Sunday, April 25, 2010
Running
I feel like I have been running non-stop for a month. In reality, it probably hasn't been a month at all...more than likely just a week...maybe a week and a half. There just seems to always be something that has be going or doing.
My crafting space looks like a bomb went off. After several late nights of frantic crafting, there are bits of paper and wire scattered all over the floor. I have stolen several cereal boxes that were still in use out of the pantry to use for varous projects. There are piles of fabric everywhere...nothing new really...but right now it seems particularly rambling and out of control.
This is not a complaint post though. I have enjoyed the busy week...it has been nice to go and do...to be useful beyond my normal gig as a mother. I am tired though. Sleep is not something to easily come by...though I have ended up napping far more than I like.
Things should slow down more in the coming weeks, but I still have a lot of things that I want to do for myself. I am planning ahead to Bear's 2nd birthday in September. I have papers to make invitations already. I have plans to make some gifts as well. Tomorrow I will be working on a new quilting project with my mother, and I have a whole pile of fabrics to sew clothing for my daughter.
Bring it on, Summer.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Unschooling & Childbirth
The internet is buzzing with unschooling discussion...and not in the usual places either. A "report" on Good Morning America has brought radical unschooling to the attention of mainstream America...and not with the best results.
The story itself was very negative and showed obvious bias...and the comments posted following the story have been awful to say the least. People just cannot seem to wrap their heads around the idea that you can NOT BE SCHOOLED and still come out the other end in one piece....which leads me to the realization that education is not unlike childbirth.
Okay, let me explain...in the US giving birth "needs" to happen in a HOSPITAL and be attended by HIGHLY TRAINED PROFESSIONALS. Education, likewise, "has" to take place in a SCHOOL and be facilitated by HIGHLY TRAINED PROFESSIONALS. Similar, yes? What's also similar is the poor results this has gotten us. When it comes to infant and maternal mortality we rank at something like 39th worldwide (might be 29th...but it still sucks either way!)....and our schools aren't ranked very highly either! So obviously something is WRONG with both systems...but we ignore all that and cling to the "knowledge" that THIS IS HOW THINGS ARE DONE.
Hate you break it to ya...but that ISN'T how things are always done. Some people are willing to push past the fear and misinformation and make their own path. No, it's not for everyone....but who does it hurt if some people want to have a homebirth? Or educate their children in a different way? Don't say "the children"...because I think hospital birth and traditional educate can be harmful....so let's agree to disagree on that point. What I'm doing with my kids isn't hurting YOUR kids...and what you do with your kids isn't hurting MY kids. There ya go.
I also found it funny that in the comments so many people brought up how badly the US is doing with math and science as it is, so how dare these people do this to their children....NEWS FLASH: Those numbers have NOTHING to do with homeschooling or even unschooling. Hell, those numbers might be WHY some parents have pulled their children out of school.
So....at this point I will proudly declare that I AM AN UNSCHOOLER. Deal with it.
The story itself was very negative and showed obvious bias...and the comments posted following the story have been awful to say the least. People just cannot seem to wrap their heads around the idea that you can NOT BE SCHOOLED and still come out the other end in one piece....which leads me to the realization that education is not unlike childbirth.
Okay, let me explain...in the US giving birth "needs" to happen in a HOSPITAL and be attended by HIGHLY TRAINED PROFESSIONALS. Education, likewise, "has" to take place in a SCHOOL and be facilitated by HIGHLY TRAINED PROFESSIONALS. Similar, yes? What's also similar is the poor results this has gotten us. When it comes to infant and maternal mortality we rank at something like 39th worldwide (might be 29th...but it still sucks either way!)....and our schools aren't ranked very highly either! So obviously something is WRONG with both systems...but we ignore all that and cling to the "knowledge" that THIS IS HOW THINGS ARE DONE.
Hate you break it to ya...but that ISN'T how things are always done. Some people are willing to push past the fear and misinformation and make their own path. No, it's not for everyone....but who does it hurt if some people want to have a homebirth? Or educate their children in a different way? Don't say "the children"...because I think hospital birth and traditional educate can be harmful....so let's agree to disagree on that point. What I'm doing with my kids isn't hurting YOUR kids...and what you do with your kids isn't hurting MY kids. There ya go.
