Mothercraft {Part II}

Thought I'd share another section from my newly purchased 1950's manual on how to build a healthy family.

(Photos are from our annual family trip to the lake.)

Play

"All children need things to play with and a place to play. But it isn't necessary to provide expensive toys to keep a child constructively happy. Anything he can hold and handle freely will fascinate a young child. Common household objects like pots, pans, spoons, clothespins, cartons, the garden hose, a tub of water and dozens of others, may be excellent toys for small children. In most cases the child can be taught to adventure without hurting himself or breaking anything, but if there are accidents he should not be scolded too severely.

A child should be welcome in every room in the house as long as he behaves with reasonable consideration for others. This applies to the kitchen too, where even little children may sometimes "help" with a meal.

Wise parents always try to find ways for their child to do the thing he enjoys doing, instead of trying to stop him from being active. They try to find out how to make the things he wants to do safe for himself and for others. Then they let him go ahead to his heart's content."

A Sense of Humor

"When household chores pile up for Mother, when Father comes home tired from a long day in shop or office, and Johnny is especially trying-- when you feel you can't take another thing-- then is the time of times for a sense of proportion and, if you have one, a sense of humor! There's nothing more relaxing for both parents and child than a good laugh together. When you are tense and tight, your child gets worried. When you are relaxed, he relaxes too. A good corny joke that child and grownup enjoy together helps keep the atmosphere in the home easy and good-natured.

Laughing with a child is a very different matter from laughing at him. Remember always that even the youngest child has his dignity to uphold. When he is teased or laughed at he feels very small and helpless, as well as insecure. Making a child feel small shows fundamental disrespect for him, and a lack of sensitivity to his vulnerable spots."

Mothercraft {Part I}

Alistair and I decided to head to the dollar bookstore this evening for a little browsing. We both love reading and I found the coolest book. Lately I've been thinking that the American family unit has forgotten some important basics. Some of the older foster parents that I work with seem to have something in their families that this modern era doesn't deem necessary. When I saw this book I thought perhaps I could find some pearls of wisdom in regards to family. The book is called "The Complete Book of Mothercraft: A Collection of Expert Advice for Successful Parenthood"

Prepare yourself for a time-warp as it was published in 1952. The language in itself is entertaining and I like what it says about various aspects of home life. Read with a grain of salt.

What Makes A Good Home

"A good home depends primarily on parents who have formed a going partnership. This doesn't mean that they never disagree, or even that they never quarrel. But it does mean that the parents have some sort of united front and have come to an understanding on the major principles of child rearing. If they have done this, their children will know it and will take the minor disagreements in their stride. A child's sense of security is based on the feelings of people around him far more than on his parent's financial condition or the material things they give him.

Parents don't have to be perfect. Nobody should expect them always to be controlled and calm; parents need to blow off steam occasionally. If it doesn't happen too often it may clear the atmosphere all round. If one hold's to a fairly consistent course, their children will weather the minor upsets."

Children Need Two Parents

"To children, Father and Mother represent everything that is manly and womanly. They tend to model themselves after their parents; when they're young their dearest wish is that some day they may be like them. If one or the other parent is missing from the home, this vision becomes blurred, and the child's conception of what a man or woman should be like tends to be confused. A serious breach between parents, with or without separation, is always a threat to a child. He is tempted to use one against the other for his own interests, or is torn with doubt as to whose side he should be on. If he sees his parents permanently angry and hateful toward each other, it's harder for him to master his own anger and his own aggressive impulses. The rock on which his house is built is no longer a rock, but something unsure and shaky."

Hmmm... interesting.