Free Resources for Montessori Infant Education

I stumbled upon an awesome resource for free information about raising infants in the Montessori way. The company is ultimately trying to sell their products, so the information is riddled with side advertisements, but the information is helpful nonetheless.

Here's a snippet of what I learned:

"We know very little about what a baby really experiences during those nine months in the womb, what he senses, feels, intuits, thinks about, and understands. But we do know that he responds to voices and to sounds and to music. So we offer the best by every day spending some quiet time talking to him, singing, and playing beautiful music."

• I love the idea of spending a few moments of quiet time talking to the baby in utero. I would also love to sing and play beautiful music. What great ways to build a connection and facilitate stress reduction. Next Steps: Make a playlist of good songs specifically for this purpose.

"It is not an accident that the focusing distance of the eyes of a newborn matches exactly the space between his face and that of the mother while nursing. Perhaps the best first communication experiences are provided while nursing the baby."

"We can feed the child's intense interest in language and prepare for later spoken language, by speaking clearly, not using baby talk, by not raising our voice to an unnatural pitch often reserved for speaking to pets, and not oversimplifying language in the presence of the child." "We can tell funny and interesting stories of our lives, recite favorite poems, talk about what we are doing, 'Now I am washing your feet, rubbing each toe to get it really clean' and enjoy ourselves in this important communication. And we can listen: to music, to silence, and to each other."

• I've read research about how important this kind of communication is with young children. As a teacher, I've seen the benefits that children reap when they are raised in this kind of environment. The point about using baby talk is an interesting one. There's research out there that highlights the benefits of using baby talk. I think I fall on the anti-baby talk side, since I think accurate modeling (although in a simplified, scaffolded way) is a great way to teach something. Next Steps: Pay attention to my use of baby talk (specifically with regard to my dog!), and analyze its function and purpose in my life.

There's other stuff about soothing a crying infant and raising children who do not depend upon adults in order to go to sleep. There's so much to learn! It's all very exciting.

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DIY Birthday Cards

I have to confess that I have done a terrible job sending birthday cards this year. By "terrible job," I mean that I literally didn't write anyone's birthday on my calendar at all. So I don't even know when I'm missing a birthday.

Wow. Not knowing what you don't know is a really awful place to be.

So, I'm going to rectify the situation for the second half of the year. Better late than never, they say.

I'm feeling inspired to make homemade birthday cards. If I make enough of them for an entire year, then everyone can get a handcrafted piece of goodness (but they'll be made in bulk, so it's easier for me to keep up with).

I've been collecting security envelopes forever, and I still haven't done anything with them. I was originally inspired by Kristina's design, but now I'm also remembering this card design from Rubyellen. Perhaps I could do a blended version: use security envelops for the bunting and then sew them onto the card. Maybe I could get really fancy and make a stamp that say's Happy Birthday.

I should make a sketch before I move ahead with this idea...

I could make a separate stamp for the parenthesis + the lovely and a separate one for the Happy Birthday, so I could use two different colors.

Now the question is: Do I try to purchase a triangle hole punch? Is it worth the money? I mean, I could easily make a cardboard template and then trace and cut them out. Then again, I will need to make a lot of these triangle things....hmm...

And before I buy anything, I should dig through my craft closet to see what I already have...

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Scrapbook Update

As Matt and I gear up for our next vacation, I'm realizing that we haven't added our last vacation to our Living, Growing Scrapbook. For Spring Break, we took a road trip out to West Texas to visit Big Bend and Marfa. Good times!

Hmm...I should also upload pictures from our Mother's Day trip to Indiana and whatever cute, random pictures we've taken of Hoss in the past few months.

This scrapbooking system works really well for us. I upload the pictures to Snapfish, find a coupon on retailmenot, and then have them mailed to our house. We simply use double-sided tape to stick our photos to white cardstock (we put photos on both sides of the sheet). I write a few words on each sheet to describe what's going on or to record the date. Then we slip the whole thing into a plastic sheet cover, which protects the photos and makes turning the pages really easy. Voila!

It's not as fancy as a real scrapbook (with fancy paper and stickers and all), but it's definitely something that I can manage and keep up with (which is the most important thing in my book!).

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Lessons Learned: Photography Class

Image courtesy of Bob Krist for National Geographic

I went to a photography class a few weeks ago, led by two travel photographers for National Geographic. Although the class was interesting and entertaining, I would have learned more if I actually understood the basis of using a DSLR camera. Unfortunately, this class only comes to Houston every once in a while, so I had to take it before I take my basics of photography course. I just tried to write down everything I could, so I can go back and read it when I have a more of a clue.

Here's some of the useful stuff they shared:

1. You can "shoot from the hip" to get candid shots of people by using a 35mm lens and prefocusing to one meeter.
   
2. Good photographers look for juxtapositions and anachronisms to find good shot.
   
3. Architecture is always more interesting if you add the human element.
4. When booking a helicopter for aerial shots, look for an outfitter that will open the door/window for better shots.
   
5. "Inspiration is for the amateur--professional need to be proactive."
6. The best time to shoot architecture is one hour before sunset."
7. Photography helps you be in the moment.
   
8. Switch ISO depending on the situation (preset 100 or 200; push to 400 or higher in low light).
9. Ask "What is the brightest thing in the shot? Am I blowing it out with overexposure?"
10. You can't judge exposure from the LCD monitor; you have to read the histogram to make sure it's not over the edge on the right.
11. Photography is a physical skill. The more you know your gear, the better you will be.
    
12. Use soft light and non-distracting backgrounds for head and shoulders portraits.
13. To blur the background, move the camera at the same speed as the moving object.
14. Include objects that provide a sense of scale.
    
