Valley Mama

Co-op Day: Winter Birds and Trees

We've been slowly getting back into our home school co-op rhythm this month.  Two weeks ago only a few people were able to come, and we mostly just built castles and drew pictures.  Not that there is anything wrong with that, of course.  Last week I was inspired to tell one of my favorite winter stories, and our other activities fell into place around the story.

The story that our day was based on is a folk story about why evergreen trees keep their leaves.  I use this version, with a few changes of my own.  The biggest change I make is to use trees from the valley, like aspen, cottonwood, willow, spruce, pine and juniper.  I just love this story, with it's theme of kindness and helping, and it sets the stage nicely for learning about how we can help take care of birds in the winter time.

Here is what we did last week:

As usual, more information on our Waldorf-inspired home-school co-op can be found here.

Arrival

As the children arrived we began to prepare our snack.  This week, since we were talking about birds in the winter, we made seeded foccacia bread.  Foccacia bread is so easy to make, and always a hit with the littles.  I just use my basic pizza dough recipe, and when the time comes the kids help spread the dough in the pans, "paint" it with olive oil and add seasonings, seeds, and any other toppings we're using that day.

As you can see, even our youngest littles can participate in this process!  Speaking of the youngest, River and Cohen (exactly one month apart) are so completely adorable together lately.  Here they are "helping" in the learning tower:

Seriously.  So.  Much.  Cuteness.

Circle Time

Once our bread was finished, when headed to the rug for circle time.  I could not find my circle time cards (I'm still not sure where they are), so we just did some of our usual circle time verses and sat down for a song and a story.

Last year I made some little finger puppets for The North Wind Doth Blow song, so I brought those out again.  There are several different verses added on to the original nursery rhyme, here are the ones we usually sing, adapted for our area (since robins fly away South where we live):

The north wind doth blow,
And we shall have snow,
And what will the sparrow do then,
Poor thing?

He’ll sit in the barn
And keep himself warm,
And hide his head under his wing,
Poor thing.

The north wind doth blow,
And we shall have snow,
And what shall the robin do then,
Poor thing?

Oh do you not know?
He left long ago,
For a country much warmer than ours,
Poor thing.

The north wind doth blow,
And we shall have snow.
And what will the door mouse do then,
Poor thing

Rolled up like a ball
In his nest snug and small,
He’ll sleep till the weather turns warm.
Poor thing.

The north wind doth blow,
And we shall have snow,
And what will the children do then,
Poor things? 

When lessons are done,
They’ll jump, skip and run,
And that’s how they’ll keep themselves warm,
Poor things.  Poor things.  Poor things. 

After the song, I told the story of the little bird and the evergreen trees, using the robin bird puppet, an evergreen bough, and a stick from our backyard as props.  We also talked about the differences between winter trees and summer trees.  Here is a photo of our little story teller with the puppets (of course).  Please ignore the dog hairs clinging to the felt...

Art Time

After the story the children found a place at the table to color/draw a picture of the story.  Their pages were filled with trees and birds...

Snack and Play time

The foccacia bread was a big hit.  I served it with little bowls of olive oil and spices and the littles ate it up. This is all that was left of two pans of foccacia bread:

Activity

While the children played after snack, we set up the day's activity - cardboard tube bird feeders!  

The children took a place at the table and each one got a couple of carboard toilet paper tubes.  We demonstrated how to spread peanut butter all over the tube and roll it around the birdseed, and then they got to it.  Both butter knives and hands were used to spread the peanut butter, and much licking of fingers ensued...

This craft is so easy and so fun!  You don't even need to attach a way to hang them, since you can simply slip them on a branch.  

Here is one of Mason's finished feeders on a branch on our tree...

We had a lovely morning talking about winter birds and winter trees!

 

Nature Explorer's Club: Zapata Falls

I have wanted to start a Nature Explorer's Club with our little ones and friends for a while now, and this past weekend we finally made it happen!  The vision for the club is simple - to get out and explore nature as a group of families.  We plan to meet once a month at different locations around the San Luis Valley, with plenty of time to explore, hike, play and learn in this amazing place in which we live.  It seems appropriate that our first hike together was in the first month of the new year...

For our January hike we decided to go up to Zapata Falls, near the Great Sand Dunes National Park.  It is a short, easy hike up to the falls, perfect for little legs.  Winter is an awesome time to visit Zapata Falls, as the waterfall is frozen into beautiful formations, with flowing water visible underneath the ice.  Getting back into the cave is quite easy as well, with a frozen creek to walk on.      

We met at the trail head, which is at the top of a snowy road that switchbacks up the mountain.  On hindsight, we probably should have met at the bottom and carpooled up to the top, as not everyone had a vehicle that could make it up the road...now we know for next time!

Our family arrived a little early, and so we pulled out the sled and took in the view.  The photo at the top of the post (taken by Aaron) is of the view from the trail head parking lot, looking out across the valley. Mason got a nice sled run going, and River enjoyed walking around in the snow.

Soon we were joined by the four other families and we headed up the trail.  

After a beautiful hike we made it to the creek and the falls.

