"Regret Free Parenting; Raise Good Kids and Know You're Doing It Right." By Catherine Hickem

Every mother has wondered “Am I doing a good job? Are my kids happy? Do I show my kids the path they should follow in my words, deeds, and actions?” In her book “Regret Free Parenting; Raise Good Kids and Know You’re Doing It Right” Catherine Hickem teaches moms how to parent “intentionally.” She offers practical advice and helps parents to establish a plan, all with out seeming “preachy,” or “holier than thou” which is a common issue in parenting books. Hickem boils it down to two very basic principles.

1) Your success as a parent is largely dependent on your relationship with God.

2)You can not be a parent with out being “involved."

I really enjoyed this book, and found it reassuring, practical, and helpful. I almost felt as though I was listening to my Bishop’s wife or my own mother giving me loving advice as I raise my children.

DISCLAIMER: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255.

This is Your Brain in Love: New Scientific Breakthroughs for a More Passionate and Emotionally Healthy Marriage by Earl R. Henslin

I really wanted to like This is Your Brain in Love: New Scientific Breakthroughs for a More Passionate and Emotionally Healthy Marriage By Earl R. Henslin. From the title and the description, I thought it might be an exciting read with scientific information on how the brain works while you are in love and how that can positively affect your marriage. The book briefly discusses some science, for example the hormones and brain functions that cause our brains to recognize feeling “in love.” However, the book abruptly took a turn toward discussing sexuality within a marriage and the spirituality that can be attained. This would be an interesting topic for another kind of book, but not at all what I expected.

The remainder of the book focused on tests to help you discover your “love style.” and how those love styles affect your brain. The book lists the “love styles” as; The Scattered Lover, The Over focused Lover, The Blue Mood Lover, The Agitated Lover, and The Anxious Lover. I did not feel that any of these accurately described myself, nor my husband. The book discussed how to balance your “love style” with that of your spouse.

This was not at all what I expected when I read this book, so I found it difficult to “get into” the theories presented. It was an interesting book to read, but to me it was more opinion that scientific fact. I found that this book was not really relevant to my life or my marriage. This might be a good book for couples who are experiencing friction and are looking for resources to overcome that, but I did not feel that the brain “imbalances” discussed related to me at all.

DISCLAIMER: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255.