Becoming a new parent is a challenging time! A parent who leaves the paid workforce to be at home experiences not only the major changes of new parenthood but also often unexpected feelings and questions related to being an at-home parent. This Spring, Family and Home Network is re-launching our Transitioning Home parent discussion groups. During this six-week series of meetings, we’ll cover many topics including:
· Expectations, personal identity and the potential for personal growth
· The needs of infants and the critical mother-infant relationship
· Myths and realities of a home-based life
· Family, community, cultural influences
· Finding support and resources
We’ll meet online, using Google+ hangouts. We are offering FREE groups for first-time parents whose infant who was born between June and November 2011. (If you aren’t in that category, please tell us if you’d like to participate in future groups.)
Transitioning Home discussion groups will include up to 9 parents and a facilitator from FAHN; meetings will last 90 minutes. A workbook will be mailed to each participant (FAHN asks for a modest, voluntary donation of $10 to cover the cost). The workbook includes many essays (from the archives of our journal Welcome Home) for reading between meetings, reflection/writing opportunities, and both individual and group exercises.
Discussion group meetings will begin the week of February 26—this offer is open until all available spaces in groups are filled.
We would really appreciate your help in spreading the word about this opportunity! Below is a very brief notice you could copy and paste into an email message for neighborhood email lists or parent groups. For more information, and to indicate your interest, please see the Transitioning Home webpage.
