Branch Habitat

where do I fit?

2016-03-05T14:57:00.001-08:00

Lets chat for a moment about what our American culture defines as the "super mom", One that does all!! I would like to share my perspective and what I have learned from my mistake and how I redefined my role and remembered who I was before children.

First lets talk about this idea of the self sacrificing-do-it-all mom and how it can be detrimental to fight against this unrealistic ideal. When women find they will be welcoming a baby into the world, we start to envision what this new role will look like. Its not the same for everyone, but the one thing that does remain the same for every mother is how to balance the woman she was before to who she will be after her children.

My personal situation is the perfect example. Before kids I studied graphic design with a BFA at university. I have always identified myself as an artist. I loved to paint, go out to eat gourmet food, go to art museums, drink coffee at cafes, travel, and go out to see music shows. I cared about my appearance and loved to shop vintage and thrift stores for fashion and home treasures. My favorite pass time was to get lost in a bookstore for the afternoon. My career was as a head designer at a printing company with a decent income and my own Roth IRA.

Now that I have children I can only name two of those things as identifiers or near the middle /low of my priority list. What happened?! How could what defined me before be a small shadow of who I am now? Well in American culture we take all of that "selfish" time and throw it out the window. Part of this is absolutely an important part of having a new baby. Babies have a fourth trimester outside of the womb for the first 100 days. Their breathing and body temperature is dependent on their mothers closeness. But, once this time is over many of us continue to give 100% to our babies/13 year old. Now this is dicey territory to navigate. Of course we give our helpless bundles of love all that they need, but my argument is that its a scale that over time gives back in small increments our former selves that so many other cultures of mothers practice.

Why do we stay stuck in give, give, give? Its trivial but does have some biological reasoning but most of it I argue is the load of "Mom Guilt" we inflict on ourselves and judge onto other women. Its a badge of honor for some mothers to be the all to everyone, but behind this impossibly perfect appearance of doing it all we forget who we are. This serves no one especially our cohorts in this parenting gig. Our love relationships dial to zero and kids become the space between. This is surely a recipe for disaster with our children and our spouses.

What happens when the lovely broad leaves the nest? Having solely depended on our role as mothers to dictate every decision we make we are left wondering what to do. So many marriages won't even make it to this pressure cooker point and will have fizzled within the first four to six years after children. If it does survive many couples will appear as strangers in a strange land with a whole lot of figuring out to do and some serious therapy lessons.

But there is a different path as I mentioned before! Its not all doom and gloom!! Having recently discovered the mothering manifesto of french women I will give you a different option. Its just not the french but many European family's define the mothering role with a much more functional attitude and culture. Both parents give themselves over the first 100 days to bond and become a family. This time then comes to an end and over time the mother regains her self and does not get lost in babeland and our babies do not replace our husbands. Its very unappealing to put a baby/child in a position of such power to be dictating choices for the mother and family in France. The mother eventually continues a life apart from her child to give a fresh breath to all of her loved ones. Its a balancing act but one that gives a healthier dynamic to each relationship.

Lets catch up- homeschool

2016-03-04T18:10:00.000-08:00

So, as time as gone on I have home schooled little B for First Grade but now he is full time at a Waldorf inspired charter school here in Northern California. However I did really enjoy that time homeschooling but he really needed to be in a classroom for 2nd and now 3rd grade. I am homeschooling Little F with the same curriculum for 1st grade but waiting for a spot at the same school. Age seven is such a special time and children really seem to do well staying a little closer to home as they transition developmentally into the second stage of childhood development. Biologically they have cellularly regenerated, which is a big stage unto itself.
With the first stage of development being directed by will ages 0-7 now 7-14 is the big Feelings development.

"After age seven, a child’s world expands beyond the self, and with this expansion, they develop a great subtlety of feeling. Gannon explains that children’s feelings dominate their world in this stage as they move between joy and sadness and learn to manage these different emotions within the greater, more expansive world now open to them.

The healthy feeling life of the child is supported by providing a context of beauty for all things, from simple movements to complex ideas. By appealing to their natural imaginative capacities, children can be encouraged to use these active feelings to connect to learning as a process.

