Introduction to The Shock of Parenthood

There are so many things to consider when we become parents. Whether you’re starting off with one baby or twins or discovering the chaos that comes with adding a second infant to your life, we are often knocked completely off our feet by the radical change that a baby brings to our world. We are each of us hit by a very personal emotional whirlwind as the impact of massive life change becomes real in the form of this very dependent little being.

And this is just the beginning. There is a whole world of issues and concerns that likely never occurred to you in your pre-parenthood existence. Somehow, you’re also supposed to care for and handle these little wild beasties! Do you have any experience with beasty training? Probably not much. You’ll find it’s not always exactly clear what one should do with the bizarre behaviors that will be descending upon your life. For example, “Why is my toddler licking the sidewalk?” and “Should I stop him?” (answer: probably, but considering he’s already had half the playground bark in his mouth it might not really matter all that much!)

And, then suddenly there’s all this childcare, pre-school, soccer camp, music class, kindergarten stuff to figure out. You’ll be relying heavily on that “child development and parenting” course you had in school. Wait, what class was that? You mean you got 12 years of American History but zero instruction on parenting?! So, you’re just going to be winging it without any real guidance or frame work for raising kids? What about your partner? Do they have a clue? No?? Sigh.

You realize there’s a lot you’re responsible for these days. You must develop all the strengths and mitigate all the weaknesses of each of your children. You must nurture resilience, self-esteem, internal motivation, emotional intelligence, science, technology, engineering, mathematics, music, art, language, self-actualization, psychological well-being, tap dancing, and gourmet eating skills. Oh, and coding. Don’t forget coding.

You must do it all while looking hip and hot and not tired. You will do it while working too much for not enough or not working and going crazy at home…At your organized, clean, and stylish home that you have craftily decorated for each and every holiday.

Ok newbie parents, you’ve got no guidebook, no experience, no sleep, maybe a clueless partner, and expectations are a bit crazy. Your wild little animals are screeching and don’t seem to understand rational, logical thought. So, how’s that workin’ for ya?

Most of us go into all this quite blind. I certainly did. But I’m not blind now! I’m 53 and my twins are 9. I’ve learned a thing or two that just might ease your way and open your eyes to a new perspective on the crazy life you’re probably living.

Child development experts can offer very helpful information in the early years of parenting. And I’ll guide you to some of the best of these experts. But…experienced parents, who have lived the life and walked the walk and wrangled the 2 year old twins, can bring you truly life-saving and often side-splitting insights.

As you grow into parenthood, you gather these pearls of wisdom into your life like the precious gifts they are. This book is full of these pearls from hundreds of parents who are parenting in today’s stress filled world. I gathered them up and I’m bringing them to you.

Knowledge is power. I hope that with the knowledge you pull from this book that you will gain the power to shape your life, your children’s lives, and your family life into something rewarding, rich with meaning, actually fun, and a little less wacko.