Dunn & Wilson Scholarship 2005

At the ALIA Library & Information Technicians Conference neXt 2005 I was presented with the Dunn & Wilson Scholarship. This blog aims to present a reflection of my research progress on secondment opportunities for Australian Library Technicians in all library sectors.

Tuesday, September 12, 2006

Mother's Group, Morning Tea and Gaga Boo Boo

I have not fallen off the planet, unlike many of you may have thought. I have merely rested one aspect of my life - kind of like sleeping with one eye open!! So I'm back to post something of interest - I hope!

Yes I found one benefit of (internal) secondments (for organisations) that I did not mention in my paper - that is the cost saving, i.e. you do not have to advertise externally. A small point I know, but certainly one worth noting.

So what have I been doing during this "rest" period. I have become a Butterfly Wings Child Parent Program Facilitator - www.butterflywings.com.au I see this as yet another way of gaining new skills as I teach child carers (be they parents, grandparents, babysitters or day/child carers) how to interact and bond with their children through nursery rhymes, songs and storytelling. Not only have I learnt those skills but also funding applications - my application for D&W really helped when applying for funding through government and other associations. You will be happy to hear that one of those funding applications has come through and I am eagerly awaiting on another which is looking very promising.

Mother's group has been taking up a lot of time although it is only held one morning a week, it does extend to morning teas with other mums at other places, shopping outings, picnics and zoo visits - http://www.alyandxavier.com/mothers%20group.htm

And of course, my daughter, Anaki is the main source of my lack of "research" time. She is now 7mths and very interactive but still as demanding as ever. I believe I really underestimated the time a baby takes and how much time I'd have for other endeavours - needless to say I have had to cut back in some areas, e.g. deferring from uni studies for a semester. I have not lost sight of D&W, I have merely lost time in being able to sit and get on with it. However, many thoughts are in my head as to where I am taking the research and it is still on track - according to my timeline.

Enough rambling! Remember if you do have anything to share please do so!!