It was so much fun to see the children as they excitedly began exploring this little frozen world.  They found holes in the ice and watched the water flowing beneath.  It's not often you get to "walk on water" on a frozen creek, and they loved it.  We began to carefully make our way on the slick ice up the creek to the little cave and the icy waterfall.

It was not long before the littles began attempting to climb to the base of the frozen waterfall, and parents assisted the children with climbing up and sliding down.  Upon approaching the cave, one little girl was not so sure about "going in the cave", but as soon as she saw the waterfall she said "It is magical!"

 After spending some time enjoying the frozen waterfall, we headed out of the cave to the giant ice flow slides.  At least, that's what they became...

 

Then we hiked back down the trail, examining tracks in the snow and looking at the view of the sand dunes and mountains.  When we arrived back at the trail head we managed to get everyone together for a group photo and then the littles were off to sled down the hill by the parking lot and climb trees.  

We all had so much fun.  The children did not want to leave their magical castle/home/hideout in the trees, but we eventually got everyone back in their respective vehicles for the ride home. 

It was a beautiful day for a hike, and a couple of the kids were already asking when the next one would be. There is something very fun about exploring nature with friends, and I can't wait to do it again.

On the ride back home Mason was drawing in his notebook and he said, "Ahhh...Zapata Falls was great!"  

I could not agree more.  

 

Watercolor Wednesday

I love finding ways to bring more rhythm to our lives.  The little ones and I are always more peaceful, calm and grounded when our days flow with a comforting rhythm...like breathing.   

The way we flow through our days, weeks, months and years all have a rhythm, and each one is important for keeping us centered, connected and present.  I watch my children and see how nourished they are by a strong sense of rhythm in their lives.

When I use the word 'rhythm' I am not talking about a rigid order where everything is always on a specific time schedule.  Far from it.  Rhythm (to me) is fluid and open, allowing for the spontaneity that keeps life interesting and flexibility to change course if the desire or need arises. 

Our weekly rhythm these past few years has often highlighted chores, meals, activities and outings.  I find that Mason really responds well to knowing what day it is, what he can expect that day to bring and what he might have to look forward to that day.  Knowing that "Friday is french toast for breakfast and story time at the library" gives him a predictable rhythm to his week which provides a sense of comfort and security in his world.

I also love alliteration (especially with Mason right now), and so I try to use it for our weekly rhythm whenever possible...and lately our weekly rhythm highlight has been on breakfast and activity.  The boy is very into letters and letter sounds right now, and seems to find a little more delight when our daily rhythm contains alliteration. 

Lately Wednesday has been Wednesday waffles and watercolor Wednesday.

Mason and I love painting with watercolors, and wet-on-wet watercolor is our favorite.  It is such a meditative, soothing way to just experience color, without the worry about creating a perfect form...just right for our little ones.  The process is enjoyable, and it is easy to create something beautiful.  It is also wonderful for learning about colors and color mixing, as the colors blend on the paper right in front of you.  

Sometimes we paint something specific, like a story, or a season, but today we just painted.  Mason wanted to paint a huge rainbow.

He also spinkled some salt on for a crystal effect.

Today I had hoped to paint with Mason while River was napping, but we had one of those days where her nap was cut short, so she joined us at the table for painting time as well.  

This was her first time, and she seemed to enjoy it.  I look at this photo and wonder if I might have two lefties... Eventually she got tired of the paper and started painting her tray, and then she experimented with painting her face.  Her brother thought this was hilarious.

We often try out new weekly rhythm focuses.  Some stick around and some fade away, but I think watercolor Wednesday will be with us for a while.  

What are your favorite ways to bring rhythm to your week? 

 

A Creative Mothering Manifesto for a New Year

I have a word for this hopeful New Year.  Creativity.

I did not choose this word to be my focus for the year - it chose me by way of a New Year's "blessing stone" - but perhaps I really chose it all along.  Either way, it found it's way to me, and I'm running with it.

 

Creativity.

It's a word I have an interesting history with, and a concept I'm embracing more and more in my life every day.  

I looked up the definition to creativity, and these were the first three definitions I saw.  I especially like the last one:

• the use of the imagination or original ideas, esp. in the production of an artistic work.
• the ability to make new things or think of new ideas.
• the ability to transcend traditional ideas, rules, patterns, relationships, or the like, and to create meaningful new ideas, forms, methods, interpretations, etc.; originality, progressiveness, imagination:

Growing up, I never saw myself as creative.  I might have described myself as clever, athletic, smart, high-achieving and friendly, but creative is not a word that I ever associated with myself.  My brother was "the creative one".  I do not want to imply that this was put on me (or him) by anyone in our lives, but just that these were the roles we stepped up to claim, for many interwoven reasons.  I believe a part of me wished that I was "the creative type", but I also accepted that it just wasn't me, and that was OK.  I was the high-achieving perfectionist, who excelled at both academics and sports, though deep down there was a dreamy, imaginative type waiting to explore the world in a different way.

After graduating from college, I moved across the country and began giving myself the freedom to discover the "creative" side of myself, though I was still a long way from claiming that word as my own.   

Then, I became a mama.

