A lot of people have been asking me questions about the difference between my book, Raising Your Twins: Real Life Tips on Parenting with Ease (Without Kicking Your Spouse to the Curb) and my DVD, Raising Your Twins: Real Life Tips on Setting Up the Ultimate Home Environment. Here are the answers to some commonly-asked questions.

Does the Raising Your Twins DVD contain the same content as the Raising Your Twins book? 

No, the book and the DVD cover different ages, so they have different content. The book covers newborn to 18 months. The DVD covers ages 1 to 4 years old. 

I only have one child, will this work for me or is it only for parents with twins? 

Don’t let the title fool you! Everything in the book and DVD will work for you whether you have one child, two young children close in age OR multiples. If it works for two children, it will work for one! 

Does the DVD contain similar content as your Youtube vidoes? 

The DVD is much more comprehensive. It was shot over 3 days with a professional videographer. With over 30 hours of footage edited down to 2 hours, only the best footage made it to the DVD. You’ve seen B and M put on jackets and make scrambled eggs on Youtube, but in the DVD, you will learn exactly how to replicate it at home with your child, including what you need to buy and prepare, how to present the activities, and the whole ‘why’ and ‘how’ behind every activity. The DVD covers everything from language, fine motor skills, care-of-the-self, care-of-the-environment to kitchen skills. If you are able to apply everything in the DVD, you will have an excellent Montessori home environment. 

How old were your children when you filmed this? How many episodes are they in?

This DVD was filmed over 3 days on their 2nd birthday. You will see them in action in Episodes 2 through 8.

What can I get out of this DVD? 

This DVD contains an incredible amount of valuable content. In this 121-minute, 8-episode series, you will learn how to set up every single room of the home as well as how to set up and do 24+ Montessori-based activities with your children. You will hear me talk about the big picture behind your child’s development, see actual children doing the work and receive a detailed instruction booklet, complete with pictures and resources. This DVD is essential for parents who want to raise a child the Montessori Way at home. It’s for the home-schooling parents, the parents who can’t find a good Montessori school nearby or can’t afford one, the parents who want to prepare their child for Montessori in the future or for parents who just want to try it out.  

On top of all this, you will get a complimentary 30-minute consultation with me, if you choose. This DVD is originally priced at $147, but is currently on sale for a limited time for $97. I can guarantee you will not find this much valuable content for this price anywhere else. 

I’m a nanny. Will this be helpful for me? 

Absolutely. There are many activities you can do with the child you take care of. The Back to Basics and Language episodes will be particularly useful for the child under 18 months. By 18 months, all the episodes will be applicable. If you don’t have a background in child development, there will be lots of helpful information for you. If you do have a background in child development, you will get lots of ideas for new activities.

What’s in each episode, exactly?

In Episode 1, I give you a tour of my Baltimore home and show you the most important components to consider for your child when designing each room in your home. Includes the bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, dining room, play area, dressing area and cleaning area.

In Episode 2, I show you several easy, basic activities for the youngest toddler. I guarantee your child will LOVE at least a couple if not all of them. AND they are essential building blocks for good gross and fine motor skill development.

In Episode 3, I show you how to teach your child to put on different items of clothing and accessories. Includes detailed description of what to look for when you’re shopping for clothes. B and M demonstrates how it’s done. 

In Episode 4, I show you some activities that parents automatically do for their children. Teach your children to do these things and your life will get so much easier.  

In Episode 5, I show you some essential fine motor skills, including how to teach your child to cut with scissors, glue and sew with a needle. The goal is not to prove how capable your child is. The goal is to engage your child in activities they enjoy. And they will love some of these. 

In Episode 6, I give you strategies on how to maximize your child’s language ability. What will bring out the best language skills? What can you do to make that happen? What activities will enhance those abilities? What are the best books to read? How do you read to a child? Find out the answers and way more in this episode.  

In Episodes 7 and 8, I show you what you need to prepare to teach your children to bake and cook successfully. Watch B and M cook four healthy, delicious recipes your child will love to make (and eat!)

Where can I buy the book and DVD?

The book and DVD are both available through www.RaisingYourTwins.com. The kindle version of the book is also available through Amazon here.

Do you ship internationally?

Yes, we do. You will have the option of entering an international address at check-out.

What forms of payment do you accept?

When you order through www.RaisingYourTwins.com, you can use Visa, Mastercard or American Express. If you would like to pay by check, please email me directly at stephanie@montessorionthedouble.com

When can I expect my order?

