The Girlfriends Guide To Getting Your Groove Back

Bust out of that mommy rut and get into the groove! When a mother finally emerges from the mommy mole tunnel of pregnancy, breastfeeding, potty-training and preschool, she comes to the inevitable realization: The road to maternity is a one-way street. No U-turns allowed. You’ve survived the battles of baby- and toddler-hood, playdates and temper tantrums to time-outs. And just when it seems your former life is within reach—taking up neglected jobs and hobbies, committing to a fitness program, rediscovering the boyfriend living in the body of your husband—you crash headfirst into the wall of reality. The kids may be able to fasten their own seatbelts and pour their own cereal, but the homework, tucking in, car pools, and birthday parties have just begun. Let Vicki Iovine, author of The Girlfriends’ Guides, show you how to navigate the twists and turns of family life—and find time for your kids, your spouse, your home, your work, and yourself. You’re not alone in this “mommy adolescence.” In The Girlfriends’ Guide to Getting Your Groove Back, Iovine provides her trademark sage, witty advice on: - How to focus at work when things at home are in chaos—and vice versa - Making time for yourself—and not the PTA - Getting over the romantic myth of “date nights” and weekends away from the kids - Homework help—your transformation into a human flashcard - The dinnertime crush and how to relieve frozen pizza fatigue Iovine puts the perils of perpetual parenthood into perspective. You’ll feel like you do after a long chat with a good friend—relaxed, refreshed, and ready to reclaim your life …

No one understands the difficulties of being a woman better than Vicki Iovine. The author of the hugely successful Best Friends' series, has guided women through most of the milestones in their lives - from being pregnant to surviving the first years of motherhood. Now in her new book, Vicki Iovine tackles the dilemma that plagues every modern woman and mother - how to manage family, work and a personal life all at the same time. With the wit, wisdom and sass that has made her loved, Vicki Iovine takes up all the big issues and breaks them up into manageable sections - ways to stay connected with your spouse, keeping up with the kids, work/home conflicts etc. Funny, pragmatic, and efficient, The Best Friend's Guide to Getting your Groove Back teaches women how to regain control of their lives with attitude - this is an indispensable book for any woman.

WHO KNEW BABIES NEEDED SO MANY ACCESSORIES? It’s official. You’re pregnant. Get used to the fact that life is never going to be the same. And break out the credit card, because that little bundle of joy is going to cost you. The list seems endless—from car seats to changing pads. But don’t despair. The Girlfriends are here to take some of the guesswork out of shopping for baby-to-be. We’ll tell you when to skimp and when to splurge, and which hand-me-downs are safe and which are sorry. You’ll get advice on… Where to get what you need Crib and car seat do’s and don’ts Wardrobe musts and misses—for mother and child Stocking the nursery and the rest of the house What every new mom should have on hand for herself The Master Shopping List—don’t leave home without it! Plus the Top 10 Things to Do for Yourself Before the Baby Arrives, the Top 10 Baby Items You Won’t Find at a Baby Store, the Top 10 Best—and Worst—Things to Borrow, the Top 10 Signs of a First-Time Mom, and more…

The practical, comforting, honest, and hilarious bestseller for moms-to-be, with more than one and a half million copies in print! Your doctor gives you medical advice. Your mother buys you baby clothes. But who can give you the real skinny when you’re pregnant? Your girlfriends, of course—at least, the ones who’ve been through the exhilaration and exhaustion, the agony and ecstasy of pregnancy. Four-time delivery room veteran Vicki Iovine talks to you the way only a best friend can—in the book that will go the whole nine months for every mother-to-be. In this revised and updated edition, get the lowdown on all those little things that are too strange or embarrassing to ask, practical tips, and hilarious takes on everything pregnant. What really happens to your body—from morning sickness and gas to eating everything in sight—and what it’s like to go from being a babe to having one. The Many Moods of Pregnancy—why you’re so irritable/distracted/tired/lightheaded (or at least more than usual). Staying Stylish—You may be pregnant, but you can still be the fashionista you’ve always been (or at least you don’t have to look like a walking beachball)—wearing the hippest designers and proudly showing off your bump. Pregnancy is Down To a Science—from in vitro fertilization to scheduled c-sections, there are so many options, alternatives, and scientific tests to take that being pregnant can be downright confusing! And much more! For a reassuring voice or just a few good belly laughs, turn to this straight-talking guide on what to really expect when you’re expecting.

When it comes to your new baby, everyone from Dr. Spock to Dr. Brazleton has an armful of advice. But no one's delivering any tips on how you can care for yourself. Now, four-time delivery room veteran Vicki Iovine answers your questions, calms your fears, and cracks you up as only a girlfriend can, with straight advice and hilarious observations on... "Baby euphoria": Is it a mind-altering drug? "Husband? What Husband?": Taking care of the big baby, as well as the little baby "I Want My Old Body Back!": What you can fix and what you can't "The Droning Phenomenon": The inability to discuss anything but your baby for more than thirty seconds "Do I Have to Become Carol Brady?": Conquering your fear of being a less-than-perfect mother "Competitive Mothering": Coping with know-it-alls, finger-pointers, and others who try to "Out-Mom" you NOTE: Pausing to read this book may be the only selfish thing you do all year, since you'll have time for nothing else!

With a combined total of over 300,000 Girlfriends' Guides in print, Vicki Iovine offers the kind of tongue-in-cheek humor and straight-from-the-hip advice that has made her one of today's most popular authorities on child rearing. Now she takes the next step in the Girlfriends series by helping mothers deal with that mysterious, baffling, often adorable and frequently alarming being their baby has become--a toddler.

Enjoy the best of Lisa Genova’s powerful, poignant storytelling with this set of her two New York Times bestselling novels, Still Alice and Left Neglected. STILL ALICE An accomplished professor diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease learns that she is more than what she can remember. Now a major motion picture from Sony Pictures Classics. LEFT NEGLECTED A busy multitasking mother in her thirties learns to pay attention to what matters most in life after a car crash leaves her with a traumatic brain injury and a bizarre neurological condition called Left Neglect.

Includes reading guide and interview with author.

Enjoy the best of Lisa Genova’s powerful, poignant storytelling with this collection of her three New York Times bestselling novels, Still Alice, Left Neglected, and Love Anthony. STILL ALICE An accomplished professor diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease learns that she is more than what she can remember. Now a major motion picture from Sony Pictures Classics. LEFT NEGLECTED A busy multitasking mother in her thirties learns to pay attention to what matters most in life after a car crash leaves her with a traumatic brain injury and a bizarre neurological condition called Left Neglect. LOVE ANTHONY In this deeply insightful story about autism and unconditional love, a young nonverbal boy reveals a neurologically plausible peek inside the mind of autism, why he loves swinging and the number three, why he hates pronouns, and how he experiences routine, joy, and love.

The Problem with Parenting serves as an essential guide to the recent origins and current excesses of American parenting for students, parents, and policy makers interested in the changing role of the family in childrearing. Family scholarship focuses predominately on the evolution of family structure and function, with only passing references to parenting. Researchers who study parenting, however, invariably regard it as a sociological phenomenon with complex motivations rooted in such factors as class, economic instability, and new technologies. This book examines the relationship between changes to the family and the emergence of parenting, defined here as a specific mode of childrearing. It shows how, beginning in the 1970s, the family was transformed from a social unit that functioned as the primary institution for raising children into a vehicle for the nurturing and fulfillment of the self. The book pays special attention to socialization and describes how the change in our understanding of parenthood—from a state of being into the distinct activity of "parenting"—is indicative of a disruption of our ability to transfer key cultural values and norms from one generation to the next.