Pregnancy Conference/Brochures

This coming October i will be a part of a conference for teen moms here at the local public schools. There will be a few speakers and workshops, as well as a merry-go-round, where the moms can go around to different booths and speak with people in the community! I will have a booth, which i am very excited about. My topic is "reading to your baby." I am especially excited because i find reading to be one of the best things you can do to help your child develop and throughout life challenges! You need to be able to read to get anywhere in life and excited to express my love for reading with and to your child!  I will be giving a little demonstration and passing out books! The moms will also have met me by then because i will soon start visiting them in school and begin supporting them through their pregnancy! I can not tell you how excited i am to be working with them and helping them through their pregnancy.  I love being able to be there for them and learn from them along the way!

Along with the booth, i will be attending babes and tots classes here at the local library. I was asked by the coordinator to create brochures to put in the library for moms and families to pick up. Here are some topics as of right now.

 breastfeeding
reading/literacy
tummy time
getting ready for school
importance of exploration
child development stages/milestones
what to do if your child is bullied
proper nutrition (mom and the baby) and portion sizes
child behavior
potty training
how to eat right when pregnant/help what do i eat?
postpartum depression
smoking
first trimester
second trimester
third trimester
pregnancy dos and donts
what if my baby has allergies?
getting ready for baby - their room, what to pack for hospital
sibling rivalry

The classes are for moms with children up to the age of 5, if you can think of anything else that one may be curious about during pregnancy, after, and for the toddler years, please let me know! Suggestions on what you were wondering as you where going through pregnancy or things that you needed help with after the baby was born. Any suggestions would help! I will post the brochures/newsletters as i create them! The class runs 8 weeks long and plan on creating a new one for each week along with a few to keep in the library as well!

a big thanks to my cousin!

My cousin Amanda just recently had her first baby! She had some extra formula, 8 containers to be exact, that she is donating to AmeriCorps for me to give to the moms that have chosen not to breastfeed and cannot afford formula or may need it during hard times. Thanks a bunch for your kindness, it will be greatly appreciated!

Nayeli!!!!

Here is the new kitten! Isn't she cute!

Confusion

There is some confusion about my graduating from MSU. I am in the process of finishing my last course to complete my degree. I walked in May but have to finish this last course to complete it! In the brochure, I didn't want to lead anyone on and cause any confusion.

My Brochure

This is my brochure i created to hand out to local businesses and to get my name out there! As you can see, its a tri-fold, double sided brochure, i just couldn't get it show it like that on the screen! Let me know what you think!

 

 

Inspiring Poem

This poem was read to us at our MIHOW training during the three days of training. I find that at times I didn't listen and need to remember how to listen to someone! I used to be such a great listener, but something happened, which I'm not sure why. But being a better listener is something I am working on!

LISTEN

When i ask that you listen to me
and you start giving advice
you have not done what i asked.

When I ask you to listen to me
and you begin to tell me why I shouldn't feel that way,
you are trampling my feelings.

When I ask you to listen to me
and you feel you have to do something to solve my problem,
you have failed me, strange as that may seem.

Listen! All I asked was that you listen,
not to talk or do - just hear me.

And I can do for myself; I'm not helpless.
maybe discouraged and faltering, but not helpless.

When you do something for me that I can and need to do
for myself, you contribute to my fear and weakness.

But, when you accept as a simple fact that I do feel what I feel,
no matter how irrational, then I can quit trying to convince
you and get about the business of understanding what's
behind this irrational feeling.
And when that's clear, the answers are obvious and i
don't need advice.

Irrational feelings make sense when we understand what's
behind them.

So, please listen and just hear me. And, if you want to
talk, wait a minute for your turn; and, I'll listen to you.

Adapted from: Hospice of Schenectady

ARE YOU LISTENING?

MIHOW program

Here is the website for the MIHOW program. It helps explain exactly what i will be using in terms of the curriculum!

mihow.org

And so it begins!

The past few weeks have included some hours of extra sleep and getting to know my new kitten, nayeli! The apartment is finally coming together and starting to feel like home. I will post pictures at a later time! But this past wednesday through friday was devoted to AmeriCorps training in Lexington, KY. Here i met many great people and generated a great excitement! For those who don't know what AmeriCorps it is a program that sends out members to serve in their communities for one year. Each program has their own goals and projects. My specific program is called the SUCCESS Corps. At this time there are 7 full time members serving throughout the state of Kentucky. Our mission is to give every child a fair start. The program uses a strength-based curriculum called MIHOW, which is a program out of Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tennesse. The MIHOW curriculum follows the mom during pregnancy and then after the baby is born up to the age of 3. I will be doing things such as teaching the importance of pre-natal vitamins, check-ups, to showing them the importance of tummy time and breastfeeding. With MIHOW, i will be someone the moms can use as a place for information, support, and an open ear. I will help them with appointments, services if needed, and a provide them with a caring heart. I cannot tell you how excited I am to be working with future mothers and their children. As you all know, I love children and take interest in the amazingness of pregnancy. Children are something to be celebrated and bring joy to many as they do me. I cannot wait to take what i have learned through my experiences being the oldest of 4 children, babysitting starting at the age of 12, and my schooling in elementary education. I hope to help and spread my love! I will make a difference.

I will be going to my site in Richmond this coming Tuesday to start my orientation with my site supervisor, Debbie. My office/site is at the Headstart central office. Through Headstart, I will be getting to know some of the families and gaining some moms to work with through them. I will also help in the classrooms at times. I will be doing a monthly service project, my first one being this coming Saturday! More details will follow.  I will be trying to get out into the community as much as I can and to get to know the area as well. This is the beginning of something amazing! I hope that everyone will take something from my experiences as will I! And so it begins, my adventures as an AmeriCorps member!