Managing the MotherLoad by Jennifer Applin

Book Review: Healthy Child Healthy World

I have a new favorite color...GREEN!

When I first heard that MotherTalk was hosting a blog tour for Healthy Child Healthy World by Christopher Gavigan I knew this was a book I'd like to review. One of my goals this year is to form better habits that help us minimize our carbon footprint. The problem is that I've been confused with the tidbits of enviromental info I've heard and I needed more of a concrete guide to green living. With Healthy Child Healthy World that is what I got...and so much more!

I knew this book was about "green living" but I mistakenly assumed most of the information would center around our enviroment in a global sense. I wasn't prepared for so much of it to hit home-quite literally! Here I was hoping to learn about steps to take to make the world cleaner and safer. Little did I know that I'd learn so much about making our immediate environment (our home) cleaner, greener and safer and how that can directly affect us. 

The book is divided up in chapters discussing the various aspects of our everyday environment such as cleaning products, the foods we eat, caring for our lawns, the beauty products we use, and the purchases we make for our children like toys and clothes. Although parents and parents-to-be will benefit the most from this book, anyone who cares about the toxins in their home will get something out it.

One of the things I love best about this book is the way the material is presented. An item is evaluated (such as nail polish, car seats, cleaning products, or regular milk), an explanation is given regarding the potentially harmful enviromental factors, and then simple solutions or alternatives are suggested. You are left feeling aware, educated and empowered.

For me this book comes down to choices. We do have choices regarding the chemicals our families are exposed to. Gavigan is not an alarmist and does not come out and say that using typical cleaning products will directly result in devastating illnesses in our children. But what he does suggest is that there is so much that hasn't been tested, so why take that chance, especially when there are safe alternatives.

Also, when it comes to the solutions suggested in this book, such as buying organic food and using stainless steel water bottles, at first glance it may look like you'll blow your budget. This isn't the case if you also follow his other suggestions such as using cloth diapers, buying wooden toys that don't require batteries, and making your own cleaning products (he includes the recipes). When you implement these changes your spending simply shifts. Some things will cost your more, others will cost you less. It pretty much all evens out.

The book also features contributions from celebrities including Kate Hudson, Tom Hanks, Keri Russell, Brooke Shields, Courteney Cox, and Tobey Maguire. Some reviewers found this distracting, but I liked it. To me they are just examples of concerned parents trying to sift through the information like the rest of us and make they best choices they can. They acknowledged that it's a struggle at times to make the necessary changes, but even baby steps help and we all need to just do the best we can.

To say that this book is life-changing is an understatment. I immediately started making changes and will continue to blog about these under the catergory Green Living Mother here on this blog. I have been telling my friends and family about this book and naturally they ask to borrow it. Sorry, no can do! This book is not leaving my house. They'll just have to buy their own copy, or maybe I'll just buy it for them. Yes, it's that important!

To read other reviews of Healthy Child Healthy World check out the MotherTalk Blog Tour. To learn more about the Healthy Child Healthy World nonprofit organization check out their website at healthychild.org. 

New LargerFamilies.com post

I have a new post up at Larger Families.com. This week we were discussing the following question: "If you could instill in your children just one quality/characteristic (i.e. compassion, honesty, integrity, etc.)what would it be, and why?"

What's your answer? (feel free to reply in the comments section of the Larger Families blog)

Scenes from my backyard

 

MotherTalk's new feature

I'm a big fan of MotherTalk and they have some fun new features for 2008! Those same great books that the bloggers review now have an interactive online book club to go along with it so readers and writers can really connect :-)

With MotherTalk you can:

-check out the many blogger reviews collected in a nice and neat central location. With a few simple clicks of your mouse you can read what others are saying about the book (and check out some new blogs in the process).

-read useful background information on the book, interviews with the author, etc. The staff at MotherTalk really helps you get the inside scoop.

-feel confident that reading the book will be a risk-free investment of your time and money because you'll be "armed" with all of this helpful info.

-complete your reading adventure by participating in the online book club. No need to coordinate a babysitter and work around the schedule of others. Simply poor yourself a cup of coffee and participate in the book club when it works for you.

Later this week I'll be contributing to the MotherTalk book club discussion on Kelly Corrigan's memoir The Middle Place and posting my own review of the book here on my blog :-) 

Good for her!

A lesson parents learn early on is the importance of following through with the threat of consequences. Don't tell your son "If you jump on that couch one more time then you won't go to the birthday party" and then still let him go even after he jumped again. This can be a little tricky, put it's important to make sure the potential punishment fits the crime and you're willing and able to follow through (i.e. don't threaten to leave your daughter at home because she's being pokey getting her coat on when you know there is no way you'd do that).

Well, kuddos to the "meanest mom on the planet!" She set two rules, her son broke one and now he's paying the consequences-big time. I'm sure her son is very upset, but my guess is that he's probably learned his lesson (and he's safer for it!).

My one word for 2008

I've come across a number of blogs where the authors are posting about their one word for 2008. I thought it'd be fun to do the same. Although I was trying to come up with something really unique and creative to describe my goals for 2008, the same word kept popping up in my head. That word is GROW!

Some of my 2008 plans to grow include:

-my writing career. This will only be my second full year of freelance writing, but I've been blessed with many opportunities. This year I plan to really focus and make the most of these opportunities.

-religiously/spiritually. My husband and I have been trying to find our way in a religious sense for a few years. Although it has been a difficult journey we are thrilled with the results. We have joined a church that really promotes spiritual growth and we look forward to all of the positive changes that come with that.

-my health. Inevitably I will grow older each day. My plan is to make that growth as healthy as possible. I don't have specific goals for dieting or fitness, but I do want to adapt an all-around healthier lifestyle for growing older.

