Blog
Nov 2009 03
Parenting au natural
Posted in Featured education I am certainly not what most people would consider a green-save-the-earth kind of person. But, I do what I can, where I can. I just don’t go around sharing really. But, when it comes to my children and parenting, I’ll be the first to pipe up and say, “here’s what worked for me, maybe you should give it a try”. And, what would be my number one piece of advice? Baby wearing. I didn’t get to wear my second born as much as my first simply because I had to have back surgery. But, most people find that wearing the second one is much more beneficial because it frees time for playing with the first born, especially when they are only 22 months difference in their ages. However, baby number one was a big hefty baby from the get-go and so wearing him was so much easier than putting him on my hip and trying to get around. I live in the midst of family and I could tuck him in, and start walking. I was able to visit many of my family members and one in particular who died with cancer about a year later. He would sit on his porch and wait on us to make our daily walk by his home. And, my other piece of advice is “just play”. Having a degree in physical education and being a former daycare owner, I can’t tell you the importance of letting kids learn through their own manipulation of toys, games and even imaginary pieces of equipment. Make-believe friends and made-up playground games can make for some of the best learning ever. There is so much more than can be done to help your children learn naturally and to help you as a parent bond with your child. Medical reasons prevented me from taking advantage of some of them and simply not desiring to use others were my deciding factors. But, as a daycare owner, I can’t tell you how many times a parent would come into the daycare to get their infant to find me with their baby tucked snuggly away in a carrier. I think that alone might have been one of the key factors in the success of my daycare. Parents knew I cared, they knew I wanted their kids in my center and wanted them to be happy. One child in particular was quite fussy and preferred to be held. In a normal daycare setting, that simply isn’t possible. But, by putting the baby in the sling and then wearing him, he was able to get the comfort he desired from being close to someone and I know his parents felt better about leaving him. I know I would have if I had been the parent. I leave you with no pressure to take part in any baby-rearing techniques that you aren’t comfortable with, but those are two that most definitely appeal to me for one reason or another. And, without a doubt, you probably have your own ideas about what works and what doesn’t as well as what is important and what isn’t. Trusting your own gut is the best parenting decision you will ever make.
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Great advice for new parents – many are surprised with how babywearing can make life so much easier. I know I was! Not only did it help ease the transition from “all about me” to “all about my new baby”, babywearing was immensely helpful during the transition from one baby to two baby’s. The one gift I think every parent shouldn’t be without is a baby carrier.
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i like to bring my 1 year old baby boy to the nearest park in our place here in Michigan, I mean we go there at the park every saturday and sunday morning with his dad and I prefer to use the wheeled device rather than body strapped device.
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