What do you think?
Rate this book
Yes Mommy: The Mayhem and Madness of Not Saying No
What kind of mother doesn’t say no to her kids? One who is clearly angling for the Mother of the Year trophy – or an extended stay in a mental institution. After deciding to eliminate the words no, don’t and stop from her parenting vocabulary for one month, Amy Sprenger documents what life is like with her three young children. Spoiler alert: she’s still alive, so her experiment didn’t actually kill her. It just felt like it might most days. You’ll cringe when the kids turn feral in Whole Foods, sympathize when Amy hides from them behind the locked bathroom door and question her sanity when she consents to a day as Yes Wife. But throughout, you’ll laugh at Amy’s month of mothering missteps and misadventures. This is what happens when you stop saying no and start saying yes – to everything.
153 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 6, 2014
5 people are currently reading
146 people want to read
About the author
Amy Sprenger
5 books17 followersAmy Sprenger is the author of the award-winning blog SnarkyMommy.com, where she tells it like it is and isn't afraid to make fun of herself or her questionable parenting prowess. She has three young kids and a penchant for getting herself into ridiculous situations. A former news and sports reporter, Amy lives with her husband and children in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood where she silently judges all the other parents.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
May 11, 2014
Parents looking for fool-proof advice on child rearing and discipline methodology should cruise on past this latest selection by Amy Sprenger. But anyone looking for great laughs and hysterical anecdotes about an experiment in permissive parenting are in the right place! And while I'm sure even the author would t recommend following in her footsteps (she doesn't have to say yes anymore, after all), you might just find yourself a little more willing to let things slide, ease off the fun-killing mom brakes, and say yes a little more often.
But never to Chick-fil-A ;-)
But never to Chick-fil-A ;-)
October 3, 2017
A good premise, funny execution, and very sympathetic narrator
Despite the fact that in the book itself, everyone she told apparently thought she was crazy, there is some truth to the idea that we should resist the impulse to say no without considering the necessity. Should we then prevent ourselves from ever saying no? Of course not. But sometimes you have to go cold turkey to break the habit. I get it.
Amy is wonderfully wise about parenting and life and so much. I absolutely sympathized with her throughout. And maybe a little too much – as I certainly found her kids and, especially, her husband rather unlikable on numerous occasions. But we all understand those close to us in ways that strangers cannot, I suppose. And maybe it's just like a comedian to focus on the moments and the presentation that are most amusing, if not necessarily most fair to the players and the reality.
Anyway, I recommend this book to parents of all stripes. It is great for consuming in small pieces, and you never forget what you've read so far, no matter how long it takes you to come back to it. It is a gentle advice manual for parents without actually doling out advice. And it helps you heal from actual parenting advice books at the same time.
Despite the fact that in the book itself, everyone she told apparently thought she was crazy, there is some truth to the idea that we should resist the impulse to say no without considering the necessity. Should we then prevent ourselves from ever saying no? Of course not. But sometimes you have to go cold turkey to break the habit. I get it.
Amy is wonderfully wise about parenting and life and so much. I absolutely sympathized with her throughout. And maybe a little too much – as I certainly found her kids and, especially, her husband rather unlikable on numerous occasions. But we all understand those close to us in ways that strangers cannot, I suppose. And maybe it's just like a comedian to focus on the moments and the presentation that are most amusing, if not necessarily most fair to the players and the reality.
Anyway, I recommend this book to parents of all stripes. It is great for consuming in small pieces, and you never forget what you've read so far, no matter how long it takes you to come back to it. It is a gentle advice manual for parents without actually doling out advice. And it helps you heal from actual parenting advice books at the same time.
May 14, 2014
Check out all my reviews on My Blog
When my friend Amy told a group of us that she was going to do an experiment for a month by not telling her three children (ages 7, 5, 3) no or stop for a whole month, we were supportive but skeptical. Would anyone still be alive at the end of it? As a homeschooling mother of 4 myself, I do practice the art of saying yes as much as possible but I have my limits. If I never said no, schoolwork would never be done and my kids would do nothing but play Minecraft all day...when they weren't actively trying to kill each other. Like so many have said to me about homeschooling, I swore I couldn't do it and wished her all the luck. She only gave us little bits here and there mostly to let us know that she was still alive and so were they since this was all designed to become her next book and now here it is.
Yes Mommy is written in her usual snarky style (seriously, her blog is called snarkymommy so if you were expecting something else this is not the place to look for it). Her kids managed to not ask for anything hugely outrageous (no ponies) and I'm betting the older two will have some wonderful memories out of it and Amy seems to have learned somethings about herself and her kids at the same time. There are parts that made me laugh, some that made me wince, but all of it was obviously written from a place where I think almost every mother has been at some point in their life.
If you are looking for a fun, light read this summer pick it up and enjoy.
When my friend Amy told a group of us that she was going to do an experiment for a month by not telling her three children (ages 7, 5, 3) no or stop for a whole month, we were supportive but skeptical. Would anyone still be alive at the end of it? As a homeschooling mother of 4 myself, I do practice the art of saying yes as much as possible but I have my limits. If I never said no, schoolwork would never be done and my kids would do nothing but play Minecraft all day...when they weren't actively trying to kill each other. Like so many have said to me about homeschooling, I swore I couldn't do it and wished her all the luck. She only gave us little bits here and there mostly to let us know that she was still alive and so were they since this was all designed to become her next book and now here it is.
Yes Mommy is written in her usual snarky style (seriously, her blog is called snarkymommy so if you were expecting something else this is not the place to look for it). Her kids managed to not ask for anything hugely outrageous (no ponies) and I'm betting the older two will have some wonderful memories out of it and Amy seems to have learned somethings about herself and her kids at the same time. There are parts that made me laugh, some that made me wince, but all of it was obviously written from a place where I think almost every mother has been at some point in their life.
If you are looking for a fun, light read this summer pick it up and enjoy.
July 28, 2014
After reading Amy Sprenger's hysterical and heartwarming parenting experiment, any mom will think twice before saying no to her child again. Yes Mommy is a refreshingly honest look at the parenting challenges so many moms face. I guarantee when you finish devouring this book, you'll find yourself wanting to stop saying no and to start making your lips form that three letter word that can be so much harder to say. A fabulous read that really hits home!
August 20, 2014
I just finished reading Amy Sprenger's honest, funny and charming book....well it was more like a parenting experiment. You are allowed to follow her on her outrageous and fun experiment with her children! I found Sprenger to be refreshing and heartwarming. She writes in ways any parent can relate to! Yes Mommy is a book you will think about long after you finish it and will make you reconsider what you say to your child!!! Another 5 star hit!
November 27, 2015
This book made me cringe every time they kicked and screamed , spit at their parents, hit their siblings. My thoughts were these are some bad ass kids. I'm from the spare the rod spoil the child parenting technique. But I did understand the hidden message of enjoying the moment and not being so uptight.
Good entertaining read to gain a different perspective of parenting.
Good entertaining read to gain a different perspective of parenting.
June 8, 2014
Such a great book and concept! I still can't believe Sprenger went a month saying YES to everything her kids demanded ... ahem... asked of her without going crazy! It's a great lesson in parenting and offers a good message as well! And yeah, it's FUNNY AS HELL TOO!
July 3, 2014
Fun read. My kids are the same age and I am thinking about this "more yes" thing again. Perhaps we will do a day and see what happens!
June 7, 2015
Loved this book. A must read for moms. See my review here: http://punchdrunkthirty.blogspot.com/...
April 1, 2015
Entertaining and an interesting premise.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews