An all day sort of post.....

Plunging stock markets, dollar at an all time low to the Swiss Franc, polar bear killed a British school boy...... the world is not a happy place at the moment. And I haven't mentioned unemployment rates, soaring prices, or the weather.

Hello.

I have been trying to write a post for most of the day, and I have deleted thousands of words, had a major rant and then thought better of it, and am now sitting here with a big blank where the words once were. However, it was very satisfying to write them down. I start on something and then go and wander round the garden. delete, write some more, wander round the kitchen. Delete. Sigh.

My brain has gone on holiday. Unfortunately, it left the rest of me behind.

So here are a few things to ponder....

• What did you want to be when you grew up? Or...what DO you want to be when you grow up? (Age is irrelevant.)
• Do you think that a blog called ALL ACCESS should restrict book giveaways to only US readers? All access? Maybe the name should change.
• Do you have a dehydrator and is it worth buying?
• What are you watching on TV?

Ah, I think this would amuse some of you - I was listening to a radio programme which was discussing new governmental directives for early years monitoring of children. You can read about it here . They have a new 5 point plan, which apparently includes praise and affirmation. One wonderful caller raised a pertinent issue the government appears to have missed. That if little Johnny is raised on praise and affirmation alone, he will have a really tough time in life. Praise and affirmation are essential, of course - I really do believe that. However, balance is also important. Little Johnny needs to recognise that he can be wrong, make mistakes, be disobedient, and that there are consequences he has to learn to deal with before he hits the classroom. Like discipline. Rules. Respect. And all over the land, teachers were cheering. So was I. 

Too often, kids are raised believing that they are perfect and can do no wrong, and that the universe clearly revolves around them, and finding out that it doesn't is a bit of a shock. A mega shock. One ex head teacher raised some valid points here . 

But you know what, it starts so much earlier than that. What if, instead of one or 2 ante-natal classes the week before the baby was due which is the norm now), young first time mums, instead, went to weekly classes for 6 months, which included antenatal exercises, feeding and caring for children, early years development, and everything that encompasses? Other mums could bring their babies to the class once they had given birth, and the actual reality would go a long way to making things easier for them later . 

You see, the single greatest problem is that there are no longer older Mums around to help or guide any more. Sally Clarkson raised this issue last week. Here in the UK, people either have to work (the government wants every single person to work, including mothers of young children) and that means Grannies are also at work now, instead of being around to teach and help. The cost of living, or most specifically, housing, means both parents have to work, so child minders or nursery staff have more contact with young children. And modern day demographics mean that families go where the work is and all live hundreds of miles from each other. 

It is a recipe for disaster. 

The extended family no longer exists. Children need time and love, and parents who understand the responsibility which comes with raising a child to adulthood. Stay at home Mums need enormous respect, instead of derisory comments. Being a mother is a career. I heard someone say "when I embarked on the career of motherhood..." and it was like a siren going off in my head. It is a career. One of the toughest in the world.

Aiyaiyai. 

I got on that soapbox again, didn't I. Right. Enough for now. I did not intend writing any of this, but enough is enough and I am going to watch NCIS.