mandalas and the first days of school

school was about to begin and homeschooling still was not in the cards for me this year so i chose the next best thing. we transitioned my daughter to a new school. it was a big decision to make. in making the decision, i sought support and i was able to make a decision from a calm and peaceful place. of course, some family was supportive and some family can not think of possibilities outside of what they know. in the past, i was one who let myself be overcome with stress in making such a big decision. this is such a huge progression for me. thank goodness i am getting more sleep.

coming up to the first day, i have been waking up earlier each day in preparation for the start of school. i wake up before the children and i am greeted by a rising sun that casts a warm glowing light throughout our downstairs. i am able to get a coffee, start breakfast and start the day slow. these are my first days of waking before the children and i remember how great it is to start the day this way and it is definitely a time that one can have a little mama time :) wink wink  

my mind was busy and i could have found a hundred things to do on that first day, but i didn't. i was conscious to keep a slow pace. i spent time with the little guy, we started the dance between inhaling and exhaling, bring more rhythm to our day. while the little one napped, i enjoyed some tea, read a little and worked on some mandalas. the house was noisy, mostly answering the little one's calls to his "sissy" but yet the house felt quiet. i am missing my little girl terribly.

here's a link to the mandalas above
more mandalas here

the mindful connection - children as healers

i listened into the mindful connection webcast with kristie burnes of earthschooling. she discussed "children as healers"

at preschool level - parent modeling natural healing
- reflexology to heal headache
- calendula for healing burns
- herbal teas for stomach aches
- lavender essential oil on pillow to help them sleep

- use lavender oil on doll that is hurt
- plants herbs in garden and harvest them
- tea tins in play kitchen, mortar and pestle

at kindergarten level - bridge between family and school life
- play creatively, poems and songs
- snacks they help set table and light candles, seasonal crafts
- simple stories that feature healing or herbs ie. 3 bears>porridge is healing food, little red riding hood>basket of goodies with mint tea and herbal remedies, peter rabbit> chamomile tea
- adapt stories to be closer to home
- offer healing properties of food and herbs with meal, ie herbal tea, alfafa, berries, dandelions, salads with violets and clover you find in the yard, apples with cinnamon and honey, carrot juice, spearmint tea, hibiscus tea, chamomile tea
- drops of essential oil in watercolor paint
- simple sewing or make potpourri
- teach them to make herbal infusion - tea - certain amount of time and certain measurement

1st grade (7 years)
- complex fairy tales, Rapunzel, name of herb
- german fairy tale, children searching for herbal remedies or healing plants
- stories from nature, talk about plants
- when painting, beginning color therapy, how do the colors make you feel? what do you think about this color?
- form drawing, circles, iris, iridology chart
- advanced finger knitting, every 3rd one add a healing gemstones
- stories with the personalities of the elements, wind, fire, earth, water
- make aromatheraphy candles
- make your own herbal block crayons
- natural dyes


2nd grade
- fables and saint stories
- model for overcoming adversity
- how plants help overcome advesity too
- stories of healers
- painting plants, talk about what plants resemble
- form drawing, reflexology
- talk about how does the fire effect you? what is your relationship with the fire?


rules of safety
1. use only what is safe and you know
2. heal only small injuries and aliments
3. ask for adult help or guidance
4. ask permission before healing another person

3rd grade
- children wonder where they belong
- old testiment, spiritual literature
- learn about higher power
- healing garden
- edible flower garden
- make herbal syrups
- explore temperaments, painting and drawing, how the colors interact with each other


4th grade
- history / geography of their locality
- local environment, local herbs, farmers market, nature center, plant identification walks
- eating seasonal local foods
- visit local healers
- human/ animal kingdom, more advanced reflexology 
- Norse mythology, a rich history of healing
- teaching temperaments, does hot pepper relate to wind, fire, earth or water


5th grade
- botany
- complex herbal identification
- kids to use herbal identification book
- what element do you think this person is?


6th grade
- temperament theory
- south america - rainforest and how it relates to healing
- geology, how healing gems are formed
- answer questions about how things relate in a scientific way 


* it was said to start with what you know. begin at the preschool level and build from there

websites mentioned:
the BEarth institute

there is nothing to do and no where to go

jennifer louden spoke on the mindful connection 

 she started off with a poem by marc nepo

"...there is nothing to do and no where to go

 excepting this,

we can do anything and go anywhere"

living our soul's work

be present to what is

let me be with what it

what could i do in this moment right now to feed us

are you going to order out

what would i really love right now

this is our life to shape

this is our life to create

mindful questions remind you that you have a choice

remember that you have a set of glasses on at any set time

and you are seeing the world in only one way

but you are just a little fish to experience

you are a creator

you create your life, you do not have to around reaction to it

you have nothing to do and no where to go

what your natural strengths and talents

and strength them, repeat for positive benefit

build your lives around your strengths

a lot of freedom that comes from living your life the way

weaknesses are things that weaken you

drain your energy, exhausts you

come up with some creative things or simply don't do it

who says i have to cook dinner? who says i have to iron?

