MINNEAPOLIS -- Sure, it takes a village to raise a child, but even the most experienced villagers need a little refresher now and then.
Steven Wahlquist has raised three children of his own, and when given the opportunity to look after his first grandchild, he enthusiastically agreed. But not without first learning how to be a grandparent.
Jerry Holt/Mineapolis Star Tribune/MCT
Steven Wahlquist takes care of 8-month-old granddaughter Arianna Dahl recently at his home in Stillwater, Minn.
"I didn't remember everything about babies, and so much has changed anyway," the Stillwater, Minn., man said while feeding 8-month-old Arianna Dahl a bottle.
So Wahlquist, 57, and his wife signed up for the New Grandparents class at Lakeview Hospital in Stillwater to learn the ropes of grandparenting. Despite the fact that babies are pretty much the same as they've always been, grandparents like the Wahlquists are enrolling in classes to discover changes in labor and delivery, and how to care for a newborn.
"Now they say babies should sleep on their backs, not stomachs," he said. "And they say no screen time until the child turns 3, all new things to me."
Prenatal classes for grandparents are designed to give expecting grandparents skills that combine their wealth of knowledge and experience with modern ideas and practices.
Among grandparents in their 60s and 70s, 51 percent say they have helped their adult children with child care in the past year, according to a 2009 Pew Research survey. And according to Grandparents.com, 72 percent of grandparents care for their grandchildren on a regular basis.
"Now entire families embrace the new baby," said Maureen Tumulty, a longtime labor and delivery nurse, and coordinator of the childbirth education program at Lakeview Hospital.
About a dozen grandparents gathered at United Hospital in St. Paul, Minn., recently to brush up on their skills at the Expectant Grandparents class. Some signed up because they will be helping to care for the baby. Others came because their children asked them to.
How many of you have heard of the back-to-sleep campaign?" asked Annette Klein, a registered nurse and parent educator at United. "How about car seats? If I put a car seat in for my grandchildren the way my kids' car seats were put in, I probably wouldn't be allowed to drive with my grandchildren."
The two-hour class also covered tips to nurture relationships with grandchildren and be supportive of adult children at a challenging and life-changing time.
Source: http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2012/mar/04/grandparents-get-refresher-course/
lake vostok montgomery county public schools the river dr dog ke$ha earl csco
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.