Our children don’t watch TV

I don’t really like to talk too much about raising our kids mainly TV free.  Generally, people feel either judged by it (Oh, you are saying that I’m a bad parent because I let my kid watch Sesame Street?) or they feel bad for my children (So you have never seen Disney’s Cinderella?).   The truth is, our children don’t watch TV because it works well for our family.   Our decision had nothing to do with others and our kids will survive being behind on all the TV characters. Interestingly though, most people equate being TV-free with being screen free.  And to a degree, so did I.  That is, until I started to think about and prepare for screen free week.  Truth to be told, my kids are surrounded by screens.  On the one hand, there is my computer which is set up in our kitchen corner.  Certainly a very practical set up – but – as I learned, maybe not adding to our life’s quality.  On the other hand, there is my IPhone – My constant companion which gives me the feeling of staying up to date on everything; even though much of what I was staying up to date with, was nonsense.  My screen free challenge seemed clear:  Computer and phone had to be off while my kids where around!  I would have nap time and after bed time to complete work on the computer. My phone would only be used like a traditional phone. All social media was completely off limits.

The results were more than astounding:

• My attention was much more focused.  When I was playing with my children, I was 100% playing.

When I was working, I was 100% working.

• The need to “be connected online” decreased by each day.  Face-to-face conversations started

to become more meaningful.

• My children’s play became more independent.  They knew that they had my full attention when

I was with them and were perfectly fine playing by themselves when I needed to get some stuff

around the house done.

• My house was never cleaner.  Apparently, children accept physical work as “real work”,  whereas

computer work signals that they should really sit on your lap and try to push as many buttons as

possible.

• Toy phones were abandoned.  This might have been the biggest success.  For months I’ve been

trying to get rid of a couple of old phones that my kids have turned into their favorite toys.

It broke my heart to see them surrounded by beautiful wooden and handcrafted toys, yet

choosing to play with old electronics.  Two days into “phone free” week and they stopped

showing any interest in theirs.

• My oldest daughter and I have a ritual each day where we sit down and color together.  She

generally asks for a certain animal or what not and wants me to print out a coloring sheet on the

computer.  With the computer shut down, she did not.  We just colored on plain paper.

• With phones that work as cameras comes a certain demand to take picture all the time.

Apparently, my kids don’t need their picture taken if the phone is not visible.  Their “watch me”

tendency went significantly down.

In a nutshell, our family and play time got better, richer, and more focused.  My children’s’ play got more

independent and more creative.  My work got better and more efficient.  Life got calmer and simpler.

We can tell our children a hundred times to put away their play phones and to stop clicking around

on the computer.  It is very humbling to realize that no words are as powerful as our own actions and

behaviors.

Franziska is a wife, a mother of two little girls, and a Simplicity Parenting Leader. She loves to help others discover the power of simplicity, rhythm, creativity, and an overall natural lifestyle. You can read more by joining her at her personal blog: www.homenaturally.org

With a preschool to run, a new blog to promote, lessons to plan, and bills to pay, completely eliminating screens just wasn’t going to happen.  I decide to allot myself 30 minutes per day of computer usage after the boys were in bed.  One thing I learned this week – 30 minutes is NOT enough time.

The first night, I think I spent about an hour online, however, because I had given myself a time limit, I worked quickly and efficiently getting invoicing done, paying the monthly bills and catching up on articles, blogs and emails.  After that hour, I retired to bed where I read my current book – Siblings Without Rivalry.  Overall, I felt relaxed, both because I was caught up on work, but also because I hadn’t spent extra mindless hours in front of the computer browsing through hundreds of lesson ideas and other time-wasting, directionless endeavors.  Don’t get me wrong, I love me some mindless browsing, but it certainly doesn’t need to be my focus every child-free hour of the day.  The week continued in pretty much the same way, but it wasn’t working like it had before.

