, and here's the bonus: despite the name I actually got my hubby to read parts of it and he even said it was pretty good! From a guy who hates all things girly, that is a pretty strong recommendation.