By Mireille McKee, Director & Teacher
Welcome Little Wonders Families,
Fall 2020 will be very different from any other Fall we've had and we are embracing it with excitement!
With our theme this year, "Commitment to Community: Together or Apart", we are poised to continue to do what we have done for the past 26 years: bring together families with young children and support you on your journeys through parenthood.
This will certainly look and feel different from the past, but we are confident in our ability to achieve our goal. When asked about what makes Little Wonders special, our parents will often share similar comments such as, "It is a great place to build connections and friendships with others who have similar aged children." At this juncture in our lives- with the pandemic- this is a very relevant benefit of our program. Little Wonders still provides a safe space where parents can come together, albeit on Zoom, to check in, share and support one another through the ups and downs of parenthood.
This year, with all the uncertainty, we have been asked by our alumni to extend our support to parents with older children and we have accommodated this request. We are grateful to our alumni families for their steadfast support of this program and look forward to our continued opportunity to play, learn and grow together.
Six months ago when this pandemic began, I wrote about a silver lining. I'm guessing, after being home working and doing school all in the same house, that togetherness is wearing on all of us. Parents of young children have one of the toughest jobs at times like this, where they need to continue to work, help school their children, manage a home and their personal lives. Where is the time for self care which is so desperately needed at times like these?
I recently heard this shared, "The best resource that you have right now for making a contribution to the world is YOU." At Little Wonders we have facilitated many discussions on self-care, but this topic has never been more important than now. With the ambiguity and challenges in today's world, our children look to us for safety, security and a sense of well-being. It is more important now than ever for parents to invest in self-care if we are going to be able to help our children through these tough times. Our parent discussion times serve as a weekly 90 minute session for YOU! Many have called it the most reasonable therapy session ever! We welcome you to join us and see how we can support you so you can be the best YOU possible during these difficult times.
The staff is crafting discussions that will encourage conversation and sharing on issues ranging from child development to self-care, including the topics of motivation, race, media use, mindfulness, raising children to be adults, stress and pressure on parents and children, helping children balance school and fun, and much more. We hope you will enjoy and contribute to the discussions as you build connections with the other parents and continue to build community for your growing families.
I know we will all rally to create an open, inclusive and empathetic environment that will make this an amazing year.
With abundant gratitude,
Mireille