Last year, my concern was mainly about my son, Imri’s behavior.  He was 2 1/2 at the time and was clearly affected by my computer usage.  I must say, I did quite well maintaining the focus I set during last year’s screen-free experiment….at least until my second son was born at the end of September.  I started my preschool up again when lil Gaelyn was just 5 weeks old.  It was a struggle at first and I had way too much to do and very little time in which to do it.  I was barely sleeping and hardly had time to eat, so meals were usually made to order as needed and Imri often ate on his own.  I tried my best to be sure he had time with me on his own to read or play games and for a long while, he was napping everyday at the same time as the baby and that gave me a good window to get things finished up after each school day.

However, slowly but surely, I became that dang frog in the pot again!!  Why does this keep happening??  Sheesh.  Imri stopped napping, I was sleepy and still not focusing on myself when it came to food, quiet time and appropriate rest, we were arguing all the time and heading for disaster if I didn’t straighten things out.

When I started seeing reminders about Screen-Free Week, it dawned on me, it was history repeating itself, but this time, I would be the calm center of our household, I would be the strong and compassionate guide my son was so desperately trying to bring out in me.  First up, no computer (again) until after bedtime – done!  Next?

Time for some reflection.  He’s acting out, but the computer is off, what else does he need?  We’re spending a ton of time together, playing, reading, singing, anything he wants to do, why is it not enough?  It’s not my proudest Mommy moment to admit that it took me ALL week to figure it out – rhythm….I’d let it go somewhere along the way.  The only thing predictable about our day aside from my preschool routine was dinner and by then, he was so frazzled and out of sorts that he didn’t even want to participate.  So, I’ve got it figured out, now, what to do about it…….menu time!

The easiest way to schedule a child’s day is to use meals as a base – time to ‘check in’ and regroup – time to exhale.  I decided to start with Rudolf Steiner’s color and grain of the day; grains are one of the few foods Imri’s guaranteed to eat, so why not start the day off right.  We’ve also recently started using a rainbow chart to keep track of fruit and veggie consumption, so I thought the color of the day would be fun for him as well.  The color doesn’t need to be food necessarily, it just gives the young child something else to guide the rhythm of the week – it can be clothing, placemats, anything really. 

I’ve tried menu planning in the past, but gave it up after a short time, mainly because my husband works nights and is only home 2-3 times a week for dinner, and those nights rotate, making it nearly impossible to create a workable routine.  I also didn’t spend much time cooking because Imri is a VERY picky eater; meaning no vegetable shall ever, ever touch his lips OR ELSE!  He also refuses meat of any sort as well as beans, seeds, nuts, and anything else that might possibly SOUND like it might be something he won’t like.  On the positive side, he does eat a rainbow of fruit everyday and enjoys cheese, yogurt, eggs and even ‘green juice’ from Trader Joe’s, which he’d probably refuse if he knew what was in it.

BUT, now I have Gaelyn, who, at 7 months old, eats anything you put in front of him, including eggplant parmesan and mahi-mahi, which I just can’t wrap my mind around, so I thought, even if no one else will eat, we can go through the motions and Gaelyn and I will enjoy what I’ve cooked.  The menu I came up with is simple: breakfast each day (usually a grain with fruit) with more time-consuming meals such as pancakes on weekends; lunches aren’t planned because we keep them simple (hummus, yogurt, cheese and crackers, etc.); dinners are categorized – soup day, casserole day, slow cooker day, leftovers, etc. and then I pre-plan the menu and shop for the whole week each Sunday.

We’ve done our new rhythm for a total of ONE day at this point, but today was the best day we’ve had in weeks.  We ate our meals together, we played, we read, we had rest time (no longer referred to as ‘nap’, and yes, I rested too, we must set a good example!), I was tested, but I held my ground; I was pushed, but I was firm, yet empathetic.  I’m not under any illusion that today will be the standard for every day to come, but it was enough to let me know that all my kiddo wanted was some boundaries.