I also found it funny that in the comments so many people brought up how badly the US is doing with math and science as it is, so how dare these people do this to their children....NEWS FLASH: Those numbers have NOTHING to do with homeschooling or even unschooling. Hell, those numbers might be WHY some parents have pulled their children out of school.
So....at this point I will proudly declare that I AM AN UNSCHOOLER. Deal with it.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Creative Parenting
Sometimes you've gotta think outside the box to be a parent. I think the majority of conflicts people have with their children is when they don't do this. Sometimes it's hard to ignore your programming that children should NOT stand on chairs or tables. Or that children should NOT write on the wall with chalk...or a variety of other things.
Lately I've been coping with the realization that children really don't have to bathe...at least not in the typical sense of the word anyway.
My daughter has suddenly developed an extreme aversion to taking a bath. It's not just the tub, we tried bathing her in the kitchen in her old baby tub....she screamed bloody murder. We tried a shower. No dice. We tried coaxing her into a kiddie pool outside. Still no luck. Through trial and error we have found out that it's not the WATER she is afraid of. It's not the tub exactly either...she just doesn't want to stand or sit in water. No idea why! But...we've kinda learned to work around it.
Tonight I send my husband out to purchase an inflatable baby pool. He got one that is very shallow...only holds a few inches of water...and we put it in the kitchen floor surrounded by towels. We stripped Bear down and let he play in it without water and then started to add some. As soon as she realized what we were doing she wanted out. Ugh! HOWEVER...she would set in my lap and let us wash her down pretty good with rags and soap. I even managed to shampoo her hair. Eventually I ended up in the tub myself....I'm sure that was "cute"...and she happily played with the water from just outside the pool. before long she might as well have been in the pool with the amount of water that had soaked into the towel she was standing on! Sure, it was messy in a way...but we basically poured water all over the kitchen to let her play as well as to get her clean.
Pretty much our only other option would be to force her into a bath...and what good would that do? It would only make her more fearful and hurt her trust in us. We aren't willing to do that to her, so for the time being, our weird little version of a water-play kitchen bath will have to do.
Despite a bit of water to clean up, it wasn't too much trouble. She had fun. She tried to wash her own hair and ours. She laughed when we poured water on her belly or splashed her toes. It was easier than giving her a regular bath in some ways....there was more room for both of us to be in there for one thing.
Ultimately I have no fear that we'll get her comfortable with the idea of getting into a bath again. It might take some time, but she certainly won't be bathing in a kiddiepool in our kitchen floor by the time she starts college! Ha!
Lately I've been coping with the realization that children really don't have to bathe...at least not in the typical sense of the word anyway.
My daughter has suddenly developed an extreme aversion to taking a bath. It's not just the tub, we tried bathing her in the kitchen in her old baby tub....she screamed bloody murder. We tried a shower. No dice. We tried coaxing her into a kiddie pool outside. Still no luck. Through trial and error we have found out that it's not the WATER she is afraid of. It's not the tub exactly either...she just doesn't want to stand or sit in water. No idea why! But...we've kinda learned to work around it.
Tonight I send my husband out to purchase an inflatable baby pool. He got one that is very shallow...only holds a few inches of water...and we put it in the kitchen floor surrounded by towels. We stripped Bear down and let he play in it without water and then started to add some. As soon as she realized what we were doing she wanted out. Ugh! HOWEVER...she would set in my lap and let us wash her down pretty good with rags and soap. I even managed to shampoo her hair. Eventually I ended up in the tub myself....I'm sure that was "cute"...and she happily played with the water from just outside the pool. before long she might as well have been in the pool with the amount of water that had soaked into the towel she was standing on! Sure, it was messy in a way...but we basically poured water all over the kitchen to let her play as well as to get her clean.
Pretty much our only other option would be to force her into a bath...and what good would that do? It would only make her more fearful and hurt her trust in us. We aren't willing to do that to her, so for the time being, our weird little version of a water-play kitchen bath will have to do.
Despite a bit of water to clean up, it wasn't too much trouble. She had fun. She tried to wash her own hair and ours. She laughed when we poured water on her belly or splashed her toes. It was easier than giving her a regular bath in some ways....there was more room for both of us to be in there for one thing.
Ultimately I have no fear that we'll get her comfortable with the idea of getting into a bath again. It might take some time, but she certainly won't be bathing in a kiddiepool in our kitchen floor by the time she starts college! Ha!