mindful questions 

what do i want?

what would i love to do next?

what are your desires?

self-care becomes more of a way of life, not just at the end of the week after your "work" is done

i want to live a life that cares for me

what do i desire

what is interesting me

what is calling to me? what do i desire? pay attention to your desire and following it

let yourself be nourished by it

follow your desires, they nourish you

what our soul is hungry for

self care are simple and available and free

if you get 15 minutes, grab onto it whole-heartedly

1. if i am in hyper alert mode

dialogue with the parts of yourself that is hyper alert

these parts of you are afraid, what are they afraid of??

2. start at the level of the body

choose relaxing music to calm your brain down

choose something physical to transition yourselves

giving yourself mindful transitions

3. keep log or chart for taking care of yourself

how you felt before you took care of yourself

how you felt after you took care of yourself

exhasted?

if you need rest, get to bed early, make up your sheets, use lavender soap in the shower

do it with love and intention

yoga nigeria= relaxation technique

how do you handle something that exhausts you that you have to do, ie cleaning?

so much of what exhausts us in life is the conversation that it should be different than it is

get curious how you could lower your standard around "cleaning" and asking for help

we assume that there are things that need to be done by us, why?

sandwich it between things that strengthens you

what makes you think that the world will need?

get curious

self care = an attitude of lightness

get to a place where we can be deserving of pleasure and kicking back in the middle of the day, make a 3 column list

1. what do you have to do?

2. what could you do?

3. let go of?

(buddism) the problem is you think you have more time than you do

today may be the last day that you get

let's show up for it, let's enjoy it, let's stop and reflect

let's reflect , have a cup of tea, catch up with our souls, and then go on to do the next thing

i trust that the choices i am making right now are based on (what i know in this moment)

trust in your deepest experiences of meaning

i am living my purpose

my purpose is unfolding through these kids (homeschooling)

i am engaged and strengthened

i did something, i feel engaged with life

i feel alive

deflect negativity

websites mentioned:

thelifeorganizer.com    52 weeks of mindful questions,

the comfort cafe   monthly subscription

comfortqueen.com

yes

i am inspired by this posting at ordinary life magic. 
 

happy mother's day

every day is a gift in life to experience their loveliness. happy mother's day to all the mamas!

(trying to capture a ppic with my children still)

treasure hunter

:: my daughter is a treasure hunter. she explores and uncovers treasures where ever she goes. 

when we simplified her room and the play area, i uncovered a little collection of treasures she has found through the years. treasures i remember seeing when she found, but did not know she was holding on to each and every one. one of the first treasures she dug up in her digging area was a little colbalt blue vicks eye drop bottle. i remember doing a google search which dated the bottle back to around the time our house was built. there are pieces of brick and pottery, pieces of pennies and a broken plate. most recently, we were learned the techniques for panning and had the opportunity to pan for gold that came from a mine in angorage, alaska. 

aside from these treasured that she uncovered with a shovel and rake, she has been gifted lots of treasures while visiting family, from volcanic rock from iceland, shark's teeth, polished gemstones, rocks and crystals from india, marbles to an oyster shell. and while sometimes family thinks they have to buy her toys and things, i wish they would know that these natural treasures mean much more to her. 

happy saint patrick's day

happy saint patrick's day. i was up a wee bit late last night, inspired by this posting from golden sun family from years ago. it is a fantastic idea.

the magic and wonder that it brought this morning was so beautiful. her initial discovery was the wee little book and she wondered where it had come from, who's it was, what was it going to reveal. she headed for the magnifying glass as the writing in the wee little book was very tiny. 

she searched around the house for any other traces of the leprechaun and discovered the outfit. her questions, her thoughts, her wonder had my heart smiling.

then, just as we were getting ready to leave for school, she wanted to bring in the wee little book to show her classmates. but then, she hesitated and i asked why. she went on to say that the others at school did not believe in fairies. as we discussed it further, she figured out that the others had not opened their eyes wide enough to notice the fairies or the treasures they leave behind. and we left it at that.

moments with snowflakes

with having a better understanding about what is going on with my little one and having a great start of getting him back where he needs to be, i have felt an awaken inside of me. i sense of renewal. and my eyes were open to all these wonderful moments. with my little girl, i was able to experience something wonderous. something that i had not witnessed in all my life, the lacey patterns of snowflakes. while i had seen them in the photographs of kenneth libbecchi and while amazed at them, i thought that they could only be seen with a microscope. and we sat there in the car while the snowstorm came in and we observed tons of beautiful snowflakes falling on our windshield, sharing with us their beauty.






and this is a fresh start to the new year for me. for i know that i have not been as patient or as kind as i would have liked, in these last months. and it seems like such a fitting time as i plan our candlemas celebration. as we celebrate the awakening of mother earth. to think about my goals in the new year...to be a better model for my little one's, to plan better for my family. and as i look through ways that candlemas could be celebrated, i share them with you.

