[blparent] Taking advantage of parenting classes

Tue Feb 28 22:47:16 UTC 2012

I myself feel better having some idea of what I may be facing. I like having 
options and solutions and advice that books and classes give me. I'm much 
more confident after reading some of the What To Expect books. And although 
no book or class is a guideline on how you absolutely must raise your child, 
it's really comforting to have some idea of what to do in a multitude of 
situations. It's comforting to know what may be normal and what may not be 
normal. And if something is not normal, what may have caused it and possible 
steps to take that may clear things up. I say "may" because every baby is 
different. But I like the security the knowledge provides me with.

Samara

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jo Elizabeth Pinto" <jopinto at msn.com>
To: "Blind Parents Mailing List" <blparent at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Tuesday, February 28, 2012 4:51 PM
Subject: Re: [blparent] Taking advantage of parenting classes

> Well, I didn't lie awake at night stewing about it, but I found it nice to 
> have some ideas when bedtime got tricky.  Like I said, it was just nice 
> preparation, but of course, classes aren't for everyone.
>
> Jo Elizabeth
>
> "How far you go in life depends on you being tender with the young, 
> compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant 
> of the weak and the strong.  Because someday in life you will have been 
> all of these."--George Washington Carver, 1864-1943, American scientist
>
> --------------------------------------------------
> From: "Pickrell, Rebecca M (TASC)" <REBECCA.PICKRELL at tasc.com>
> Sent: Tuesday, February 28, 2012 2:21 PM
> To: "'Blind Parents Mailing List'" <blparent at nfbnet.org>
> Subject: Re: [blparent] Taking advantage of parenting classes
>
>> Thank you for this.
>> Maybe I'm weird, but I don't spend a lot of time thinking about the 
>> future at least not where kids are concerned. I figured bedtime would 
>> develop as it would and if it wasn't working, I'd find a solution that 
>> did.
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] On 
>> Behalf Of Jo Elizabeth Pinto
>> Sent: Tuesday, February 28, 2012 3:51 PM
>> To: Blind Parents Mailing List
>> Subject: Re: [blparent] Taking advantage of parenting classes
>>
>> The Hadley courses didn't have hands-on lessons like diaper changing. 
>> The
>> courses were more informational.  The pregnancy one described what would
>> happen to your body and how the baby was developing at each stage, how to
>> find a good doctor and questions to consider asking, how to get yourself
>> comfortable at the hospital where you would deliver, what to expect at 
>> the
>> hospital, that sort of thing.  The courses on infancy and early childhood
>> had sections on what to expect at each stage of a child's development, 
>> plus
>> health tips to look for, basic care and tips on dealing with issues such 
>> as
>> sleeping, feeding, toilet training, discipline, whatever the child's 
>> needs
>> were at that age.  There was also good info on the milestones of
>> development, what parents could do to play with a child at his or her 
>> level,
>> warning signs to look for and when to call a doctor.  Like I said, things
>> that were most helpful to me tended to be tips from sighted parents who 
>> had
>> children at each age.  I don't think it was absolutely essential for me 
>> to
>> take the courses, that is, I could have done okay without them.  But they
>> gave me some ballpark ideas of what to expect at different times, and 
>> they
>> made me start thinking about how I would deal with issues as they came 
>> up.
>> An example is that I started mulling over what I wanted Sarah's bedtime
>> routine to look like when she went into a big bed, long before that 
>> actually
>> happened.  I liked the sample menus provided for kids of different ages
>> because I had some idea of what their serving sizes were, variety, etc. 
>> I'm
>> not going to argue the point of whether people should take parenting
>> classes, because that's an individual choice, but I found the Hadley 
>> courses
>> helpful for myself.
>>
>> Jo Elizabeth
>>
>> "How far you go in life depends on you being tender with the young,
>> compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant 
>> of
>> the weak and the strong.  Because someday in life you will have been all 
>> of
>> these."--George Washington Carver, 1864-1943, American scientist
>>
>> --------------------------------------------------
>> From: "Tammy" <tcl189 at rogers.com>
>> Sent: Tuesday, February 28, 2012 1:21 PM
>> To: "Blind Parents Mailing List" <blparent at nfbnet.org>
>> Subject: Re: [blparent] Taking advantage of parenting classes
