French Children

If you're not a mom, have you ever noticed how North American parents of small children always come toting containers of cheerios? Did you know that culturally, French children do no snack?

I'll admit I'm a wee bit obsessed with French parenting, as it seems less chaotic than North American children. In my experience,  parents either leave the kids home when they go to a restaurant, or leave a horrendous mess over their table and the floor around them. I'm determined to assimilate to the French way of thinking. Psst...Bringing Up Bebe.

I'm watching Up All Night whilst uploading New Orleans bachelorette photos on Flickr- the storyline is centered on keeping the baby from having a meltdown and managing that meltdown while traveling. I couldn't help but think of a Wall Street Journal article that my fiance sent me about American child rearing versus French child rearing. The story highlights Pamela Druckerman's Bringing Up Bebe, which examines the vast differences between American and French children; the French children being significantly less finicky and explosive.

I brought up this book and article at drinks with a colleague last night- he has twins....which are, apparently, beyond a handful. He emailed me today telling me that he ordered Bringing Up Bebe to be sent to his wife's iPad. I really want to add this to my Amazon wishlist!  I feel a little weird about it though. We're not ready for kids, but the reading seems engaging!