Valley Mama

Sewing My Great-Grandmother's Quilt

I love quilts. Especially scrap quilts that tell a story of so many projects made...each fabric a reminder of a shirt, a skirt, a dress, a toy, a random piece found at a thrift store. I do not have much experience quilting (my first ever quilt still sits in my project basket awaiting completion) but I do have a large basket that holds a growing collection of fabric scraps, just waiting to become a funky scrap quilt. I imagine feeling inspired one day to piece together a square or two, place them in a basket, and add new squares from time to time until I have enough to make a quilt. One day.

Now, after our last trip to Creede, my own scrap quilt will have to wait a bit longer. I get to finish my great-grandmother's first. 

Recently, while Aaron was traveling for work, the little ones and I packed up the car and headed up into the mountains to visit my parents in Creede. While we were there one of my favorite things happened...my mom went through her fabric stash. This means that I get to add all sorts of interesting things to mine.     

Of all the fabric I brought home, including a couple of fun vintage pieces, I think I'm most excited about these squares of an unfinished quilt begun by my great-grandma. 

It's clearly a scrap quilt, with squares pieced from many different prints. The fabric is old, some of the colors a little faded...and I love it. I look at all of these completely random pieces...most probably scraps from other projects, and think about what she made with them. A dress for a daughter, perhaps a granddaughter? Curtains for the kitchen?

I don't know what these fabrics were originally intended to be, but here they are now, squares of prints and patterns stitched together so long ago, lying on a beautiful drafting table that belonged to Aaron's father. My Granny Griffin's hands sewed these squares, my hands will finish this quilt, and perhaps, one day, it will keep my own great grand-daughter warm.    

My mother taught me to sew when I was very young, and I am so thankful that she did. It's a skill I am constantly glad to have. She learned to sew from her grandmother, Granny Griffin. As I sit with Mason, watching him work on his own beginner projects with a needle and thread I can feel the connection to past and future generations that comes from this work we do with our hands.    

I'm sure that when my great-grandma sewed these squares she had no idea that she would never finish the quilt, that the squares would end up with my grandmother, Granny Jane, to be passed along to my mom, and now, to her great-granddaughter, me. I love that I can take this work that she started and add something of myself to it.   

One of the quilts that covers our bed is a Granny Griffin quilt. It is well loved, and has been repaired many times by my mom. It is not fancy, but it is warm and comfy and I am so happy to have a quilt made by her. And now, I get to make one with her.

Thank you Granny Griffin, for your many hours in front of a sewing machine and for passing your knowledge along to the next generations, and thank you Granny Jane and Mom for passing this opportunity along to me. 

I'm not sure when I'll finish this project, but I cannot wait to get started!

Spring is for Sewing

If there was any question about the matter, let me say that spring has definitely arrived here in the San Luis Valley. The robins have returned from their winter homes and are hopping around all over the yard, and the infamous spring winds are blowing the valley dust to the sand dunes (along with any other smallish items laying around my yard). Our spring winds are hard to love. Ask anyone from the valley. Just when the weather warms and spring calls us outside, the winds come and blow us over, sending us back inside once more.  

I always think of that line from the Greg Brown song, "Spring wind blew my list of things to do away," this time of year. Our springs winds blow way more away than my to-do list, and while they can be infuriating and make us all a little crazy, for me, there is a silver (though dusty) lining. Lately, the spring winds may be sending me inside, but I'm welcoming that time indoors to enjoy my sunroom studio and my sewing machine while I can. When summer comes, gardening takes over my life (in a good way), and there is scarcely time for laundry and cleaning, much less crafting. Spring brings balance (think equinox) between my indoor and outdoor worlds, and I appreciate and celebrate that.  

We converted the sunroom to my crafty studio a couple of months ago, and I am not the only one who is enjoying my new favorite room. I keep finding this one curled up on every soft surface she can find...

And legos have invaded one of my tables...