>>
>>> Hi,
>>>
>>> I never really took a parenting class, but I think what they're supposed
>>> to teach is the basics,diaper changing, child proofing, etc
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: Pickrell, Rebecca M (TASC)
>>> Sent: Tuesday, February 28, 2012 12:49 PM
>>> To: 'NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List'
>>> Subject: Re: [blparent] Taking advantage of parenting classes
>>>
>>> I'm going to rain on this parade, but if you can't really prepare for
>>> being aparent, what's the point of the classes?
>>> I'm serious with this question.
>>> If you can't train for it, why train at all?
>>>
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] 
>>> On
>>> Behalf Of Bridgit Pollpeter
>>> Sent: Thursday, February 23, 2012 3:32 PM
>>> To: blparent at nfbnet.org
>>> Subject: [blparent] Taking advantage of parenting classes
>>>
>>> Jo Elizabeth,
>>>
>>> I agree with you. I didn't mean to suggest it was wrong for Hadley to
>>> offer parenting classes or for anyone to take advantage of such a class.
>>> Like you, even though I have child-care experience, and I have been a
>>> second mommy to Penny for more than a year (complicated story with
>>> Penny) my husband and I are reading a ton of material and looking into
>>> various classes and groups we can participate in. As prepared as you
>>> think you are, once baby arrives, so much changes and a lot ends up
>>> involving common sense and quick problem solving skills, grin,
>>> regardless of a disability or not. My comments were directed solely at
>>> societal ideas still buying into the notion that blindness is an
>>> automatic risk factor when parenting, and that anyone would insist we
>>> "prove" our ability to parent based only on disability. Hadley's course
>>> sounds interesting and definitely something to check out.
>>>
>>> Sincerely,
>>> Bridgit Kuenning-Pollpeter
>>> Read my blog at:
>>> http://blogs.livewellnebraska.com/author/bpollpeter/
>>>
>>> "History is not what happened; history is what was written down."
>>> The Expected One- Kathleen McGowan
>>>
>>> Message: 8
>>> Date: Wed, 22 Feb 2012 15:57:37 -0700
>>> From: "Jo Elizabeth Pinto" <jopinto at msn.com>
>>> To: "NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List" <blparent at nfbnet.org>
>>> Subject: Re: [blparent] Child Protective Services & blind parenting
>>> Message-ID: <SNT116-DS336E8EBA4E5A59E48CB80AC640 at phx.gbl>
>>> Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1";
>>>        reply-type=original
>>>
>>> Congratulations on your pregnancy, Bridgit.  I agree that we shouldn't
>>> have
>>> to prove our ability as parents just because of our blindness.  But I
>>> also
>>> believe that, at least for me, I couldn't be too prepared.  The thing I
>>> liked about the Hadley courses is that there were tips included from
>>> other
>>> blind parents, some of which I borrowed for my own box of tricks.
>>>
>>> I have a file tucked away in a drawer that includes my certificates from
>>>
>>> Hadley, the documentation from the baby care class I took at the
>>> hospital
>>> before Sarah was born, the report from Social Services that says nothing
>>> was
>>> found to be amiss at my house, the letter from the home nurse stating
>>> that I
>>> finished the visitation program, the notes from our pediatrician from
>>> each
>>> yearly visit at which everything was said to be fine, and the results
>>> from
>>> the voluntary test at the health department that told me my daughter was
>>>
>>> developing within normal emotional and social limits.  If and when I
>>> ever
>>> have trouble again, from my own family or elsewhere, I'll be well armed.
>>>
>>> Even Sarah's dad thinks I'm at least a little paranoid.  Once burned,
>>> twice
>>> shy.
>>>
>>> One final thing--I fear the day when every parent has to take classes or
>>> get
>>> certified.  I've heard people suggest that, usually in the context of
>>> teen
>>> pregnancies.  But I know full well that blind parents would have a devil
>>> of
>>> a time passing any class or certification that could be proposed, not
>>> because of lack of ability, but because it would take proving ourselves
>>> to a
>>> whole new level.  Scary thought.
>>>
>>> Jo Elizabeth
>>>
>>>
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>>
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>> the addressee and may contain information that is privileged, proprietary 
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>> Message; (b) permanently delete and/or destroy all electronic and hard 
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>> hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of the 
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>
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