Let's Talk About Words

     Sir Frances Bacon said, "In charity , there is no excess." Most of the times that I have donated to a cause or charity , I have volunteered my time. I have not went without food, clothing or shelter, yet I have never had a excess of money. When I published my Fun4Babies Book , I wanted it to be a success and sell well, as anyone would want when they follow their passions, but I also wanted to raise money for BH Foundation . Since I am responsible for marketing my book, the sale of it has slowed considerably from last Spring. One of the biggest reasons that saddens me is because I am not donating as much to the Bright Horizons Foundation . I will look for more ways in my life that I can give and then give some more. Read my words and see my quotes  at http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com or follow my page at https://www.facebook.com/susanmarie.schulhof.7?ref=hl

     Yogi Berra  said, "You got to be careful if you don't know where you're going, because you might not get there." Today's topic is similar to previous posts about discovering your passions and setting your goals. I even wrote about how the detours of life can still lead me where I want to go. This quote though of turning if I need to means that  sometimes life can present me with opportunities that weren't in my plan, but I should consider them. An example would be the offer to observe and train teachers in other centers for Bright Horizons . I never had that as a goal , but when the offer was presented, I said yes, and I absolutely love doing it. My advice to others would be to set your course but turn if you need to. Read my words and see my quotes  at http://susanmarieschulhof.blogspot.com or follow my page at https://www.facebook.com/susanmarie.schulhof.7?ref=hl

      Buddha offered the advice, "The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, not to worry about the future, or not to anticipate troubles, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly." This advice could not be more appropriate for me today. As my two older daughters are away at college and my youngest is finishing her college applications, I have been missing the past and nervous about the future. As I saw all of the children trick or treating at Deer Park Mall yesterday, I was overcome with feelings of nostalgia and thoughts of how quickly those years went by. As an infant teacher at a Bright Horizons Family Solutions, I often advice mothers of infants and young children to enjoy this time, that it flies by. I tell them to not worry about doing everything "right" and just enjoy it. I am sure that they don't believe me just as I would not have either, but I hope that they heed my advice anyway. At the same moment th...

     Babe Ruth was quoted as saying, "You may have the greatest bunch of individual stars in the world, but if they don't play together, the club won't be worth a dime." I have been at Chicago Cubs games where one player had hit after hit, yet never scored. He needed the other players to bring him home. My daughters all played on their Homecoming Powder Puff games where each team had over 200 players. Each group took the field for only 4 downs; obviously those wins took a team effort . In addition, d uring their years in the Barrington School district, they have had many assignments where they had to work together in a group to receive a good grade. At times they complained when one person did not do their share, but I thought that it was a great skill for the school to teach. Most careers in their future will entail working with others often, if not all of the time.  I, myself, have been working with my co-teacher, Jenny, for over 12 years in an Infant class...

      Shakti Gawain was quoted as saying, "When you're following your energy..., the distinction between work and play dissolves." Over the course of my life, I have worked in retail and in a restaurant, had two different jobs in social work, taught in an elementary school and even tried a job in sales. I enjoyed all of them in some capacity, but I was never really happy in my work until I started at Bright Horizons Family Solutions in 2001. I won't lie and say that every day is great or exclaim that I love getting up every day at 5:30am, but I receive so much joy being an infant teacher that those issues fall to the wayside. I believe that I am a much better mother, daughter and overall happier person because I have a career that I am passionate about and love doing. We work 40 plus hours a week out of 168 hours at our job, so it makes sense that we should find a job that brings us pleasure, most of the time. It is truly a great day, when you can play...

        The quote by Will Rogers states, "Even if you are on the right track , you will get run over if you just sit there." Although you might not get run over, you also won't achieve your goals if you don't move. When I started this blog 39 days ago, I wrote down 3 goals that I wanted to achieve.  They were, in short: 1. Write and publish a fiction book 2. Travel and hike 3. Inspire and mentor/teach others I have written 35,000 words of Riding Waves , and Jim and I are thinking about planning a trip to the Grand Canyon next summer. Hopefully, I am inspiring some people that read my words and see my quotes ; plus I am training other infant teachers for Bright Horizons Family Solutions, so I believe that I am at least on the right track . Now what? How do I make sure that I am moving forward? I know that wishing won't make my goals happen so I need to set some smaller goals and put some time constraints so that I can measure my success and make sur...

