Wow, take a look at our 8 year old starlet in full make up for her stage school yearly production.
She looks, well, too grown up - thankfully the red lippy is being kept strictly for the theatre productions. It's not for the first time I have pondered the speed of time. I swear it goes faster when you have children. I know and you probably know all the naysayers who warned us " They grow so fast, enjoy them while you can"...... yes, well, they were so right.
She looks, well, too grown up - thankfully the red lippy is being kept strictly for the theatre productions. It's not for the first time I have pondered the speed of time. I swear it goes faster when you have children. I know and you probably know all the naysayers who warned us " They grow so fast, enjoy them while you can"...... yes, well, they were so right.
And, so I don't encourage that much engagement with the normal trappings of 8 years olds today. I don't want them to grow up so fast. Hence, my support of the spontaneous punch and judy puppet show on Sunday night.
Emma, as the drama queen was narrator (take that as THE BOSS!)and took pole poistion behind the sofa and the other two had leading roles.
All was boding well for an evening of imagination and story-telling. Until, a row broke out. Tempers were lost and feet were stamped, puppets were removed from the scene by two angry little boys. look at her downcast face!
Normally, I would bounce over, rescue the victim and give the others a piece of my mind.That of course, normally, leads to a pair(or two) of red, crying eyes staring back at you filled with recrimination. Its not a feeling I enjoy. Sometimes the words "It's not fair" ring a little true.
Emma, as the drama queen was narrator (take that as THE BOSS!)and took pole poistion behind the sofa and the other two had leading roles.
All was boding well for an evening of imagination and story-telling. Until, a row broke out. Tempers were lost and feet were stamped, puppets were removed from the scene by two angry little boys. look at her downcast face!
Normally, I would bounce over, rescue the victim and give the others a piece of my mind.That of course, normally, leads to a pair(or two) of red, crying eyes staring back at you filled with recrimination. Its not a feeling I enjoy. Sometimes the words "It's not fair" ring a little true.
But not this time. I've been watching Naomi Aldort on YouTube and her short videos are amazing and practical and sensible. So I gave it a go - I tried validating (and found that I still struggle with this - i just don't know what to say), so I just kept repeating "yes, I understand that you wanted to do the puppet show." I said this a couple of times and thought - this is never going to work! But lo and behold,in about 5 minutes they all clambered onto the sofa for me to read aloud to them.
Naomi teaches respect. Respect for yourself and for those around you.I don't like it when someone shouts at me, so why on earth would they? Empowerment is the one thing more than anything I want to instill into the kids - the ability to listen to their own voices. I hope to give them the tools to stand strong and be individuals, to revel in their own uniqueness.I need to learn how to facilitate this, to turn myself into a listener, a respecter and not a shouter. I think my copy of the book will be well thumbed somehow but I am grateful for those sites who pointed me in theright direction. Thank you friends.
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