Customer Reviews

Secrets of the Baby Whisperer for Toddlers

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Hogg does an excellent job of calming the frazzled nerves of parents with toddlers. I'm the single mom of a "spirited" toddler. And I thought I was going to lose my mind. I read this book a week ago, and things are already better. She has parents examine their behavior as well as that of the child's. She doesn't present it as if you are an awful parent if your child won't go to sleep or throws fits that are unmanagable. But there is a problem, or you wouldn't be reading this book in the first place. And what I find the most amazing thing about her book is that she offers no quick fixes. In a time when everyone wants to lose 10 lb. in one week, and have their children sleep through the night in the same amount of time, Hogg says it cannot be done. What she suggests is introducing limits and actually *being* the parent. Her method takes time. I am an attachment parent, and I find no conflicts between this style and mine. She does not ever say you should lock your child in a room and walk away or otherwise desert him. She's not a Ferberer. She's also against spanking, yelling, slapping, shaming and teasing. In the past I've become very angry with my child because of his behavior. Now I can understand where his behavior comes from, what I've done to let the situation get out of hand and not only can I deal with him better, I can prevent most of the behaviors that drive me up a wall. A great book for tired parents.

Tracy's blend of humor, common sense and most importantly respect, is excellent reading, not only for dealing with Toddlers but for everyone. Certainly opens your eyes to the way we communicate.

If you followed Tracy's advice in the Baby Whisperer book, this book is for you. If you didn't read the Baby whisperer book and you are a parent or becoming one get both books. They are Totally packed with real life scenarios, common sense, and sound advice. Tracy's wit definately proves to me that she has been in the trenches as she calls it with these Toddlers, and not something she has conjured up from behind a desk.

This book will "and I underline will" guide you through the tantrums of Toddlerhood and will even set the stage for parenting beyond this period. I am totally amazed at the results by just using the H.E.L.P chapter with my 18 month old twins.

The seperation anxiety issues are well worth the read, this seems to be frantic time for all parents who are usually not aware of this.

All in all a superb read from cover to cover. You will have to read it at least twice though because of the quantity of information. Parents around the world will be thanking Ms. Hogg for revealing her secrets. My wife and I will thank her personally when she is in LA. I have already given this book as gifts to both our parents, 18 of our friends, the daycare center.

A Special thanks to Ms. Hogg

Frpm Dianna & Tom ----> Toddler girls Simone & Farah

Tracy Hogg has given us yet another gem. If you, like myself, have found yourself beating your head against the wall where your toddler is concerned, you should do yourself a favor and splurge on this book. In the first "Baby Whisperer" book, Tracy taught us how to respect our infants without surrendering our parental control, and gave us simple acronyms (E.A.S.Y., S.L.O.W.)to remind us of her helpful advice. In her "toddler" edition, she uses the same method. Is your toddler refusing to potty train or play with other kids? What about dinner time- do you dread the constant fight over getting the kids to eat their veggies? Tracy gives helpful hints to overcome common toddler struggles, all the while encouraging us to praise our kids and give them the structure they need and, oddly enough, desire. Other topics are discussed, such as food allergies, kids who won't seem to talk, air travel do's and don'ts, the 12 ingredients of conscious discipline, typical or chronic sleep problems, and how to help your toddler deal with a new "intruder" in the form of his/her new baby sibling. Never has applying practical advice been presented in such an easy-to-follow fashion.

This book is moderately helpful, but not as good as Hogg and Blau's original "Secrets of the Baby Whisperer." While that book was an invaluable asset and demonstrated Hogg's true expertise with babies, this one seems to emulate its predecessor instead of standing on its own. I found the first one much more helpful and practical than "What to Expect the First Year," but now I find "What to Expect the Toddler Years" to be more informative than this toddler book. If you're as big a fan of the first book as I was, you probably are tempted to go right out and buy this one as soon as your baby becomes a toddler. I would encourage you to read it to benefit from some of the more helpful parts (especially good, in my opinion, were the ritual and routine recommendations), but unfortunately, it doesn't pass the test to be your go-to guide to your toddler.

Tracey Hogg shares her secrets for maintaining order in a house where a toddler resides in Secrets of the Baby Whisperer for Toddlers. Those familiar with Ms. Hogg's first book, Secrets of the Baby Whisperer, know of her affinity for acronyms. The acronym for this book is HELP. She encourages parents to learn how to become HELPing parents, rather than "authoritative" or "enabling parents." She uses examples from real-life cases of how HELPing , authoritative, and enabling parents handle various situations with toddlers. The goal is for readers to guage where they are on the continuum and correct behaviors that aren't HELPful.

The most useful section of the book, for me, was the chapter on R&R (Rest and Rituals). Ms. Hogg breaks down each event in the day (ie: mealtimes, nap time, bath time, bedtime, etc.) and explains what she says and what she does to prepare a toddler for each of these. If a toddler is given consistancy in his or her daily roultine, then Ms. Hogg maintains, a lot of the battles commonly associated with toddlerhood will be thwarted.