A friend of mine said it beautifully once – children will just keep reaching and reaching until they find something solid to push against.  Yes, he’s going to keep pushing, but I hope (this time) I’ll remember to be there to be his solid ground.

Lindsey  is a mother of two and the director of Seedlings preschool in Arizona.  After 15 years’ experience in teaching, she is  still growing and changing as an educator, pulling from various play-based approaches such as Waldorf, Montessori, & Reggio Emilia.  Her goal as a teacher is to create a loving, patient and supportive environment where children can blossom into creative, bright and happy little people!  You can read more from Lindsey at her school blog, http://seedlingsnurseryschoolaz.blogspot.com/

In preparation for Screen Free Week, which begins on April 29, our Training Coordinator, Davina Muse shares this lovely article with some inspiration and practical tips for taking the screen-free challenge.  Will your family take the pledge?  We’d love to hear your ideas about it.

Right Relationship with Electronica

By Davina Muse, Simplicity Parenting Training Coordinator

Finger on of the pulse of parenting today 

One of the many wonderful things about being part of the global Simplicity Parenting community is that we are sent all sorts of links and articles from recent sources, on Simplicity Parenting themes.

In addition, through our own work and through all the Group Leaders who are in touch with many parents, we are able to keep our finger on the pulse of parenting in today’s world.

And parenting today is often quite a challenge, isn’t it!

Not only do parents today face all the old challenges:  

• How do I keep my temper and my dignity in the face of defiant opposition from my beloved two/ five/ nine/ thirteen/ sixteen year old? 

• How do we balance the multi-way stretch:  Both us working full-time, the needs of our children, and our own needs for ease, connection, down-time?

Electronica presents new challenges…

Parents today face many new challenges, especially in the  ever-increasing pressures coming towards children and families from consumerism and the media, often through those devices we can call Electronica – TV’s, phones, games.  Funny how some of them have taken on the names of pronouns we use for ourselves and each other:  iphone, Youtube, wii.

Until recently, research has been focused on the effects of screens on children’s health and well-being – both the content (violence, disrespect, sexuality) and the medium (electromagnetic fields, rapid changing of images etc) by which content is delivered.   Some national governments in response to this research are regulating the age at which children may watch screens or be exposed to advertising directed at children; the American Pediatrics Associations recommends no screens under the age of 2.

Effects on relationships

Now we are seeing a trend  towards research looking at the effects of media use by parents AND children, on the relationships between parents and children.  Already our precious time with our children at home, doing homely things together, is compromised by work, school and homework schedules; now it is encroached upon more by these little hand held devices with their beguiling or necessary messages.

Perhaps we can ask ourselves:

What is right relationship for me, as a working adult, and as a parent, with Electronica?

What influence do we as parents want electronic devices and screens to have on our family and our relationships with each other?

If as parents we can show our kids that we value relationship and can make changes to promote and protect direct human connection, we may be helping them find their way in their own lives towards right relationship with the burgeoning of electronically engineered and mediated virtual communication and experience.

How do we go screen-free?  Inspiration!

I am so impressed by parents who are bringing small do-able changes to hold a screen-free space for their families.

Here are some ideas and stories that may inspire you:

Create office hours as a by-line on your email and phone
Here are some brave examples:

IN AN EFFORT TO BE TRULY PRESENT FOR MY FAMILY…  PLEASE NOTE THAT ON WEEKENDS, AND EVERYDAY DURING BREAKFAST AND DINNER, I will not be viewing my email.  I will respond to you during normal business hours M-F, Pacific Standard Time.  

SUPPORT EMAIL & SMARTPHONE FREE ZONES DURING NON-WORK HOURS! 

In order to spend more quality time with my daughter, I have decided to reduce the amount of time that I spend online. I will only be checking my email once or twice day. If I don’t return an email as quickly as I have in the past, please know that I will be in touch soon. You are always welcome to set up an appointment with me or to come by my office hours on XXX.

Phone Free events
We know a single Dad who is popular with his teen son’s friends. He offers Ping Pong and Pasta nights on Fridays, all cell phones checked at the door in a basket, and guitars welcome.

Phone-free teens
Overheard recently:

11 grade girl to 12 grade boy;

“Let’s all get together tonight in the park, and hey, let’s say no phones”

Media-free meal times
Many families choose to have no radio, TV or phones during family mealtimes, whether this is every evening, or just one brunch lunch or supper a week.

Please share your own experiments for unplugging to inspire others!

Question:
This all makes good sense, and it resonates largely with how I parent my four-year-old. However, it leaves me with a question.  When he was 2, I really used the 2 choice strategy: “Would you like this choice or that choice?”  I always just gave him 2 minor choices, both of which I was fine with – a banana or an apple type of thing.

It seemed to work great at that age.  Somewhere around 3, it stopped working as great, so I stopped using it. I’m curious to hear how that fits into the rest of this. Thanks!

Kim says…

There have been some folk who are real fans of limited choices.  However, so many have had the outcome you have described.  The effectiveness wears off or the child pushes hard to expand the range.  Sometimes it leads to the child demanding more choices about more important things.

One parent described the limited choice strategy as a “Pandora’s box”.

My advice to parents who wish to do this has been to shift the dynamic from…
”Which cereal would you like, the organically grown gluten free flakes or hemp based stevia sweetened granola?” to…
“You may choose between the…”

This implies that the adult is allowing a small choice – not that the child is taking the right to make a choice.  If the choice does not go well, the adult can simply move into… “Oh dear,I can see I will have to help work this out…”

————————————————-

If you’re interested in reading more, Meredith offers a general outline of the stages of development Kim presents in the Soul of Discipline here - with some more ideas about age-appropriate choice.

What are your experiences with offering choices?

Language is a difficult topic to cover when thinking about parenting. 

What if we tell our children that they are unique and beautiful on the inside, yet we insist on having our kids leave the house looking a certain way each day?

Or if we talk about loving the planet, saving money, and recycling, but our favorite pastime is shopping?

A friend of mine has the wonderful ability of talking slowly and deliberately.  It is beautiful to watch. Yes, at times you want her to get to the point but each of her sentences are intentional and reflect her true thoughts.  I, on the other hand, talk and talk until I figure out my point while I talk.  I was named the ‘non-stop talker’ in Tibetan by a monk I was visiting in Spain.

Parents refer to their children as their babies. Then soon after they might say something like : “Be a big girl and go potty,” or “Be helpful to your mom,” or “Be a big boy and set this on the table.”  Then the same child will be told they are not old enough to do something or told: “You’re too little to stay up late.”

I found that it was helpful to look into my speech habits to see if I was contradicting myself.  I have worked hard to teach my daughter to step away and calm herself before reacting by breathing and thinking of a way she can be positive towards an unexpected situation.  Yet I often react instantly to her actions or sibling disagreements. I’m working on taking my own advice to her, and trying to calm myself when my children present me with unexpected situations.

Does your language follow the values you instill in your children?

Do your values reflect the actions your children see you do everyday?

This is Heidi Ahrens from Becoming a Parent .  I offer consultations and support for families. With more than 15 years of experience working with children and parents we can work together in creating the tone and rhythm of your home that reflects the unique values and creative personalities of your family. Feel confident and assured in the direction you are leading your family! Please sign up to receive my free ebook Family Rhythms or contact me for  a free  30 minutes consultation. heidiahrens@me.com 

Any busy mom knows that having some organization to her day is the * key* to less stress, less overwhelm, and less meltdowns.

But, did you also know that having a solid daily & weekly rhythm plays a very important role in homeschooling?

With so many families deciding to homeschool these days, how do they manage to keep the balance without the overwhelm?

Rhythm.

