Busy Toddler's Guide To Actual Parenting: From Their First "No" to Their First Day of School (and Everything In Between) Paperback – September 22, 2020

I really dislike self help books - but I really love this one!I have followed her Busy Toddler Instagram so when she released the book, it was definitely an impulse buy — I never preorder, let alone a self help book with no reviews.Fast forward, I get the book and am still skeptical - did I really just buy an activity book where I could just look up this stuff online?Well I gave it a chance and actually read it fairly quickly! I loved the chapters on toddler tantrums, sibling bonding/friendships and of course the activities themselves.The only thing I wish it had was little tabs to easily go back and reference the different sections. I’m going to have to buy little flags so I can go back and reference areas I liked.I’ve already tried a few tactics on toddler tantrums, and it just makes sense and works so well. I love that it’s simple, practical advice written from a humble mom perspective (and not a know-it-all teacher/etc.... because c’mon we are all just trying to figure this out and there’s no one right way!).Buy the book... especially if you hate self help / parenting books. This one is good, give it a chance!

The media could not be loaded. First, Busy Toddler's writing comes through as a super relatable mom-friend with no judgement, been-there before experiences, and a funny and genuine sense of humor. Honestly, it felt like I was reading an email from my friend rather than a parenting book! The chapters are short and purposeful, with awesome key "take-away" boxes for when you don't have time to read a full chapter (though it takes probably less than 5 minutes to read a chapter). There are full color pictures, easy bullet points and reusable material lists (most of which are either household items you already have or super cheap from her links!!) and easy-to-implement activities which the kids pick up super easily. My favorite part, aside from all of the above, is that the book starts with babies and moves progressively through to kindergarten prep. With my older kids, I was able to breeze through some of the baby chapters and go right to the activities they were ready for. Even still, advice geared towards the age of two was incredibly helpful for my big kid.The book says "stress-free parenting advice" and that's no joke - I finished the book feeling like whatever storms come my way, it's temporary and everyone will be just fine. I was able to relieve a bit of anxiety over my parenting style because it felt like someone else "got" me.Overall, if I could give it 6 stars, I would. I'll be gifting it to all my friends who have young kiddos or lil beans on the way, as this is what I needed when I was first starting out. Do yourself a favor and buy the book - you won't regret it!

I follow Busy Toddler on Instagram and enjoy all the easy toddler activities so wanted to get a copy for my daughter who has 2 toddlers. I read through the book (it's an easy read) and loved it so much, I ordered another copy for my daughter-in-law. Susie (the author) does a great job of sharing easy ideas that are developmentlly correct for not only toddlers, but all children. I love that her approach is non-judgemental or with expectations that are only instagram photo worthy. She is a real mom giving other moms great suggestions and helping them on this journey of motherhood. So many great ideas!

Hands down, the best parenting book I’ve read. It’s not filled with endless drivel about philosophies and hocus pocus like other parenting books I’ve tried reading. It’s simple, relatable, practical, and genuine. I’m a mom of two 18m apart, so Susie’s perspective hit home with me and left me feeling empowered.

Amazing parenting encouragement that meets you right where you are at in your parenting journey. There are a lot of activities and ideas to support learning and play which I love as a parent who wants to reduce screen time.

Wow. I received this book in the mail this afternoon and am already 160 pages in within an hour. It’s a quick read with super practical tips and activity pages for things to help littles with. Her strategies for tantrums are similar to “no drama discipline” but was basically able to sum up the whole book in a few pages. Very helpful, I can’t wait to try some of the activities with my “taby.” I would recommend this book for every parent; it will come in handy especially after they turn one!

Thank you to Susie for writing this book. I have a Very hard time staying engaged with books these days, and I’m on my third read-through with this one. I had a hard upbringing and did not start learning about children until I had my own. When my boy became a toddler and I added a baby to my developing family, I became very overwhelmed trying to understand my toddler and managing the anxiety I felt from all the “doom” that I expected ahead. There is so much information out there on how to “fix” “problems” with kids, but my intuition told me it was my understanding or beliefs that needed to be developed. This book put my inner dialogue on the right path again. I hope there is a sequel!

I bought this mainly for the activities for my 1 year old and it doesn’t disappoint! Some are a little advanced for 1 but we can grow into them!