But I don't mind. There is still plenty of space to spread out, cut fabric and sew (on at least one sewing machine) and finding cats in baskets and lego guys perilously perched on my presser foot just keeps things interesting.

My spring sewing to-do list is quite long and ambitious, but I like to dream big. Most are clothes for me and the littles to wear this spring and summer, with some possible linen smock creations to sell at the farmer's market alongside our veggies. With some naptime-sewing this weekend I was able to finish a sweet little spring linen jacket for River and choose/wash/iron some fabrics for my next few projects.

I adore this jacket. It is a kimono-style wrap jacket with a pixie hood. The outer linen is from an old linen dress of mine, and the lining is a pink fox print flannel that River loves. And my favorite part is a little peek-a-boo (or boo-peek, in River speak) applique fox under the hood.  I used this pattern, available as a PDF download on Etsy.  

I could not wait to try it on my little pixie, and she seems to love it as much as I do.  Of course, it required a photo shoot...

I think I may need to make one in my size...

Most of these photos were taken right down the road from our house at the beautiful Yoga Ranch, where, thanks to our friend Elizabeth, we get to spend some time.

Time enjoying the horses...

Climbing hay bales...

And watching the birds fly overhead...

Yes, spring is here.  We get out and enjoy it when we can, and when the winds blow a little too hard, we retreat back indoors, with plenty of springy projects to occupy us until we head back out again.

Why We Play

OK, begin disclaimer:  This blog post is in no way meant to judge anyone for parenting/educating decisions. Seriously.  We all walk our own paths, sometimes diverging and coming back together with the unique paths of our friends and family.  This is a beautiful thing.  We all make decisions that are right for us and our families.  This blog is a place I've created to share my musings and thoughts on all things mamahood related...a little glimpse of the path we are walking (hopping, skipping, running, flying, crawling...).  

This post is intended to offer some of my thoughts on early childhood education, and a little more of an explanation into our non-traditional views on the subject.  Many of you might disagree (even strongly) with some of our views.  That's OK!  Awesome, even.  We are all experts when it comes to the unique wonderful beings that are our children.  Alright, I end this disclaimer with love and respect for all of you.  

Since becoming a parent I have been consistently amazed at societal pressure to begin formal, academic instruction so early.  Why so much, so soon?  The pressure is intense, it's everywhere, and it doesn't just stop with academics.  It seems like we want our children to be able to do so many things at an increasingly earlier age.  I think that in part this comes from the excitement of watching our children grow and learn...it's truly an amazing thing to be a part of.       

I recently came across this article from the University of Cambridge discussing the evidence of pushing back the standard school-starting age to seven.  In a world where many of my family's decisions are not the norm, it's nice to read more evidence to support what my intuition tells me...early, formal academic "schooling", especially when it takes away from child-led creative play, is not necessary or beneficial for our children as developing learners.  

From the article:

"Neuroscientific studies have shown that playful activity leads to synaptic growth, particularly in the frontal cortex, the part of the brain responsible for all the uniquely human higher mental functions.

In my own area of experimental and developmental psychology, studies have also consistently demonstrated the superior learning and motivation arising from playful, as opposed to instructional, approaches to learning in children. Pretence play supports children’s early development of symbolic representational skills, including those of literacy, more powerfully than direct instruction. Physical, constructional and social play supports children in developing their skills of intellectual and emotional ‘self-regulation’, skills which have been shown to be crucial in early learning and development."

I think it's very interesting that the recommended age to start school based on the review of the research is seven.  This fits in perfectly with Steiner's theory of child development and Waldorf pedagogy.  While we are not Waldorf "purists", many Waldorf tenants resonate with me and we do incorporate many Waldorf principles in the home life and education of our children...."Education for the head, heart, and hands."  The more and more reading I do about the latest mind-body research and how it relates to parenting, the more I realize that most of this brand new research is supporting what Steiner said so long ago about the stages of child development.  For a more in-depth look on the science behind peaceful parenting I highly recommend Parenting for Peace by Marcy Axness.  In fact, I'm about to start a re-read...  

