I used to love reading parenting guides. My oldest child was an overachiever from the start, and the guides served as affirmation that she was a prodigy and I was a model parent.
Then my middle child – my obstinate, tantrum-throwing, speech-delayed middle child – was born, and I chucked all those parenting books in the garbage.
I really wish I’d had Jen Singer’s “Stop Second-Guessing Yourself” books back then. Creator of the much-lauded virtual community MommaSaid.net, Jen is the kind of mom we all wish lived next door. Her trademark candor and cheeky humor elevates these parenting guides far beyond know-it-all tomes that make us feel worse, not better.
Stop Second-Guessing Yourself: The Toddler Years covers angst-inducing milestones such as potty training and playdates, along with great tips to help solve a slew of other mysteries. (How do you know when it’s time for the big kid bed?) Similarly, the Stop Second-Guessing Yourself: The Preschool Years offers strategies for coping with the constant questions and incessant whining, as well as smart and down-to-earth advice on handling preschool admissions, social calendars, and new siblings.
No matter how far ahead or way behind our kiddos might be on the official developmental milestone chart, Jen has bestowed us with the rare parenting guides that actually give parents the shot of confidence we need to survive another day.
Or sometimes, just another five minutes. -Julie
Find the Stop Second-Guessing Yourself series of parenting books at your local bookstore or Amazon.com.
