Today, I am very pleased to host children's book and parenting author L.R. Knost as she launches her new parenting handbook, Two Thousand Kisses a Day: Gentle Parenting Through the Ages and Stages. My boys are only 2 years old and 10 months old and I was raised in a traditional punitive home, therefore, I am very new to gentle parenting. There are tons of great resources out there but L.R.'s site, Little Hearts Gentle Parenting Resources, and her Facebook page, are two that I read without fail. I love L.R.'s easy to read and engaging style of writing and was very excited to read this book. I can tell you for sure that I was not disappointed. She gives simple, easy to understand guidance for parenting gently from birth to adulthood, which is very rare in parenting books. She gives practical advice and illustrates it with examples from her own experience of gently raising 6 kids, ranging in age from 2 to 25 years old. If you are looking for a book on how to control your child or modify behavior, this is not it, but I definitely consider this a must read for anyone looking to parent from a place of love, respect, and connection.
And, now, here is the lovely L.R. Knost with a synopsis of the book:
Two Thousand Kisses a
Day: Gentle Parenting Through the Ages and Stages by parenting and
children’s book author, L.R.Knost, has been described as “a book you'll devour
in one sitting and then keep close at hand for easy reference as your children
grow” and “like sitting down for a cuppa with a good friend.” Other reviewers
have said it has “an easy, conversational, parent-to-parent tone” which “refreshingly
does exactly what it promises: it shows you how to parent gently, with
kindness, compassion, and connection, always keeping that strong and healthy
relationship with your child at the forefront of your journey.”
From the beginning stages of parenting all the way through
parenting adult children, Two Thousand
Kisses a Day: Gentle Parenting Through the Ages and Stages offers practical
guidance for incorporating gentle parenting into daily life along with
vignettes of L.R.Knost’s personal experiences with gently parenting her own six
children ages twenty-five-years down to twenty-five-months old.
Here is a breakdown of what the book has to offer:
Chapter 1
‘Two Thousand Kisses a Day to Two Thousand Connection
Points a Day,’ gives an overview of gentle parenting.
Chapter 2 ‘Surviving the First Three Months with a Newborn’ shares ten steps to ease the transition when a new baby joins the family.
Chapter 3 ‘Co-sleeping Like a Baby’ covers co-sleeping options from roomsharing to bedsharing.
Chapter 4 ‘Breastfeeding: The Healthiest Start’ shares some startling information about the health and economic costs of low breastfeeding rates and offers insight into some of the most common reasons new mothers struggle to breastfeed. (Note: The author also struggled with breastfeeding her first two babies and makes no judgments about formula feeding.)
Chapter 5 ‘Babywearing, aka Making Your Life Easier’ covers the many conveniences of babywearing along with offering helpful resources to find what works for you.
Chapter 6 ‘To a Toddler Sharing is a Four Letter Word: MINE’ gives insight into a toddler’s perception of sharing and offers tips about how to encourage sharing through role playing and modeling.
Chapter 7 ‘Three Simple Steps from Diapers to Potty’ shares the author’s experiences in simply letting her children transition naturally from diapers to potty without training.
Chapter 8 ‘Gentle Weaning’ offers tips for gently helping little ones through weaning from breastfeeding.
Chapter 9 ‘Picky Eater? Here’s Help!’ shares tips from simple menu ideas to the psychology behind mealtime battles.
Chapter 10 ‘Are You a Parent Reject?’ covers the rejection parents often feel when little ones seem to prefer one parent over another.
Chapter 11 ‘Gently Setting Limits’ shares ideas for setting boundaries with empathy, creativity, and flexibility.
Chapter 12 ‘My Little Caboose and the Very Bad, No Good…Month’ shares some of the author’s own struggles with parenting and the gentle connections she used to work through them with her children.
Chapter 13 ‘The Problem with Punishment’ offers insight on the punishment versus discipline debate.
Chapter 14 ‘Age of Fear: Helping Children Cope with Anxiety’ shares simple, creative ideas to help children cope with fear and anxiety.