It wasn't until becoming a mother that I began discovering my own creativity.  Over the last five years it has slowly come out - sometimes bit by bit, and other times in big explosions of color and clarity.  

These things were there all along, but the belief that I was not "the creative type" was holding me back.   

I found that as I began to open myself up to trying things that came from within me, to let go of the fear that something would not be "perfect", that more and more ideas began to flow from me and into our world.

I am not, and probably never will be, an artist in the traditional sense, nor am I trying to be.  And...I am becoming my own kind of artist every day.

As I think about my own awakening creative spark, I realize that the heart of my creative energy right now lies in Creative Mothering, and I'm not just talking about arts and crafts.  I've become more creative in the kitchen, and I love using my hands to create things for my children to wear and play with.  I've embraced my inner storyteller, and regularly write my own stories for the children.  Choosing to independently educate our children calls upon my creatvitiy every day.  And there is more...so much more.  Not settling for cultural 'norms' for what parenting looks like, being completely inspired by my wonderfully creative children, having the courage to open my heart to what my children have to teach me, finding creative responses to daily parenting challenges that arise...these are also ways I'm practicing creative mothering, and for me, they lie at the heart of my creative journey.    

I have no doubt that while my creative awakening has been inspired by my entrance into mama-hood, it will continue as an integral part of my being through the rest of my life.  

So, what does this mean to me, for this year?

It means that I want to consciously cultivate creativity in my life.  Just as I seek to create an environment for my children that encourages imagination and creative play, I want to do the same for myself.   

I seek to do this for myself - as a part of my own unfoldment as a human being...

For my family - to open our hearts to new ways to solve problems and grow together...

For my community - to offer something of myself to the people and places I'm surrounded by...

For our world - with the belief that this practice may just add a little more beauty and love to the world.

Choosing one aspect of myself to dive into for a year does not mean I am not also working to cultivate other things in my life...love, joy, peace, patience, compassion, etc...but my hope is that opening myself to "my creative side" will offer more paths for cultivating all of those things which I value. 

I'm putting these thoughts down here, in writing, and sharing them with you, as a part of my commitment to this concept.  Sort of a New Year's Resolution, but, (for me, at least) a bit deeper.

So here we go.  I offer my New Year's Creative Mothering Manifesto:

Creative Mothering Manifesto

I will push myself, gently, toward growth in my creative mothering journey.

I will open my mind and my heart to creative solutions to problems that arise in my family, from the meltdowns of childhood to disagreements with my partner.  I will work to break out of old patterns of thought and behavior that no longer serve me, and to leave them behind.

I will embrace my creative force, and not hide it for fear of imperfection.  I will not be afraid to make mistakes, and not seek perfection above all else.

I will learn from the creative wisdom of others, while finding my own path.

I will work to create a home that inspires creativity in myself, my family, and others.

I will nourish and nurture the creative spark within my children.  Every.  Single.  Day.  

I will let the creative energy that overflows from them to rub off on me. 

I will create every day, whether I'm working with my hands, writing, or preparing a meal.

I will nurture myself and practice more self-care, thus nurturing my own creativity and my ability to care for my family. 

I will find creative ways to intentionally move my body every day, and I will be OK if on some days that means a living room dance party or a walk with the little ones to the park.  

I will pause more, allow more time for reflection, and listen to the creative voice inside of me.

Choose to create.  Be creative.  Embrace Creativity.

 

Thanks for reading, and have a wonderfully creative 2014!

A New Year's Day Hike

Well hello there 2014.  I know we've only just met, but I can tell that we are going to be friends.  

We had a wonderful start to the new year today, full of blueberry pancakes (and a few special chocolate chip ones), solar robot building, doll-making, hiking, hot chocolate with friends, black-eyed peas (of course) and lots of time for play.  

When Aaron asked me if I wanted to go hiking with our friend Danny on Mosca Pass Trail again this year, I only thought about it a second before saying, yes!  This was our second annual New Year's Day Mosca Pass Hike (I'm hoping to continue the tradition forever), and I can really think of no better way to greet a new year.  Cold mountain air, warm sunshine, a beautiful trail, hiking with people I love, and a view across this amazing valley I call home...hello 2014.  

It was a beautiful day, perfect for a winter hike.  Mason was especially interested in spotting possible gnomes homes under roots and in hollow logs, taking pictures of interesting things, and stopping to rest on fun rocks (which he learned are quite hard to climb in snowshoes...). 

River took in the view from the backpack, and had a bit of a nap as well.  

Sometimes, especially in the winter, getting little ones suited up with necessary snacks, water and equipment seems like more trouble than it's worth, but I've learned that really, it's always worth it.  Getting out and exploring this beautiful place we live is always worth the work of getting us ready and out the door, worth the "my legs are tired" complaints on the way up the trail, even worth being taken out by a boy on a run-away sled going back down the trail.

And what is the only thing that can make a winter hike above the Sand Dunes even better?  Stopping for hot chocolate at Charlotte and Joseph's house on the way back and tiny capsules that turn into dinosaurs when you soak them in hot water.  Just ask Mason about those.    

Happy New Year's Day from our family, to yours!