Tuesday, August 16, 2011

New EC Resource -- EC Simplified: Infant Potty Training Made Easy

I'm excited to announce that a fantastic new e-book has just been released - you've got to check it out! It's called EC Simplified: Infant Potty Training Made Easy and it's written by Andrea Olson, Diaper Free Baby Mentor in the SF Bay area and fellow WAHM.

I'm just working my way through this book now and boy, I wish I'd had this to read when first starting out with EC eight years ago! It's amazingly hands-on and visual, and features tons of photos and diagrams. It's loaded with great information and tips in over 160 pages. And I love Andrea's warm style of writing.

ECSimplified is available as both an e-book and an audiobook. And, when you purchase, you get access to great bonus material – an Exclusive Book Owners Site featuring a private 25+ Video Library Collection (over 45 min of instruction); a variety of hands-on tools; special guides for caregivers, Dads, etc.

If you're like me, you like to be able to see what's in a book's Table of Contents to get a feel for what sort of information is in the book and whether it's what you're looking for. Andrea has kindly given me permission to share EC Simplified's Table of Contents:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

EC Simplified: Infant Potty Training Made Easy
by Andrea Olson

Table of Contents

Welcome!
Who I Am
Who This Book is For
Why I Wrote This Book Backward...
Helpful Icons

Chapter I: How To EC

The Basics Part 1: When Does Baby Need to Potty?
Breakdown of Part 1, Step 1: Observe
Breakdown of Part 1, Step 2: Cue
Common Cues
Breakdown of Part 1, Step 3: Notice Baby's Signals
Types of Baby Signals
Babywearing Signals
Breakdown of Part 1, Step 4: Notice Baby's Natural Timing
Breakdown of Part 1, Step 5: Become Aware of Generic Timing
Generic Timing: Common Times That babies Need to Go
Breakdown of Part 1, Step 6: Notice Your Intuition

The Basics Part 2: How to Potty Your Baby
Breakdown of Part 2, Step 1: Notice It's Potty Time
Breakdown of Part 2, Step 2: Acknowledge, Undress, & Go to Potty Space
Possible Potty Environments
Possible Potty Receptacles
Breakdown of Part 2, Step 3: Position & Cue
Breakdown of Part 2, Step 4: Be Patient...
Breakdown of Part 2, Step 5: Notice When Baby Says “I'm Finished”
Breakdown of Part 2, Step 6: Reflect or Say Nothing
Breakdown of Part 2, Step 7: Clean Up

The Positions & Other Photos

Indoor EC Positions
Outdoor EC Positions
Car Pottying Positions
Pottying While Breastfeeding: Soaker Pad Setup & Positions
Aiming the Boy Penis: Positions
Diaper-Free Observation: Setting Up a Soaker Pad
Other Photos of Babies in Various Positions

Important Tips for Ecing
14 Tips for Your EC Practice

Chapter II: Unique Potty Situation How-to's

Unique Potty Situations and How-to's
Pottying While Breastfeeding
Pottying in Nature
City Pottying
Car Pottying (Next to Parked Car)
Car Pottying (Inside Parked Car)
Cold Weather Ecing

Nighttime EC
Key Points & Tips for Success
How to Protect Your Bed
Night Pottying Troubleshooting
If You Choose Not to Night Potty
How We've Done Our Nighttime EC Routines, Stage by Stage
Some Things to Remember

Late-Starters (5-12 mos) & Early Start Potty Training (12 mos+)
28 Tips for Starting Later

EC for Working Parents (& Other Part-Timers)
Tips for Maintaining a Part-time EC Practice
Caregivers & EC
Example: “A Day in the Life of a Working EC Parent”

How to Diaper with EC
Cloth Diapering Vocabulary
2 Cloth Diapering Methods
How to Pre-wash & Wash Cloth Diapers at Home
2 Disposable Diaper Options

Chapter III: Background & Philosophy

Defining EC
Baby Instincts
But How Could One Possibly Know a Baby Needs to Pee?
All Over the World... Except Here
Us Compared to 1/2 of the World
Many Names
Some Simple Definitions
Well, What About Conventional Toilet Training?
What EC is Not

Philosophy
Why EC Works
Social Conditioning
Why Ecing in Modern Society May Be More Difficult & Take Longer Than In Tribal Community
A Tribal Example (Balinese) from Jean Liedloff, author of The Continuum Concept
The Continuum Concept, EC, & Child-centeredness