We ship out new orders everyday (except Sunday) from Portland, OR through USPS. If you are on the West Coast, your order will arrive sooner than the East Coast. USPS guarantees your order will arrive within 7-10 business days.

What if I don’t love it? 

If you are dissatisfied with the book or the DVD for any reason, return it and you will receive a refund, no questions asked. 

How can I order now?

Visit www.RaisingYourTwins.com and you will be able to order the book, DVD or both! 

Toddler and Bedtime

For the past two months, it’s been really hard to put B and M (23 months) down at bedtime. They take turns crying when I try to leave their room after lights-out. Anyone else experiencing this? I’ve had to try A LOT of different things to keep them in their bed and me in mine night after night.

Here are things I’ve tried that I don’t like: 1. stay till they fall asleep (exhausting, habit-forming and my least favorite of options), 2. cry it out (second least favorite option which I resort to when I’m absolutely exasperated, but it has worked on occasion) 3. let them stay up and play outside of their room.

Well, I also started compiling a list of things that HAS worked for us. Things have gotten better in the last two weeks. I can usually leave the room 5 minutes after lights out and they will stay in their room and fall asleep by themselves till the next morning at 7am. I’m also looking for more ideas in case these run out of steam! Please post yours in the comment area.

1. Involve both Mom and Dad with bedtime. I cannot count the number of nights I just cannot extricate myself from a child’s hug and the only thing that would keep them from a meltdown when I try to leave is to say, “Daddy’s gonna come in to say good-night to you. Do you want to see Daddy?” That usually results in a yes. And somehow, Daddy only needs a 5-minute appearance to put them to sleep. Maybe not all Dads can do it in that time, but I’m completely convinced (and use it with my husband all the time) that Dads are better at bedtime than Moms. He believes it now, too.
2. Give your child a “Toddler Massage.” I came up with this after observing Brooke, who has recently been asking to be held A LOT. So this what you do: after you turn off the lights, hold your child against your belly tightly. Using your whole palm, rub your child’s back, legs, arms and feet firmly, gently and slowly. Hold her as close to you as you can. It’s like an infant massage, except it’s for your toddler. I do it first to one child, then to the other. When I’m massaging one child, I’ll say to the other, “I’m holding your sister now, Please don’t interrupt us.” Both Brooke and Mackenzie love this. Mackenzie will say to me in Chinese, “Mackenzie wants tightly.”  After 5-10 minutes of this intense intimacy and skin contact, they’ll crawl back to their little pillows and say good-night to me. This has been the most successful thing I’ve tried in recent weeks, especially during the week my husband was on a business trip.  Not only do babies need a lot of skin contact, toddlers (and adults) need it, too.
3. Never ever change the bedtime routine. We eat dinner, take bath, drink milk and do storytime. Then it’s lights out somewhere between 815-830. No exceptions. Daytime schedule may change (though I make every effort to honor the 1pm nap schedule as well), but this bedtime routine never ever changes. If my husband and I need to go out, we ask our nanny to follow this schedule. Many families will make an exception here and there (holidays, birthdays, special events, weekends), but a toddler’s need for order and routine is so intense that expecting him to accommodate to your schedule will just mess with his ability to fall asleep at bedtime on his own.
4. Talk them through the bedtime routine an hour before bedtime. When we’re bathing, I’ll give them a rundown of what’s going to happen: “After we bathe, we’re going to have milk, then I’m going to read you a story in bed, and then we’ll turn out the lights. And then Mommy is going to go out and you will fall sleep by yourself.” And then I repeat the rundown again 15 minutes before lights out. Everyone benefits from a little mental preparation.
5. Giving them freedom within limits around sleeping. When they say, “I don’t want to sleep,” I say, “You don’t have to sleep. You have to stay in your room during bedtime, but you don’t have to sleep.” And I mean it when I say this to them. The floor beds they sleep in give them the freedom to move around till they feel tired enough to fall asleep.

I’ve read many blog postings that tell parents to cherish this time, that after they grow older, they won’t want you the way they do now. I can imagine that being true, but for my sanity and happiness NOW, I also need time to myself. And that happens after they go to bed. If you have a toddler right now, I’m sure you can relate. When I can have a good few hours to myself at night and then a good night’s sleep, we are all much happier when we see each other the next morning!

Now that Brooke and Mackenzie are 17 months, I decided to do an update on their sleeping situation. They are still sleeping on the same floor bed they’ve been sleeping on since they were four months old. Here’s a video of their bedroom: