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When we found out we were expecting our first child, my mind was all like, “Yay, this is awesome!” And then the nerves and questions hit. How are we going to raise our child? Can I work and raise a child at the same time? What values and virtues should I instill in my child? How many kids are we really going to have? What if my kids rebel?

And so the story goes. Sound familiar? We all worry and wonder if we are doing things “right” or if our techniques are “correct”. I was there; in fact, am still there.

I cannot count how many times I have been feeding my child at night and have reached for my phone when a question about parenting or kids came up. I am not done having kids, and I am certain my questions will only grow as they age.

However, in my search for finding common-sense practices for children that aligned with my own beliefs as a parent, I found a few that really stuck with me, and I will continue using them in the future for a lot of my parenting questions.

1. Dr. Ray Gaurendi Dr. Ray has a radio show on EWTN Catholic Radio through the Ave Maria Radio Network but also does talks around the country. Here’s what I love about him:
   1. His approach is crazy sarcastic but highly sensible.
   2. His website and YouTube are full of videos on how to deal with misbehavior in children.
   3. He doesn’t see misbehavior as “normal”, but as “typical”
   4. He gives more advice for children who are over age 7 or so, once the children are past the Church’s age of reasoning, and can understand his methods better.
   5. His approach is very cause and effect; if a child does this, then I do that. In order to not have that done, the child must change his behavior.
   6. In today’s culture, I feel a weakening of good parenting is on the rise, and I see Dr. Ray as my number one go-to for help in this area!

1. Greg and Lisa Popcak : they also have a radio show on EWTN Catholic Radio through Ave Maria Radio Network, they have given me a good approach to parenting from years 0-3. I really enjoyed their views on co-sleeping, how to transition from maternity leave to work again, and simple effective ways for play with your toddlers and babies.

1. Dr. Sears has popped up numerous times in my google searches for random concerns in our house, like normal temperatures for babies, signs that babies are getting teeth, and especially pregnancy topics. He is very thorough on many subjects, and I think his approach is very natural and makes sense to a lot of people.

Don’t get me wrong, I do not adhere to everything each of these experts says or does, but it does help me with some guidelines of how I would like to parent, and gives me practical ideas on how to implement them.

That being said, don’t forget to ask advice from people who really know you, too, namely your family! Your mom, sisters, sisters-in-laws, aunts, and especially grandmas are all great at giving advice in the mom-hood department! Just ask; there’s a good chance they will tell you anyway, even if you don’t. Us moms tend to want to give wisdom to others because it worked for us!

Who is your favorite go-to when you are in a parenting pickle?