A few good books...

...that I have read over the last few weeks.

Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy by Walter Willett

This was the nutrition book I decided on about a month ago when I realized I don't know anything about nutrition. I read it (along with a bunch of pediatric nutrition info) before the health fair on Saturday, so at least I felt a little more informed in talking to the kids that came by to our screening booth (and awesome freeze dance/jumping jack question-answering game!). I loved it (so did all 112 reviewers on Amazon), thought it was very to the point and evidence-based. On the other hand, this is a pretty basic book, so it might not be worthwhile to read for someone who is a little more savvy than me about food. Anyway. I've long-since failed at my most recent attempt to cut out all sugar. But we are being a little more thorough in sticking to all whole grains, eating more fruits and vegetables, replacing butter with olive oil, etc. I'm also convinced that Matt is either lactose intolerant or allergic to milk, so we've switched to soy milk for us (still organic cow for Naomi).

The Emotional Life of the Toddler by Alicia Lieberman

This is a pretty good book in terms of talking about how toddlers make sense of their world and deal with stress. I liked it because Naomi fit one profile of a normal, emotionally healthy kid (the chapter on "the active child" must have been written with her in mind!), and a securely attached kid. I'm not an attachment parenting disciple (not opposed to doing things the AP way, I just don't think it's the only way, and kind of hate any movement where differing styles of good parenting are unilaterally looked down on...). But hey, we all want our kids to be attached and secure, so there you have it. This book also made me question my assumption that it is best to be consistent once you've given an answer even if you later think there is no point to the rule you've established. It also made me think I could be a little harder on Naomi in some ways and easier in others. Overall a good book, not phenomenal, but probably more useful if you are seriously concerned about your child's emotional status. Or if you want a pat on the back--the author argues at length that kids benefit emotionally from having imperfect parents (it helps kids see that things can go awry from time to time and still be ok). Check! :-)

Playful Parenting by Lawrence Cohen

This book is 100% unrealistic! But also 100% useful (for the very same reason). I never think of joking around when I'm mad (what a weird idea!), but after reading the book, I want TRY to. There is certainly a lot of hype in our society about "play-based learning", but this book is the first I have read that has really given me some insight into what it means to incorporate play into parenting. It sounds like a dumb idea (duh, we all know how to play with kids!), but it really is insightful, if also a little extreme and, as I said, ultimately unrealistic to fully incorporate.

More to come later...