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GBS Awareness Group B Streptococcus Disease

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In: Lived Experiences, More

“I felt mesmerised looking at my newborn baby…little did I know that very soon I was going to receive the shocking news of GBS that turned our world upside down…” I am a mother and trauma survivor; this is my story. On the 3rd December 2019 at 4:05 am sharp my husband and I welcomed our beautiful baby girl. We both felt overjoyed and at the same time surreal, as our little girl arrived 4 weeks prior to her due date. Our Christmas present came earlier that year- little did we know what was in store for our family.  As our baby rested during the dayRead More…

domestic abuse

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In: Blogs, Mariposa's Blog

No one is perfect, neither is a family, regardless of how ‘picture-perfect’ it seems. Conflicts and disagreements are part of any relationship: they can improve who we are and the relationships we are in. However, when taken to the extreme, these can have horrible effects on the people primarily involved, as well as those watching…usually children. This is exactly what happens in domestic abuse situations. From an outsider’s point of view, my family is perfect: my father works very hard in order to provide food on the table, my mother provides everything else for us, and my siblings and I get along quite nicely. WhileRead More…

sarah everard murder

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In: Blogs, Mariposa's Blog, More

The name Sarah Everard travelled the whole world in less than one month, as the beautiful woman behind it disappeared in South London on the way home from her friend’s house. Days after, police confirmed that the remains of the deceased body they had found were in fact Sarah Everard. This horrible incident led to an outpouring across different types of social media from women sharing experiences of harassment and assault, as well as what they do to feel ‘safe’ while walking the streets. While reading, I too started remembering and identifying some actions that I am used to doing while I am out. Actually,Read More…

fathers and online schooling

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In: Home and Family, More

Following the publication of an article I wrote a few days ago named Online Schooling in Malta and its Devastating Effects on Working Mothers, certain women reacted negatively to it, stating that the effects of online schooling is not just being felt by working mothers, but by all mothers as well as fathers. And they were right. As a writer I focused on the devastating effects on women, forgetting the many fathers that are actively involved in their own children’s upbringing on all levels, including their education, and for this I apologise. One particular father reached out to me in reaction to my previous article.Read More…

emergent curriculum

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In: Home and Family, More

The emergent curriculum is an organic teaching approach that helps in the development of young children. This approach, which is still relatively new and is constantly growing and evolving, is currently being introduced by teachers in the early childhood settings. The emergent curriculum promotes collaboration between children and educators, giving both a voice. Teachers are encouraged to build on the children’s likes and interests so as to promote responsiveness. In such settings, the educator takes on the role of a facilitator, observes what would be happening, and gives the children a chance for more discovery, deeper digging, and further knowledge construction by planning their activitiesRead More…

online schooling in malta

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In: Education, More, Women

Many have dreaded the closing of schools for months for obvious reasons, yet it happened again. As from the 15th of March 2021, online schooling in Malta was introduced for all school-aged children with the hope of curbing the increasing COVID-19 infection rate in the Maltese Islands during the National vaccination process. Unfortunately, this move has proved to add a lot of tension, insecurity, instability and stress on most families with children, with working mothers being the most negatively impacted by this strategy. Many mothers have felt a dire need to vent their concerns on social media in the past few days, including on theRead More…

acknowledging children

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In: Home and Family, More

As a 2nd year University student following a degree to become an early years educator, I have learned a lot about the importance of acknowledgment. Acknowledging children and their efforts is both the educator’s and the parents’ or guardians’ responsibility, and it has numerous effects on the children’s development. We need to view the children’s efforts as valid and truthful, as well as honour and respect them. In this article we will be looking at how we can recognise opportunities in which we can acknowledge children, as well as the ‘acknowledgement language’, advantages, and what happens when the children’s efforts go unnoticed. Recognising opportunities toRead More…

low self esteem

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In: Mariposa's Blog, More

I always surprise people whenever I start talking about my memories. “You have such a great memory!” they say. However, I know that this is not always the case. I forget simple insignificant things, yet when it comes to thoughts that my subconscious mind deems meaningful, they seem to be imprinted in my mind forever. Whilst writing this I realise that the images that keep replaying in my mind when I am feeling down have all contributed to my low self esteem. It’s unbelievable how one word spoken to us during our childhood can have such an impact on us throughout our life. I rememberRead More…

preimplantation genetic diagnosis

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In: Lived Experiences, More

I’m a 38-year-old Maltese woman living abroad, I was first diagnosed with unexplained infertility at 33 and at 37 I was diagnosed with endometriosis, that explained my infertility. From my long IVF journey, I’d like to shed light on why embryo testing is crucial – this is medically known as Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis PGD. Unfortunately, embryo testing is currently not available in Malta. Firstly, due to my stage 4 endometriosis that spread through my uterus and ovaries, I only produce a maximum of three eggs with each cycle, and this only when stimulated, and therefore a tested embryo with very few eggs is very importantRead More…

you're the worst mum ever

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In: Home and Family, More

“You’re the worst mum ever!”, shouted my 6 year old angrily at me this morning, coincidentally on Valentine’s day. I must admit, as a mother I’ve always experienced that doubting voice inside my head whispering tauntingly, “are you really a good mum to your children?”. And whilst I believe I have been doing the best I can as a mother for almost 20 years, hearing those words still felt like a knife cutting right through my heart. See, my way of being a mother may somehow differ from the way other mothers follow in the upbringing of their children. Having become a mother at 18Read More…