All my nine classes (yes, 9 different classes on 9 different topics) at Education Week really turned out pretty darn well. Of course I can think of tons of things I wish I'd said and done (as always), but overall, things seemed to come off quite nicely. People made great comments and were so appreciative and complimentary. I met lots of really inspiring moms with great ideas and questions from all over the country.
An extra-cool thing was seeing lots of moms with little babies in our classes. They've always had a "no children of any age allowed" policy at Education Week - but after seeing moms passing off their nursing babies to husbands or friends last year so that they could attend bits and pieces of classes on motherhood, April and I talked to the administration about the idea of having a "Mom Track" this year where nursing babies are welcome (and where all the motherhood-related classes are grouped in the course manual and in one building so they're easy to find). It's so important that there be every possible opportunity for moms to be with other moms, learning, sharing and growing - and if some moms waited to every attend a motherhood workshop until they didn't have any nursing babies, they might be waiting a long, long time. The idea caught on and it was fun to be part of the first "Mom Track" at BYUI Education Week!
Here I am with April and Allyson, my wonderful Power of Moms friends who also presented as part of the Mom Track this year. It was great to get a few minutes of time with them between all the classes we were each teaching.
Here's what the kids and Jared were up to while I was off teaching classes:
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3 comments:
I'm supposed to be working on the book now that the dust is beginning to settle from that whirlwind we called July!, BUT I just couldn't resist peeking at your great posts. Wish I could have been there. You have truly accomplished something wonderful with this Mom Track! I've been thinking that needs to be done for years! Now on to the big guy...BYU Education Week!
I have never read your blog before, but I absolutely love the fact that you stood up for nursing mothers! I had a baby last July, and had plenty of sick time saved up to take maternity leave. When I attempted to turn in my doctor's excuse stating that it was in my son's best interest for me to stay home with him to nurse, the district denied me ten weeks of pay. I was fortunate enough that we had saved up enough money not to worry too much, but I think it is ridiculous for people to put timelines and restrictions on women just because they have infants and small children.
Thanks for standing up for us :)
I can't tell you how grateful I am for the Mom track! There was no greater irony to me that nursing moms could not learn about motherhood and family! Who needs it more? Thank you, thank you, thank you for your efforts to change that!
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