BookPikks

I had a hard time putting this book down. I can’t imagine the pain that a mother must experience when her teenage child runs away from home. Claire’s daughter, Mia, was abused by her dad when she was very young. As a teenager, these memories were too much for Mia to deal with, so she started self-mutilating, taking drugs, sleeping around, and finally ran away. Claire wasn’t willing to give up on her daughter, so she tracked her down, and forcibly enrolled her in a treatment program.

One of the most frightening aspects of the book was the real lack of control that Claire had over Mia. According to California law, Claire could not enroll Mia in a drug treatment program against her will, or even have Mia tested for STDS, even though Mia was only 15!

This is the kind of book that makes you hold your baby close, cherish the days when he’s home safe with you, and then offer him back to God, who can care for him so much better than I will ever be able to.

This book will be a definite re-read for me. It was full of practical and specific things that I can and should do to help my son become a man of character. Some were common sense (eg: “Pick your battles when disciplining.”) and others were things that as a woman, I hadn’t really thought about (eg: “Rough-housing is essential. It’s good for boys to risk getting hurt sometimes.”). The book had a whole chapter devoted to sex education, and another one that described 11 character traits that moms should work on developing in their sons. This was an easy read, full of stories and examples, and I know it will help me to be a better mother to my son.

This book came at just the right time for me. I read it during the course of 3 late nights and early mornings as I sat rocking and feeding my son. It’s perfect for sleep-deprived reading, as it’s organized into paragraph sized chapters. Some of the “chapters” included: “Babies cry. It’s their job.” “You’ll cry too. That’s your job.” and “Showering before nightfall is overrated.” I highly recommend this book for any new mom. There’s not much that can make you laugh out loud at 2 a.m. when you haven’t slept yet, but this book will.

I’ve read several of Dobson’s books on child-rearing (The Strong-Willed Child, Bringing Up Boys) and after awhile, they all start to run together. He uses many of the same stories, examples and research in multiple books. So then you start to say to yourself, “Haven’t I read this book already?” Maybe my opinion of Dobson’s books will change after I’m a parent myself, but right now I feel like if you’ve read one, you’ve read them all.

Well as you might expect, I read this book because my husband and I are expecting our first child. I’ve had many friends who have used the “Babywise” techniques with their children, so I decided to check it out.

After the first few chapters, I discovered that I read this book way too early in my pregnancy. Now I have 6 months to worry about how I will tell if my baby is crying a hungry cry, a tired cry, a bored cry, etc. And don’t get me started on setting feeding schedules, nursing, healthy growth indicators. . . But all in all, I think this book will be helpful. It provides solid guidelines for getting your baby on a good schedule and sleeping through the night. I know I will re-read it next May. If only the baby could read the book too. . .