We went on a run outside. I facetimed my grandma and she helped me fix my sewing machine. Emily turned the bathroom into an ice skating rink with half a bottle of hand soap and slid around until she wiped out. I made honey candied ginger for the first time – mostly a sticky mess…
Motherhood
How Maria Montessori, Rudolf Steiner (Waldorf), Charlotte Mason, and Essentialism are Shaping My Role as a Mom
I struggle with the open-endedness of motherhood. Diaper changes, feeding, cleaning, and sleep take up a good portion of the day. But there are at least six unstructured hours of time to fill. I often default to just sitting on the floor with the kids. My mind is wandering or stressing about what I want/need/should…
It Makes the Difference
Emily has started adding, “it makes the difference” to various statements. For example, when referring to using two different fingernail polishes, “You need to paint the sparkly one first, and then the purple one. It makes the difference.” Her phrase has popped in my head numerous times this week. Here a few little things that…
Kids Knife Skills
Emily and I watched a free kids knife skills class yesterday. She was trying to cut cheese to make herself a grilled cheese sandwich, so it seemed like the right moment. Today we made some play dough fruits and vegetables: apple, avocado, potato, carrot, and zucchini. She got to work cutting with her fingers soldier…
A Fixing Day and Our Winter Routines
The transition to winter has been tough for us. During Spring, Summer, and Fall we fell into an easy rhythm of being outside with friends during the majority of waking our hours. We tried to continue our schedule as the temperature dipped into the 20s. Emily doesn’t seem to mind the cold above single digits,…
Jackson Family Theme 2017
I spent the month of December reflecting on the past year and planning for the year ahead. Each member of our family is working on establishing small but significant habits this coming year. Some we are excited about doing, and others we are more excited about the results of future discipline. On Saturday as we…
Today Tried Hard to Be Bad, But It Was Rather Good
By 8:30pm last night I just knew today would be bad. Nathan had already woken up and begun his screaming routine. Usually we get a couple hours of sleep before spending the second half of the night with him in our arms. At 7am I was already angry and done with all the screaming. But today…
A Really Real Day
As Nathan gets older, it is fascinating to watch his influence on Emily. He has introduced her to a whole to realm of things she never considered. Neither of them wanted the snacks I suggested this afternoon. They went off to play while I talked to the insurance company for at least an hour. There…
A Season to Organize
When I was watching the Mom Conference in October I came across a free webinar on the Power of Moms all about organization. The tagline read, “Are you ready to tame your task list and get things done in a stress-free and efficient way WHILE prioritizing motherhood?”. YES YES YES! I dedicated 50 minutes of…
Nature Fridays
In an attempt to slow down and connect with my kids, we’ve instituted Nature Fridays. We’ve been leaving mid-morning and heading to the celery bog nature area for some adventuring and a picnic lunch. The first week we ate lunch, played a few games (red light, green light; duck duck goose), and then went on…