[blparent] Joining a mommy and me group

[Kia Vaca]

Hi,

I have been taking my daughter to a mommy and me group since she was 5
months old, and she is now 13 months. Since I am a pretty reserved
person, this was a huge step outside of my comfort zone, but I’m so
glad I did! My daughter has only known our close friends and family;
so it was important that we get her to interact with other babies and
other people. The class has, and is still, making a big difference. It
has helped my daughter to adapt better to different situations and
different people.

Just to give you another perspective on mommy and me classes, our
class is more structured. First, we start off the class by allowing
our babies to acclimate themselves to their area. In our case, the
class is held in the lactation room of the hospital where my baby was
born. All the mothers and babies come in and play for a bit. Next,
there is music time where we all sing songs with hand motions. By the
way, I stay after class and work on the hand motions with the teacher
so that I can do them with my baby. Next, We read a book or two. After
that, we go around the room and introduce ourselves, along with our
baby, and share something positive that our baby has done within the
past week. We also share one thing that each of us are working on as a
parent. This class has been amazingly helpful for both my daughter and
I. Not only is there a time for my daughter to play and interact with
other babies, but there is also a time for me as a mom in which I give
and receive support from other mothers.

I’m not going to say that it was easy for me to go to the mommy and me
class because it wasn’t. I started by forcing myself to speak to other
mothers in the class, even if it was only with the mothers sitting on
each side of me. Then I worked my way to speaking up during the
discussions, and slowly, the mothers began to become more comfortable
with me. The most important thing to remember is that if you are
confident in yourself, and comfortable with interacting with your
baby, the other mothers will see you as a mother who only happens to
be blind. I encourage you to continue your search for a mommy and me
class that is welcoming and supportive. Find a way to attend. You and
your baby will be glad you did.

Kia