Bébé Day By Day

A couple months ago I was pleased to see that Pamela Druckerman came out with a companion to Bringing Up Bébé: One American Mother Discovers The Wisdom of French Parenting. Druckerman is an American journalist who has written for The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and The Washington Post just to name a few. Her work has also been shared on Good Morning America, the Today Show, National Public Radio, BBC Women's Hour and Oprah.com. 

Before writing about French parenting, she met and married Simon Kuper, a British author who writes about sports with an anthropologic perspective. Soon after, they got married and began calling Paris, France home. Next thing you know they were expecting a child, and she started realizing how different French parenting was from that of the United States. So looking at it from a journalist perspective she wrote "Bringing up Bébé," which was a book that I found rather amusing. It was an interesting and sometimes even humorous read about the French culture through her eyes while I took in some tips, and strengthened some of my own parenting beliefs.

Pamela Druckerman's companion read is "Bébé Day by Day: 100 Keys to French Parenting." It's a quick read and does exactly what the title suggests. She has ten themes with ten French parenting keys each. Each key consists of a couple paragraphs explaining it. She even includes her favorite recipes from the Parisian Crèche (otherwise known as a daycare) and has an example of the daily menu you would find in a Crèche for birth-3 years old.

Druckerman does not push a parenting philosophy, but rather she reports on how the French parent, and as a reader you can take it how you want to view it. Personally, I do not brand myself as a particular type of parent, such as the tough loving Tiger Mother or Attachment Parent. Parenting philosophies depend on cultures and family dynamics so it is hard to say one is right and the other is wrong. 

But with that in mind here are 10 of my favorite French Parenting Keys from Pamela Druckerman:

1. "In the French telling, the resulting zen maman pops out a zen bébé, and a calm pregnancy sets the tone for calm parenting."

2. "It is never too early to start modeling good manners."

3. "[Babies] Connecting sleep cycles is a skill. A few lucky babies are born with it. Most have to practice before they master it."

4. "Food guides suggest getting beyond "I like it" / "I don't like it" and instead asking questions such as: Are the apples sour or sweet? How does mackerel taste different from salmon? Which is better—red-leaf lettuce or arugula?    Treat food as an endless conversation starter."

5. "French mothers want to spend time with their offspring. But they also think it's crucial that kids socialize with people who are equally enchanted by fire engines and princess paraphernalia. They want their children to learn how to make friends, to wait their turns, and to get along in a group."

6. "Scientists have found that kids become good at waiting once they learn how to distract themselves—by inventing a little song or burping at themselves in the mirror, for instance. This makes the waiting bearable."

7. "If you can get a grandparent or trusted relative on board, let your child spend some time away from you."

8. "They [frenchwomen] don't sex it up to overcompensate (there's no French equivalent of MILF, because in France there's no reason why a mom wouldn't be sexy)."

9. "He's cuddly, he's adorable, and your mother loves him. But your child shouldn't permanently nudge your partner out of the picture."

10. "As the French say, you're not disciplining, you're giving the child an education, an ongoing process that starts when kids are very young." 

If these keys seem interesting to you pick up a copy of Druckerman's book. And Happy Reading!