We're in the midst of a parenting climate that feeds on more. More expert advice, more gear, more fear about competition and safety, and more choices to make about education, nutrition, even entertainment. The result? Overwhelmed, confused parents and overscheduled, overparented kids.
In MINIMALIST PARENTING, Christine Koh and Asha Dornfest offer a fresh approach to navigating all of this conflicting background "noise." They show how to tune into your family's unique values and priorities and confidently identify the activities, stuff, information, and people that truly merit space in your life.
The book begins by showing the value of a minimalist approach, backed by the authors' personal experience practicing it. It then leads parents through practical strategies for managing time, decluttering the home space, simplifying mealtimes, streamlining recreation, and prioritizing self-care. Filled with parents' personal stories, readers will come away with a unique plan for a simpler life.
Christine Koh is a Boston lifer- a music and brain scientist turned writer, editor, designer, consultant, and impassioned conversationalist. She spent a decade in academia- during which time she was awarded prestigious fellowships from the National Institutes of Health to fund her Ph.D. research at Queen's University and joint-appointment postdoctoral fellowship at Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School/Massachusetts Institutes of Technology. She was about to become a professor when she decided to hang up her academic spurs in favor of more flexible and independent ventures. Christine is the founder and editor of Boston Mamas, a lifestyle portal for families in Boston and beyond, and created the graphic design firm Posh Peacock. Christine also is partner and digital strategist at Women Online (and is a co-founder of sister brands The Mission List and Pivot Boston), a freelance writer and editor, writes the column Minimalist Mama, and pens a personal blogPop Discourse where she gives voice to her fascination with pop culture, the intellectually interesting or absurd, Boston life, and parenthood. Christine has been featured in Boston Magazine, The Boston Globe, Woman's Day, Parents Magazine, National Public Radio, ABC News, Metro Boston, FOX 25 Boston, and other media outlets; she has been named to Babble.com's Top 50 Mom Bloggers, Top 50 Twitter Moms, and Top 30 Parenting Listserv lists. Her design work has been featured in Cookie, Brides, Pregnancy & Newborn, Boston Magazine Weddings, Daily Candy, and more. She lives in the Boston area with her husband, 7-year-old daughter Laurel, and 9-month-old baby Violet. She tweets about it all at @bostonmamas. Asha Dornfest lives in Portland, Oregon and is the founder and editor of Parent Hacks, a website that shares tips, workarounds, and practical wisdom about everyday parenting quandaries. Asha has been a professional writer for almost 20 years. After her son was born, she began to write about motherhood and discovered that her work often circled the theme of this is not how it sounded in the parenting books. In 2005, she created Parent Hacks as a way to connect with other parents and, ultimately, to find out if anyone else felt as surprised by parenting as she did. The answer was (and continues to be) a resounding YES. Asha and Parent Hacks have been featured in the Wall Street Journal, The Times UK, Real Simple, Family Circle, Parents, MacWorld and several other publications. Disneyâ (TM)s Babble.com honored Parent Hacks with the distinction of #1 Most Useful Mom blog three times. Nielsen identified her as one of 16 influential Power Pack moms online. Asha has also been a guest on numerous TV shows, radio broadcasts and podcasts, including CNN and ABC News Now.
