A Gabby Mom Review

I have a secret... sometimes I YELL!!!  At the kids, at the dog, at myself, at J, at the chili that "burped" on Mr. E's birth announcement that had, just that morning had the glass broken and was sitting on the counter waiting for me to safely remove the rest of the glass.  It happens, the yelling.  Sometimes I am angry, sometimes I'm frustrated and/or upset, sometimes (and I find this is the most frequent cause), it seems to be the only way to get someones attention over the other noises in the house.



Regardless of the reason, I hate yelling.  As soon as my vocal cords cool down, I find myself shaking my head, "why did I just yell?".  And then there are the days where, for whatever reason, I feel like all I've done is yell, and then I just feel rotten to the core, miserable, like an unloving Mama.  Since I know that this is not "me" it has been a struggle for, oh since about the time I discovered I had a temper, i.e. about the third time our puppy (10+ years ago) peed on the floor right in front of me, as we were walking out the door to go potty, and after having cleaned up two other "messes" in the previous 10 minutes.

So, for the past year, I have really been working on this yelling thing.  I have already identified most of my yelling triggers.  One new trigger, in this house, is having 5 bodies around my 3 x 1 foot kitchen working space, asking to help, carrying things and leaving little milk trails from kitchen to table... it just really gets my goat, and tenses me up!  I've been working on having one child help at a time (and trying to ignore the yelling match over who's turn it is).  Let's just say, it's a work in progress :)

When I first started in as a Gabby Mom through Eternal Encouragement, I noticed that Mrs. Flem had a book all about yelling.  I never purchased it, for whatever reasons.  And then, July's review came up and guess what?  It was the yelling book (technically, "Yelling:  The Cause, The Casualty, The Cure").  I was so excited and dove right in.  Now, for my honest review (since I got the book before you did, for free)... I was a bit disappointed, I think mostly because I have been working on this and I've read so many different books (not so much on yelling, but on parenting) that I didn't really have any "aha" moments.  I have come to accept though, that life builds on itself and that "aha" moments are rare.  That being said, I did like the fact that everything in the book was about yelling and ways of managing those hollers that sneak out.  

If you find that you are yelling way more than you want (or yelling at all), and you are in the beginning stages of your journey, than this book is a great start for you!  It will give you some ideas as to the causes of your yelling and some tips on dealing with those things.  Best thing?  It's free for Kindle on July 24th only - if you miss it, or want it NOW, it's only $4.99 :)  Also, on July 24th there is going to be a Facebook party, all about yelling :)  in a fun environment!