Vocabulary
15 EC Terms Defined
When to Begin EC
What “Starting Early” Can Involve
Do I Have to Do EC 24/7?
But What If My Baby Doesn't “Ask” Me to Go?
A Gentle Commitment
What to Expect (Outcomes)
An Encouraging Note for Late Starters (5 months +)
Why Is It A Challenge to Start at 5 Months or Later?
Reasons Parents Don't Start Early

Keys to EC
13 Keys for Ease & Grace

Do I Have to Do Away With Diapers?
The Importance of Diaper-free Time

Benefits of EC
Over 18 Benefits of Doing EC

Chapter IV: Troubleshooting

Potty Pauses
Defined (Again)
Possible Reasons for Potty Pauses
How to Get Through a Potty Pause
An Alternative View on Potty Pauses – Just Part of the Learning Process

Troubleshooting
When It Stops Working
Why A Younger Baby Might Cry Every Time You EC
If a Non-newborn Baby Protests When You Offer a Pottytunity
Boy Babies & Aiming Penises
We're in Position & Cueing but Nothing is Happening
How to Deal with Your Own Frustration
How to Assess Your Situation

Chapter V: Gear

EC Gear: Clothing & Other Great Tools
Clothing
Potties & Accessories
Diapers & Accessories
Wipes
Creams
Pads
Baby Carriers
Miscellaneous Gear
DIY Gear

Chapter VI: Resources
Resources
Books About EC
Books About Related Parenting Styles
DVDs
Videos
Websites Featuring Info on EC
Websites that Sell EC Gear
EC Forums
Groups
Email Lists/Groups
More Online Resources By Subject

Bonuses

Fill-in-the-Blank Forms
Fill-in-the-Blank Signs
Reminder Signs
Bonus Guides & Letters
Exclusive Video Library

Thank You! 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Looks fantastic doesn't it?!


For more information and to order, please visit EC Simplified. Your purchase through this link will support both Andrea's and my family business, so thank you in advance!


Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Continuum Family Needs Your Vote By April 15!

We've just entered into a contest to win a $15,000 website makeover courtesy of Pixel Sweatshop. The contest closes at midnight on Friday, April 15 and the winner will be the one with the most votes. Now, I've never liked popularity contests, but I've been wanting a site redesign for over a year now and we just don't have the time and resources in-house to deal with it. Winning this prize would be amazing!

Please take a minute and vote for me over there - I'd really appreciate it. :)

Thanks.

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Continuum Concept Book Giveaway Winner!

The winner of a copy of The Continuum Concept is....


Moriah who said...
I've been wanting to read this ever since I first heard about it :)
March 21, 2011 10:07 PM
Congratulations Moriah! Please contact us with your mailing address and your book will be on its way shortly.

Saturday, March 19, 2011

The Continuum Concept Book Giveaway - RIP Jean Liedloff

One of the most important books I have ever read was The Continuum Concept. I first heard about it on a natural family life email forum when my first born was four months old, almost eight years ago. Even though I was already headed down the path of attachment parenting, I was blown away by the insights in this book. It introduced me to the whole concept of evolutionary and biological expectations that we as humans are born with. It all made so much sense, intuitively, but goes so counter to what mainstream Western parenting has become. My wish would be for every parent to read this book. RIP Jean.

In memory of the recent passing of Jean Liedloff, author of The Continuum Concept, I am giving away a copy of her book. To enter for your chance to win please leave a comment in today's post. Please note that comments are moderated. Comments from "anonymous" will be deleted. You will not see your comment immediately after posting so please don't post again thinking your post didn't go through. I will be approving comments several times a day.

Contest is open until 11:59 p.m. PST on Tuesday, March 22 and I'll close comments and announce the winner on Wednesday, March 23. Winner to be chosen by random number generator. To get extra entries (please leave an additional comment for each extra entry):

~ Follow us on Twitter
~ Add our Facebook Page to pages you like
~ Blog about this giveaway and leave the link in your comment
~ Tweet about the contest (tweet ONCE PER DAY ONLY for extra entries and leave the link in your comment(s) please.

Spring Fling Sale at Continuum Family!

We will have some great specials happening the week of March 21-27 as we say hello to spring! We're planning a Deal of the Day where we one item will be deeply discounted just for one day. Maybe we'll even have some giveaways on our Facebook page. Plus many other things will be on sale all week, so visit us often! :)