Happy New Year

It seems just yesterday we were recovering from the drama of the Y2K mania, as we all were saying to each other, "So why were we so worried?" In most of our lives, nothing monumental happened except the prices we agreed to pay for everything that spanned over the millennium!

Now we are in 2003, a year that some of us could never imagine arriving. It seemed so sci-fi! A lot has happened in the past 2 years, and the world has changed dramatically. So, here's to taking a moment to gain perspective. Each day please, be thankful for what you get and for what you give.

Take time for yourself, too. We seem to often hear this mandate. "That's so hard", is what we typically respond. Let me tell you about taking three minutes, just three minutes, for yourself.

I was to shower and dress at the gym after working out the other day since going home to do that would take too much time. Leaving the shower, the steam room beckoned me. In spite of running a tight schedule, not wanting to leave children waiting, I went into that room. I spent exactly three minutes there, having convinced myself I could move extra fast on the hair drying. I came out of the steam room feeling as if I was living in the lap of luxury. That calm of three minutes lasted for days. Those special three minutes I took, just for me were monumental!

I guess if I did this all the time, took three minutes for me, it wouldn't feel special. But how many of us take time out for ourselves regularly. I now know that if I take those three minutes in the steam room, I will be giving myself a gift. I can't indulge in this every workout day, but I can periodically. I figure if I treat myself twice a month, 3 minutes at a time, I will have given myself just over an hour during a year. I can squeeze that into the busy schedule of my full time working mom's schedule.

I hope you can find your few moments that work for you. You deserve it! Happy New Year and the best in all seasons.

Sharing Literature:A Love Gift

To give children a love of literature is one of the greatest gifts a person can bestow on a child. Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, called stories, "love gifts". When you read aloud to a child, you are saying, I love you. I am taking time to do something special with you."

Literature as an Important Part of Life

You can make literature a part of the child's life by taking time from a busy day to read to the child, showing pleasure in reading books yourself, going to the library for books and story hour, and having the child's books in a special place where she can reach them.

The child who is read to and taken to the library usually learns to read earlier and enjoys books more than the child who has not had these experiences. While hearing stories and looking at books, the youngster will learn reading readiness skills such as recognizing words, following events in sequence and looking at words on the page from left to right. He will begin to understand that pictures and words have meaning.

Introducing Your Child to Literature

A child's introduction to literature is through the ear. Sing or chant nursery rhymes, Mother Goose rhymes and poetry while feeding, bathing or dressing the young child.

Try to read aloud everyday. Establish a time and place for this special sharing, such as bedtime or naptime. Reading aloud should be done away from distractions such as television. A big soft pillow, a rocking chair, a comfortable stuffed chair are all suitable reading spaces. The sound of your voice, the warmth of your body contact, the enjoyable interaction that takes place between you and the child during read-aloud times will become associated with books in the child's mind.

Even when the preschooler begins to read on her own, continue reading aloud to her on a regular basis. Try reading slightly longer books that take a few sittings to read, such as Charlotte's Web by E. B. White.

Go to page 2