Sandra Dodd

Marina DeLuca-Howard wrote something stunning in another thread. It
was message #141 in the topic thread called "So, what do you tell
people? Was: to bathe or not to bathe?"

That was too deeply buried for the glorious message it held, and so
I've rearranged part of my website so it can be here, and easily found
from other places:

http://sandradodd.com/respect/marina

I think reading it again isn't enough. Maybe some people could print
it out, or send it to a friend or another unschooler who might not be
on this list. Really, it's huge.

While I was in there checking links, I found this and thought it might
be helpful for the current discussions:


"Unschooling didn't blossom until I stepped away from traditional
parenting."
Mercedes / mulwiler on the UnschoolingDiscussion list
http://sandradodd.com/chores/option


Sandra

k

It's going on my refrigerator. And I only have one other unschooling thing
on there: http://sandradodd.com/being which is very much related.

I see glimpses of Marina's experiences between Karl and us, and I think the
more we respect Karl, the more he will reciprocate.

~Katherine



On Mon, Mar 8, 2010 at 11:50 AM, Sandra Dodd <Sandra@...> wrote:

> Marina DeLuca-Howard wrote something stunning in another thread. It
> was message #141 in the topic thread called "So, what do you tell
> people? Was: to bathe or not to bathe?"
>
> That was too deeply buried for the glorious message it held, and so
> I've rearranged part of my website so it can be here, and easily found
> from other places:
>
> http://sandradodd.com/respect/marina
>
> I think reading it again isn't enough. Maybe some people could print
> it out, or send it to a friend or another unschooler who might not be
> on this list. Really, it's huge.
>
> While I was in there checking links, I found this and thought it might
> be helpful for the current discussions:
>
>
> "Unschooling didn't blossom until I stepped away from traditional
> parenting."
> Mercedes / mulwiler on the UnschoolingDiscussion list
> http://sandradodd.com/chores/option
>
>
> Sandra
>
>
> ------------------------------------
>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Marina DeLuca-Howard

The funny thing is when my dh John went to bed he commented on how cute it
was Rowan and I were hanging out on a Saturday night. That's when I
realized the meaning behind those smiles and vague comments from moms with
younger kids going past us.

John also gave us the space to be together, telling us to enjoy our videos.
If your spouse competes with the kids for your attention or with you for
their attention--unschooling and family relationships in general won't work.


John got nostalgic for when Rowan was three or so, and he actually drew the
parallel about how our relationship with our son started with all the
power/responsibility on the adult side and all the love, respect, and
patience flowing to our son. Now, he is seeing flow both ways, and with our
two younger kids at a sleepover, John was able to celebrate the journey. I
was too busy hanging out with Rowan in the moment to see any of it on
Saturday night:) He reflected on what an amazing kid Rowan is and what an
amazing patient open-minded man he is growing up to become. The next
morning he was talking to me about how wonderful it was to hear Rowan and I
chatting and laughing.

We ended up watching Abbot and Costello shorts on youtube and some cartoons.


I realized how quickly time flies and just how happy I am I didn't listen to
naysayers, but instead listened to my son and my instinct. The thing about
being an unschooling family is none of it was "strange" to me, and it wasn't
until later on that I realized why it might seem so odd to others. It seems
so sad that a mom and her teenager eating, laughing and watching a movie
should be so unusual.

Marina


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]