Tuesday again already?! This week we are talking about parenting books! I think I've read every book ever written.
When we were on our 1st anniversary trip and a few months pregnant our bell hop that we told our life story to suggested we read Happiest Baby on the Block. A few other people recommended it while I was pregnant too so I read the book and we watched the video before Chase arrived. Like most people that watch the video we thought the man was insanse shushing so loud in a baby's ear on its side. Then Chase arrived and that first night in the hospital we were jiggling, shushing, and we even got him to sleep like an hour in the bassinet by laying him on his side. I told everyone I knew to read that book because we would have had no clue how to calm a newborn without it.
Now that I have a 15.5 month old with sleep issues, I'm not so sure how I feel about Happiest Baby on the Block. Like I said I've read all the other books written now and they all say you shouldn't put your baby in their crib asleep and you shouldn't rock or jiggle them. Dr. Harvey Karp is the author of Happiest Baby on the Block and his whole argument was that you couldn't spoil a baby in their first 4 months of life. But we now have a spoiled 15.5 month old that lately has been sleeping with us.
I now recommend the book The Baby Whisperer Solves All Your Problems. She has a method for putting newborns to sleep that I would try if we were blessed with another one. She also has a method for getting kiddos to sleep after they have been spoiled like Dr. Karp told us to do. We have used her method to get Chase unaddicted to the rocking. We plan to use her method to get him sleeping through the night. Her method is called the pick up/put down method. She is against abandonment cry it out like Ferber or Healthy Sleep Habits. We tried cry it out in the past and I noticed Chase suffering more from separation anxiety. So I don't do it and don't let his other care takers do it either.
The Baby Whisperer Solves All Your Problems doesn't discuss too much in regards to setting limits for toddlers. For Chase's age she suggests distracting him. Well one of our big problems recently has been Chase climbing on our dining room chairs while I'm doing the dishes or cooking meals. He is pretty good about listening when we say no and we might have gotten through to him but I decided to pick up Happiest Toddler on the Block to see what he suggests.
I'm on page 200 in Happiest Toddler on the Block. He has some crazy suggestions this time but maybe they work. He suggests mirroring your child's emotions and using short phrases to describe them. So if your child is mad his friend took his toy and looks like he is going to hit his friend you are supposed to "stomp your feet, shake your head, make a big frown, and flail your amrs...and passionately say, 'Mad! Mad! MAD!...'".
Chase will throw tantrums more when he is tired and I've tried using this technique and it hasn't really helped. I can't wait until I get the video and make my husband and dad watch it. I expect lots of eyerolls.
Happiest Toddler on the Block has some suggestions for sleep issues which I plan to read to my husband tonight. He basically gives you options like the baby whisperer's method and the ferber method.
I saw another toddler book on instagram that I might check out since I'm not too excited about Dr. Karp's methods. What toddler parenting books do you like?
