For Mommies

I recently read the book The Mommy Manual by Barbara Curtis. The mommy manual. Wow! Doesn’t that sound like a dream come true!? One of the greatest things about this book is that it is written by a mom who, as a parent, has truly experienced almost everything. She has twelve children (some biological and some adopted), four of her children have Down’s Syndrome, she began her life as a mom as a non-Christian but now loves the Lord, she has home schooled, public schooled, and private schooled, she has been a single parent but now has a loving husband, and the list goes on! If anyone is qualified to write a manual for moms, it must be Barbara Curtis. Her goal for this book is to give moms the following four things:

· The keys to unlock your child’s potential
· Ways to tune in to your child’s unique gifts
· Secrets of joyful parenting
· Encouragement for your journey

Trained as a Montessori teacher, Barbara draws heavily on her learning and experiences with the Montessori way of thought. As a result, this book is full of very practical ways that you, as a mom, can help your child succeed. The book is divided into three sections. The first gives 10 keys to “understanding your kids and releasing their joy––and yours,” and predominately focuses on babies to preschool age children. Barbara does a great job helping you to see the world from your child’s perspective and then gives excellent ways to put your understanding into practice.

The second section of this book focuses on “building a good work ethic and gracious character in your kids.” What?! No more “Do I have to?” “Oh, I forgot.” or “No, that’s MINE!”––sign me up! We all know how vital these attributes are to our children succeeding in their adult life. Barbara explains how moms can begin to cultivate them at a very early age.

The final section of the book gives insight on “passing on our cultural heritage and creating a rich family life.” In today’s culture, where it is so easy to “veg” out in front of the TV, this section includes ways to explore entertainment, the arts, and create family memories outside the realm of your living room (although she does give a rather large list of great family movies––divided into age appropriate categories). Two great resources in this section are an excellent “must read” book list for your kids and great ideas to create new traditions for different holidays.

As with any manual, this book is great to read cover to cover in order to have a greater understanding of our most precious possessions. However, it also serves as an excellent resource to pull out from time to time––whether it’s when you’re at your wits end (let’s face it––we’ve all been there a time or two!) or whether you are just looking for a new idea to liven things up. However you want to use it, this is definitely a “gotta have it” for every mommy! It definitely challenged me and caused me to reevaluate how I go about this whole “mommy business.”

(Disclaimer: This review isn't too specific for two reasons - (1) so you'll actually have to read it for yourself and (2) so you don't have to read 10 more pages by me!)