My Books 2007
October 26th, 2007 by HeidiI’ve spent most of this morning rocking and singing lullabyes to two very cranky, teething toddlers and staring at my bookshelves… thus producing my list of:
BOOKS THAT HAVE INFLUENCED ME!
(I’m leaving off the scriptures and General Conference talks because that’s just too obvious. 
) I’ve had some friends asking about homeschooling books in particular (and a few needed pregnancy suggestions) so we’ll just consolidate it all here.
as a new mother
The Thinking Woman’s Guide to a Better Birth - because I have a tendency to think. Crazy, I know.
Nursing Mother’s Companion - best I read for helping get you started, fight problems, and make it a rewarding experience for everyone involved. Also crucial in helping is diagnose the milk sensitivity for which we are forever grateful.
Dr. & Martha Sears I like them. They have lots of kids and are very practical - you sleep better with the baby in bed? go for it! It was nice to get outside medical verification that the choices we were making (nursing on demand, co-sleeping, baby wearing) truly were good for our baby.
Then I had three more babies and realized Dang it, I don’t NEED outside verification! I’m the PARENT! We are the world’s experts on our kids!
as a parent
Raising your Spirited Child & Parenting the Ephraim’s Child - because we have ’spirited’ kids and I needed to know there was hope if we could all just survive those first few years. But invaluable tips for parents of ALL children, even if they are mellow.
The Parenting Breakthrough - GREAT for practical tips for helping those kids learn responsibility and motivation and self direction.
How to Talk so Kids will Listen and Listen so Kids will Talk - very influential in helping us figure out the best way to communicate (something many of us take for granted and yet we really suck at it) - it’s permeated most every verbal interaction we have with our kids, in a good way. Even if we’re a work in progress… but we are better listeners. And our kids sure do talk!
25 Mistakes LDS parents make and how to avoid them - interesting. Nothing earth shattering, but lots to discuss - how will we handle these things?
as a parent to special needs kids
Quirky Kids - still pondering, just finished this one.
The Out of Sync Child - SO GOOD for sensory issues, how to cope, how to work with, etc.
Ready Bodies, Learning Minds - exercises and explanations for what is happening with some of our kids’ issues, but relevant to ALL young kids and how they learn and move.
Children With Visual Impairments - when first getting Bennett’s eye news this really helped us get a general idea of what to expect and let us know it would be okay.
as a homeschooler
The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling - getting you started, and why. Then TONS of information on where to go, coping, day to day, lesson ideas, etc. Great help, can be overwhelming, good to read in bits at a time and reference later.
The Well Trained Mind - helpful overview of the classical approach, huge list of resources and ideas.
A Thomas Jefferson Education - lots to ponder on the current educational system, their goals, and what WE want for our children. Discussion of socialization and leadership education.
Learn at Home Grade K - a complete curriculum in one book. I checked it against the state education standards and it covered it all and more. SO, we had this as our ‘back up’ plan in case I felt I couldn’t come up with our own system. It has a TON of fun ideas, daily lesson plans, enrichment suggestions, worksheets. It’s got it all, and it’s a great deal. But once we had some confidence in our own lesson planning, we felt ready to move on - worth having for fall back!
as a person
The Infinite Atonement - I’ve discussed this one a lot. It’s still in my top five of all time.
The Feeling Good Handbook - I did this in therapy after our second miscarriage, pre-Bennett. It’s totally cheezy but IT REALLY HELPED with how I coped during the anxiety of bedrest and the NICU/PICU ordeal. Geared towards people with anxiety, depression, bi-polar disorder. I think good for anyone that feels like their mood is controlling them more than vice versa. Discusses black & white thinking, faulty thinking patterns, why we speak to ourselves the way we do, etc. Good read.
Zenzele - read and taught this in grad school, it’s beautiful and thought provoking and a great read for mother-daughters together.
I’ve listed or mentioned most of these before but this will be interesting to keep track of and next year I’ll see if my list has changed - what new additions I may pick up along the way.
SO, I would LOVE, love, love to hear anyone else’s book lists. I always enjoy book tips - parenting? Homeschooling? Life in general? What books do you think I should read? And why? If you post a list on your blog let me know so I may come check it out. I don’t want to name anyone in particular (though you book addicts know who you are!) because I don’t want to leave anyone out - I really would love to read all of your ideas. (I’m serious, I’m coming looking - I want suggestions!) And if you don’t mind, leave a comment to link to your blog, or just leave us a suggested title in case anyone else wants something new to read.
October 26th, 2007 at 4:15 pm
The Happiest Baby on the Block & The Happiest Toddler on the Block
-I use both of these on sort of a reference-basis, and I tend to find great comfort from them when I’m having a particularly tough issue that I’m unable to resolve without some (additional) outside help.
Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child
-The reason why I finally got Reed onto a bedtime schedule that we still keep to this day. In bed by 7:30, up at 7:30. (It was very easy to be quite malleable about bedtime when it was just Reed and us.) It has some really interesting information about sleep in general, and I still use one of its terms–”sleep inertia”–you have to read it! Oh–and it gives the most specific information about how much sleep children need (with a range, not something set in stone) for kids of all ages. I’ll email you more about it because it’s just full of good stuff, and this comment box is small considering my embarrassingly large comment.
The Poisonwood Bible (by Barbara Kingsolver) I won’t stop recommending this one…for a million different reasons. The writing is breathtakingly beautiful, and the characters are incredible, and the history is amazing.
The Bean Trees (by Barbara Kingsolver) & Pigs in Heaven (by Barbara Kingsolver)
-Can you tell I’m a huge fan of this author? These books are fascinating in their cultural exploration and social commentary, really amazing stories, very sweet, and with good characters.
October 27th, 2007 at 7:40 pm
Becoming the Parent You Want to Be–great, AP-minded book, really gives lots of practical ideas for how to deal with things like temper tantrums, potty training, etc.
And I second anything written by Barbara Kingsolver. She is one of my all-time favorite authors! The Poisonwood Bible was phenomenal. I loved the Bean Trees and Pigs in Heaven. I also liked Prodigal Summer and the essays in Small Wonder were VERY thought-provoking, especially the ones in which she writes about her parenting decisions.
October 27th, 2007 at 9:05 pm
I also read the Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child and LOVED IT! It also helped us get Max on a great schedule. A friend from the ward recommended it to us and I’m tempted to go out and by it to have on hand.
I loved the Girlfriends Guide to Pregnancy-there is already so much to worry about during pregnancy that it was nice to have a fun book about it that just made you laugh at the whole experience.
I know I have a million more but I’d have to go into Max’s room to look at our bookshelf and he’s asleep so that will have to suffice for now!
November 1st, 2007 at 12:57 pm
Check our blog in a couple days. I’ll have a list on there now that the Halloween chaos is over. Just incase you forgot it’s www dot jaredjohnsonfam dot wordpress dot com.