Why I've been so busy (and not blogging) lately

The project I've been working on for the past couple months has finally had it's unveiling! Some of you may have noticed a new link in my favorites list on the right. I've been working with a team of four other women on Cherished Children API, a new local chapter of Attachment Parenting International. The five of us have been hard at work arranging speakers for our meetings, doing advertising, creating a website, coming up with invitations and documents, etc., all for this new group which we are very excited about!

The premise behind Attachment Parenting (AP), for those of you not familiar, is:

Attachment Parenting is a philosophy based in the practice of nurturing parenting practices that create strong emotional bonds, also known as secure attachment, between the infant and parent(s). This style of parenting encourages responsiveness to the infant or child's emotional needs, and develops trust that their emotional needs will be met. As a result, this strong attachment helps the child develop secure, empathic, peaceful, and enduring relationships.

AP consists of 8 ideals for infants and 8 ideals for school-age children.
The 8 ideals for infants are:
1. Preparation for Childbirth
2. Emotional Responsiveness
3. Breastfeed your Baby
4. Baby Wearing
5. Shared sleep and Safe Sleeping Guidelines
6. Avoid frequent and prolonged separations from your baby
7. Positive Discipline
8. Maintain balance in your family life

The 8 ideal for school-age children are:
1. Become knowledgeable about your child's development and cognitive levels.
2. Stay emotionally responsive.
3. Strive for optimum physical health.
4. Maintain a high-touch relationship.
5. Develop and maintain positive sleep routines.
6. Be present and available for your children.
7. Use positive discipline.
8. Maintain balance in your life.

To be a member of our group, one does not have to practice all of the 8 ideals, but the most important thing in AP is just "listening" and responding to your baby/child's cues. You can read more about it on either the Cherished Children or API websites.

My official title in the group is Newsletter Editor and I am nearly finished with our first newsletter installment. I've had so much fun working on it and I learned how to use MS Publisher in the process. I'm really happy with how it turned out as well. I've also taken some pictures for use on our group website.

I'm excited that our group is really well-organized and professional and it is my hope that that will help us become a big success. We have speakers lined up for our first three monthly meetings, which begin in September, and we'll also have monthly play dates, as well as an online support group. There's so much potential for this group to grow and add more things to serve the AP community.

So anyway, that's a big part of why I haven't been around much (bloggin') lately. I think once I have the first newsletter done and I finish contacting potential advertisers, things will slow down a bit. But until then, it's busy busy busy.

I'm so happy to have found a great group of women who all have the same vision of spreading the word about Attachment Parenting and to be able to offer a means of support to those who choose to do it. :)

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"Be the change that you want to see in the world." -- Mahatma Gandhi