Adding homeschooling to your day can feel overwhelming if you don’t have some of the basics in place.
When you do, it fits in nicely without struggle or a feeling of lost time.

Here are some tips to creating a successful rhythm.

1) Get your foundation in place.

Create the pillars of your day (the things you must do like meals, naptime,
bedtime routine.)  Get these running smoothly and routine.
This should leave small pockets within your framework for the fun stuff.

2) Simplify.  Do you have too much going on?  Are running around all week like a taxi, trying to get as much out of the day as possible?
Are all those extra activities really necessary? I find my happiest days are when I have nothing I have to do. We all need time to relax and just be.

3)Create a rhythm that fits you and your family.  Talk with your spouse and kids( if they are old enough) about family values and what is important to you as a family. If outdoor activities is a priority, find a way to work that into your schedule. Once everyone is on the same page, it can make decisions about your “free time” easier and more proactive. Plan that camping trip, or weekly game night.

4) Be consistent but allow room to breathe.  It is good to have the consistency needed to keep a routine, but know that life happens. Leaving some breathing room in your days and weeks with help when “fires” arise that can’t be helped. And for the occasional day when you chuck your schedule and go to the park.

For more guidance on homeschooling with waldorf-inspired methods and creating your ideal rhythm, check out www.TheWaldorfConnection.com

——————————————————————————————–

GIVE AWAY TIME!

Right now, Donna is offering an online webinar with more valuable information and support for parents as she has shared with us today.  She is generously offering a free place in class for one our readers!  Here is some information on the course:

The step-by-step course that shows you how understand Waldorf,
set-up your homeschooling space and rhythm & present the material.

Wherever you may be on this path, Waldorf Homeschool “U”
will meet you there with practical nuts-n-bolts solutions,
guidance and a supportive community.

You will come away with assurance and confidence in your decision to homeschool.
Waldorf U is a 6-week step-by-step course that prepares you for understanding
Waldorf concepts, shows you how to set-up your homeschool space and daily rhythm, and guides you to plan and present the material that your child needs to thrive.

TO ENTER:

1.)  Leave a comment here with one thing you hope most to learn from Donna’s class.

2) To be entered twice, share this contest on your facebook or twitter, and comment again “shared it.”

A winner will be announced Monday morning!  Good luck!

Donna is the founder and CEO of The Waldorf Connection, an online resource that provides workshops, courses, and coaching to homeschooling families all over the world.

As a homeschooling mother, entrepreneur, writer and coach, she knows the importance of daily balance and is dedicated to helping others with this balance in their own lives.
You can read more blog posts and information at:
http://thewaldorfconnection.com

The first thing I learned and accepted as truth was that heating things in plastics is bad.

I don’t remember the order of things I learned after that, but I do know that I have not adopted changes to accommodate all of the things I have learned.

I can’t. I’ll go crazy.  And I’ll go crazy if I think about all of the things that I know that I’m not doing anything about.

I have accepted that there are some things I can change immediately right here right now to reduce my (and my family’s) exposure to toxic chemicals. There are some things I can gradually change over time. There are some things that I’m just not going to be able to change without altering something else that I’m currently not able or willing to alter.

To make this all a bit clearer, let me give you some examples:

Immediate changes
As I mentioned, I immediately stopped warming foods in plastics.  Easy for leftovers — my daily-use dishes and bowls are not plastic, so I use those.  Or I use the glass containers that replaced my plastic storage containers.  It was rare for me to buy a pre-made heat-in-the-container meal (like a TV dinner, an “add hot water” bowl of soup or oatmeal, etc.), but I did stop buying them altogether.  No steam-in-the-bag veggies.  No hot drinks in styrofoam cups.  I can do all of that pretty easily.

Changes over time
Laminate furniture is a major contributor to indoor air pollution.  However, our budget did not allow for us to replace all that we already own — bookshelves, tables, dressers, bed frame.  But when it was time to buy a new desk, we bought one that was solid wood instead of laminate.  As more pieces come to need to be replaced, we will replace them with solid wood, glass, or metal. Likewise, when pieces we have that already are wood need to be replaced (kitchen cabinets come to mind), we’ll be sure to replace them with wood.