Other useful sections include how to get a toddler to sleep through the night, how to get a toddler to be less clingy, and how to prepare a toddler for the arrival of a new baby.

Although I found this book to be more useful than her first, I still found some of Ms. Hogg's points debatable. She still categorizes toddlers into five basic personality categories as she did in Secrets of the Baby Whisperer. I was still unable to categorize my two children into these categories. When I thought that I finally figured out the category of my child, I would read later in the book about how that child would typically handle a situation, and it didn't at all apply to my child.

She also provides some unconventional advice about letting your toddler regard his/her crib as a place to play. I had always heard that a child should see it as a place to sleep.

I think that Secrets of the Baby Whisperer for Toddlers is worth reading. At the very least, you'll get some ideas about how you can make life a little less chaotic (if it is that way in your house) through the use of rituals. That in itself should make a household with a toddler more manageable.

I have an 18 month old "Spirited" toddler. He wakes up at 7 am and is busy nonstop until 7:30 pm. He naps about an hour and seems to get by just fine on that little nap. That's parenting, though, and his energy is not the problem. His temperment, on the other hand, is often trying on my patience. Being pregnant with our second child and the wife of an active duty military pilot (who is fighting for us overseas), it gets to be a very long day at home with my son's "spirit". This book helped me to identify better with his personality and help to make his day go more smoothly, and thus, making my day a little better and easier as well. I found great tips on how to work with his temperment as to not take away his spirit and to give him more choices to help him be more independent and confident.

I think the book offers sensible advice and good techniques. There is always a lot of controversy about this versus attachement parenting. Tracy Hogg doesn't suggest you don't hug and cuddle your baby, as the review above mine suggests, she merely suggests you work with your toddler on their behavior and hugs and cuddles aren't always the answer. I can see with a young baby this book may not be a good choice, but with an active toddler who is learning how to get what he wants and manipulate, come mild discipline is needed to stay sane and remind your child that you are still the parent.

I owe a lot of my new-found sanity to this book.

I never read her first book on infants but Hogg's "insights" into toddlers rates no greater than those of the average parent. This book is all over the place and attempts to cover nearly every aspect of a toddler's life, from developmental milestones to switching to solid foods to stopping temper tantrums. Unfortunately, none of the topics are covered completely or affectively. Her tip to help with dressing a toddler ("buy loose clothes with elasticized waists, big buttons and Velcro closures") is an example of the elementary tactics offered.

I was looking for a book to help me understand my toddlers (I have twins) and how to best work with them, especially during the challenging times of disciplining. But even during the rare times that the book delves into helpful topics, such as determining your toddler's temperament/type, the following chapters do not build on the information. So now I know that one of my toddlers is "spirited" and one is an "angel"; so what?

An even greater concern for me is the judgmental and condescending tone of this book. Other books have offered me far better lessons and motivated me to change my behavior without making me feel like a completely incompetent parent.

The few insights that I gleaned from this book are available in much more comprehensive and less patronizing texts, including Easy to Love, Difficult to Discipline by Becky A. Baily; and Your Two-Year-Old, Terrible or Tender and Your Three-Year-Old, Friend or Enemy by Louse Bates Ames. I'm sure may more sources are out there but these have really helped me be a much more understanding, patient and loving parent.

This book is worth every penny. They did an exceptional job of organization, presentation and, yes, marketing. It has the test for your child's 'type' and your parenting style. The chapter on Ritual and Routine is fabulous with so many good, practical little bits to enhance your toddler's day. It also has THE BEST solid food introduction/weaning plan I've EVER seen. There is also so much good stuff in the chapters on life skills and emotional development to read & re-read & re-read again to stay mindful of. In summation, this book gives you a plethora of tools to help us be the best parent we can be. There is great stuff applicable from the time you start contemplating feeding your baby solids until their pre-school years. I've read A LOT of books on parenting and babies and, yes, if you don't buy any other book on toddlerhood, buy this one. It IS the ESSENTIAL guide for parents of babies and toddlers. I recommend it to everyone.

I really enjoyed the Secrets of the Baby Whisperer and had given it as gifts. So when my daughter became a toddler, I knew I had to see what Tracy said about 'toddlerhood'. I guess I was expecting too much of her...it just seemed like so much of the same from her first book and a lot of common sense.
If you didn't read the first book and have a toddler, get this book, otherwise, don't bother.

I can't say enough good things about this book. I've found most books on toddlers to be quite depressing. Tracy's book actually makes me look forward to my baby's toddler days. I feel like it will be challenging, but very fun and rewarding.

One of the things I enjoy most about Tracy's writing is her emphasis on the personhood of your child. She wants you to really consider how your child is feeling. I think this ties in very well to her chapter on accidental parenting, which talks about how your actions reinforce bad habits in your child. I think that the interplay between understanding your child's feelings, and understanding how your behavior effects your child's behavior sets the stage for good discipline.

I also really liked her chapter on discipline. I thought she presented a good case against spanking, but also provided parents with the tools they need to discipline effectively. It isn't enough to tell someone not to spank, you also have to give them something to do besides spanking.

It was a wonderful book. I think all parents of toddlers will learn from it.