According to this theory, the first stage of child development (also referred to as human unfoldment) is birth to seven (sometimes 6). During this stage (according to Steiner's theory and much recent research) a child learns primarily through imitation.  Their life forces are primarily concerned with the developing physical body.  It is the dreamy time of childhood, and much focus is on imaginative, creative play.  As the child learns primarily through imitation and physical doing, it is important to provide a safe, nurturing environment worthy of imitation with plenty of opportunities to play, explore and to "do" practical life activities.  For more information on this first stage of development (as well as an introduction to Waldorf) I recommend Beyond the Rainbow Bridge: Nurturing our Children from Birth to Seven.    

While it is possible (and possibly the norm these days) to pull a child in this stage of development into their mind and intellect, it is not considered beneficial, and in fact, may be harmful.  There is a wonderful post here, by blogger Hybrid Rasta Mama on the over-intellectualization of childhood that I enjoyed if you're interested in this topic.

So what does this look like, practically?   

This description, take from the Sophia Mundi Waldord School Website sums it up beautifully:

"The best education for the child through these years is given by providing a warm, safe, nurturing environment, with the rhythms and routines of mealtimes and rest, family celebrations, simple stories and music, and surroundings filled with natural beauty, colour, gentle manners, good nutritious food and the experience of the world of nature – the stones, the sea, the rivers, and plants and animals through the seasons."

And from Steiner himself...

"The task of the kindergarten teacher is to adapt the practical activities of daily life so that they are suitable for the child's imitation through play.  The activities of children in the kindergarten must be derived from life itself rather than being 'thought out' by the intellectualized culture of adults. In the kindergarten, the most important thing is to give children the opportunity to directly imitate life itself."

This is the sort of environment we strive to provide for our two young children.  I see the way it nurtures their whole being...and it feels right for us.

Throughout our days, in everything we do, we are always learning, and when I observe my children, I see that in these early years their spirits want to learn primarily though play.  

Once, about two years ago, a person we met at the coffee shop asked me what I did for a living. Luckily (for him) he did not utter the dreaded, "oh, so you're just a mom."  After a brief discussion he turned to Mason and asked him what he did.  I'll never forget Mason's response...

"I'm mostly a home player."  I giggled to myself, but it made perfect sense.

When Mason is having a hard time with something, maybe unkindness from a friend or aggressive behavior witnessed, I watch him work through it in his play.  Sure, we talk about it as well, but play (and stories) are his preferred ways of learning...of really incorporating the learning into his being.    

"Let's pretend..." might be the thing he says the most throughout any given day.

Usually, we don't just do a fun science experiment together.  We are two scientists in a secret laboratory on the moon working on creating something that will save the world.  This is all child-initiated, because it is his main way of learning about the world right now.

We don't just fold clothes.  Oh no.  We are clothes folding robots working in a factory with 'in' and 'out' boxes and specific techniques for cloth napkins.

Unlike many of his peers, our five-year old has not yet begun learning to read.  I should say, we are intentionally not doing any kind of formal reading instruction with him yet.  This is a choice, and I could not be more confident in it.  What we are doing is cultivating a love of learning and a love of language...things that will ultimately serve him far better when he does learn to read than knowing all of his letter sounds by three.  He has a grasp of language that surprises many people.  He makes up songs, recites poetry, listens intently to stories told and book read aloud.  He loves saying silly tongue twisters and discovering puns on his own.  He loves language, and is excited to learn to read one day.    

The way our little ones are educated is extremely important to us.  I'm learning (more and more everyday) that sometimes the best thing I can do for Mason's education is to step back and get out of the way of his learning.      

We choose to let our little ones spend these dreamy days of childhood being children.  Playing, listening to stories, singing songs, working alongside us, exploring nature, eating healthy food they often help prepare, more playing, using their bodies to learn about all they can do, creating art, more playing...

