Bilingual NB and the Suffering Workforce

Companies in New Brunswick are no longer hiring the “best” person for the job, they are hiring the bilingual person for the job. Even the very English speaking town of Riverview is making new efforts to seem more bilingual. The worst part is that bilingual can mean anything from completely fluent in both French and English or fluent in French with minimal English. Yet an English speaking person with minimal French would not be considered bilingual. Explain that one!

Additionally, the school system isn’t set up to support a bilingual province. English speaking children cannot attend French school unless their parents; a) attended elementary school in French, b) the child already speaks French or, c) the child has a sibling already enrolled in French school. So where does that leave the English kids? The only choice they have is enrolling in French Immersion in grade 3, which is very different than actually completing school entirely in the French language.

Two years ago, I tried to enroll my son in a French elementary school, but was turned away because we didn’t meet their criteria. It wasn’t enough to have a French last name, or that I was bilingual (having learned French in university) and have a French teacher for a husband. I was told that it would actually be illegal for them to enroll him. It turns out, after doing some research of my own, that they were right. How can we raise bilingual children in a province that won’t let our English speaking kids into French schools??

French speaking people have a very clear set advantage in New Brunswick. When two job applicants are equally qualified, yet one is bilingual, I certainly understand why the unilingual person does not get the job. It’s when the highly qualified applicant is turned away simply because they are not bilingual that I just shake my head.

Highly qualified people are left unemployed and/or are being forced to make major career changes to find employment. They are spending months on employment insurance, while trying to find a job that pays more than their claim, and come up empty handed. We live in a system that sets us up to fail. (Don’t even get me started on Social Assistance!)

The over-emphasis on bilingualism is costing us all millions of dollars and will continue to get worse if the hard push for bilingualism continues.  If New Brunswick wants a bilingual province, they better change the laws on enrolling English speaking kids into French schools and also provide free-of-charge immersion classes for all adults who are willing and able to work.  Otherwise we’re going to end up with an ill-equipped, bilingual workforce and a bunch of over-educated street walkers.

 

 

 

 

Homemade Baby Food vs Store Bought

If everyone knew how easy it is to make homemade baby food, jar food would be a thing of the past.

I have three children and with the first two I fed them baby food from a jar until they were old enough to eat "regular" food like the rest of us. I chose the healthiest options and felt like I was doing the best thing for my babies. At the time I didn't realize that all baby food is irradiated, to kill off any bacteria that may be present. I also didn't realize how incredibly simple, quick and cost effective it is to make your own food. 

With little preparation time, I can make huge batches of baby food for my daughter that will literally last for more than a week. For example, I peel and boil a pot of organic carrots, drain them, let them cool, mash them (or use food processor),add back a small amount of water they were cooked in, pour the batch into ice cube trays and freeze them. Once frozen, I pop them out and put them into a labelled baggy and put them back into the freezer. At meal time, I take out a cube (more as she gets older) and thaw it in a pot or Corningware and serve. Note: Do not heat baby food in a microwave as it heats food unevenly.

You don't have to be a stay at home Mom to make your baby's food. It's as quick as jar feeding, if you plan ahead, and it's healthier and less expensive. One large sweet potato is less expensive, and goes further, than a jar of sweet potato baby food. Time saving tip for sweet potatoes: wash well and then boil them with their skin on. Once they're cooked, the skin slides right off.

Making your own baby food is extremely gratifying. Knowing that you are giving your baby the best food you can and preparing it from scratch is so much nicer than scooping food from a jar and you will save money in the process!

Common Sense

Kids Experience Stress Too

How often do we look at our kids and think to ourselves, or even speak the words out loud, "You have it so easy, kid!" We look at these miniature humans and assume that they experience little to no daily stress because all they do all day is run around and play. Although they aren't dealing with the same sort of stressors that we as adults are it doesn't mean that they don't feel equally concerned or stressed about whatever issues they are faced with. We might feel stressed about paying the bills or our relationships, while they're feeling stressed about trying out for a sports team, being bullied or what outfit to wear to school.

What is worse is that we often take our stress out on our kids without even realizing it. How many times have you completely overreacted to your child spilling their cereal or tripping over their untied shoe laces? Our stress rubs off on our kids and affects their day just as much as ours. Make sure you let your kids know when you're having a bad day, so they don't take it personally. A simple, "I'm sorry I'm so grumpy. I'm having a bad day", can go a long way with a child's interpretation of your mood.

Try not to belittle their stress or reactions. When they have a complete and total melt down over a friend not playing with them at recess, hear them out. Talk to them about it. Make sure that they know you care and that you're there to listen. Their stress, although sometimes seemingly over the top, is as important to them as bigger issues are to us. Try and remember what it felt like to be a kid and how traumatic even the smallest issues felt.

If your child's mood or behaviour has taken a sudden turn for the worse, really sit back and consider the whole picture. Even the smallest change in their routine can cause stress in their lives. Did a parent's work schedule change? Have you been too busy for story time? No change is too small to upset a child. We are less likely to be stumped by their reactions when the change is more significant, like a new baby in the family, parents separating or moving. We forget how big the little things are to a child.

No one is perfect...most certainly not me, but we can do things to decrease the level of stress in our kid's lives. They will have much bigger issues to face as they get older, so lets not burden them by taking out our stress on them. Give them a break. They have enough to deal with already.

WE must not lose faith...

YOU are your own worst enemy

Boston Tragedy

Since the tragic event at the Boston Marathon I can’t help but think of my own family. How many times have we been at the finish line when my husband has competed in a race? How many times have my kids stood there innocently cheering Daddy on?

When I learned that one of the 3 people who died, as a result of the bombs, was an 8 year old boy, just one year older than my son, the whole situation hit me on a much more person level. An innocent child died, while likely waiting for a friend or family member to cross that finish line. It should have been a joyous event and instead it became a horrific tragedy.

How can we have any piece of mind anymore in taking our children anywhere? They aren’t safe at school, in movie theatres and now at marathons. How can we have any piece of mind when there are people out there who will commit these unthinkable crimes?

I want to find the light in the darkness and focus on the incredible people who have come forward and helped in whatever way they could following this tragedy...but I find myself feeling very concerned for the future of the world my children live in. I find myself wondering what kind of person packs nails and random shrapnel into pressure cookers , with the obvious intent of killing innocent people, and then sets them off at the Boston Marathon. What went so wrong in their lives that they chose the dark side and not life?

My thoughts and prayers are with Boston, the families of the 3 people who passed away, the other 170 or more people who were injured and also all of the physically unharmed, but mentally scarred people who were present at the marathon. This event won’t soon be forgotten.