Hop on...

I’ve jumped on the Bringing Up Bebe bandwagon. This light-hearted and humorous parenting book is about the French philosophy on raising children. Of course when I tell my husband I’m reading this book, he’s like “who wants to do things like the French?" Umm…everyone, my dear, c’est tres chic.

I’m only a few chapters in, but there are some things that are resonating with me.

The second chapter deals with sleep habits and I think why do the maternity nurses make you wake your sleeping baby to eat every three hours after he/she is born if your baby is a healthy weight? Aren’t we just training the baby to wake up for nightly feedings?

And here’s a concept: when your child is playing alone with his/her toys, don’t run over and interrupt them or ask what they are doing (I am so guilty of this). There is something to be learned during solitary play.

I am still struggling with the chapter on teaching patience though. It sounds wonderful to be able to tell your child to wait while you finish a phone call or making their lunch, but we haven’t been able to do that. Maybe two is too young to understand patience. Is it possible I’m still too young?

We also tried a French Yogurt Cake recipe this week. I assisted with some of the measuring only to minimize clean up, but she added the ingredients and did all the mixing. She was so proud when she was finished and she could share her dessert with the family.

I don’t agree with every idea in the book, but it has opened my eyes to another kind of parenting. My individual philosophy has always been to trust my instincts and be present in my child’s life. And there isn’t a book that will change that.