Andrea Dekker

Weekend Giveaway: Spirit-Led Parenting Book {3 Winners}

This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure here.

UPDATE: This giveaway is now closed.

Congrats to:

Patty (keepnfaith88@…)

Laura K (Lna6577@…)

Karen M. (montgomeryke@…)

I will email you shortly!

Today’s Weekend Giveaway is a very special one for me.

As many of you know, my first few months of motherhood have been quite rough. I’m the person who always follows the rules. I live by lists, bullet points, and step-by-step instructions. I’m overly annoyed when people show up late for meetings, or worse, completely forget about the meeting. I crave order, structure, and predictability. I ALWAYS have a plan.

Then I had Nora — and all that flew out the window!

After reading all sorts of parenting books and coming up with my “plan for parenting” — which of course, included an always happy baby who would take long naps and sleep through the night by 8 weeks — I was extremely confident in my motherly ability. I had a dream pregnancy with almost NO adverse side-effects. My labor was quick and relatively painless. Now all I had to do was get Nora on a schedule like the books instructed me how to do 🙂

The only problem was, their “instructions” didn’t work… at all! 

After months of taking everyone else’s advice and feeling like a complete failure, I finally decided to do what worked for us. And since I write all my blog posts several days/weeks in advance, I actually got chills when I read the first chapter of Spirit-Led Parenting the very same day I wrote this post… I felt like this book was written for me! 

Megan and Laura have the gift of words, and I’m so happy to share their book with all of you today. But first, I’d like you to read a few words from Laura about how she and Megan met and formed a friendship that soon led them to write this amazing book.

This journey had an unconventional beginning.

Two mothers who’d never met, we cradled baby daughters born just weeks apart.  Through the phenomenon of internet message boards, we each joined the same tribe of Mama friends with similar due dates.  And there was a special kinship between the two of us right away – a wealth of commonalities so remarkable that we joked frequently about our almost freakish “mind-twinnery”.  It wasn’t until those first babies were well into the toddler years, though, that we uncovered a common bond that would change our lives and unite us behind an unexpected calling.

We discovered that we had lived much the same story as new mothers.  One of heartache, frustration, and failure.  And eventually –  redemption. 

We had no idea that our deeply personal journeys through the first year of motherhood would become anything more than topics for phone calls and emotional e-mail conversations.  Eventually, though, as we talked and prayed and heard our experiences echoed in those of other mothers, it became clear that this was something bigger than us.  We were being led to step out and give a voice to another way to approach infant parenting. And a publisher came alongside to take a leap with us.

That leap became Spirit-Led Parenting: From Fear to Freedom in Baby’s First Year.

Why did we write this book?

Five words, sprinkled throughout our conversations and read over and over in blog comments and stories from mothers across the country and other continents, contain the answer.  Five words spoken from the wistful perspective of hindsight:

“I wish someone told me…”

I wish someone told me how rule-driven baby manuals that worked wonders in some families would cause only fear and angst in others.

I wish someone told me that some infants just won’t do things by the book, and some parents won’t want to – or be able to – make the mainstream methodology for sleep and schedules work in their homes.

I wish someone told me that that’s okay.

I wish someone told me to relax and breathe through the first months of my baby’s life.  That the last thing a new parent needs in those weary days and nights is to unnecessarily shoulder the weight of failed expectations.

I wish someone told me that there was a way to navigate new parenthood under a banner of freedom.  That the One who created me, my husband, and my baby with exquisite uniqueness was faithful to provide the perfectly-crafted answers for each question we would face as we cared for the tiny creature He placed in our arms.

I wish someone told me that if I allowed Him to, God would use that first year of my daughter’s life to grow me – in Him.

We wrote this book because our stories gave way to a message that God wrote on each of our hearts and drew together as two parts of a whole.  With humbled hearts and trembling hands we are sending that message into the world in the hopes that our stories and struggles and lessons learned will give other new parents the blessing of looking back with fewer wistful wishes.

Spirit-Led Parenting is the first release from authors Megan Tietz and Laura Oyer. Megan writes about faith, family and natural living at SortaCrunchy and lives in western Oklahoma with her husband and two daughters. Laura blogs her reflections on the real and ridiculous things of life at In The Backyard, and makes her home in Indiana with her husband, daughter, and son.

Now wouldn’t this book just be the perfect Mother’s Day gift? I know I’m planning to pass my copy along now that I’m finished reading it. 

