Product Description

Moms get a lot of advice from TV shows, magazines, friends, their own mothers, and more. But all of this well-meaning counsel tends to paralyze moms. They worry about their children's self-esteem, their health, and whether or not their children like them. They even agonize over scrapbooking every moment of development. Julie Barnhill says, "Enough already!" Unapologetically raucous, slightly irreverent, and refreshingly relevant, One Tough Mother exposes the mind-numbing, brain-draining, confidence-depleting minutia moms get stuck in. With humor and a sharp wit, Julie offers moms a dose of reality and a way to calm their fears about raising children. She encourages moms to straighten up, take back the control from their children, and stand firm on the nonnegotiables. With her help, any mom can become one tough mother.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #164476 in Books
• Published on: 2007-09-01
• Released on: 2007-09-01
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 208 pages

From the Inside Flap
EXCERPT FROM CATALOG: Motherhood has been sliced and diced, reviewed and dissected. Yet I find myself writing to and speaking with hundreds of thousands of women a year--a large percentage being mothers--and being struck time and time again by consistent mothering tales of feeling out of control, ineffective, and more often than not, under the embarrassing thumb of a precocious toddler, headstrong preschooler, increasingly mouthy grade-schooler, or junior high know-it-all. Sometimes all four. All those websites. All those reality shows. All those books. All those CDs, DVDs, and ancillary teaching items still being paid off on a credit card, and yet many moms aren't convinced they know what they're doing when it comes to actually being the mom. Go figure. I believe this is where I scream at my blinking cursor and declare: enough is enough. It's time for a change--better yet it's time your spawnlings got a dose of long-lasting One Tough Mother change!

From the Back Cover
"Julie knows exactly what kids need--love and limits--and she demonstrates how to deliver both with ten no-nonsense principles that really work." --Dr. Kevin Leman, author of Making Children Mind without Losing Yours As a mom, you get a lot of advice. TV shows, magazines, friends, your own mother (and mother-in-law) are all telling you the best way to raise your kids. But all of this well-meaning counsel can paralyze you. Julie Barnhill says, "Enough already!" Unapologetically raucous and refreshingly relevant, One Tough Mother gives you ten nonnegotiable ways to stand firm and be the mom. With a sharp wit, Julie offers you a dose of reality and a way to calm your fears about raising children. She shows you how to take joy in your child say no like you mean it stop overanalyzing every tiny detail communicate truthfully and effectively with your child save yourself from scrapbooking madness and more You can be confident, loving, and in charge. Are you ready to become one tough mother? Julie Ann Barnhill is a popular speaker and the bestselling author of She's Gonna Blow! Real Help for Moms Dealing with Anger, as well as several other popular books that tap into the "everyday themes of everyday people." She has appeared on Oprah, NBC's The Other Half, CNN, and other national and regional programs. She lives in Illinois with her family.

About the Author
Julie Ann Barnhill is a popular speaker and the bestselling author of She's Gonna Blow! Real Help for Moms Dealing with Anger, as well as several other popular books that tap into the "everyday themes of everyday people." She has appeared on Oprah, NBC's The Other Half, CNN, and other national and regional programs. She lives in Prairie City, Illinois, with her family.

Customer Reviews

Hidden agenda
I was surprised to find this parenting book was heavily Christian. Bible verses, Christian theology, and prayers you and your kids can do are sprinkled throughout the text. I have no problem with Christians writing Christian parenting guides, but I would like something on the cover that identifies them.

The book gives some good common sense advice like being firm with your kids, letting the small things go, and holding on to your own identity and interests in the midst of parenting.

I disagree with the suggestion to find medical advice on the internet, but moms trusting their intuition and questioning doctors is of course good sense.

In summary, it's not a bad potpourri of parenting tips, but I found the omission of any reference to this being a Christian guide on the cover strange.

Every day is Mother's Day!
Reviewed by Nicole M. Boals

Being a mother can make you a little bit crazy. Listening to all the advice from friends, family, and the nearly endless self-help books, can take that crazy to a whole new level. This book will help calm this craziness with intelligent and sensible advice with a huge dose of humor. It is a quick read that is hard to put down and is one parenting book that you will be very glad you read.

One Tough Mother gives no nonsense advice on how to be a strong woman who is a strong mother. Broken down into ten "non-negotiables," this book is packed full of great ideas on how to take back your sanity and build love, trust, and respect in your household. Smattered throughout the advice are real stories that give life and context to these ideas.

Seemingly common sense areas of parenting are sometimes so hard to remember or even feel comfortable with, and this book helps bring them into focus. With chapters like how to say no (I know can comfortably say no in several languages to video game playing) to how to start praying for your children, this book offers tips that every parent can use.

Throughout the book sidebars present great outside resources and concepts. These little quips and links offer some great ideas for additional research and topics. The book concludes with a great appendix that reminds you that you are a woman and as such, you deserve some self-care time and expense. It offers great tips on hair, skin, makeup and general upkeep that a lot of moms mistakenly put on the backburner.

Armchair Interviews says: Great advice, interesting stories, and laugh-out-loud humor, make One Tough Mother one awesome book.

A Book for EVERY Mother!
If you have ever found yourself saying, "I've told you not to do that," or "Stop that," for that tenth time in 10 minutes, then this book is for you. Julie offers ten nonnegotiables in our mothering. Written in a fun conversational tone, you will see yourself in the first few pages of this book. After reading it, you too can become One Tough Mother!