Chapter 15 ‘Bucket List for a Happy Childhood’ offers two hundred ideas for connecting with your children and building happy memories.
Chapter 16 ‘Mommy Guilt: The Human Factor’ covers the guilt-trap parents often fall into and help in working toward a more healthy perspective.
Chapter 17 ‘A Place to Rest: Becoming Our Children’s Safe Harbor’ offers insight into the need for unconditional acceptance and love in childhood.
Chapter 18 ‘Death of a Butterfly: Helping Children Cope with Loss’ shares simple steps to walk through loss with children.
Chapter 19 ‘Chores Sh’mores’ offers alternatives to the chore battle to build more cooperative teamwork.
Chapter 20 ‘Live What You Want Them to Learn’ shares insight into the importance of walking out the character traits you want to grow in your children.
Chapter 21 ‘Is Your Child an Introvert or an Extrovert?’ offers checklists to help you determine whether your child has introvert or extrovert tendencies and how to adjust your parenting to meet their unique needs.
Chapter 22 ‘Into the Looking Glass: Teens and Self-Esteem’ shares insights into the intense self-consciousness that often characterizes the teen years and offers ideas for helping your adolescent to cope.
Chapter 23 ‘Gently Parenting Teens’ gives an overview of the value of gentle and connected parenting in the teen years.
Chapter 24 ‘Talking to Teens’ offers practical tips for communicating with your teen.
Chapter 25 ‘Dealing with the Hard Stuff’ shares insight into communicating with adolescents about difficult issues such as sex, politics, religion, etc.
Chapter 26 ‘Too Late for Teens?’ offers practical steps to work toward a more gentle parenting style and connected relationship for parents who are just now discovering gentle parenting.
Chapter 27 ‘Twelve Tips for Gently Parenting Your Adult Children’ shares ideas for growing and maintaining a healthy, connected relationship with your adult children.
Chapter 28 ‘Twelve Steps to Gentle Parenting’ offers a twelve month, step-by-step approach to work toward a more gentle style of parenting.
Chapter 2 ‘Surviving the First Three Months with a Newborn’ shares ten steps to ease the transition when a new baby joins the family.
Chapter 3 ‘Co-sleeping Like a Baby’ covers co-sleeping options from roomsharing to bedsharing.
Chapter 4 ‘Breastfeeding: The Healthiest Start’ shares some startling information about the health and economic costs of low breastfeeding rates and offers insight into some of the most common reasons new mothers struggle to breastfeed. (Note: The author also struggled with breastfeeding her first two babies and makes no judgments about formula feeding.)
Chapter 5 ‘Babywearing, aka Making Your Life Easier’ covers the many conveniences of babywearing along with offering helpful resources to find what works for you.
Chapter 6 ‘To a Toddler Sharing is a Four Letter Word: MINE’ gives insight into a toddler’s perception of sharing and offers tips about how to encourage sharing through role playing and modeling.
Chapter 7 ‘Three Simple Steps from Diapers to Potty’ shares the author’s experiences in simply letting her children transition naturally from diapers to potty without training.
Chapter 8 ‘Gentle Weaning’ offers tips for gently helping little ones through weaning from breastfeeding.
Chapter 9 ‘Picky Eater? Here’s Help!’ shares tips from simple menu ideas to the psychology behind mealtime battles.
Chapter 10 ‘Are You a Parent Reject?’ covers the rejection parents often feel when little ones seem to prefer one parent over another.
Chapter 11 ‘Gently Setting Limits’ shares ideas for setting boundaries with empathy, creativity, and flexibility.
Chapter 12 ‘My Little Caboose and the Very Bad, No Good…Month’ shares some of the author’s own struggles with parenting and the gentle connections she used to work through them with her children.
Chapter 13 ‘The Problem with Punishment’ offers insight on the punishment versus discipline debate.
