I don't think there's a parent anywhere in this world who wouldn't agree - once the pregnancy test showed a positive result, your life as you knew it has come to an end. Moms know it too well. Dads still have a while (nine months, in most cases) to get used to the idea, but for moms... right from the start, their bodies change, their habits begin to change as well. Once the baby is born... goodbye, old life!
I remember seeing the pregnancy test showing me two lines - on a Valentine's Day, no less, back in 2007. Although I never went nuts over this holiday (its marketing value really kills the mood for romance :D), the day has ever since held special importance to me. Absolutely everything has changed for me from that day on - and I've learned... to expect the unexpected.
My daughter has a few particularities. She communicates only with people she likes. She's had difficulties expressing what she wanted with words, although she had no trouble explaining herself using other means available. She started to speak when she was four.
She has photographic memory; she has artistic skills - she plays the flute and she wants to learn to play the guitar (she'll do that next year, when she's physically grown enough to handle an acoustic guitar). She draws and colors beautifully. Her creativity is... awesome.
Her practical intelligence is very good. She learns fast studying nature, doing things with me or my parents, or when they have practical activities at school (e.g. knitting, pottery classes). She has an unusual way of thinking. She doesn't use logic - that's why she doesn't like math - but she's highly intuitive. She is able to make unexpected correlations.
On the other hand, she's highly sensitive to her environment. If she doesn't like you, she won't communicate with you at all. If she likes you and you ask her questions that annoy her, even if she knows the answers, she won't give them to you. She's quite willful.
I went with her to a couple of specialists and she's been diagnosed with ADHD and delayed speech development. (But that's another story.)
My girl started attending kindergarten when she was 3 years and a half old. When she was 5, I found a Waldorf kindergarten and I enrolled her there. At age 6 she went to the Waldorf school in the area. She accepts the Waldorf teaching ways and she enjoys going to school. She likes learning new things. She likes her teacher. The only problem is that there are 30 children in her class and her teacher can't give her all the attention she needs in order to help her fully develop intellectually.
In a couple of weeks she's supposed to begin second grade at the Waldorf school. But...
...My sister called me about 3 days ago to tell me about a special school in our native town. This school accepts students who can't adapt to the normal educational system. All the teachers there have a degree in psychology. The kids learn both in class and outdoors. There are also several kinds of free support the kids get, which we don't have here - free counseling, after school and some other stuff. The most important thing is there are less children in a class, so they get better support from their teachers.
The idea is to get her to this new school and when she has acquired all the knowledge she now lacks (math, mostly - that is, she needs to develop the ability of thinking logically), we can move back to B... and get her back in the Waldorf schooling system, which is by far better than the traditional way.
I plan to visit this special school in a couple of weeks, to see exactly how the teachers there can help my girl. If all is well, if she likes it there (we'll visit together), then we'll move.
A huge plus for her is that my family will be close by. They love her a lot and she thrives from all that love.
Here I am, seriously considering moving from B... to my native town, to allow my daughter get better support in her learning process. Who would have thought?!...
My friends in B... are in shock :). I got used to the idea, pretty much. It's my responsibility to give my daughter the best - to my abilities. It's what feels natural to me.
And, you know, change is good - I never enjoyed routine, anyway :) I'm excited by the idea of meeting new people, making new friends, being close to my family for a while.