It is at this time that children are ready for academic instruction, as long as it continues to appeal to social and physical realms and, even more so, the realm of feeling. This is why Waldorf grade school lessons are taught through engaging stories of trial and triumph. Children who sympathize and relate to a story in these years are moved to carry the information and process it in a deep and meaningful way that persists as they grow into a more conceptual and thinking way of being."

-http://blog.sgws.org/waldorf-perspective-on-child-development/

I realize now after learning this information that I was unaware of this development but it certainly played a huge role in the events that brought me to home school. This was our move to Alaska time frame and uprooting and experiencing life with uncertainty was a result. I wish that I had been informed on this stage and could understand and support in a more comprehensive way. I don't regret this precious time with the Little's but feel very ready to see them on their way to independence and feeling sure of themselves and safe to make choices with guidance. Also that its OK to feel sadness and as Brene Brown says in her latest book Rising Strong, its how we pick ourselves up and continue and learn from our challenges that matter most!

Lost in time...

2016-02-11T22:58:00.000-08:00

Were did the time go....I just updated the about me section on the boys ages, it was shocking to see 3 & 5. They are now 7 & 9!!!! Wow it seems like yesterday I was doing life with littles and now they are school aged and independent little men. My poor little blog got lost in the dust of time. I really really miss this space as a journal and photo chronicle of our life. I look back and love reading the post from the early years. I miss the connection to other moms and creatives in the great big blogesphere. I'm taking my blog off of the dusty shelve and trying to re-engage with all of you again. It gets harder as the kids get older but I'm facing some serious lifestyle shifts and new personal choices with the boys that come from their independence and peer influence. I wan to communicate the struggles and the joys of children that are not so happy in photographs anymore. Come back with me on this journey and for the love of Pete give me some advice!!

Rainbow Breathing Exercise and Worksheet

2014-03-12T01:24:00.000-07:00

DOWNLOAD

I wanted to create an easy introduction to mindful breathing for children that have minds that wonder or bore easy with meditation. This exercise may take practice with an adult depending on age but once breathing and reading size is mastered it can be laminated and tucked away for easy access in a classroom at home or school. Instead of busy work it can be implemented as a transition tool for students that have finish their work and are waiting for Mom or teacher to prompt the next lesson.

The exercise is about 2-3 minutes once through but can be repeated as needed. Please use and spread these as mindful resource tools.

mindful bites-GF & Vegan

2014-03-10T16:57:00.000-07:00

We can't seem to live without these energizing mind bites lately. As soon as I make them they disappear! The ch- cha- chia adds in some superfood power and not to mention the flax packs a good supply of plant based Omega 3.

Mindful Bites

1 cup almond butter

2 cups GF oats

1 heaping tablespoon chia

1/2 cup ground flax

2 tsp vanilla extract

3 tablespoons maple syrup-grade B

optional

1 cup dried fruit or chocolate chips

Add all the ingredients together in a bowl and then its time to use your hands to mix it all together. Whenever a recipe calls for hand mixing I always visualize positive energy leaving my hands and absorbing into the food-just a little extra love and Reiki!

Once everything is incorporated make one large ball and refrigerate for 15-25 minutes to help soften the oats. After refrigerated simply roll separate bites about 1 inch diameter and store in the fridge.

Mindful homeschool activity sheet and download

2014-03-10T16:20:00.002-07:00

Download

I am sharing another free worksheet for teaching mindfulness to children. This one is very simple and appropriate for young minds. Please use and share!

mindful music worksheet & download

2014-03-07T15:49:00.000-08:00

Download

As part of our homeschool curriculum I have the boys listen to various types of music and then work on our music visual worksheet. Some of the most interesting and creative things come out of these lessons. The art work and feelings that are evoked are wonderful to see.

Special Worth

2014-02-14T01:36:00.002-08:00

These are love affirmation gifts to the boys for Valentines Day. The idea was taken from some I AM poster examples. The boys did the art work first with watercolor and markers and then I typed up some loving describers for them to cut out and glue to the art work. They had total freedom of choice on topic but both decided on Rainbows. When we read them together they where so surprised that they could be special?! It blew my mind that this was the first recollection for them that they had special worth. It raised my own awareness that I can show them connection with art work or Soul Work. I really enjoyed doing this project and hope to do several more with different emotions as part of emotional awareness curriculum in our Mindful Homeschooling.