     Calvin Coolidge said, "No person was ever honored for what he received. Honor has been the reward for what he gave." Even though we moved to Barrington, when I first got divorced, we had very little money. I struggled to fit in and to help my daughters understand that even though they felt poor in a privileged community, we had a lot more than many others. Through my work, I found a woman's shelter that my daughters and I could volunteer at. Even though they were not even teenagers, they attended a two hour training so that they were prepared to supervise and play with the children living in this shelter as their mothers attende d meetings on site. This was one of the most important  gifts  that I could have given to my children. In addition to realizing how lucky and privileged we really were, we also loved giving of ourselves and our time to help others in need. Now years later, even though I still would like to make the time to volunteer more often,...

                                          I am impressed with other people's talents whether it is in being great at a sport, singing songs, being an award winning actor or various other talents. I have always felt that I am "a jack of all trades but a master of none", meaning that I can do many things but have never been extraordinary at any. Having a gift or talent is something that you were born with or as some call it "god given". I do think that we all have some special gift or talent, but what sets those apart from others is that they realized their special ability and pursued it. That is what they should be proud of; that is what should be applauded. I hope that my daughters discover their gifts and pursue them with their whole heart and soul. At 49, I am still looking for mine.

        How true are Mark Twain's words, "I can live for two months on a good compliment"? When I started out as an early childhood educator in 2001, my Director was very knowledgeable and taught me well. In fact, I often hear her words in my head as I perform my job of taking care of infants. Like I said, she really knew her stuff, but she never complimented me. She felt that as working adults we should not need to hear praise from her. Fast forward a few years, to another Director I worked for. She would leave notes occasionally in the room complimenting something we did, or put a note in my mailbox saying she appreciated how hard I worked. She even now, keeps me in her thoughts when new opportunities for growth in this field come up because she knows and acknowledges how dedicated I am to Bright Horizons. Of course, I was a hard worker with the first Director, but which Director helped me to grow and be all that I can be? Which Director made me ...

        I work at an Early Childhood Center where consistency is very important. The infants thrive on consistent care givers, consistent playmates and a consistent schedule. Is consistency as important for adults? Oscar Wilde claims that "Consistency is the last refuge of the unimaginative." It states that change can help us be more flexible and open minded. In some ways, I am very open to change and new things. I love to travel to different places and explore new places to hike, but in other ways I like the tried and true. I order the same food from my favorite restaurants; I wear the same style and color of clothes and spend much of my free time reading, writing, watching movies or walking. I vow to use my imagination every month to think of something new I can try to have a little inconsistency in my life.

Stamps and Ink    I gave a 5 month old infant a piece of paper and stamps covered in ink. He used his creative and hand eye coordination as he banged and smeared the stamp on the paper.

Susan Marie Schulhof: Fun4Babies Book : I sold an e-book in Australia :)))

Fun4Babies Book: "Row, Row, Row the Boat" :     The children listened as I sang this song to them. I gently rocked them back and forth on my lap as well as in a little boat. Even the 3...

Fun4Babies Book: Reading- What Do You Say? :     The children sat on my lap as I read What Do You Say?   I read the words as they looked at the pages. I encouraged them to touch the pag...

Fun4Babies Book: Fun4Babies article :                                               An article about my job and my book Fun4 Babies :)

Susan Marie Schulhof: I AM DONATING $1.00 PER FUN4BABIES BOOK TO BH FOU... : I AM DONATING $1.00 PER FUN4BABIES BOOK TO BH FOUNDATION/BRIGHT SPACES!

I AM DONATING $1.00 PER FUN4BABIES BOOK TO BH FOUNDATION/BRIGHT SPACES!

Fun4Babies Book: Puzzle Play : I showed the infants a simple 3 piece puzzle with handles on the pieces. They watched me as I showed them how to pick up the puzzle piece an...

Fun4Babies Book: Fingerpainting : Today the infants sat in the high chair one at a time. I taped a piece of fingerpainting paper (smoother paper and harder to make a hole in)...

Fun4Babies Book: I am a teacher! :   I am often asked "What do you Teach an Infant?". I believe that I do teach my infants by the way that I respond to them and by w...