Hot Flashes, Warm Bottles: First-Time Mothers in Midlife

Ms London's book is a welcome addition to my bedside table. Its format fits my busy-mom reading habits, allowing me to read in snippets as time (and my child's demands) allows. Its rich anecdotes and revealing stories shared by so many over-40 moms are comforting and informative and do much to dispel my guilt for not always being the contented mom. For those of us who do not have a close community of kindred spirit over-40 mothers, "Hot Flashes, Warm Bottles" offers shared experience that brings perspective and validity to this amazing later-life parenting experience. I am not alone!

"Hot Flashes Warm Bottles" tackles the complicated and emotional subject ofolder mothers with a delightful warm-hearted approach. The book shows oldermothers that they are not alone, that their ambivalent feelings are normal,and that motherhood at an older age can be both tiresome and invigorating.The book is loaded with examples that will bring a smile to the reader.Advice is provided on dealing with yourself, your child and others in thefamily who may not understand the emotional and physical changes in an oldermother. A nice touch is the "Journey Book" suggestions included at the endof each chapter. These are active steps that the older mother can take tocapture and understand their feelings while creating memories for thefuture. "Hot Flashes Warm Bottles" is highly recommended for those who havebecome mothers in their 40s or those who are contemplating older motherhood.-Dr. Kathleen Kain, scientist, educator and (older) mother of 3

This timely and much-needed book is extremely well-written, filled with substance, information, humor and heart. The women's stories shared in its pages bring alive, in a very personal way, themes and emotions with which any first-time "older" mom - straight or gay - will be able to identify. These stories, coupled with the suggested exercises at the end of each chapter, are good tools for helping the reader better able to understand, articulate and clarify her own experience and feel connected and less alone. The resource guides at the end are filled with good leads. I like that the book speaks to very real difficulties as well as more obvious joys - especially what happens as hormones begin to diminish as we approach menopause with young children in tow. Even though motherhood is as old as the human species, we don't have older generations of women to turn to for guidance in this department. We are breaking new ground here socially and personally. This book offers words of advice, comfort, laughter, beauty and sisterhood, both for women who are already parenting and for those who are thinking about diving into the experience. I think it also might help the friends and/or male partners of hormone-flagging moms gain some compassionate insight. I am enthusiastically suggesting this book to friends, family and my counseling clients. I am grateful that finally there is such a nurturing, down-to-earth and readable book to recommend.

Hot Flashes Warm Bottles is such a refreshing book. I have struggled to balance work and kids for years, all as the energy of youth falls out from under me. I realize now that I have spent too long feeling isolated and inadequate in my conflict. At last, a book of true stories from other moms who are going through exactly what I experience, all framed in a context that unites and clarifies what I thought I was alone in experiencing. Ms. London has done us all a favor by naming the hardships AND celebrating the rewards of motherhood over forty. I recommend this book to any woman thinking baout when to start her family. It's filled with insight, humor and truth.

If you are the older mother of young children, stop whatever you're doing and order this book right now. Nancy London has given us a true gift. Hot Flashes, Warm Bottles will be a companion on your journey, a comforting reminder that the tension between your own changing needs as mature woman and those of your children is part and parcel of coming to motherhood later in life. With humor, great wisdom, and compassion, Nancy London helps older moms understand their unique challenges, gifts and needs. Hot Flashes, Warm Bottles is full of women's voice--laughing, crying and celebrating older motherhood together. The book is easy to read, good for a few minutes when we've closed ourselves in the bathroom praying for just a little peace. This book is full of great practical suggestions for nurturing ourselves as well as the little people in our lives. I couldn't recommend it more highly.