~ blessing of candles
~ make pacakes or crepe (symbolize the round, golden sun)
~ have diner by candlelight
~ make beeswax candles, trim wicks, clean candle holders
~ polish shiny surfaces and doing some spring cleaning, making it easier to reflect the lights you display
~ plant bulbs

If Candlemas be fair and bright,
Come, winter, have another flight.
If Candlemas brings clouds and rain,
Go, winter, and come not again.

wishing you blessed candlemas,
christine

thinking about making a quilt

i was thinking about making a quilt. one of those 2 in the morning, sleep deprived ideas. and i thought it would be nice if i made a quilt for my little guy. first let me say that i have not used a sewing machine since the eighth grade. and then i though, i'll start with a doll quilt first, for my daughter's doll. maybe for christmas. and then i started looking at fabrics. ...and the fabrics. i never saw so many beautiful fabrics. i love how they play together. i love the mixing and matching. and for me the ever perfectionist who has worked hard at letting go. and i have let go of many things. but a quilt, those really straight lines and deciding on the fabrics. this quilt could set me back. oh, i could be deciding on the fabrics for a year. and it probably would be more work than i could take on at this time. for my 8 month old little guy is still nursing like a newborn. i am just waiting for him to get up, but i'll leave you with this amazingly beautiful quilt over at willy-nilly. Isn't it lovely and inspiring??

rainbows around

:: a rainbow of colorful beads made into a water shaker

:: my collection of vintage glass beads. a favorite for my little one to play and sort

:: a rainbow telescope

:: a rainbow tree


:: paintings

:: fairy wands and found acorns on our nature table

:: found feathers

:: rainbows

:: found growing along a neighbor's yard. while we only picked one of each, i wish we hadn't picked them.

I was inspired by Waldorf Mama's postings during rainbow week.

more from the hubble telescope

more hubble telescope images on YouTube

hubble telescope

Hubble telescope images on YouTube

kuroshio sea

Kuroshio Sea on YouTube

covered canopy

From our visited to White Flower Farm. Everywhere you look, there are picture perfect gardens. My favorite is the (Christopher) Lloyd Border, which is overflowing with Allium 'Globemasters'. The border is massive, 280 feet long x 20 feet deep. The depth of colors and textures is inspirational. (Trying to bring more wildlife into my own backyard, I realize that native plants & trees are more beneficial to helping me satisfy my goal.) The grounds also contain some remarkable trees. A Weeping Beech called my little girl over to explore, who called the family over. The tree produced an amazing covered canopy. The perfect spot to take a rest from the sun, explore, nurse the baby and listen to the birds. While, we missed out on the amazing varieties of tomatoes we normally get to choose from at the Tomatomania event, we did take home a few varieties of tomato plants and some strawberry plants. Next, we picked up some basil plants and stopped for some ice cream. All enjoyed our fun, family filled day.

amazing blues

I knew it was going to be a good day for me yesterday. I was going to be getting out of the house with the family. Most days, our time out is to get the basics done and at home we are trying to play catchup. But, yesterday we were bringing the dogs to the groomers and had some free time. I lower my expectations and had nothing planned. So, I dressed up as much as you could with 2 kids and dusted off some jewelry to wear. I picked out a volcanic blue larimar ring and this necklace I made years ago with vintage light blue glass beads. The color of blue just makes me smile.




Today, my little one utilized her sky & grass canopy playsilk to cover her cave. I love the vibrant colors in the design and the organic shaped clouds in the sky. I have always been drawn to the color blue from as long as I could remember. From the clearest blue sky to the sparkling blues of the ocean to the greenish blues of turquoise to the subtle blue of a robin's egg, I am always amazed at the colors of blue that nature creates.


:: Forget-me-nots in the garden

:: 'Endless Summer' hydrangea. While I wait for them to start blooming, I enjoy last years pictures here.


:: Found treasures from nature walks







Looking around the house, I notice more things inspired by my love of blue.

:: A ceramic sphere of the horizon, which reminds me of our vacation in Key West
:: A decorative nest with glass eggs
:: My great grandmother's Fire King charm azurite depression glass
:: My Mother's Day shell and sea glass wreath
:: A blue butterfly added to our seasonal nature table
:: A needle felted nest with wooden robin's eggs also on our nature table