Having realistic expectations of the processes by which your child is growing up is helpful for ignoring some behaviors. These books explain what all children go through as they learn and develop, which makes it easier for parents to accept the realities of two-year-old behavior.

The Girlfriends' Guide to Toddlers: A Survival Manual to the Terrible Twos (and Ones and Threes) From the First Step, the First Potty and the First Word (No) to the Last Blankie. Vicki Iovine (Penguin Group, January 1999)

This fun and easy-to-read book is reassuring to all moms. It points out that everything you'll deal with as a parent is something your most honest and trustworthy girlfriends will also go through.

How to Talk so Your Child will Listen and Listen so Your Child will Talk. Adele Faber (Harper Collins, 2004)

This is an important book for convincing parents of young children that if you build a relationship that allows your child to feel safe and important, he might continue to talk and be open with you as he grows up. The steps in this book are easy to follow and make a lot of sense.

To Listen to a Child: Understanding the Normal Problems of Growing Up. T. Berry Brazelton (Addison-Wesley, 1991)

This book reassures parents that many of the phases their children go through are not only normal, but also important developmental milestones. Many parents these days worry that a problem will follow their child into adulthood. But learning good parenting techniques allows you to help your child grow through and beyond each phase, whether it be bed-wetting, lying, stealing, or fearfulness. Understanding the developmental process helps parents put their child's stages in perspective so as to deal with them more effectively.