The Beauty of parenthood....

Cammy looking out on the ocean
Originally uploaded by raquita.

Having Cammy was arguably the best thing that ever happened to me. Looking at her - watching her grow up - gives me the greatest excuses in the world to be young and silly and mommy. I do all kinds of things I didn't do before...

I take bubble baths. With ducks and floating letters in it.

I like the toy department more than I have in easily fifteen years.

I like puzzles and I like to spend time helping her put them together.

I like to spend time doing stuff grownups never get to do -cause we are so busy being... well... grownups.

And I am so greatful for that I want to make sure she has every advantage. I want to raise her to know everything she should know about her womanhood. So good people I have decided to double major - in Elementary and secondary education and preventive psychology. In additon to teaching and educating students I want to evaluate factors in schools or families that cause mental health or learning issues and work to fix them, eliminate them, or modify an environment so those factors don't exist. i.e I want to help little girls and boys learn how to better deal with being a kid. Cause from my memory it wasn't easy. And I was never one to think that just because I went through it that was good enough reason for my kid or any kid to have to go through something. If any thing knowing what they face and how they feel makes me want to stop as much of it as I can.

Where did all this come from you ask? I've been reading and reading and I came across this program called the Ophelia Project. www.opheliaproject.org and it is exactly what I hope to be able to impliment in the curriculum that I teach. Ophelia does soemthign most schools, parents even teachers fail to do and your average student prays someone will do - recognises that bullying isn't as simple as people beleive it to be.
In trying to figure out where I want Cammy to go to school - I figured out this is what I have been looking for - in all the new learning techniques and teaching methods and avoiding the standardised test memory way of teaching I have wanted and found - this was the primary element missing.
I wanted her in an emotionally, physically and socially safer school environment. And even the most expensive montessori schools can't guarentee what they aren't looking for. Relational Aggression is what schools, parents, communities, everyone needs to address in your children from as young as 2. NOW. I see the mistakes I have made in Cammy and have VOWED to correct them. Get the education I need to make sure she has a better opportunity, to be a better woman, a better friend, a better student and react better than I did in those situations. Anyway I need to get outta here and pick up some books, soem on this subject even - my time has started!

Peace...