5 day simple cleanse

2014-02-13T14:30:00.001-08:00

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Detox Cleanse

Basic Structure Length: 5 days

 Snacks: organic Veggies, 1 cup of almonds or 1 cup of berries

Drinks: Water, lemon and Cayenne; Kambucha or Green tea.

Supplements: 1 raw garlic clove, peppermint oil, Pro-biotic Kifer

Key Rules 

No Grains: Avoid wheat, rice, oats, barley, quinoa and all other grains   No Processed Food: Avoid white sugar, brown sugar, Splenda®, Equal®, and agave  Avoid Alcohol: Avoid all types of alcohol  Focus on Probiotics: Take a multi-spectrum probiotic (50 billion count) once a day

Eat These Foods 

Whole vegetables Greens and fresh vegetable juices Sweet potatoes and yams Wild fish, grass-fed meats and eggs Fermented foods Nuts, seeds and nut butters Avocado and coconut Fresh and frozen berries Whole fruits Small amounts of caffeine in the form of green tea.

Meal Plan  

Day 1 

Breakfast: berry & macha shake

Lunch: sweet potato fries & kimchi salad  Dinner: egg omelet and steamed broccoli

Day 2 

Breakfast: Green Shake

Lunch: Green salad with olives and almonds Dinner: Thai Coconut Chicken Soup

Day 3 

Breakfast: Vanilla Almond Shake  Lunch: Thai Chicken Salad 

Dinner: steamed veggies

Day 4 

Breakfast: Berry Shake  Lunch: Thai Coconut Chicken Soup  Dinner: Super salad

Day 5 

Breakfast: Purple Shake  Lunch: Local Vegetable Frittata  Dinner: Euro Nut Shake

Prep is essential and recipes, shopping lists and pre-steaming or cooking food helps continued success. Shakes should not be made ahead of time do to a loss of nutrional value through oxidization. The fresher the better! I highly recommend eating mindfully and reading The Zen of Eating before starting.

winter tree study

2013-11-26T01:20:00.000-08:00

With Christmas season right around the corner and winter on our doorstep, I decided to introduce the coniferous tree as part of our winter season curriculum. First we walked around the neighborhood and identified coniferous trees. The boys were actually excited to point them out and shout "found one!" Once we had identified all of our neighborhood conifers I trimmed a one foot branch off of a pine tree to bring into our classroom for further observation. A head of time I had scissors, bowls and a ruler set out for such observations.

Before we began we started with a few questions:

Do pine needles smell?

How do the bark/needles feel?

What color are the needles?

How long are the needles?

Do pine trees have flowers?

Once we had established a few questions for observation the boys started in naming off many observations as they cut, smelled, felt and looked at the pine branches. I assisted in writing these down on the observation sheet. This was a fun activity and used sensory and observatory factors.

direction

2013-10-20T02:19:00.000-07:00

I am meditating on this writing from Khalil Gibran:

Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,
which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them,
but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

You are the bows from which your children
as living arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite,
and He bends you with His might
that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the archer’s hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies,
so He loves also the bow that is stable.

It really speaks to a struggle that I am newly enduring. The path I have carefully laid for my children stone by stone feels like its crumbling under foot. With our move to Alaska also came a new community with a new home in a new neighborhood. With in this neighborhood there are children that have paths different than my children. The direction I have set forward does not look, sound, or feel like most of the other children's paths. For the first time the boys are trying new paths to forage new friendships and bonds. However, it looks and feels defiant to out belief system and makes many undesirable conflicts for them and for me. Was my path laid hastily and on shaky footing? Why did the influence of others take such a strong hold of my child's compass? These are many of my quandaries as I navigate through to secure footing and stability for myself and the boys.. Writings like this from Khalil Gibran give me strength and inspiration. I want to be the bow that allows the arrow to fly. I cannot protect them from humanness but I can hold their hand in darkness. I see these flaws in them as not flaws but the buds of self discovery and good old fashion lesson learning for both of us.

pumpkin seed study

2013-10-14T15:07:00.002-07:00

As part of our Oak Meadow Science lesson for first grade we were to study the life of an oak seed, however oak trees are few and far between up here on our Alaskan Island of Kodiak. Because of this we choose to study the seed of a pumpkin.

