Mama Rock's Rules

Superb book on how to raise children:
As the parent of a 5-year old I was looking for a sensible, straight-shooting book on discipline, teaching sound values and preparing a child for life as an adult. Several parents/teachers suggested 'Love and Logic'. After several unsuccessful tries to read it, I gave up. Then the local newspaper had a favorable article on Mama Rock's Rules. It was easy to read, made a LOT of sense, reinforced the lessons my parents had taught me and was fun to read. As another reviewer mentioned, this is a book to return to over and over again. I usually borrow books from the library. The classics I buy. This is a classic.

Wish I'd had this book when I was raising kids!:
I picked up Mama Rock's Rules by Rose Rock and Valerie Graham for my daughter who is faced with the challenge of raising two kids; my first response was I wish I'd had this thoughtful and entertaining guide to help me through some of those tough times when I was raising my daughters. Down to earth, with an emphasis on the importance of rules and respect, always balanced with a large dollop of love, the book provides a unique and meaningful approach to handling sex, love, and self respect in the chapter, "Don't Lie Down with Anything you Don't Want to Live With Forever." Another of my favorite chapters is "Feed Them and They'll Tell you Everything." Filled with warmth, Rose gives us great ideas about making the family dinner a special time for sharing and learning more about what's going on with our kids. Every chapter gives an original take on important issues that affect how we raise our children to be respectful, confident, successful people. I highly recommend this book for parents and grandparents alike.

Mama Rock's Rules:
This is probably the only CD you'll need for child rearing. It is marvelous.

Mama Rock Rules!:
As a long time fan of comedian Chris Rock, I was excited to get the chance to review a new book by his mother, Rose, Mama Rock's Rules: Ten Lessons for Raising a Household of Successful Children. Assuming that the apple didn't fall far from the tree, I figured there would be some straight, no-nonsense talk from this woman who not only raised her own children, but opened her home to the neighborhood kids, as well as a host of foster children through her life. She's got way more patience than I do, that's for sure! And I was right! The title of Chapter 1 will give you a sense of where Mama Rock is coming from -- I Am Your Mama, Not Your Friend. A lot of us moms struggle with striking the right tone and balance in our mothering lives, but Mama Rock is here to tell us to let go of our worries about whether our kids will like us, and focus more on instilling the respect they should have for parents. She's not saying we can't have fun and enjoy our children, but Mama Rock takes a 'trust, but verify' approach to child-raising which made a lot of sense to me. I do know one thing -- I'm glad I never had to find out about her mystery can of whup-a$$! But Mama has a soft side, too -- she's got lots of advice on creating memories for our children and the gratification we can all get from make more time to gather around the dinner table, something that we struggle with here at Chez PunditMom because of overlapping work and activity schedules. I'm going to try to heed some of Mama Rock's advice which is the kind we need more of these days -- non-nonsense talk from a mama who's raised a group of amazingly successful kids. Personally, I think there are some Hollywood celebrity families who could use this book right now!

mama's got the goods!:
Has learning about parenting every been so inciteful, delightful and informative and inspirational? Probably not! At least not for me. Not only did I already learn plenty from reading this book (and plan to refer to it again and again) but it offers great ideas and guidance in an area and age that most parenting books don't even touch--TEENAGERS and the tough road we parents face with them. Although it goes from babies (even before they are born) and every stage in between there are some really excellent sections about teen challenges. It speaks of challenges faced on every level from education to "pushing unable off the table" without excuses and offers great strategies on what to do. The stories from the Rock children and friends are fun, touching and really give a picture of "Mama Rock" and her family in an interesting way. It goes beyond the amazing bio of Rose Rock with her 10 children, 17 foster kids and loads of children whom she's helped plus her child advocate experiences. I also liked the bullets at the end of the chapters which solidify the information and remind me how to keep on being the "mama." (Even though the books talks lots about daddys, especially Rose's special late husband, Julius) The book is well organized and well written and I love the clever chapter titles, the MAMA MOJO advice and section heads like the "cookie contract" or "Don't Lie Down with Anything You Don't Want to Live with Forever" or even "The Need to Belong is Sometimes wrong" which talks about not bowing to the power of the peers. The curfew capers section really is helpful in the whys and hows of that parental danger zone, the curfew enforcement problem. "Send your Biscuits to Hollywood" really made me laugh and tear up in memory of my family's home cooking (namely, strudel) that had been sent to me when I went away to college and how much it meant. The whole family dinner importance is brilliantly presented. I marvel at how it kept me entertained while deep level parental wisdom was being shared. That is worth it alone. Honestly, I think this is a classic for every parent, grandparent or future parent. Dr. Spock, move over for Mama Rock's Rules! Here is the handbook for the current and coming generations full of wisdom for the past, understanding of our problems in the present and a positive view of how important our children (as the authors say, "all children and each and every child") are for our future and our society. To authors Rose Rock and Valerie Graham, thank you and I'd love to meet you. P.S. Have you figured out that I highly recommend this?