However, when I first looked into my oldest daughters eyes and played with her tiny fingers I realized that I wanted to be the best mom ever. I realized that my mom probably felt the same way looking at me…and I realized that there were things I didn’t know and needed to learn.

Looking back I can tell you that I have not been the best mom ever. I have, however, tried very hard to educate myself on what good parenting really way and I also tried to be myself. After all, if God had wanted my kids raised by someone else He would have given them to another family, right?

So I read a lot of parenting books. I have some particular favorites but the ones I love best of all and have proven over and over to be the most helpful, the most insightful, and have the greatest effect on my parenting skills are the Mrs. Pigglewiggle books.

You have never heard of Mrs. Pigglewiggle? Seriously?

She is a fictional character that lives in an upsde down house. She helps neighborhood moms deal with discipline issues in a heartwarming and comical manner. And, she loves kids, which is the best prerequisite of all. So, how can I learn parenting techniques from a juvenile fiction book? Easy.

I look for ways to apply her techniques in real life situations! You can learn something from anything! I will be sharing some of Mrs. PiggleWiggle’s best disciplinary tips in another post.

If you have never read the books I encourage you to do so. Read them to your kids! They will love them and you will get more out of them than you thought you could. I guarantee it.

image: sxc photoshopping by marye audet

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My Favorite Parenting Book

ECOBAGS is giving away 4 fabulous bags from their unique line of “Totes with Quotes” – bags that feature catchy slogans like “Make Love Not Carbon”, “Get Hip Get Green”, “Think Global Act Local”, “I Am What I Do” and “Talk Green To Me.”

Each winner will also take home a great book to carry in their tote! Here are the selections:

The New Baby Answer Book: From Birth to Kindergarten, Answers to the Top 150 Questions about Raising a Young Child by Robin Goldstein, Ph.D., and Janet Gallant, is THE quick and easy way for new parents to get answers to their unique questions—just when they weren’t sure where to turn.

Bestselling author, Gregory E. Lang, brings this Mother’s Day one of the simplest and perhaps most valuable communication lessons we can learn about love: It cannot go unexpressed. He observes, “Signs of love must be demonstrated and words of love must be spoken if love is to continuously flow with vigor.” Lang brings us Why a Daughter Needs a Mom : 100 Reasons and Why a Son Needs a Mom : 100 Reasons, two of his New York Times and USA Today best-selling titles. Though there usually are hundreds of reasons why we love someone, when it comes to telling the woman who brought you into this world how much you love them, it is often hard to verbalize even a few.

Feed the Belly: The Pregnant Mom’s Healthy Eating Guide, by new mom and nutrition expert Frances Largeman-Roth. Feed the Belly is THE only resource for expectant moms that helps them indulge their cravings while giving baby—and mom—the nutrients they need. Featuring nearly 70 mouthwatering, easy-to-make recipes organized by specific craving.

LaNita McMeekan-Cates’s The Day My Baby Was Born: The Joys, Wonders, and Surprises of the Day You’ll Never Forget. Filled with inspiring stories for moms-to-be, this is THE essential gift for daughters, friends, and any woman who’s expecting. Beautifully packaged to reflect the warmth, wonder, and mystery of the childbirth experience, The Day My Baby Was Born presents amazing, true stories from a wide variety of women about the different ways their child came into the world and the incredible bond this moment forms among all mothers.

4 winners will be drawn at random after 5 days. Books and totes will be matched randomly.

All you need to do to enter the giveaway is write a quick comment and fill out the form below this post. One winner will be drawn at random after 5 days, so don’t delay! Enter only once to be eligible.

This contest is now closed. Congratulations to our winner Leanne S.

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Giveaway: Books in ECOBAGS!

It’s the simple story of a bunny climbing into bed and saying goodnight to everything in his surroundings. He says goodnight to pictures on the wall, kittens, a balloon and, among other things, the moon. This Margaret Wise Brown classic has a great rhythm which reads quickly and melodically. The illustrations are great and are all in primary colors, which makes them more easily visible to babies.

Our son quiets as soon as we start reading and follows along with his little eyes darting across each page. Funny enough, one of his favorite parts is the large white-on-orange circle on the back cover. One reason my wife and I like it so much is that the story is very similar to rituals we practice with him every night; saying goodnight to his stuffed animals, his turtle light, his giant Winnie the Pooh doll, the plants, etcetera before putting him down. Reading is a great way to help boost a child’s cognitive skills, establish a nighttime routine and strengthen the parent-child bond, so it’s a great things to start if you’re not doing it already. If you haven’t ever read it to your child, I strongly recommend Goodnight Moon.

* Photo via Amazon.com

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Goodnight Moon

Broken out into a variety of subjects, the free PDFs fall into categories such as general parenting tips, teen parenting, breastfeeding, family finance, child education, single parents, food and nutrition and among others, being a dad!

Post from: Blisstree

Free parenting ebooks

The idea of teaching financial responsibility to a child will be difficult for me in light of rampant consumerism aimed at kids these days. I also imagine that my desire to give my child anything I possibly can will further complicate the issue. While I would like to offer the world to my kid, it flies in the face of teaching the values of hard work, persistence and monetary accountability. I don’t have all the answers on how to instill this in a child, far from it.

Ironically, in the process of moving things around to prepare the baby’s room, I came across a book that had great insight on this very question. The Millionaire Next Door analyzes the financial habits of millionaires, and in-part notes the impact of generational wealth and parental attitudes on subsequent generations. In addition to interesting social commentary, the book makes the point that when children aren’t taught to value or earn things, they become lazy and unable to manage money.

As I leafed through a few pages it became clear that I’d really have to pay attention to my personal habits if I want to be able to teach my child. I’m beginning to realize that the process of raising a child is going to require intense introspection. I highly suggest the book and have it earmarked for another read.

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Work Ethic in kids

I haven’t read this book personally, but I have heard it is helpful for new parents. It is called Safe Baby Handling Tips.

Might be worth a read. Here is a story about how paranoid I was when we had our first child. It was a day after we had our oldest daughter we drove to the airport in Columbus, Ohio to pick up my mother inlaw. She was supposed to come out and help prior to the birth and stay with us for a couple weeks while we got settled in with the new baby and routine.

Well, my wife went 2 weeks early and her mother missed the birth so she flew in the next day. Well, we had to get the baby ready and buckle her in the nice “new” baby seat we had gotten. Of course, I was so nervous to drive because the baby just looked so fragile. I kept checking to make sure she was buckled in because any unnecessary jossling and jiggling of the baby was going to bother me.

I hit the Interstate and headed for the airport. Each little bump I slowed down and cars were rushing by me in the left lane. I was only doing 45 mph and I couldn’t bear to go any faster. My wife only rolled her eyes but I was so nervous that the baby might get hurt. Talk about insecure eh?

Anyway, we safely arrive at the airport and I go to unbuckle the baby and I realized right then and there that I had forgotten to buckle the baby seat into the car. I just about died. I had the baby buckled into the car seat but the car seat just sat there.

I let me wife drive on the way home!

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Safe Handling Tips for Your Baby