Pumpkin Study

First we purchased a few pumpkins of small and medium size.

Second we watched this video about pumpkins.

Third the boys used craft paper cut outs of the life cycle to paste in sequential order in their nature journals. Little B wanted his grown up pumpkin to be a jack O lantern. Here is a link to free pumpkin life cycle cut-outs.

The Fourth project was a sensory play and coordination project. We used our largest pumpkin and nails, pushpins, and grommets along with rubber mallets to decorate the pumpkin. The boys really enjoyed this project and still are working on a face and others formed shapes on the pumpkin.

Our Last project was to take the smallest pumpkins and cut the tops off of them and LEAVE the seeds in. We had extra potting soil to then fill in the hole burring the seeds. We watered the soil in hopes that the seeds will sprout in a few weeks.

homeschool classroom

2013-10-14T14:36:00.000-07:00

I have gained influence from many sources as I put together our home school classroom. One source being readings from Reggio emilia and Rudolf steiner. I have baskets of loose parts and natural materials along with art materials for creative endeavors. We have collected rocks from all over the northern continent and shells from the Atlantic, pacific, and gulf of Mexico. Our work table is one that was purchased from Target about three years ago. I bought chalkboard paint and turned the top of the table into a fun art space. I purchased a chalk board calender and have a child height chalk board.

Our main subjects are divided into cubbies and baskets that are organized on the white low book shelf. This is important to Little B that he is responsible for materials and during free choice he can grab what he would like to do.

Ideally I will collect more greenery to make the room feel organic and comfortable. We have one large plant/tree and three small plants that are watered and cared for by the boys. Our goal is to create a Gnome Garden in the bottom of the tree pot.

We have a DIY mail station that the boys can write each family member if they feel like. Each mailbox is a piece of craft paper folded and stapled on the sides.

The water and cups is self-serve and the sponges are for cleaning up after themselves.

In the corner I have extra cushions and pillow for reading and circle time. I think this is my favorite spot in the classroom for instruction and meditation.

nature walk and journaling

2013-10-07T13:24:00.000-07:00

This weekend we nature walked and journaled about coniferous and deciduous trees from our Oak Meadow science curriculum. The day was perfect with the sun on our backs and the forest floor soft with moss beneath our feet. Part of our walk was identifying animal tracks, but the only tracks we spotted were our dog Zoe's.

mindful thoughts jar

2013-10-04T17:47:00.000-07:00

Mindful Thoughts Jar

Materials

blue mason jar

water

gold/silver glitter

This idea was taken from the book "Planting Seeds: Practicing Mindfulness with Children" by Thich Nhat Hanh & The Plum Village Community. The book is a wonder resource for introducing mindfulness and this activity in the book was one of the most favorite of the boys. The book lists sand/earth instead of glitter, but glitter was more appealing choice for us. Next, this teaching is a very important aspect of the exercise:

1. When placing the water in the jar talk about water representing our Mind.

2. Then after picking a suitable material(glitter/sand) talk about it representing our feeling and thoughts.

3. When the jar is shaken our thoughts act wildly and race around our jar.

4. Setting the jar down mention the thoughts settling down and becoming clear with three in/out breaths.

This exercise can be done in repetition until the child feels peaceful. Over time it will take less time to ease into a mindful position. A bell may be added when the jar is settling at the beginning of the first in/out breath if one is readily available.

Inspire

2013-10-04T17:05:00.001-07:00

Inspire
inspirare (Latin Root)
in + spirare - to breathe -god breathed

I love this word and find that breath has so many magical abilities. To me it signifies life and can bring me to a mindful position. Today the sunrise was inspirational and sitting in breath was a connection to this beautiful Autumn. Our Island is set in golden tones and brushstrokes of red as mother Earth prepares for wintery slumber.

inspiration and resources

2013-09-27T17:56:00.000-07:00

Mindful Home School

I wish the picture link worked but just the text link works to check out some resources and other inspirational pins from my Pinterest.

choosing Waldorf with mindful education

2013-09-27T17:38:00.003-07:00

I feel like I have am finally applying many years of reading and learning into this new challenge and purpose with our home school choice. As I mentioned on the last post we choice a Waldorf curriculum materials for core subjects called Oak Meadow. I am no stranger to Waldorf or its methodology and pedagogy. Its been a learning journey for me and now it just seems like the perfect time to start teaching.