Not likely to happen
I have a largely plastic-free kitchen.  But I recently added a VitaMix to our appliance family.  The pitcher on this expensive, high-end machine is plastic.  It drives me crazy.  But glass isn’t an option, and at the time that I was ready to buy, I couldn’t find one of the old-school stainless steel ones. (Dear VitaMix: please make a glass pitcher. Thank you.)  At the advice of a friend who is also plastic-free and who has used several of the high-powered blenders, I stuck with the VM. (I don’t know if the others have glass pitchers available or not.)  In order for the “not likely”s to happen, I’d need to either make a significant change that I don’t want to make (in this case, not use a high-powered blender) or someone else would need to create a product that is currently not available.

As you learn more and more about toxins in your environment that you have control over, there will be some things that you realize you can do right now and be OK.  Do them!  Feel good about those changes and knowing you’re doing something proactive for your health and the health of your family.

There will be other things that make you throw your hands up and say “I can’t do that!” Let those things go.  You can’t do everything.

You might be surprised by how much you are able to change in small bits over time. Remember that it is always better to do a little something than nothing. Once something becomes a habit, adding on something else is much easier.

Where are you starting your journey?

Cancer survivor.  Mom.  Teacher.  Entrepreneur.  Musician.  Triathlete.  Inspirational.  Occasionally hilarious. These are all words that describe Heat Dziczek. Learn more about her at heatdziczek.com/about

For today’s post, I was inspired by a radio program I heard yesterday.

I had a rare moment of driving alone in the car, listening to the CBC (truly delicious moments!)   Terry O’Reilly, on his show Under the Influence, spoke of how overwhelmed we as adults get at the all the choice out there, and all the decisions we are therefore required to make.  At the grocery store, we are presented with an abundance of mustard, bread, toothpaste, yogurt, and on and on.  How lucky are we to have all this choice!?

Mostly, it just makes me feel overwhelmed and tired. How much energy does it take for us to make all these decisions? Well, Terry sites that we only have the capacity to make about 27 effective decisions a day, which is why Barack Obama wears mostly black and blue suits, minimizing the time and energy he expends on deciding what to wear, thereby using his decision-making brain power elsewhere!

So I wonder out loud, what are we asking of our children when we give them so many choices in life, so many little decisions to make everyday? And how much time do they spend being preoccupied with the latest urgent decision they need to make?  Green or orange?  Now or later?  Hungry or not?  Like it or don’t?  Yes or no?

With the over-abundance of choice in our society, it doesn’t take long before lunch turns into; “Peanut butter on english muffin? Or, ham and cheese on rye?  Or, maybe if neither of those are what you feel like, I do have some left over mac and cheese? And would you like milk or juice in your blue shiny cup or the green plastic one?” And that’s just for Tom, Anna is an even pickier eater and likes to have other options. Okay, maybe an exaggeration, maybe not.

It’s true that giving our children choices often feels good (for us) in the moment. Good, they are getting what they want, they are learning to make decisions, they feel they have some say over what happens in their lives, they are figuring out what they like and don’t like.

I think that asking our children to constantly make choices and decisions is overwhelming and exhausting for them.  Asking them to choose between A and B and sometimes C and D complicates life and teaches them that everything is up for debate, there is always a different and better option, everything is refuse-able, and everything in life is fair game for them to weigh in on.

In my years working with children and being a mom, I have seen that when there is less choice, children seem to be calmer and more content. Presumably because life becomes simpler and easier to navigate. If a child knows that when she gets home from school her mom will prepare her a snack and sit down with her to hear about her day, the predictability of this routine becomes a stabilizing force in this child’s life. Something she can depend on and look forward to. What her mom gives her for snack doesn’t necessarily need to be a part of that equation, unless she is in the habit of having it presented to her that way.

