I am a little bit behind with my blogging, for a very good reason! Just yesterday I completed all of the course requirements for my PhD program. I am really truly very pleased and proud of my perseverance! Thus far, being a full-time mama to a newborn and studying part-time has proven to be my biggest challenge. There were many days when I wanted to give up, however, instead I worked slowly each night when S was asleep and eventually it all worked out!
If you are a parent out there reading my blog, know that your goals can still be achieved... They just require a little extra focus and determination. Plus a whole lot of help and support from your close family and friends!
This blog post is dedicated to Fathers. My last graduate course was about Family Literacy, as I am hoping to tie family involvement into my research. Within our lectures and readings, I learned more information about early literacy and how family literacy programs support children and their parents. I was especially intrigued by the material on the topic of Fathers, and how their participation and modelling of literacy behaviours is essential to our youngest learners. It is therefore, my personal mission to work closely with my husband (who is not an educator) and try to teach him some strategies for interacting with our son. So far he has started to read Dr. Seuss books to S, and spends a lot of time talking to him while they play. No matter how many hours I am with our little guy, he always seems to enjoy moments with his Daddy and laughs even at the sound of his voice.
Mothers have an undeniable bond with their children, but this doesn't lessen the relationship that can be created with their Dads. For my husband's first Father's Day, S and I made his gift using a golf theme. When he grows up, we have already discussed starting him with soccer and golf from a young age. I also plan to teach him piano and introduce him to the wondrous world of inquiry and creativity!
For the Grandpa's (Papou in Greek) we also photographed S wearing an outfit that reminded us of them. My Dad loves to garden, so S gave him some children's gardening toys for them to play with when he gets a little older. Ari's Dad is from a Greek island called Corfu and enjoys fishing and cooking fish. Naturally, we found a fishing rod and magnetic fish for them to use in the future!
I had a lot of fun coordinating the props and outfits to style his mini photoshoots and presents:
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| Ruby couldn't resist joining in on all the fun! |
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| Gardening outfit from Old Navy. Props from Dollarama. |
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| S laughed the entire time we tried to photograph him. I think he anticipated the sun moving closer to his face! |
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| Ruby actually loves to dress up. |
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| Nautical top is from the Gap, sailer shorts are from Marshalls, shoes are from Old Navy, and fishing rod set is from Dollarama. |
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| How cute is my little fisherman? These are two of his favourite books! |
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| Golf outfit is from Children's Place, I love daddy bib is from Wal-Mart, hat and shoes are from Old Navy, and onesie is from Nike. Golf props are all from Dollarama. |
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| The love each other! Today Ruby slept on Sebastian for the first time. It was so sweet! |
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| Final products! Frames are from Dollarama. |
Here are some images of their process and time together:
(S is 5 months old- already! It looks like he will become tall like his Daddy!)
Wishing all the Daddy's out there the very best, and hoping that you had a wonderful Father's Day too. Please stay tuned for more blog posts in the coming weeks. I will share information regarding #CTInquiry registration and have a fun Summer giveaway contest that you won't want to miss!
What fathers do with and for their children
is much more important than whether
fathers simply co-reside or have frequent contact with them.
(Gadsden, 2012, p. 152-153)
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