Lately, I’ve tried to view being a stay at home mom as a job, instead of something that’s happening by default because Jesse works all day. I think that looking at it this way helps me to treat the things that I do not as chores, but as my vocation and calling. It’s great, because this naturally lines up with what my heart tells me anyways. I want to be playing with Gregory and spending time with him! I don’t have to view it as something that “detracts” from my piano lessons and housekeeping. Instead, it’s the purpose, the main goal. If the dishes get done on top of that, great! But the dishes will always be there– Gregory, however, will not. I only get one chance to raise him. Not only that, but I only get one shot at having just one child to worry about! I want to take advantage of the time where it’s just the two of us, because it’s all the individual attention he’s going to get for a long time!
As such, I’ve been spending 10-20 minutes each night reading or researching ways in which to parent Gregory better. Since we spend the whole day together, I am his only teacher. That’s a huge responsibility! I view my nightly reading as my “Job Training”. Jesse’s even offered to pull out his old child-psychology textbooks.
The other day, I caught myself longing for the day when I can homeschool Gregory: teach him his numbers, his alphabet, and how to grow a garden.
Then, I realized that there’s no reason homeschooling has to wait! In fact, so many foundations are already being laid, it’s rather intimidating! By the end of Gregory’s first year (in 4 more months!) his brain will have DOUBLED in weight from his birth! Research is showing that babies are capable of exercising their brain in a much higher capacity than our culture gives them credit for. For instance, the extent to which they will ever be able to obtain a large vocabulary is almost completely established within the first 3 years! The neurons responsible for language development rapidly diminish at an alarming rate by the time they are 10. It doesn’t make sense that this is about the time US schools require children to learn Spanish or Latin, does it? Educators have it stuck in their heads that children can wait until Junior High to learn a second language, when that’s the opposite of how the brain works.
Back to vocabulary: on a social level, it isn’t the amount of words they hear, it’s the back and forth exchange that needs to happen (something that cannot be accomplished by a Sesame Street program, no matter how it’s presented. Side note: this makes sense of why shows like Blues Clues and Dora the Explorer encourage the “audience” to participate by asking open-ended questions!). The mom is, hands down, the best one to teach a child language. I find it fascinating that scientists have recently proven that the mother’s voice, and the mother’s voice alone, stimulates the baby’s brain in a way that nothing else can. Basically, because it’s the voice he heard for 10 months in-utero, Gregory’s twice as likely to listen, remember, and learn something if I’m the one saying it! No pressure or anything, right?
Add on to that the fact that I’m the person he trusts most in the world (no knock on Jesse–I have boobs), and every interaction I have with him is setting the stage for how he will view relationships for the rest of his life!! If he cries and I don’t come when he needs me, I’m teaching him that Mommy won’t come when he’s in dire need (how he views it, even if it’s not “reality”). If he wants to play with me and I ignore him, I’m teaching him that his worth is not as great as that of whatever I choose to do. This is the hardest one to stomach, because there ARE times where I have to do chores or take a shower! This is where a healthy balance has to be found, because Gregory can’t grow up thinking he’s the ONLY one who’s important! Yikes! B-R-A-T in the making!
Long and short: it’s NEVER to early to begin homeschooling!
Not everything has to be “educational” however. A lot of what Gregory is supposed to be learning at this stage is related to his motor development and eye-hand coordination.
In order to craft entertaining activities for Gregory, I enlisted the help of Baby Play, by Gymboree. I love it already, and highly recommend it (the tag-line is that every activity is “battery-free”! Something Jesse definitely appreciates!). Not only does it have tabs color-coded by age in months, but it has tons of songs and nursery rhymes to sing, with suggestions of how to move baby to that particular beat. I find this last part extremely important, based entirely on what I observed with my own two eyes whilst teaching at preschools around DFW. Even the Montessori teachers were skeptical at first– why on earth was I trying to teach 14 month-old children rhythm? They couldn’t even run or say any words yet! I stuck with it though, and by the end of the year, these children could hear a song on the piano or boombox and after a few seconds, begin clapping, tapping, or stomping to the rhythm! Incredible, right, seeing as many adults can’t do the same!
Today’s activity was using a scarf and paper towel tube. I used a bright blue silky scarf that I got at a garage sale for 10 cents and stuck it through an empty tube, letting just a bit dangle out on the end. Gregory got the biggest kick out of yanking the scarf out, all in an effort to eventually get to the tube (what he REALLY wanted!). Within just a few minutes, he had figured out that the most efficient way was to steadily pull it, hand over hand. It was incredible!
Once we were done with that game, I used the scarf to make him giggle by draping it over his face in various ways, letting it tickle his face by waving it around. He loved that too 🙂
On a related note, I just ordered 2 items from my favorite supplier, Liltulips (she’s my favorite because she’s a SAHM, gives free shipping, and includes a homemade shea butter chapstick with every order!).
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