This book was so fundamentally important and changed the game up big time for me, that I really felt it was important to dive into each chapter...however next book we review will probably be more general and done in one post.
So Chapter 9, Choices for Children, was yet another important chapter. It was all about giving kids choices, and not just ok, you can pick x,y, or z for dinner (although for young toddlers that is about all the choices they can handle) but really giving them an opportunity to be heard. To know that their opinions and concerns MATER. That the family is a democracy...and like a true democracy, some things are not up for a vote.
The biggest thing that stood out to me on this chapter was when he said: "The way kids learn to make good decisions is by making decisions, not by following directions."
Chapter 10, The Child's Perspective, is all about raising kids so they have good morals. So that they want to do the right thing, because its the right thing to do, not for fear of a punishment or hopes of a reward.
One of my favorite things from this chapter was in the very last paragraph: "No matter how old your children are, it's not too late to have a positive impact from this point forward."
Anytime is a good time to turn things around and be a better parent. This really hit home to me, since I had and have a horrible mother and even my husband's mother has some serious room for improvement. So I think this is true not only for us, but for our parents. You never stop needing your parents. And even if you have been a bad parent for 30 years, so you can still turn it around, if you have the courage to own up to your mistakes and make changes.
Overall, I can't say enough about this book. Whether you are pregnant or have 30 year old, if you are parent, you need to read this book!!
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