Rookie Dad: Fun and Easy Exercises and Games for Dads and Babies in Their First Year

by Susan Fox

Get in the game of fatherhood!
All new dads want to bond with their babies -- but how? With seventy-two safe, simple exercises, each illustrated with a fun photograph, Rookie Dad helps busy fathers make a real connection with their little ones -- and have a ball doing it!

"Shake Hands with Dad" promotes motor coordination
"Eyes on the Ball" boosts eye-tracking skills
"Flashlight Tag" is fun at lights-out time
"Crunch Time" helps baby learn balance while tightening Daddy's abs
"Box Score" is a fantastic tool for bedtime,helping babies enjoy snug spaces

These and other age-appropriate activities, designed for the newborn to the twelve-month-old, help develop fundamental skills needed for sitting, crawling, walking, and more. They also plant the seeds for a lifelong love of sports and physical fitness. But all Baby knows is Dad is really fun to be with! Be a champion to the MVP in your life -- by sharing the joyful and unique approach to quality time illustrated in Rookie Dad.

Genres: Parenting, Nonfiction

272 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2001

About the author

Author Susan Fox lives along the Kankakee River in Momence, IL--a small town of 3,000, not counting the duck population.
"Little Women of Baghlan" is her first book, and was named as a finalist for Book of the Year in nonfiction by the Chicago Writers Association.
Susan holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of St. Francis, Joliet, Illinois, a nursing degree, and a certificate in technical writing from the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago.

When she is not writing, Susan divides her time between her six grandchildren, her husband Ken, and her clarinet.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/suefox.writer

Website: www.littlewomenofbaghlan.com

Email: suefox.writer@gmail.com

Reviews

[Douglas Lord]

Fox, director of Seattle's Pediatric Therapy Clinic, offers this gentle, sports-themed book filled with 72 activities. Easy, stimulating games encourage father-child intimacy from birth (e.g., the aptly titled "Daddy Huddle" in which the new team snuggle together) to about 18 months (e.g., "Halftime Band" involves music). Chapters are grouped by the age of the child and feature short advisory sections. Writing in an authoritative voice that will reassure new - and most likely nervous - fathers, Fox resorts to familiar sports metaphors, as when she compares learning diapering to rookie basketball: "Did your coach stick you in the middle of a game with a bunch of experienced guys and expect you to play like a pro? No ... [and yet] eventually you put all the pieces together and learned to play basketball." Accompanying photographs vividly demonstrate the joy of bonding. Great gift.

Find reviews of books for men at Books for Dudes, Books for Dudes, the online reader's advisory column for men from Library Journal. Copyright Library Journal.