Many parents struggle to carry the principles of Waldorf schools through into the home.This caring and generous book offers wonderful support for parents facing particular challenges, and general guidance for bringing up children. It addresses issues including different parenting styles, how to break bad patterns, actively observing children, meeting children's needs, and the need for healthy boundaries.
When David Sobel’s children were toddlers, he set out to integrate a wide range of nature experiences into their family life, play, and storytelling. Blending his passion as a parent with his professional expertise, he created adventures tailored to their developmental stages: cultivating empathy with animals in early childhood, exploring the woods in middle childhood, and devising rites of passage in adolescence. This book is Sobel’s vivid and moving memoir of their journey and an inspiring guide for other parents who seek to help their children bond with the natural world. As we share this family's experiences, we observe how wild play in nature hones a sense of wonder, provides healthy challenges, and nurtures Earth stewardship-and we share Sobel’s joy as his children, Eli and Tara, grow into earthbound, grounded young adults. Richard Louv’sLast Child in the Woodsidentified the urgent problem of “nature deficit” in today’s children, sounding the alarm for parents, educators, and policy makers.Wild Playis a hopeful response, offering families myriad ways to blaze their own trails; it should become another classic in this field.
In Hilary Flowers second book, ADVENTURES IN GENTLE DISCIPLINE, she allows the reader to explore goals of gentle discipline, rewards for both child and parent, and what it looks like in action. Hilary debunks myths about the effectiveness of gentle discipline methods while empowering parents to find ways to make gentle discipline work for both themselves and their children.With creativity, courage, and commitment, each parent and child can develop their own unique way of engaging in gentle discipline. Gentle discipline is not a far off standard for us to meet but an imperfect, lively and richly meaningful way of communicating with our children. Although experts can offer theories, this book proves that parents themselves have a great deal to offer other parents in regard to this incredibly worthwhileand revolutionary!way of guiding young children.Line drawings capture small scenes from the journey of parenting and personal stories from a variety of mothers show creative adaptations of gentle discipline methods in different families.
"The book is breezy and entertaining and Hopgood is charmingly self-deprecating about her own mothering of the formidable Sofia, who emerges as a sassy character in her own right."—Boston Globe A tour of global practices that will inspire American parents to expand their horizons (and geographical borders) and learn that there’s more than one way to diaper a baby. Mei-Ling Hopgood, a first-time mom from suburban Michigan—now living in Buenos Aires—was shocked that Argentine parents allow their children to stay up until all hours of the night. Could there really be social and developmental advantages to this custom? Driven by a journalist’s curiosity and a new mother’s desperation for answers, Hopgood embarked on a journey to learn how other cultures approach the challenges all parents face: bedtimes, potty training, feeding, teaching, and more. Observing parents around the globe and interviewing anthropologists, educators, and child-care experts, she discovered a world of new ideas. The Chinese excel at potty training, teaching their wee ones as young as six months old. Kenyans wear their babies in colorful cloth slings—not only is it part of their cultural heritage, but strollers seem outright silly on Nairobi’s chaotic sidewalks. And the French are experts at turning their babies into healthy, adventurous eaters. Hopgood tested her discoveries on her spirited toddler, Sofia, with some enlightening results. This intimate and surprising look at the ways other cultures raise children offers parents the option of experimenting with tried and true methods from around the world and shows that there are many ways to be a good parent.
Forget Everest…parenting is a real challenge There aren't many adventures Aubrey Hanson hasn't tried. But parenthood and domestic duties are definitely not for her. Then her twin nieces are orphaned and suddenly Aubrey needs those skills! There's one problem—their gorgeous uncle, Dixon Carter. Officially, he's their guardian and he wants Aubrey involved. Unofficially…well, the spark that caused their almost night together still simmers. In fact, it's threatening to get out of control and disrupt raising the twins. Aubrey and Dixon can't keep the attraction a secret forever. So they need to figure out how to be together…with kids!
A practical guide to involving babies and children in all sorts of adventures, whether it be cycling, camping, paddling, hiking, swimming or outdoor holidays. As soon as Bex Band, founder of the UK's largest women's adventure community, Love Her Wild, announced she was pregnant with her first child, the sympathy began. 'Enjoy your adventures while you can', 'It's going to be a big shock not being able to travel as much', and 'Aren't you going to miss adventuring?'It seemed as though having children was a death sentence when you're an outdoor adventurer. But it really doesn't have to be that way. Yes, it's a scary prospect – how do you keep them safe? Where do they sleep? What equipment do you need? - but it's totally doable. When Bex's daughter was just a few weeks old, Bex and her husband took her camping. Now age 2, she's been wild camping on Dartmoor, cycling along the coast, swimming in rural lakes and even carried in a backpack on a multi-day Negev desert hike. Now, she shares her stories and insights in Family Adventures, a practical and inspirational guide to involving babies and children in outdoor adventures. This guide is full of useful information (such as what to pack when camping with an infant or how to keep children safe in open water), invaluable tips (family games you can play around a campfire or how to keep morale up in bad weather) and plenty of honesty around things going wrong (poo-explosion on a wild camp, anyone?). Experiences from adventuring families also provide a plethora of insights so that you're well equipped to make your family adventuring dreams a reality.
Adventures in Faith & Family offers practical, intelligent, loving, spirit-filled wisdom for those looking for a friend who will guide them with faith as they pursue their own adventure of being a family. Delving into the multiple scenarios of a child’s life, Susan Lukey has drawn on years of research and her own experiences as teacher, minister, youth leader, and parent to reveal how families can sensitively and faithfully support and nurture a child’s growth “to become all that God has created them to be.”
Your kids can learn to love vegetables—and have fun doing it! So long to scary vegetables; hello to friendly new textures, colors, and flavors! Here is a foolproof plan for getting your kids to love their vegetables. Just follow the “Three E’s”: Expose your child to new vegetables with sensory, hands–on, educational activities: Create Beet Tattoos and play Cabbage Bingo! Explore the characteristics of each veggie (texture, taste, temperature, and more) with delectable but oh–so–easy recipes: Try Parsnip-Carrot Mac’n’Cheese and Pepper Shish Kebabs! Expand your family’s repertoire with more inventive vegetable dishes—including a “sweet treat” in every chapter: Enjoy Pears and Parsnips in Puff Pastry and Tropical Carrot Confetti Cookies! With 100 kid–tested activities and delicious recipes, plus expert advice on parenting in the kitchen, Adventures in Veggieland will get you and your kids working (and playing!) together in the kitchen, setting even your pickiest eater up for a lifetime of healthy eating.