Not only does life become simpler and more straightforward when there is less choice for our children, but the very helpful reality is that parenting becomes simpler and less tiring when we spend less time negotiating and working to fulfill the labyrinth of wants that choice stimulates.

Hester Koopman has experience working in several settings for child and youth care.  She now dedicates her time and energy to being a stay at home mom for her children, ages 3 and 6.  She completed training in 2012 to be a Simplicity Parenting Group Leader for her community, helping parents make small but important changes to simplify family life.  You can read more of her ideas on simplifying at her blog, http://hestersimplicityparenting.com.

I never thought I would live within a half hour drive to a beach like this. I am a tree-loving, mountain basking, warm hat wearing soul. I am not drawn to the beach like some people are. I will say though that the beach is really growing on me. Lately, I do long for the Ocean breeze and watching my boys jump happily in the waves and dig in the sand.

The beach brings me peace and a calm to the rest of my day. It is a nice place to spend the morning.

My boys on the other hand are totally willing, ready and giddy when we announce their morning is going to include the beach.

L is a different little boy when he can see the Ocean. He is calm, happy and his feet never are on the ground at the same time. He is jumping, twisting, skipping, leaping and marching through the waves and sand. I love hearing his squeals and shrills of happiness.

C is also a very happy boy when we are at the beach. He loves all the birds, boats, seaweed and sand. He follows L around and finds his own way to enjoy our time at the beach too.

When we first got to the beach recently I was so distracted by all the people walking, running, talking, on their morning exercise circuit. There was a continuous stream of people between our stuff (towels, food, sand toys, backpack) and the Ocean.

Quickly, I realized that my boys didn’t see all the people. They continued their beach adventure uninhibited by all the possible distractions. They just heard the Ocean waves, dug in the sad, frolicked in the waves and saw my husband and I.  That is all.

I have taken this lesson they are continually teaching me to heart, especially on my recent hike with some of my girlfriends.

I was really struck by their ability to see the best of the morning and do exactly what they came to the beach to do. To play.

They drew letters deep into the sand with their fingers.

They found tiny sand crabs that were only exposed when you poured a huge bucket of water on top of the sand and then the crabs would almost magically disappear into the sand again.

And they were totally amazed at the sound of the “ocean” in their ear. So amazed C found more shells and listened for a long time. He would look at the shell, then bring it up to his ear, then SMILE and listen.

He even tried two shells at a time. After a while he started placing the shells on different parts of his body thinking his tummy, knee, elbow and nose needed to hear the Ocean too.

Eventually, it was time to walk back up the hill to our car. C is so determined to do what his brother does. He walked all the way up by himself.

It was another beautiful morning at the beach. The air was brisk, the boys were happy and I reminded myself that there is nothing wrong with tuning out parts of your surroundings so you can make the most out of your morning.

Who just loves the beach? What do you love about it, when did you first realize that you needed it. Do your kids feel the same way? Or do they enjoy another natural environment more?

Carrie Browne is a nature inspired at home mom to two curious, mud loving, on the move boys in Fullerton, CA. She loves trees, camping/backpacking, quilts and taking photographs. She is passionate about playing outside everyday and sharing her love of our natural world with her boys. You can read more about her families’ adventures, mama moments and messy days on her blog Curly Bug.

Our lives are influenced by so many rhythms- seasonal rhythms, lunar patterns, the rhythms of our days and our weeks.  I know this to be true and yet, I still find myself amazed when I step back and observe it.

As a Simplicity Parenting© Group Leader, Allison Abramson is helping Rhode Island families slow down and make space for the simple joys of childhood. Her workshops give parents the tools they need to make small, do-able changes at home that will deepen family connections and create more time for fun! She lives in Providence with her husband and two little girls, where she blogs about their journey toward a Peaceful Life at www.allisonabramson.com.