Un conventional parenting?

I walked in to the salon the other day to get my hair done, and the girls were all laughing at me b/c my child on my hip was clenching tight to a celery stick.

They were all shocked that she not only was eating it, but that she LOVES it! I was told that I do things so differently and such.

So this got me thinking. Am I doing things that are just out of the norm?

We definitely try to do a wholesome parenting style

Here are a few things we like to implement

  DIET
. As far as her foods, we like to make her baby food. So there are a lot of things that she hasn't gotten to try yet that just aren't ( or haven't been in season) so the baby has had every kind of squash known to man. She loves them. Lots of sweet potatoes, peas, green beans etc. I just go to my local farmers market and gather up a bunch cook them and freeze them in big bulk. I also only work 20-30 hours a week. So my schedule allows. So if I can save money and assure that my baby is getting great food, why not? We are still nursing, and plan to do so until she is 1, and then I will just let her wean herself from there. She is already done with the bottle. When she does get milk with out me around she just gets it in a sippy cup now. We will continue to keep her on a healthy lifestyle with her diet. I try to keep in mind that she is a kid, and she will want suckers and candy and such. But this doesn't mean that she can have un limited ( anything) amounts of it. I say ( for myself too) 80% healthy, 80% of the time. So that is a little wiggle room. :-)


DISCIPLINE
We will teach her responsibility at a VERY young age. We will discipline ( teach) with natural consequences. The example I like to use is " you picked the neighbors flowers.... Oh no, what toy are you going to re pay mrs. so and so for her flowers? .. Also we are going to write her a letter apologizing for picking her flowers" So this will in a way " humiliate " your child. But it will " humble'' her too. She will think twice before picking something that isn't hers.  Another example I like is " it's time to clean up,  whatever toys I clean up, I get to keep in my room, and I will get to play with them ... Whatever you clean up, you can keep " I bet they will scramble to get their things quick." This is the style we have chosen to go with. It's teaching her to take responsibility not only for her feelings and emotions too. I want her to know that it's not always going to be easy. And that I won't be able to make her feel less in some situations. There for I want her to know how to deal.  It seems preposterous anymore to expect your child to clean up after themselves, or help with the laundry or set the table- But I bet she will learn a life skill of responsibility and have the confidence to make it through life. This is called LOVE AND LOGICS. I've been to one of the classes and really got a lot out of it! I will definitely get the books and the other teaching sessions for sure. I encourage all the mommies to check it out! I bet he is on YOUTUBE also. In this teaching it's about cause and effect. You forget your lunch, you will be hungry ( obviously for older kids) -- Etc.... Natural consequences.

EDUCATION
We also have Anisten enrolled in Parents AS teachers This program is designed for children 0-3. This means you can start before your baby is born. It is through the public school systems and we are designated a teacher who we meet with on a monthly basis...  She evaluated Anisten and scores her based on her skills, age and such. We have monthly lessons, like things we need to work on for each month of age. For instance this month we are working strongly on face features, and walking. So, in this case they are able to tell you your babies strong and weak points and give you exercises to encourage your baby in specific areas. We look forward to this visit each month. Lucky for me, my great friend Jessica is my teacher, and we LOVE her!!! Also this program will transition her in to school, and get her ( and MOMMY) as prepared for school as possible. They offer lots of classes ( such as the love and logic class I mentioned above) and play dates almost weekly.

MORALS
We want to raise her in church just as we both were. These values must be a strong part of her make up. This is something we both feel so strongly about. 


So these are a few of the things that we incorporate into our lifestyle as a family and as parents. I'm just wondering how out of the ordinary is this? We want to make sure she has a healthy well balanced life. And for me that means going above and beyond to do what I can to make sure that she does this.

This doesn't mean at all that I look down on parents who don't do the exact same thing as me. This is why it's called parenting. Everyone has their own style! I love learning new things from other Mommies that I can incorporate in to mine.

So what's your parenting style? What are some things that are important to you as a parent??