Chapter 14 ‘Age of Fear: Helping Children Cope with Anxiety’ shares simple, creative ideas to help children cope with fear and anxiety.
Chapter 15 ‘Bucket List for a Happy Childhood’ offers two hundred ideas for connecting with your children and building happy memories.
Chapter 16 ‘Mommy Guilt: The Human Factor’ covers the guilt-trap parents often fall into and help in working toward a more healthy perspective.
Chapter 17 ‘A Place to Rest: Becoming Our Children’s Safe Harbor’ offers insight into the need for unconditional acceptance and love in childhood.
Chapter 18 ‘Death of a Butterfly: Helping Children Cope with Loss’ shares simple steps to walk through loss with children.
Chapter 19 ‘Chores Sh’mores’ offers alternatives to the chore battle to build more cooperative teamwork.
Chapter 20 ‘Live What You Want Them to Learn’ shares insight into the importance of walking out the character traits you want to grow in your children.
Chapter 21 ‘Is Your Child an Introvert or an Extrovert?’ offers checklists to help you determine whether your child has introvert or extrovert tendencies and how to adjust your parenting to meet their unique needs.
Chapter 22 ‘Into the Looking Glass: Teens and Self-Esteem’ shares insights into the intense self-consciousness that often characterizes the teen years and offers ideas for helping your adolescent to cope.
Chapter 23 ‘Gently Parenting Teens’ gives an overview of the value of gentle and connected parenting in the teen years.
Chapter 24 ‘Talking to Teens’ offers practical tips for communicating with your teen.
Chapter 25 ‘Dealing with the Hard Stuff’ shares insight into communicating with adolescents about difficult issues such as sex, politics, religion, etc.
Chapter 26 ‘Too Late for Teens?’ offers practical steps to work toward a more gentle parenting style and connected relationship for parents who are just now discovering gentle parenting.
Chapter 27 ‘Twelve Tips for Gently Parenting Your Adult Children’ shares ideas for growing and maintaining a healthy, connected relationship with your adult children.
Chapter 28 ‘Twelve Steps to Gentle Parenting’ offers a twelve month, step-by-step approach to work toward a more gentle style of parenting.
This post is part of the Virtual Book Tour for the launch of L.R.Knost’s Two Thousand Kisses a Day: Gentle Parenting Through the Ages and Stages. Click here if you’d like to check out all of the other stops on the tour!
Children’s
book and parenting author, L.R.Knost, is an independent child development
researcher and founder and director of the advocacy and consulting group,
Little Hearts/Gentle Parenting Resources. A mother of six, her children range
from 25- years down to 25-months-old. Two
Thousand Kisses a Day: Gentle Parenting Through the Ages and Stages is the
first in her Little Hearts Handbooks
series of parenting guides. Other works by this award-winning author include
the Wisdom For Little Hearts and the soon-to-be-released Grumpykins children’s picture book
series for ages 2 to 6, which are humorous and engaging tools for parents,
teachers, and caregivers to use in implementing gentle parenting techniques in
their homes and schools.
Purchase the book:
You can purchase a copy of the book here. The paperback is $7.99 and the Kindle version is $3.99.
Diary of a Natural Mom readers can also take advantage of the following offer:
And a giveaway:
L.R. Knost is also giving one lucky Diary of a Natural Mom reader a copy of her illustrated children's book, Petey's Listening Ears. Please see Rafflecopter form below to enter.
In this first release in L.R.Knost's Wisdom For Little Hearts children's picture book series, lovable little Petey and his furry friend, Beans, are having a difficult day until Petey’s mommy and daddy step in with some gentle guidance and help him remember to turn his ‘Listening Ears’ on, turning his very bad day into a very good one! The Wisdom For Little Hearts series is designed as a tool for parents, teachers, and caregivers to use in implementing Gentle Parenting techniques in their homes and schools. Concrete imagery and positive discipline techniques woven into humorous, engaging stories make the Wisdom For Little Hearts series ideal for children ages two to six.
No comments:
Post a Comment