New book helps parents build courage to let go

First it was mojo, now Chapel Hill author and mom Amy Tiemann is helping moms find the courage to let their kids go.

Tiemann, the author of the award-winning book "Mojo Mom," is releasing her latest work Monday called "Courageous Parents, Confident Kids." Tiemann edited the book, a compilation of essays from experts around the country.

Amy and her team of writers are out to "ground" helicopter parents. Those are the ones who are so involved in their own kids' lives that the kids don't learn the tools they need to live a successful life. What's more, kids aren't allowed the independence they once were given, she writes. They're shuttled the mile or so to school, for instance, and not allowed to explore on their own.

The books' ultimate message is that parents need to keep their sights on the ultimate prize: a child they've nurtured into an independent adult.

"A close relationship with our kids is wonderful," writes Tiemann in her introduction, "but we have to keep sight of the big picture: they need to become independent people."

The book is split up into four sections that encourage parents to invest in themselves, develop their parenting style, learn safety skills and get involved in the community.

The book couldn't be more timely. At least for me. (I'm still wondering how Jamie Woolf, author of "Mom-in-Chief: How Wisdom from the Workplace Can Save Your Family from Chaos" got into my head in her chapter titled "I'm Worried I Worry Too Much, But How Do I Stop?).

I'm already preparing myself mentally for those two weeks this summer when my older child heads to kindergarten and her younger sister turns one. Already, the baby is making those first moves toward crawling, the first moves away from me.

But, as Tiemann's book points out, isn't that the point?