You can purchase your own copy on Amazon.com — but if you’re interested in this book, make sure you enter my giveaway below!

The Giveaway:

Today, THREE lucky readers will win a copy of Spirit-Led Parenting.

How to Enter:

1. {required} Leave a comment on this post. Who would you LOVE to give this book to?

2. {optional} Like Simple Organized Living on Facebook, and then leave a separate comment letting me know you did {or that you do already}.

If you are reading this in your email or feed reader, please visit the actual blog post to enter. Email entries, Facebook comments, and Twitter messages will NOT be counted.

Prizes:

(3) Copies of Spirit-Led Parenting as described above.

This giveaway ends at 10:00 pm on Monday, 4/30/2012 and is open to US residents, 18 years or older. I will use And the Winner Is to select the winning comments at random. Winners will be notified by email and noted at the top of this post. Winners must respond within 48 hours of notification to claim their prize or I will choose a new winner. Please see my full disclosure policy and contact me with any questions you have. Good luck!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  3. Ann says

    I would like to read this book myself and then give it to my daughter who has her first child, a 4 month old.

  6. Melinda T says

    I’d definitely read it and then pass it on to one of my siblings!

  8. Brooke says

    Such a coincidence this is today’s giveaway, as I subscribe to both “Sorta Crunchy”, and “In the backyard”… (along with other various blogs, “simple mom”, etc.), so I’ve been so excited about this book… yet keep telling myself that I should wait as it just isn’t in the budget right now.

    So…. I would give this book to myself first, and after reading (I’m sure more than once….), I would love to pass it on to all of my Mama friends… and for them to pass it on.
    Thanks so much for a great giveaway, that any of us as Mamas or friends who are Mamas, etc. would love to win!

  9. Lora says

    I would give this to my cousin that is expecting a baby this summer. I’d probably sneak a little read of it myself first 🙂

  10. Cara B says

    I would love to give this book to my sister-in-law who is expecting her first baby in May!

  12. Natalia says

    I have a wonderful friend who gave birth to an adorable baby girl 2 weeks ago! Her husband is amuzing us all by bragging about how perfect their daughter will be and how she’ll be potty trained before 1 yo, and so on… It’s cute, but for unknown reasons I strogly believe they NEED this book. I will be looking to buy it (if I don’t hear from you in a few weeks).
    But 1st, I would read it myself! Even thou I don’t have children yet, I’m still hoping and trying… and by that time I will be very well prepared!

  14. Melissa B says

    My friend who has a two month old and having a hard time. I think it would lift her spirts and provide guidance in a gentle way.

  15. kristen marie says

    i would love to win this book… heard about it within the last cpl weeks… gonna be a new mommy here in cpl months

  16. Tracy says

    I, like pre-baby you, am a very by the rules type of gal. My husband and I both want to try for a baby soon and I could use as much help in setting, I guess you could call it “non” expectations. Thanks.

  18. Kiersten says

    All of my friends are pregnant as well so I think it will be a traveling book for all of us!

  21. Monica says

    I would love to have this book since my husband and I are starting to think about starting a family. I am very similar to you in that I like lists and order in my life.

  23. Courtney Garland says

    I could have used this book with my first baby since I too am a by-the- book, planner and scheduler. Babies and children make you find new ways to plan and schedule your life. I would love a copy (I’m pregnant with baby #4) but I think my sister would benefit from this book for sure! What a neat giveaway!

  28. Faith Soles says

    I have a few mommy-to-be friends who would love this book to prepare them on their incredible new adventure as a mother 🙂

  30. Lydia says

    I would love to give this book to myself~:-) Seriously, I wonder how much it would change my parenting mindset.

  31. Deb says

    My children are grown, but I would love to read the book and encourage new parents. I will definately pass the book around – I have a young mom at Church that I would love to share the book with.

  34. Dani L says

    After I’d finished reading it 😉 I’d pass it on to my sister who’s getting married next week, to help with my hopefully soon-to-come nieces or nephews.

  35. Lindsay S. says

    I would love to read it and pass it along to my sister in law who is expecting in September. Thanks!

  36. Amy L says

    Well, I definitely think I need to read this book, so I’d be keeping it!!

  38. Amanda says

    I have been wanting to read this! I would pass it along to my friend, who is newly divorced and parenting two little ones alone…after I read it…

  39. Deanna says

    I’d love to read this book and I have a friend that’s expecting baby number three that’s lived and parenting by a strict schedule that I’d love to give it to.

Footer

As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.