I happened across a blog about eight years ago called soulemama when I had just found out I was going to be a Mama myself. Her blog gave insight into all that I wanted to be as a Mama and links to other sights about more Mamas. It was truly inspirational and "felt" just right for my new and budding brood. Amanda Soule the blog writer is a home schooling Mama that lives a homesteading lifestyle. She gifted me new terms and concepts like "rhythm of the day" and creative learning methods. Using her blog as my first stepping stone I read and learned about living naturally and incorporating all of it into education. One of her links was called Little Red Caboose about another amazing Mama, Ella Peterson, that used Waldorf education for her, at the time, one child. I followed both blogs for years learning from them and becoming my own teacher eventually and the inspiration in 2008 to start this blog.

Waldorf is just the right fit for our lifestyle and child's learning style. As a child myself, I dreamed of a school that would look and feel like Waldorf. It would also be no surprise to find out I am an artist and "feeler" of the world. Nature was my playground and mother earth was my comfort. It has such a beautiful life behind letters and numbers. Its not something that works for every child and family but for us its a great education model and easily leaves space for mindfulness.

mindful curriculum

2013-09-21T15:27:00.000-07:00

Update: We have adapted a new version of the schedule that works best. Here is the update:

Daily breath and affirmation-mindful movement/yoga

Calendar-season/moon phases-connection

Sunrise Binder

Circle/Songs

Reading writing block-poems, fairy tales, forms-letter journal

Break-snack/mindful eating

Clean/Tidy

Free choice/outdoor time

Break-Lunch-helping prepare in the kitchen/mindful cooking

Math Block-units of measure-nature materials, hands on counting-math journal

Expressive Arts- music study, flute, mandalas, watercolor

Science-Outdoor ed., nature journal,

Mindfulness meditation-5 minutes to 10 minutes with sand timers

We will alternate Indigenous Studies & world culture twice a week in our outdoor education time.

After making the leap into home school territory the stressful choice of curriculum became my new focus. Anyone choosing curriculum has some serious reading to do along with forums and parent reviews. Add in the mindfulness element and the job of choosing becomes daunting. There just isn't enough information share on this topic and a major lack of resources available to compare options. What I did find is a mish-mash of philosophies to create a personal curriculum that works for my 1st grader that I will call Mindful Curriculum.
The curriculum that is closest to mindfulness that has been around for at least a decade is called Enki. It's a Waldorf curriculum that emphasizes whole body and mind education. Its non-secular education philosophy in learning through creative expression and nature based ed. I chose this as our core with room to tweak. I added lessons from MindUp curriculum(classroom based) to fit our home school environment. I have added Singapore math and an add on science with outdoor education. Here is a sample of our daily curriculum.

AM
Daily breath and affirmation-mindful movement/yoga
Calendar-season/moon phases-connection
Sunrise Binder
Reading lesson-15-20 minutes
Break-snack/mindful eating-free choice
Sight words
Word Game

PM
Break-Lunch-helping prepare in the kitchen/mindful cooking
Math Lesson-units of measure-nature materials, hands on counting, Singapore math
Expressive Arts- music study, flute, mandalas, watercolor
Science-Outdoor ed.
Mindfulness meditation-5 minutes to 10 minutes with sand timers

We will alternate Indigenous Studies & world culture twice a week in our outdoor education time.

My next post I will share our classroom and materials that I surprisingly found at thrift stores and various other inexpensive locals.

mindfulness and homeschooling

2013-09-21T14:48:00.001-07:00

Mindfulness is a term that is growing widespread recognition. Its not just a term for our family but a philosophy and way to be in this precious life. I started mindfulness training a little over two years ago when I was looking for self healing practices related to my Celiac Disease. Mindfulness seemed like a new age concept that was used in alternative life practices and seemed way to good to be true. Could "simple" breathing really help my diseased body and over all well being? I started the mindfulness journey with an open mind and heart in the hopes that anything was worth a try to help my situation. As I began my study of "simple" breath it became apparent that this process of becoming mindful was not so simple after all. To sit in current moment awareness with out judgement of self and others was actually not easy at all. To act in compassion and loving kindness also sounded pretty easy but turned out to be a challenge that was a journey onto it's self.

