Thankful

Lance and I attended a workshop today about adoption. What else! Hehe

I don't have time to write much but I had to acknowledge this. The focus of a lot of the sessions today were how our pasts and the examples that were set from our parents strongly relate to our ability to nurture and relate to our own kids. There was an entire hour session about healing pasts hurts in order to be emotionally available to your child. We explored all the styles of parenting (e.g., authoritative, authoritarian, permissive and negligent). Story after story was shared about how hard it is to be a strong authority for your child, while permitting them to have a voice. They discussed the need for structure and nurture to be hand in hand and the problems that can arise when a parent was never given a good example because there parents were either totally permissive of totally the strong authoritarian.

I would like to think I will be the "ideal" style that will promote a sense of confidence and safety for my child. Who really knows. But I do know that I learned from the very very best and am so thankful for the foundation I was given. My parents and Lance's parents are playing more of a role than they know in our children's lives!!

Thanks mom and dad for being such a wonderful example of how to parent in love and kindness!!