5.21.2005

Using my Lifelines

Alex and I went down the hill today while Kevin was skiing. Probably his last ski day of the season so I'm glad it was a good day. It was blisteringly hot downtown, but we were invited to a celebration at Maura's "school." She's two and in a great daycare/early learning center that's affiliated with Denver University. The Fisher Center was very impressive. Maura is in the Cowboy Bunny classroom and will soon be promoted to Little Javelinas. Miss Elizabeth, her teacher, seemed really great. I've always said it takes a saint - or someone completely kicked up with caffeine (or both) - to work in that sort of environment.

I must admit, as much as daycare can have its down sides, there is something very tempting about it. Maura is learning so much from the structured curriculum at age two. It's amazing to see the amount of social interaction she gets and the depth of things she learns. Since we've made the decision (which I'm SO happy about) for me to stay home with kids, I'm faced with the daunting task of imparting the same amounts of wisdom and stimulation on a daily basis. When the time comes, I'm calling in all my Lifelines - friends, family, playgroups, etc. - to help me turn out kids who are challenged everyday.

2 comments:

Susan W said...

you know, my sister is homeschooling all three kids 7, 4,and almost 2(and yes, that certifies her as slightly crazy!)but there might be some good ideas on how to impart knowledge to the wee one through some homeschooling and home teaching books. NOT that you want to homeschool, but it is amazing what a 2-year old can learn and not everyone knows how to teach to that age. If you want, I can ask my sister for recommendations for someone just wanting to add a teaching component to her mothering :)

Sara said...

Any suggestions your sister has would be great. I'm pretty sad that community parenting has gone by the wayside. We can all learn so much from others who have done this. Thanks!