One day we will dive into academic work and intellectual pursuits with them, working with the natural wonder, curiosity, and reverence developed in these early years, but for now, they get to play.

Yesterday my children spent most of a snowy morning being a werewolf family (Mason is currently fascinated by werewolves, which to him are just fun creatures who can turn from human to wolf, and River's participation mostly involves howling) and the afternoon turning a table into a hammock cave.

Today was all about building with blocks and pretending to be knights.

 

And tomorrow?  Who knows...

Of course, this is only the tip of the iceberg on Waldorf/Steiner child development, and I am by no means an expert. There are many wonderful books and resources available if you are interested in learning more.

Also, I do not consider myself an expert on early childhood education, just an expert on my family and my children.  I'm constantly learning from them, and in the process my views and thoughts shift.  

One thing I know for sure, is that right now, in these early years, my children will be free to play.  Free to enjoy every bit of their one magical childhood.  Free to learn in every moment, in the way that is best for them.  I truly believe that they, and the world, will be the better for it.  

Thirty Three?

Does anyone else forget how old they are?  For the last several years Aaron has been the one to remind me how old I will be on my birthday.  Since having little ones I just cannot seem to remember sometimes. Maybe this year will be different...thirty three seems fairly easy to remember...

Yes, I think I'm going to like this year 33.  Today was a wonderfully peaceful day with my family and my new ukulele.  That's right.  I've found a new love to fit into my already full days, but more on that in a minute.

I knew in advance that one of my sweet birthday gifts was getting to sleep in this morning, so when River sat up and started looking for something to get into I just pulled up the covers, rolled over and kept on sleeping.  Bliss.  Aaron took the littles downstairs for breakfast preparations and I kept on sleeping.  A little later I awoke, not because of a sound or movement, but because I felt a presence.  I opened my eyes, and Mason had gotten himself completely under the covers with only his sweet little smiling face showing.  He told me he was watching to make sure I was still asleep because he and papa were planning something. 

He came in for a cuddle and went downstairs to retrieve the painting he made for my birthday.  I sure do love that boy.

When I came downstairs River and Aaron handed me coffee and finished up breakfast while I just sat down to enjoy the morning and my new 33 birthday music playlist from Aaron (which includes quite a few awesome ukulele tunes).  I am one lucky mama.

A sweet relaxing morning was made even better by a surprise visit from my amazing parents who drove down from Creede to take us to lunch.

In the afternoon while River napped I sat down with a latte (yes, an afternoon latte...it is my birthday after all) and my new ukulele.  I am so smitten with this instrument that is bringing so much unexpected joy into my life.  

 It happened quite by accident, really.  I play the guitar a little, but I've never had a desire to learn more than a few songs to sing around the campfire.  When Mason was 2 or 3 I began craving music again, and got a mandolin.  I started learning to play, and even had a couple of lessons, but then I got pregnant with River and my focus drifted away from music again.  Then, my cute little mandolin met an early and accidental demise in a way that is still a bit of a mystery.  I still love the mandolin, and hope to get another one someday.

One day this winter I was playing around on Mason's little soprano uke (that's the tiny one) that was a gift from Grandma and Grandpa.  I was having so much fun on it, I decided on a whim that my birthday gift to myself was going to be a new ukulele.  I've written previously on how my focus this year is on inspiring and bringing out my creative energy. Playing music again (this time with the ukulele) is something that is just for me, to nourish my own creative spirit.  

So, I bought myself a concert ukulele.  And, it brings me joy.  I just love the freedom of this instrument.  It's lightness is more that just physical.  It has brought more music into our home, and we are all loving that. Mason has become inspired, and is picking up instruments and writing songs.  Even River enjoys her basket of musical instruments a little more.  

It is so true that if we want to see something in our children the best thing to do is to do it ourselves. Become that which we want to see.  Children who see their parents read will probably be more into reading themselves.  These little people learn so much more from what we do than what we say...this becomes more and more apparent every day.  