15. Use flash in high contrast situations.
16. You can make something look like night by underexposing the background and using a flash.
17. In terms of gear, if you can't carry it all day, don't buy it.
18. Only ever show your best work (even if it's only a couple photographs!).
    

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Conception Update: Cycle 1

I'm now on Day 38 of my cycle. Which is weird and not weird at the same time. My cycle has a history of being irregular, so it could simply be another long cycle. Plus, May was kind of a stressful month due to the end of the school year (although it was simultaneously not as stressful because I have been actively eliminating new commitments from my plate).

I don't want to turn into this person. I don't want to be the person who obsesses about this whole conception process. I don't want to drive my best friend or my partner or my blog readers crazy with my constant, "Could I be pregnant? Is this symptom a sign of pregnancy? When should I take a pregnancy test?"

The problem is that all the questions are happening in my head. And I like to share what's happening in my head with my best friend, partner, and blog readers.

But I don't want these questions to be happening in my head. The more I talk about them externally, the more I think about them internally. The more I think about them internally, the more I want to talk about them externally. It's a pernicious cycle.

So this is my last post about conception obsession (for a while, at least). There's a lot one can do to prepare for conception (we'll be talking about that in my online course), but then you have to let go (we'll be talking about that, too!).

All of this is complicated by two things: my age and my uncertainty about whether I'm fertile. As far as my age goes, I'm 32. I'm not so worried about the first kid, but if I do want to have a second child, I'll start to be on the old side of the fertility spectrum (especially because I don't want to have kids too close together). As far as my fertility goes, a doctor one told me, "When you start trying to get pregnant, you're probably going to have trouble. But don't worry about it now."

I think I need a plan. Plans usually help me feel better.

1. I will continue trying to conceive for four cycles (May, June, July, and August). During that time, I will really work on my stress levels, my tendency to control things, and my obsession with planning and worrying. (I recognize that this plan is already counteracting #1!). I will incorporate a little yoga into my daily life because I think it works wonders on me.
2. I will wait until Day 43 of my cycle to take a pregnancy test. Forty-three days was the longest that my cycle has been in the past year. This month, however, I will take it on Day 41, since I'll be leaving for my yoga retreat soon.
   
3. If nothing happens in four months, I will go to my general physician to request a hormonal fertility workup to see if I'm ovulating. I will lie and say I've been trying for a year (since a year of haphazard trying is apparently equivalent to four months of strategic, cycle-tracking sex). I've heard that doctors won't do anything until you've been trying for at least a year.
   
4. If there's a hormonal problem, I'll start going to acupuncture for treatments. If there are no hormonal problems, I'll go anyway for the relaxing effects of acupuncture.

Okay, that plan really does make me feel better. I am turning off my obsessive, wondering, conception self.

If you don't hear from me again in Cycle #1, you can safely assume that I am not pregnant and that I will be happily trying to get pregnant during Cycle #2 (but I'll try not to talk about it until I know the results for sure from each cycle).

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Book: Glass Ceilings & 100-Hour Couples

I am so excited about one of the books I recently check out from the library. It's entitled, Glass Ceilings & 100-Hour Couples: What the Opt-Out Phenomenon Can Teach Us About Work and Family.

I have to confess that I've only read the two-page prologue, so this isn't yet a bona fide recommendation. However, I already have lots of neat ideas swirling around in my head.

The authors are both college professors. They talk about how the sabbaticals that they are entitled to as college professors give them a chance to feel what it's like to be a "stay-at-home-mom," while the rest of the year they experience what it's like to be a mother who also works full-time. In the prologue, they briefly talk about how gratifying it is to stay at home and yet simultaneously, there are reasons why they choose to work outside the home.

I'm eager to explore the benefits and drawbacks of staying home versus working full-time, and all the other configurations that are possible. One of my friends, who is currently a school principal, plans to quit her job for ten years to raise four kids. Another one of my friends, works part-time from home, and she and her partner hire a nanny to take care of her children at home while she's there working.

I can't even begin to imagine what kind of configuration will work for Matt, our family, and me. I'm eager to explore diverse ideas in this book!

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Yoga Retreat "To Bring" List

Image courtesy of My Big Walk

I can't believe I'm going on my first yoga retreat ever. Woo-hoo!

Clearly, I am very, very excited.

Here's what my best friend and I are going to do:

Tuesday
4:15pm yoga
7:30pm whole foods cooking class

Wednesday
9am detox Sara, maybe Andy (guided hike @ 9)
11am Ayurveda class
4:15pm yoga class

Thursday
6:30am yoga (Andy?)
9am becoming whole class
11am yoga and nutrition (Sara) share circle (Andy)
noon dance
1:30pm kayaking
4:15pm yoga

Friday
11am awakening the six senses class

What are my goals for the retreat? (I'm going to force myself to prioritize them from most to least important.)

1. To relax and rejuvenate
2. To learn new skills for a healthier lifestyle
3. To spend quality time with my best friend

Having a sense of my goals will help guide my decision making (it's Starting with the End in Mind!). For example, if my number one goal is to relax and rejuvenate, then I am going to give myself permission to skip classes if I start to feel overwhelmed.

If it's more important for me to learn new skills rather than spend quality time with Andy (since I talk to him on the phone every day), then I'll make sure that I go to the classes that truly interest me instead of trying to reach consensus with Andy so we go to all the same classes.

So what do I need to bring with me?

1. Four days of yoga clothes
2. Yoga mat + bag
3. Camera
   
4. Phone + charger
5. Library books
6. Sunscreen
7. Portable blanket so I can relax on the grass?
8. Writer's Notebook
9. Bathing suit
10. Chacos
11. Snatch It
    

Excitedly yours!

s.

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