Thursday, February 28, 2013

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Cool amusement park


One of the things Europeans do best are building amazing spaces for children to cultivate their abilities. Junibacken park in Stockholm is no different. It encourages kids to handle hammers, nails and saws! (yes, crazy, I know!) and at the same time teaches them (and their parents) how to defeat their fear of letting go and built trust.
It's also based on the characters of Astrid Lindgren books and if your child is a fan of Pippi Longstocking, he or she won't be disappointed. The train that takes you through the park actually ends in Villa Villekulla!
So if you are planning to go to Stockholm with your kids, don't miss the opportunity to visit this spectacular park and the largest bookstore in Sweden.

Sunday, February 24, 2013

Saturday, February 23, 2013

On judging mothers



When you become a parent, many things change. For me, one of the biggest surprises was the outlook on parenting of everyone who had a child. I am not going to lie. Before kids I was very opinionated about how should people raise their children. I had answers, I was pretty sure I could do it better. And then I had my own. And never judged again.
Judging in general is a very sensitive subject of controversy itself, yet I feel it should be discussed when it comes to parenthood.
There are many of those who still judge despite the fact that they are parents themselves. I once met this mother, who seemed to have an opinion about just everything. A little girl was throwing a tantrum in the middle of the mall and this woman started to blame every single member of the girl's family. There is a saying "you will never understand a person until you'll walk a mile in their shoes" and I can't agree more. Raising a child is not easy. No, it is extremely difficult and all these beautiful ideas we had before we became mothers collapse as soon as the baby comes out into this world. Every child is different, so the technique you use for your kid is not necessarily going to work for another. Unless it is this scenario. Then you can judge all you want:).
We live in a society that is obsessive about personal freedom and if you remember this article, which I am sure you saw around at some point, in all honesty, it was blown out of proportion. Why couldn't mother breastfeed her child as long as she wants? Is she hurting him? Is she doing it just for her selfish reasons? We don't know that. All we know is that she is a mother. And mothers do what they think it's best for their child. Usually.
So next time when you see a situation that makes you feel uncomfortable, try to be a little bit more open minded. I promise, it will make you feel better about yourself.

Photo found here.