March 2024
Training Alert!
We have a date in April flagged for our first Ongoing training for the year. April 11 has been marked for Cultural Awareness training at Allambi. We will confirm details in an email that will be sent to all Carers. As usual, morning tea and lunch will be provided so if you are able, come along and spend time learning with other like-minded Carers and your care team.
Fun days!
We have Fun days scheduled for the July school holidays and the September/October holidays. Keep your eye on the newsletter for details closer to the dates.
DO YOU KNOW ANYONE WHO IS INTERESTED IN BECOMING A CARER?
Across NSW there is a real shortage of foster carers, and there are children and young people who are in dire need of placements. If you know someone who is interested in becoming a Foster Carer, please encourage them to reach out and contact the Allambi Care Fostering and Permanency Assessment team to have a chat about the different ways they could help.
Whole Brain Strategy #9
SIFT: Paying attention to what’s going on inside
I found it difficult to find the time to apply Whole-Brain Strategy #9. SIFT stands for Sensations, Images, Feelings, and Thoughts. We want our children to learn to pay attention to their physical sensations so they can understand what’s going on in their body. The idea is that our children can do the following:
“… SIFT for images that are affecting the way they look at and interact with the world … SIFT for feelings and emotions they are experiencing … Thoughts are different from feelings, sensations, and images in that they represent the more left-brained part of the SIFTing process. They are what we think about, what we tell ourselves, and how we narrate the story of our own lives, using words.”
The goal is to use these four areas to help our children understand what is going on inside.
We had a life event that we knew affected our oldest daughter, but we were having a difficult time finding out why or how to help. After discussing with some friends, we realised we had never talked our daughter through the event — the birth of her little sister.
Fourteen months ago, we welcomed our youngest daughter, Maggie, and Elise got a new little sister. While we spent three nights away from Elise, she was lovingly cared for by her grandparents. The only hint we had that anything was going on with Elise was that she was always up, dressed, and playing in her room before any of the adults were up (so before 6am). In retrospect, she was probably still processing the stress of those three days and nights when her parents weren’t at home with her.
I think for the first 6months of adjusting to two kids we were just doing damage control. Then as my husband and I began to regain our wits, we started getting more in tune with Elise’s needs, but we were still running into problems when we made plans to do something in the evening or when my husband needed to travel. As we continued to give Elise the support she needed, we started dreaming about being able to get away for the weekend. But we were nervous because we didn’t want to suffer any setbacks since it took us so long to recover from her little sister’s birth.
Following the advice of some friends, we used Whole-Brain Strategy #6: Use the Remote of the Mind to revisit the days around Maggie’s birth. The first time Elise and I talked about it, she didn’t say much, but the next time was very enlightening. As I walked Elise through each day and event, she revealed what she had been dealing with. She told me that she missed us while we were gone, and she asked me if they needed to use scissors and if I was worried about the tools in the hospital hurting me. I don’t remember telling her anything of those things, but she did come into the hospital room while I was in bed with an IV.
I asked her, “Were you worried I was going to get hurt?” Her answer was yes, accompanied with tears. Then as we talked about the day, we all left the hospital together, Elise asked if my legs didn’t work because I had to leave the hospital in the wheelchair, so we talked about that too. Then we pulled out Maggie’s baby book and ooh-ed and ahh-ed over the tiny baby and remembered the happy memories (Whole-Brain Strategy #7: Remember to Remember). And as we remembered that time 14 months ago, we also talked about how we felt sad and worried at that time, but those feelings changed and now we feel happy and joyful (Whole-Brain Strategy #8: Let the Clouds of Emotions Roll By). And after we went through that whole process of remembering and talking about emotions, I finally understood Whole-Brain Strategy #9: SIFT: Paying Attention to What’s Going on Inside.
Elise had these images of hospital tools and thoughts of my legs not working and residual feelings of worry and sadness. And until we took the time to talk her through that event, she was probably always going to be plagued by those thoughts, images, and feelings when talking about mom and dad spending a night away. Now, I wish I could tell you that my husband and I just got back from a relaxing vacation, but we haven’t. I am hopeful that when we plan a trip, we will be able to talk Elise through some of things she’s thinking and feeling about us leaving.
We hope we can enable Elise to let go of some of the worry and sadness, and if we’re successful, we won’t spend the months that follow untangling the emotions incurred by a few nights away. Also, if we’re successful, our daughter will be able to better focus on wrapping her grandparents around her little finger while we’re gone.
10 simple child and family-friendly Online Games
The University of Sydney’s Research Centre for Children and Families have information on ten child and family friendly online games that you can play with your children and young people. They include the following:some are free, some have a cost.
If you would like to read about each game in detail, follow the link to:
10 simple child and family friendly online games - PSP Learning Hub
My Forever Family
APRIL 3 | 10am to 12pm | Online | When good intentions are not enough
Let’s take a deep dive into the highs and lows of foster care and explore the impact that it has on our capacity to care. How to respond to challenging behaviours expressed by children – what is blocked care?
Facing the realities of foster care can challenge the best of us. If you are feeling as though you are stuck in a negative mind frame towards a child in your care, you may have entered ‘Blocked Care’.
APRIL 3 | 7pm to 8pm | Online | Teenagers: Preparing to leave your care
Our young people are growing and getting ready to leave the system. The transition from adolescent to young adult is a tricky one, especially when our teens have experienced trauma. They find themselves in a developmental period where social interaction and connection to unpaid adults in their lives is so crucial.
APRIL 4 | 10am to 11am | Online | Catch up for a Cuppa with the Carer Support Team
This session will be an open platform guided by the Carer Support Team, who will be there to answer your questions and provide resources to support you.
APRIL 8 | 10am to 12pm | Services Australia- How to access services for all Non-Parent carers.
Keeping on top of payments and entitlements can be hard for non-parent carers. In NSW, Grandparent Foster Kinship Advisers support non-parent carers. They offer tailored information about payments and support services, arrange appointments with specialist staff such as social workers, and help provide access to government services including Centrelink and Medicare.
For more information or to register for these training sessions go to:
Training opportunities for carers - My Forever Family NSW
School holidays are coming up - here's a fun recipe to enjoy
Super Easy Jelly Cookies
INGREDIENTS:
250 grams softened butter
¼ cup castor sugar
1 egg
2.5 cups of plain flour
85-gram packet of lime-flavoured jelly
85-gram packet of Raspberry flavoured jelly
85-gram packet of orange flavoured jelly
¼ cup boiling water
METHOD:
- Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until pale and creamy. Add egg and beat until combined. Sift flour over butter mixture and beat until combined. Divide dough into 3 equal portions.
- Place jelly crystals into 3 separate bowls. Working with one flavour at a time, add 1 tablespoon of boiling water to each bowl and whisk to combine- the crystals will not dissolve completely. Add the dough and stir until combined. Wrap in Plastic wrap and shape into an 18cm long log. Freeze for 30 minutes. Repeat with other flavours.
- Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius and line baking trays with baking paper.
4. Remove one log from the freezer. Slice into 1cm rounds and then roll into balls. Place on tray 3cm apart. Repeat with remaining dough logs. Bake for 12 minutes or until light golden. Cool on trays for 5 minutes- transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
5. ENJOY!