Seeing me explore my own creativity will encourage my children to do the same, and bringing music into our home again is the perfect example.  So, I suppose it's not just for me after all...this new love of the ukulele.  It's for all of us, really.

Birthdays.  I love birthdays.  For me, it is a time for celebrating, a time for reflection, a time for rest, and a time for inspiration.  This day was all of those things.  I am feeling deeply grateful for the amazing people in my life and this place I call home.  I feel nourished and refreshed, on a soul level, and inspired to embrace this path of creative mothering that I love so much.

Many thanks to all of you wonderful humans who are a part of my life.  I can't wait to take another trip around the sun with you, perhaps while playing a ukulele.  

  

 

 

 

Waldorf-style Worry Dolls - A Tutorial

We recently welcomed some new little friends to our home, and I thought I would introduce them to you. They are special little dolls who live in a magical pouch underneath Mason's pillow, and though they have only been with us a few days, they have already brought much joy and peace of mind to one little boy (and one mama as well).

For the last couple of months Mason has begun sharing his "worries" with me at night when we are cuddled in bed.  There is something about the dark of night that allows our fears and worries to creep up to the surface.  As a part of our night-time routine I always try to provide Mason with a safe, comfortable and consistent space where he can talk about anything that bothered him during his day, and anything that may be on his mind in general.  He loves this, and though we are together all day every day with many opportunities to talk, he will often choose to wait until the darkness of bedtime to ask the deep questions and talk about things that are bothering him.

Out of respect to my sweet boy I will keep his worries and questions private, but I will say that he is a sensitive soul, and lately some of our night-time talks involve some pretty heavy topics of which he has recently become aware and is quite worried about.  They are pretty normal things for a child of his age to begin to wonder about, and talking out loud about them really seems to help.  

As these night-time talks became more regular, sometimes lengthy, and sometimes with tears, I wanted to find a way to honor his process while taking away some of the worry.

Enter: Worry dolls for Mason, Waldorf-style.  I have always loved the tiny little Guatemalan worry dolls that you tell your worries to at night and place under your pillow to take those worries away while you sleep.  I decided to create something similar for Mason, and this is what I came up with... 

Five little worry dolls, Waldorf-style, with a sparkly little pouch to sleep in.

Two nights ago we went through bed-time routine as normal, and when we closed our book for the night I reached under the pillow and pulled out this little bag.  Mason opened the bag and took out the little dolls and we looked at them.  I explained the tradition of worry dolls and said that I thought we might like some to live with us.  I told him that they are very special dolls with a magical ability.  If you tell them your worries, they take them from you so you can let them go and sleep peacefully.

The boy got a huge smile on his face and started giggling.  He immediately took one doll and said, "Worry doll, I'm worried that...."  

And then "Mama, it's working already!"

He told each doll a worry, put them back in their little pouch and put the pouch under the bed.  He then went straight to sleep with a smile on his face.

I could not believe it.  I mean, I had hoped they would be helpful...but wow.  

The next night Mason could not wait to talk to his dolls, and the same thing happened.

I should say, just to clarify, that I do not intend for the worry dolls to take the place of our talks, but to support him in letting go of those thoughts and worries causing him fear and discomfort.  

I had a lot of fun making these dolls, and even more fun watching the joy that they bring my sweet boy.  In the hopes that these little worry dolls might be useful for other small beings in the world, I'm offering up a tutorial for how I made them.  Enjoy!

Waldorf-style Worry Dolls Tutorial

You will need:

cotton gauze tubing or old thin sock
stockinette doll skin fabric or knit fabric in skin color
wool for stuffing
felt pieces and scraps
colorful wool roving for hair
strong button thread, regular sewing thread and embroidery floss

As with all Waldorf-style dolls, these worry dolls begin with a head.  This is basically a much-simplified version of a Waldorf doll head...in miniature.  

