Thanks for the thoughts yesterday. We're home and on the mend, with plenty of snuggles and long naps together.
I've talked a bit (like here and here) about our family's parenting philosophy. It is based on respectful connection rather than punishment and rewards. This differs from how most of us were raised and from how we've watched most other parents engage their kids throughout our lives.
Perhaps because I have often felt as thought I'm making this up as I go along, I have become a compulsive parenting book reader. Just as some of you come here to feel like you fit in, I read these books to gain new skills and feel connected to a global community of like-minded parents. Respectful Parents Respectful Kids, Connection Parenting, and Raising our Children, Raising Ourselves are three of my favorites resources for families with children.
Today we have Deirdre from Continuum Family sponsoring a giveaway of one copy of Respectful Parents Respectful Kids. I consider this book a must-have for any parenting library. I interviewed Deirdre about her wonderful store and business philosophy.
Clean: Tell us about Continuum Family.
Continuum Family: Based in Canada, we are a home-based family business offering
natural parenting essentials since 2006, featuring our own Continuum Family (CF) line of
handmade pouch slings and unique baby clothing and accessories to
facilitate the practice of infant pottying (Elimination Communication). We also sell quality
baby carriers and Non-Violent
Communication books, cooperative games, nursing products, cloth
diapers, training pants and more.
Continuum Family: I have been greatly inspired (as you might gather from the name!) by
the book The Continuum Concept by Jean Liedloff. It was not written as
a parenting book per se, but rather puts forth the concept that "in
order to achieve optimal physical, mental and emotional development,
human beings—especially babies—require the kind of experience to which
their species adapted during the long process of their evolution". In
short, babies are biologically programmed to thrive when cared for in
an attached way. This book had a profound impact on me when I first
read it 7 years ago and it changed many of my preconceived ideas about
babies, parenting, and the roles of families and societies.My first
years of motherhood were spent getting a feel for what I wanted our
path to be as a family. Then, when our first daughter was 3 and our
second daughter a few months old, I felt compelled to look outwards at
promoting and advocating natural/continuum parenting in a way that
could also help support our family while allowing me to continue to
stay at home with our children.
Clean: How do you believe you and your business are bringing good into the world?
Continuum Family: I feel strongly about supporting other work-at-home or small family-run businesses and like to be able to offer
handmade items wherever possible. Our CF line is entirely handmade by
me. I believe in doing my part to help provide an alternative to the
big box stores that are full of mass-produced, poor-quality items. I
choose organic and natural fibers wherever possible. I also strive to
support businesses whose products are made ethically. Additionally, I only sell items I have personally used myself as I
believe it's very important to be able to stand behind my products and
recommend them without hesitation. More recently, I have
decided to stock some parenting books with a Non-Violent Communication
focus, since this is an approach that I have personally found very
useful for helping create and maintain a family environment of empathy,
cooperation and trust.
Edited: Continuum family also wants you to know that they love custom orders! Sizes or products not listed are always welcomed at Continuum Family.
Continuum Family has a coupon code for Clean readers. Receive 10% off your next order with Continuum Family. Use coupon code LUSA at checkout until June 30, 2010.
To be entered in the drawing for Respectful Parents Respectful Kids, simply leave a comment below. I'll close comments on Monday at 8:00 am. Thanks, Continuum Family!
Comments are now closed. I'll announce the winner soon!
Congrats to another wonderful business – continuum family for doing your part in helping the rest of us do our best to raise our children in a society that, to me, can be very difficult to raise children. I have two children – my daughter is 6 and is a wonderful little girl, I would have loved to read this book when she was little. My baby is 5 months old and is a sweet little boy but in todays world boys are pushed to play with violent toys, play awful video games – everything with boys seems to be centered around violence which is making me do more research in how i can keep my son from most of those kinds of things – so thumbs up to you for bringing these resources to us.
i would appreciate this book very much! i had it from the library once, but it would be nice to have to refer back to whenever needed!!!!
i was on amazon last night looking at this book and others! would love to have a copy! thanks so much!
This book is so needed in my family right now!! Lots of power struggles between the big man and oldest boy. Awesome giveaway and awesome that we have such advocates out there for gentle parenting. We are a work in progress as parents.
I like you, read many parenting books to get pieces that will work for our family. After reading of NVC in your older posts I started reading books related to that. I’m liking the road that’s leading us down. Great giveaway.
Awesome! I’ve had this one on my booklist…but haven’t read it yet. Great resource too (CF), thank you!
