It was a sunny morning, those ones that are hot before they get started. It was a day with a dual purpose.This was the day for my trip to meet with H.E. Janice Miller, High Commissioner for Jamaica to Canada. Her Assistant Ms. Andrea McPherson had so kindly rescheduled a meeting to present my book “I Like Me: 5 Easy Ways For Parents To Help Their Children Feel Awesome About Themselves”. The other purpose was to use this day to build my granddaughter’s self confidence in a unique way.
We loaded into the car with lots of fruits, snacks and litres of water. Nothing like being pe were prepared for a long drive to the Capital city of Ottawa. This was unusual for the middle of the week. But I had an important reason to be up that early dressing my half -asleep granddaughter, coaxing her into the car. All without her favorite pillow!
We had decided the night before to make it a trip and bring the little one with us. And that’s how you get an impromptu trip with a preschooler, a long car ride and a happy ending. Who said it couldn’t be done.
It was great weather the entire day. We arrived in Ottawa to see sunny skies and busy streets, lots of construction and gorgeous old and new buildings. Finding parking was tricky but we lucked out when we asked a local for help. Splitting up was next so I could get to my meeting and my granddaughter could tour the museum with her mum.
When we got to the office of the Jamaican High Commissioner we were welcomed graciously. During the meeting Her Excellency and I spoke about her understanding of family as a universal concept and a place for sharing. Her Excellency was very supportive of the infusion of Love in the SHINE technique. She too believes that showing love is a very important part of self-development. I was honored to share and explain my book and new parenting technique with the High Commissioner. Our discussion was rich and I appreciated the opportunity to listen and learn while promoting “I Like Me”.
One serious point that came up was the benefit of children living in environments where their self-esteem is supported. The research shows it is highly unlikely that these kids will take part in deviant behavior in their adulthood. This was something that the Office considered a very valuable lesson that could be used in many stages of youth guidance programming.
The Commissioner was also very supportive of the book and shared recommendations for connections/partnerships that she thinks will benefit from using the book.
A day in Ottawa the capital city with my granddaughter!
After visiting with H.E. Mrs. Janice Miller, I was able to spend some quality time walking around the Capital City with my granddaughter. Remember there was another purpose to the visit that was to build my granddaughter’s self confidence in a new way. It was amazing for her to see the Parliament buildings and to be able to speak a little about Politics. She visited the Canadian museum of Nature where she made earthquakes and volcanoes and saw extra cool dinosaurs.
On our way out of Ottawa we visited Maman outside the National Gallery of Canada where we faced our fear of spiders in a very BIG way. Then we passed by the Kitchissippi Lookout, and just as we were about to stop at the Westboro Beach to take a dip I saw my granddaughter was zonked out in the back seat with a smile on her face to boot.
Success is ……..
Now that was a successful trip if I ever had one; A successful presentation of my book “I Like Me: 5 Easy Ways For Parents To Help Their Children Feel Awesome About Themselves” BUT most special was the happy, fed and FULL, quiet, SLEEPING granddaughter in the backseat.
This trip showed me how those 5 easy ways are effective in making the 5 year old feel good about themselves. It takes time but it is not difficult to build your granddaughter’s self confidence when she is out of her familiar environment. Kids learn new things. They interact with new people. They realize that they can speak with people they do not even know. As long as the love and security is present in the group, all is well. This will always reassure her and settle any fears.
She had an amazing time and absorbed so much on this impromptu trip. Thank You Ottawa for the awesome weather and the wonderful sights.
Photo Credit: Anne Worner via Compfight cc