Begin with a piece of stretchy knit fabric for the head.  I use this cotton gauze tubing, but if you're not a doll maker and don't have any lying around, a thin stretchy sock will work fine.

I cut a piece of tubing about 4 inches long, and then cut in down one side to form a square, roughly 4 x 4 inches.

Next I took a bit of wool and placed it in the center of my tubing, bring the edges of the tubing together to make a round head and stuffing more wool in the center until it was firm.  My finished head was about 1 inch from the top of the head to the neck.  When you're happy with the size of the head, tie it securely using strong thread (I use button thread).  I forgot to get a photo of this step, but you basically want the head to look like a little ball, tied as close as possible to the wool.  Unlike with a Waldorf doll, we're not worried about forming a neck here or shaping the head.    

Next you'll need a little square of stockinette fabric in the skin color of your choice.  I used little scraps from my doll-making, but if you don't have doll skin fabric on hand you can use an old knit shirt or other piece of skin-colored fabric.  My squares were about 2 1/2 inches square.  

Next I laid the head on the skin fabric and pulled the fabric snug around to get an idea of where my seam allowance should be.  This will vary a little based on your head size.  It does not need to be perfect.  Once you have an idea of your seam allowance, stitch the sides of the stockinette square together to form a tube, careful to make sure the stretch of the fabric is across the head.  

Turn the tube right-side-out and slip it over the head.  Tie off the neck securely, and gather the fabric at the top with running stitches, pulling tight and stitching in place.

Here are several completed (mostly) heads:

Next up: the body!  I just free-handed a little body until I was happy with it.  Since the purpose of these dolls was to spend most of their existence tucked inside a pouch under a pillow, I did not want to mess around with tiny hands and feet.  I made the body one complete piece from felt.  Your welcome to use my pattern (see the photo below) as a guide or make your own.  You could also make a bunting-style dolls with no legs.  Once you've made your pattern you'll need to cut out two pieces from your felt.

Warning:  This next part can get a little fussy.  Sewing small felt pieces and turning them right-side out is a little tricky...but it's worth it!  

Pin together your felt pieces and sew them together, leaving an opening at the neck wide enough to turn the it right-side out.  For me, this was the area between these pins, though if in doubt leave more room. You can always hand sew it later.  Note: the photos below are from several different dolls, because I kept forgetting to photograph a step and remembering it on the next doll...

Turn your doll body right-side out.  This will require a little patience, and possibly a glass of wine.  I find a turning tool helpful, usually the closest thing in reach that seems like it will work.  In this case I used a pencil with a broken tip.  Take care not to use anything to pointy or you are likely to poke it right through the felt.  I have done this, and it is no fun.

Now take a little more wool and lightly stuff the body.  I found my trusty broken-tipped pencil very usefel in stuffing wool into those tiny arms and legs.  Leave enough room to insert the head (really the neck) into the body.

Position the head on the body, stuffing the gathered edges of the tubing into the body.  Now stitch the head to the body around the neck opening, stitching up the extra space at the shoulders as you go.  I did not get a good photo of this, but you should see what I mean in some of the others pics later on.

Now it's time for hair and a hat!  I did not put faces on these little dolls (as you can see) and think that they are better that way, but if you want, now would be the time to embroider eyes and a mouth.  

There are several ways to do the hair.  I find that the easiest way for these little dolls is to needle-felt it on. I made some with short hair and some with long hair.  Since we are adding a hat, it does not need to completely cover the head.  

Now for the hat!  I measured around the head and added a little for seam allowance, and then made up a little pattern.  I cut one piece on the fold, and then stitched it up the back.

Turn the hat right-side out and sew it on the head.  I used embroidery floss and big stitches to attach the hat, but do it anyway you like.

And that's it!  Now, make a few more and you're ready to help your child ease their worries away into the night.

Now all you need is a little bag to keep them in.  I'll show you how I made a super-simple draw string pouch next post.

If you do make your own Waldorf-style worry dolls I would love to see pics!

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!