Chesapeake Family
Focus On Mom
- by Lindsey Athanitis
It seems like no matter what age your child
is, you are always wishing you had an instruction book. Starting at age
one she has learned to engage in power struggles, temper tantrums, and - your
favorite - using her "whiny voice". You find yourself reacting rather than
responding, and at the end of the day you question, "Why am I not having fun?"
Nicole MacKenzie, author of Parenting Rule
#1: Mom Has Fun!, has perhaps written the closest thing to a parenting
instruction book you can find. It is inspiring and resourceful - and best
of all, it won't take long to read. MacKenzie's book teaches about
responsive parenting - raising children in a way that nurtures your child's
unique potential while keeping you, the parent, sane.
MacKenzie's method shows you how not to get
emotionally hooked, overreact and end up in power struggles. Mom Has
Fun! suggests that you appreciate your child's brilliance in coming up with
sophisticated manipulative games. If you can take a step back in what they
are doing, you become an observer, which helps prevent your getting engaged and
taking things personally. It also teaches you how to help your child
understand the consequences when they do misbehave.
The quick reference guide in the back of the
book also gives you tools to solving problems, and a list of the common child
manipulation games with possible solutions.
And who said life didn't come with a book of
instructions?
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