Momfidence! An Oreo Never Killed Anybody and Other Secrets of Happier Parenting by Paula Spencer

I picked up this Momfidence! while trying to find a book on how to get Kennedy to be nicer to her little baby sister Lexi. I was intrigued by how worn the book was.  It looks as if a lot of moms have read the book or maybe a lot of little ones have gotten a hold of it.  Either was I’m always up for a book that will give me some insight on how to be a better mom.

From the book – Paula Spencer lives with her husband George and their four children; one boy and 3 girls, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.  She’s the “Momfidence!” columnist (formerly “The Mom Next Door”) in Woman’s Day magazine and a longtime contributing editor of Parenting and Baby Talk.  Her articles have also appeared in many other national magazines and at BabyCenter.com and ParentCenter.com.  She’s written four books for Parenting and coauthored The Happiest Toddler on the Block with Harvey Karp, MD.  Not least, she’s faithfully kept a daily diary since she was nine years old.

Through out the book she reminds us that five little ingredients are missing from most mothering messages these days. 

1.  Instinct
2.  Reality
3.  Common Sense
4.  Fun
5.  Parents

What I liked about the book-

The book was filled with fun, funny stories from her own life that I could easily relate to and was an easy quick read..  At the time the book was written her children were around the same age that mine are now.  It was nice to read a book that let me know that I’m not the only one going through what I’m dealing with now.  Kids that don’t listen, act as if they are from another planet and myself having the guilt of not doing this are acting like that.

I agreed with all the topics she had in the book.  I’m a planner by nature and have a tendency to want to control everything.  She helped me see that there are little things that I can let go of, like my house not being “company ready” 24/7.  And she reminded me that I have to take time for myself along the way.

All in all, the book was a nice easy read.  I would definitely suggest it to other moms I know.  There are times when being a mom gets stressful and we need a reminder that we can do this and the kids will come out alive.

I would give the book 5 out of 5 stars.

Happy Reading!

Scream Free Parenting – The revolutionary approach to raising kids by keeping your cool. By Hal Edward Runkel, LMFT

As a mom it is my duty to give our girls my best, to do that I need to keep learning and growing as a parent.  Raising kids is really hard.  I never knew how hard it was going to be.  I had fantasies of everyone getting along, no sibling rivalry in our house.  The girls would be the best listeners, following every request with an “OK mom.”  The older the girls get the harder and more demanding being a parent becomes.

One thing I am doing to be the best parent God wants me to be is reading as much information as I can.  I’m always looking for tips and tricks to be the girls #1 influence. In the book Scream Free Parenting I discovered something not to many people talk about in order to give our kids the best.  Taking time to make sure my needs are met.  It was such a relief to read that in order to be the best parent I need to take care of myself first.

What I liked about the book:
The book offers many tips on how to remove the anger from a situation. Reminding the reader that adding fuel to the fire doesn’t help anyone.  I only wish the author had used my real life stories through out the book.

At the end of each chapter are 4-5 reflection questions.  I really enjoyed being able to think beyond what I just read and apply it to our own life. 

I would give the book 3 out of 5 stars.

Happy Reading!