Interesting article on Becoming Babywise by Christianity Today. Thanks Mari for bringing it to my attention. I had no idea the author wasn't formally qualified to write the book. Clearly I didn't do my research.
Personally, Babywise did not/does not work for Ethan. As you know, once I put away the books and started becoming more aware of Ethan's cues, he created a perfect feeding schedule for himself, I started to enjoy our time together, and my confidence as a mother grew. I now know my son. He cries a total of maybe 10 min. a day and that includes his cue crying for food, to be held when he wakes up, and the dirty diaper wimper.
I have found it alarming how easy it is to get caught up in what mainstream America is doing with children and feel the overwhelming pull to do everything like everyone else. Have the same books on the shelf, the universal nap time, the same toys and DVDs. I personally need to do a better job at recognizing this in my life and take the time and energy to stop myself from jumping on the bandwagon.
7 comments:
yup. check out ezzo.info. scary stuff.
It never worked for us either - I would try the cry it out thing and the crying went on FOREVER!! Eventually my babies did learn to fall asleep on their own, but it was much much later than what most of the books suggest. Good job trusting your instincts!
i read the same article. scarywe tried babywise for a few days...it was not for us either. although honestly, it was tempting to want the "results" that the book promised! =)
Hey, glad to share the info! I might have to steal your idea and post a little note about it in my blog as well!
I respectfully disagree. I read the book just before Evy was born completely convinced he was Satan incarnate from all I'd heard. I was given a copy of the book and read so that I could highlight all of the evil! I found nothing. At no time did I feel like he said this was the ONLY way and you HAD to do this... There were some good things that worked, and there were some things that didn't but I didn't feel like that made it WRONG or bad. I think every book is the same (i.e. it is someone's opinion based on their experience). If someone's experience proved helpful to me, so be it. The guidance was extrememly helpful to me and I took it as just that - guidance - not law. It gave me an idea to shoot for, not to live and die by, so I didn't.
I think that probably reiterates your point that we moms have a great deal of instinct about our children and we should trust it when it comes to anything, really.
I'm glad you didn't let this book, or ANY book, for that matter, dictate your parenting style.
Way to go.
every child is different and you cannot take any book as the cure for everything that your child does. Even if they have a degree or even experience. Books are ways for us to maybe realize some things about our children, but the only way for your child to be loved and cherished is by you reacting to the signs that he gives you. God made us mothers and with that comes some instinct and "feelings" that non-mothers and daddies do not have. Just trust those feelings and lean on God for everything as well. Always surround yourself with other moms because we like to share our stories.
After much research we were not big on it either. I was especially alarmed when I found out that the American Board of Pediatrics is strongly against some of the practices outlined. In addition,Dr. Dobson refused to include this book in his focus on the family.
Really there is no one size fits all. Every child has different needs. As you and others mentioned you really have to listen to your instincts and do what works best for you and your baby.
In regards to sleeping, I found a great book called "Healthy Sleep Habbits, Happy Child". It seemed to have a great balance of not swinging too far on either side.
What i liked most is that it gives you an idea of what the typical child's sleep schedule should look like per week. month, etc...even on into the toddler years. It helps you to know at what stage do they fall into the 2 naps a day, when do they drop a nap, when do they stop napping all together, etc...
In addition, it also helps you understand what is happening biologically and chemically as your baby develops that effects how they sleep. It was very informative!
Check it out if you get a chance. I have read it now 3 times with all of our kiddos.
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