-my family life. A few years back my husband and I realized that we needed a whole-life makeover. This has been a gradual process, but we've now reached the point where we can reflect on how far we've come. A driving force behind that makeover was the desire to have a greater family life. Thanks to changes in careers, schedules and priorities we will now be able to enjoy more family time together. I look forward to the ways we will grow closer as a family.

-our family size. Although I will address this in a separate post down the road, I am happy to annouce that we are looking into starting the adoption process this year. If not by the end of 2008, then sometime soon after we anticipate that our family will grow in size.

So, these are some of the reasons that I kept coming back to the word "grow" as my one word to describe my plans for 2008. What's your word?

Coming Soon....

I have a lot of new plans for this blog all set and ready to go for 2008. The new content includes:

-book reviews

-organization tips

-parenting advice

-suggestions for making time for yourself and others

-ideas for being charitable

-ways to live a faith-filled life

-Featured Resource Friday

Stay tuned....the new blogging format starts today :-)

WFMW-Backwards Day-Getting Kids to Pick Up the Pace

Today Shannon at Rocks In My Dryer added a little twist to Works-For-Me Wednesday. She's making it Backwards Day! Instead of posting a tidbit of advice we are blogging about an issue where WE need the advice.

So here's my questions: How do I get my 6 1/2-year-old and close to 5-year-old pick up the pace with their duties? We came up with a chart/list that details everything they are responsible for during the day (getting dressed, brushing their teeth, etc.) and a few chores (emptying the wastebaskets, unloading the dishwasher, etc). The list is working well and they are enthusiatic about checking the items off as the get them done. The problem is that they have a tendency to take FOREVER at times, especially the items that fall just before bed. The purpose of the list was to get them to be more responsible on their own and allow me to back off with the constant reminders ("now put your clothes in the basket", "take your dishes to the counter", etc.). But if they are being pokey I'm still on them to keep moving and get the job done. Any advice for getting my kids to pick up the pace??????

Crazy Eights Meme

Christina at The Writer Mama tagged me for this Crazy Eights Meme. So here I go :-)

8 Things I'm Passionate About:

1. My children.

2. My husband.

3. A strong faith.

4. My family and friends.

5. My writing career.

6. My role as a wife and mother.

7. Living a life with integrity.

8. Finding some balance in life.

8 Things I Want to do Before I Die:

1. Watch my children grow up.

2. Have grandchildren (I hope my kids are on board with that ;-).

3. Travel a lot with my husband.

4. Write a book.

5. Get published in the "big" magazines.

6. Reach a point where I feel completely organized (a girl can dream, right?).

7. Feel strong, healthy and fit.

8. Build a house on my dream piece of property.

8 Things I Say Often:

1. The first and middle name of my daughter and oldest son when in trouble.

2. Didn't I just clean up this kitchen?

3. The nicknames of my 2-year-old and 17-month old.

4. Not tonight, honey, I'm tired. Honey, can you run some errands and take some kids with you?!?

5. Leave the cat alone!

6. What did I say? (replying to my children's insistent nagging)

7. Thank you (I must say it a lot because this has been one of the first words for all of my kids).

8. Mama loves you.

8 Books I've Read Recently (or am still reading):

1. The Department of Lost and Found by Allison Winn Scotch

2. The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey

3. The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren

4. The Renegade Writer by Diana Burrell and Linda Formichelli

5. The One-Minute Organizer Plain & Simple by Donna Smallin

6. Saving Dinner by Leanne Ely

7. 10-Minute Life Lessons for Kids by Jamie Miller

8. The Red Tent (again) by Anita Diamant

8 Songs I Could Listen to Over and Over:

1. Sweet Home Alabama by Lynyrd Skynyrd

2. I Could Not Ask For More by Sara Evans

3. You Are Holy by Michael W. Smith

4. Because You Loved Me by Celine Dion

5. It is You by Newsboys

6. My Savior My God by Aaron Shust

7. Wide Open Spaces by Dixie Chicks

8. When You Say Nothing at All by Alison Krauss & Union Station

8 Things that Attract Me to My Best Friends:

1. Their supportive attitude.

2. Their dedication.

3. Their sense of humor.

4. Their loyalty.

5. Their integrity.

6. Their acceptance.

7. Their values.

8. Their honesty.

8 People I Think Should do Crazy Eights:

I'm going to leave this part open to everyone. If you'd like to participate consider yourself tagged :-)

A Book A Week

There's no need to wait until Jan to start something new. I need to make reading for enjoyment a daily habit. So to help *push* me a little I'll be posting about it here :-) I'll feature a new book that I'm reading every week. Sometime the following week I'll do a brief review. There will be a mix of fiction and nonfiction. I'll have a running list of the book schedule in case you'd like to join me as I force myself to take more "me-time"! Also, recommendations are always welcome!!!

Below is the schedule for the next few weeks.

Nov 11: "Table for Eight: Raising a Large Family in a Small-Family World" by Meagan Francis

Nov 18: "Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everthing Across Italy, India and Indonesia" by Elizabeth Gilbert

Nov 25: "Twelve Ordinary Men: How the Master Shaped His Disciples for Greatness, and What He Wants to Do with You" by John MacArthur

Dec 2: "Writer Mama: How to Raise a Writing Career Alongside Your Kids" by Christina Katz (I've read this once, but the thing about books regarding a writing career is you can always learn even more by reading them again as your own career progresses.)

Dec 9: "A Thousand Splendid Suns" by Khaled Hosseini

Dec 16: "Five-Star Families: Moving Yours From Good to Great" by Carol Kuykendall