Sounds like a great book. I’m gonna see whether the library has it (and the others).
I’ve had this book from the library (but had to give it back!) I’d love to have my own copy! Thanks for the opportunity and information on Continuum.
Thanks for the recommendation!
Thanks for the giveaway. Sounds interesting
This would be great for a friend of mine struggling with newly adopted young twins. They bring history that she & her husband are trying their best to work with as they guide them toward nv. Thanks for the tip!
i’m logging in to my library catalog right now. but i sure wouldn’t mind a copy to call my own!
sounds like a beautiful book, thanks for the chance!
I would love to read this book! Thank you so much for the chance at the book, and the 10% off.
Thanks! I’ve added another book to the list now! My baby registry is like 99% books and then the 4 other things we NEED..
This book has been recommended to me many times – would love to add it to our at home library. And thanks for the awesome EC gear!
That looks like a fantastic resource! I would love to have this book on my shelf.
Thanks for the opportunity!
Tricia
I would love to give this book a try! I was just telling my husband last night that we need to go in a different direction with our parenting technique- it is just not working very well for our two year old. If I don’t win, I will have to check this out from the library!
Off to check out continuum baby website…
I keep meaning to look at this book and I keep getting distracted. 🙂 A good one to own? Thanks.
This book has been on my Amazon wish list for a long time. If I don’t win, maybe I will finally commit to ordering it! Thanks for the inspiring reminder.
I looked at this book on Amazon and thought how much I would love to own it. Thanks for the great giveaway!!!
I’ve been interested in this subject since we decided to start trying to get pregnant, many of my friends have recommended this practice. Thank you for the opportunity to win the book!
I have looked at this book, and have been meaning to get it for awhile! It looks like a fantastic resource.
This book sounds like something we could really use around here. Traditional parenting doesn’t really take into account differently-abled children.
It sounds like an interesting book.
Ooooh – I’d LOVE this book!! Like you, I’ve become a bit of a parenting book fanatic – I read ‘Raising OUr Children …” and am currently reading ‘Magical Child’. I’ve also got Parenting for a Peaceful World and Playful Parenting on my bookshelf ready to read 😀 I’m thinking of donating them all to my LLL group after I’m done with them.
Kim,
Great idea to donate to LLL. I was just trying to decide if Id give away my library here or elsewhere as I outgrow certain books. Ive not read Magical Child. Ill check it out.
~Rachel
oh, I was just looking at this! I need some new parenting books to help with gentle parenting for a spirited 3-yr-old.
This book looks fabulous! We would love a copy for our bookshelves! Thanks for the offer and all the great infomation in your interview!
Please count me in for your giveaway! We have experienced a couple of interesting moments with our 4 yr old recently and I don’t feel I handled them very well, so I’d love to read this and hopefully get some ideas.
This sounds like a great book to keep on hand.Keeping my fingers crossed!
Great book! We’d love it.
Sounds like an interesting book.
I am definitely interested in this book. Thanks for the chance to win!
Sounds like a great book! Would be good info to have BEFORE Fritz gets bigger.
I love NVC – and Deirdre and her products! Thanks for the book giveaway!
PS One of my top ten books is the Continuum Concept! I hope all who have read this blog will read it! It truly would change the world!
Yes please :).
What a lovely offer, thank you.
Very interested in this one!
I would love to read this book. Thanks for the giveaway!
I have heard great things about this book from parents I respect and admire. Thanks for entering me into the draw!
~Erin
On my “to read” list…thanks so much for the opportunity. Happy sunday!
I’m going to read this book whether I win it or not. 🙂 Thank you for your thoughts on this subject. I want to parent respectfully and peacefully and it really does take an enlightened perspective to stay focused on the goal–even with my baby only 3 months old. It can get frustrating to hear people comment on how she is already “in charge” and manipulating my husband and me…because we choose to be responsive to her needs. Oh well, we will continue to do what we know is best for our family. Its wonderful to have people like you and that wonderful Peaceful Parenting site to support us along the way. 🙂
Count me in.
i would love to be entered for this giveaway! thank you!
This book is on my to-read wish-list, if/when I can eventually get my hands on a copy (my library doesn’t have it). So, I have my fingers crossed, hoping I might win!
Looks like a great book – something that I think could be vital to my parenting. Thanks for the introduction to the book and to CF.
I would love to have this as a resource! I definitely feel like we are going against a very strong currant with our parenting and it can be so challenging at times! I loved The Continuum Concept- really solidified to me a lot of how I felt about parenting!