Saturday, June 21, 2014

Mothers have this power

"Life can never be perfect, but mothers have the power to make it a little better, a little better, and a little better."
—Sandra Dodd

La vida no puede ser perfecta, pero las mamas tienen el poder de hacerlo un poco mejor, un poco mejor...
—translated by Yvonne Laborda
hands, choping cheese to go with chips, fruit, veggies
unschooling.blogspot.com
photo by Karen James

Friday, June 20, 2014

Don't send the bill.




Change takes time. Don't send the bill. Don't "be nice" for two months and then say "I was nice and you weren't any nicer to me!" Be nice because being nice is better than not being nice. Do it for yourself and your children.


SandraDodd.com/betterpartner
photo by Sandra Dodd
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Thursday, June 19, 2014

Knowledge and experience

You can't and don't need to "trust 100%."

You need to see the progress in your own children's life. Then it's not "trust." It becomes knowledge and experience.
dyad, canal, colorful houses
SandraDodd.com/knolwedge
photo by Rippy Dusseldorp

Wednesday, June 18, 2014

An atmosphere of support

"Don't become emotionally invested in your child's choices. If you want to invest your emotions, invest them in creating an atmosphere where kids feel supported in trying what appeals to them AND turning down what doesn't."
—Joyce Fetteroll
SandraDodd.com/choices
photo by Sandra Dodd

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Character traits

Pam Sorooshian wrote:
wall-mounted brass bell by a wooden door, decorated with flowersHomeschoolers think a lot about learning—but they often focus on learning to read, write, do math, or learning science or history, etc.

Unschoolers tend to take that kind of learning for granted, it happens along the way. Instead, as we get more and more into unschooling, we tend to focus on things like kindness and creativity and honesty—all those character traits that will determine "how" their learning will be used in their lives.
—Pam Sorooshian

SandraDodd.com/nest
photo by Sandra Dodd

Monday, June 16, 2014

Whirl and twirl

With extra energy, people can do two things at once. If one of those things is pattern-building and physical, that whole verbal part of the brain is still available. Working on patterns in silence allows one’s mind to whirl and twirl. Doing something non-verbal while talking has a special advantage: Silence is not awkward.

More on each end? Patterns in Silence
photo by Sandra Dodd
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Sunday, June 15, 2014

More positive


In a world of choices, every choice that moves one toward positivity (hope, optimism, joy, sweetness, peace) and away from negativity (cynicism, anger, disdain, dismay, pessimism) is a solid step toward "better" (IF the person wants to be more positive).

In a world of partnership, when one partner is more positive, the partnership is more positive.

In a home with a mother, when the mother is more positive, the family's life is more positive.

SandraDodd.com/choices
photo by Sandra Dodd
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