Oh Crap! I Have a Toddler

April 15, 2019
Potty training guru Glowacki (Oh Crap! Potty Training) brings a pragmatic attitude and plenty of experience with the two-to-four-year-old set to her useful guide to setting one’s child up to be “the best kid they can be.” Feeling modern parents are pushed into “going above our kids’ developmental limits in some areas and not challenging them nearly enough in others,” Glowacki directs them toward a “governing” approach, based around setting strong boundaries to make toddlers feel psychologically safe while they develop their own individual personalities. To contextualize disruptive and defiant behavior, Glowacki observes it’s a child’s “developmental job” to offer pushback against parental control, testing limits and thereby figuring out who’s in charge—hopefully, the parents. She advises against focusing on early formal academics, in favor of developing life skills, and against disciplining via time-outs and empty threats of “ginormous things you have no intention of doing,” in favor of setting reasonable but real consequences for misbehavior. Glowaski’s humor, aimed toward presenting herself as irreverent and relatable, falls flat (“Time-outs suck”). But her intuitive insights into toddler behavior, and skill in pulling practicable takeaways from these insights, make her manual well worth any frazzled parents’ time. Agent: Allison Hunter, Janklow & Nesbit.

Starred review from May 1, 2019

According to former social worker Glowacki (Oh Crap, Potty Training!), who has worked with hundreds of mothers and children in her community, beginning with teaching potty training classes, the first step in dealing with parenting struggles is to find our triggers, the unconscious contributions to toddler behavior. When we get entangled in the child's behavior, we neglect to look at ourselves. Instead of blindly doing what our parents did, conscious parenting includes setting boundaries for both child and parent. Seeking to "create a life we don't need a vacation from," practicing self-care, and working to identify personal anxieties are key to the "work" of parenting. The second section ("the kid part") contains advice on how to engage the unique toddler mind and body (more sleep, more free play, lots of movement). VERDICT Parents of toddlers will no doubt find this tome accessible and at times delightfully funny. A breezy and memorable read.

Copyright 2019 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from July 1, 2019

According to former social worker Glowacki (Oh Crap! Potty Training), who has worked with hundreds of mothers and children in her community, beginning with teaching potty training classes, the first step in dealing with parenting struggles is to find our triggers, the unconscious contributions to toddler behavior. When we get entangled in the child's behavior, we neglect to look at ourselves. Instead of blindly doing what our parents did, conscious parenting includes setting boundaries for both child and parent. Seeking to "create a life we don't need a vacation from," practicing self-care, and working to identify personal anxieties are key to the "work" of parenting. The second section ("the kid part") contains advice on how to engage the unique toddler mind and body (more sleep, more free play, lots of movement). VERDICT Parents of toddlers will no doubt find this tome accessible and at times delightfully funny. A breezy and memorable read.Julia M. Reffner, Richmond

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.