Looking for a sidebar?

How can you be a better parent?

By being more than a parent, believes Shari Steelsmith, author of the recently released Go to Your Room!: Consequences That Teach (Parenting Press/Raefield-Roberts, (800) 992-6657), ParentingPress.com, $14.95).

Parenting is very demanding, points out this mother of three young children, who says that people who never take a break from parenting are the most likely to practice poor discipline with their kids. Either they over-react and punish harshly—or, overwhelmed, they don't address misbehavior.

She encourages parents of young children to avoid becoming isolated by becoming part of a community, through parenting classes, through church groups and through extended family. Steelsmith is particularly concerned about single parents, who shoulder overwhelming parenting burdens unless they have a supportive extended family or former spouse.

"It's so hard to be on-call constantly."

With a husband who's home by 6 almost every evening, Steelsmith says she's not "on" all the time—but it still feels that way. To renew herself, she snatches an hour or so every day to write and prepare for presentations.

The author of ten books and the owner of Raefield-Roberts, which publishes such books as Jan Faull's Mommy! I Have to Go Potty! (available through Parenting Press, $13.95), Steelsmith also write a weekly parenting tip for Parenting Press's web site (www.ParentingPress.com) and makes presentations at such programs as the Mesa (Ariz.) Public Schools "Parent University" and the annual conference of the National Association for the Education of Young Children.

Besides writing, which Steelsmith calls "inherently relaxing," she strives for personal-professional balance by working to avoid perfectionism. Her kids' needs have priority and after that, "I'm great at saying, this is good enough," she smiles.

That means Steelsmith sets realistic timelines for her writing and publishing and she practices what she calls "relaxed" housekeeping.

"Until all my children are in school full-time, I've told myself it's okay to move slowly on some projects."

For more information:
Parenting Press Publicity Coordinator
E-mail: Publicity Coordinator
Telephone: (800) 992-6657, ext. 102 or (206) 364-2900, ext. 102
Fax: (206) 364-0702

About the Book:
Title: Go to Your Room!: Consequences That Teach
Author: Shari Steelsmith
Publisher: Parenting Press, Inc., Seattle, WA and Raefield/Roberts, Bonney Lake, WA
ISBN: 0-9650477-2-5
Price: $14.95