About a year into practice my body had healed and my mind was strong. I had done the work and was living the benefit. I had noticeable difference before that point but it had altered my whole way of being by the end of that first year. Because it had worked so well for me I started looking at helping others heal. I had read many books and articles about Jon Kabot-Zinn and his impact on the western mind and medicine. He is a pioneer of introducing these philosophies that are actually centuries old to our western mind. The book for anyone to start on square one of mindfulness is titled "Full Catastrophe Living by Jon Kabot-Zinn. After reading many amazing and inspiring books I decided that I found enough purpose in mindful living that I wanted to become a advocate for mindfulness and teach its philosophy and methods. I formally studied under the Thich Hhat Hanh method of mindfulness training in an online program through Omega Institute. I attended an inspiring mindfulness conference in Berkeley California where I realized that the medical field was not my direction but working with children was the fire in my belly. The more my heart opened I found paths to fulfill this dream. I had decided to start a private practice to teach mindfulness and create the first generation M (mindful).

Life took us away from our northern California bubble and my Soulful Sprout Studio dream has been put on hold. I have found the universe has given me the opportunity to start from my own seed. I have decided to home school with mindfulness as core philosophy. I have found a whole community of others that are using mindfulness in classroom settings and now home school curriculum's are being formulated like Om School Learning. I am so inspired to share this new journey that I will use this blog as platform of sharing and resources. I will continue to add our adventures and a healthful recipe from time to time, but my focus will be our journey of mindful homeschooling my first grader.

new adventure

2013-08-19T12:35:00.001-07:00

So life and the Coast Guard has moved us to Kodiak Island, Alaska for the next two years. We had sad goodbyes to our home and Friends in Northern California but know in our heart that is our forever home. Its a weird concept for some people but for those of us that move every few years its a huge milestone to have a "home" to return too. We have lived in Michigan, Florida, Alaska, and California. We have driven through every state in the lower 48, flown thousands of miles, and packed and unpacked hundreds of boxes over the past 12 years. Out of all this travel we get to show our children our beautiful country, unique in every square mile. We get to move beyond our comfort zone, meet people of many different creeds and snag a couple as life-long Friends. So with the good-byes comes new smiles and friendly hellos. Kodiak is our "home-for-now" but its truly a beautiful wonder.

greens, greens and more greens

2013-05-23T15:40:00.001-07:00

Its pretty much salad with a side salad for almost every meal these garden days. I am so excited to have such an abundance right out of our own garden. We had last year off from gardening and I was elated to have sooo much garden space to play with this year with our new house. The garden grew three fold do to an excessive amount of dirt from a "project hole" that was dug last week (new gray water septic system). My next goal is to prepare greens for breakfast and not be the only one to indulge. I found these helpful images over at Fresh4five.com an amazing nutrion blog by Danielle Rouse, along with breakfast in a jar recipes. I must do this!

where do we go from here

2013-05-23T11:02:00.000-07:00

I was just in the coffee shop in our small town of Trinidad sharing our future plans to move and my career path that is changing at the same time. I figured this space is as good as any to share these changes. Our family is headed back to Kodiak Alaska this summer on a new life adventure to live for a few years. Our time on the north coast is coming to a temporary pause. There have been so many new things in our life that this blog got neglected in the the process of managing all the change in our lives. We have our new home that we are making "ours" with lots of love and time devoted to leave and come back too in a few years. I love the transformation process and cannot wait to share some of the before and after pictures. Here are some previews of some of the changes.

daytripping

2013-03-06T09:42:00.000-08:00

This my friends is what our February looks like on the North Coast of Northern California. Its not Maui but its not Alaska(which will be our new home in 6 months). I will miss our mild winters and all the outdoor adventure we find. There will be no surfing in February for us up in Kodiak Island but for now we have this magical place to live in and live in is.

valentine

2013-02-05T12:07:00.000-08:00

Craft time! Little B got his class list for Valentines so we busted out the art supplies and heart cut-outs for the old fashion version. It took a lot for me to not want to design them and have "cool" ones to hand out to the class kiddos. Minted has some really cute ones that are all designy and such. Instead, the ones Little B is making are truly out of love as he picks colors and images for each classmate. Love is our theme at home for the next week and a half and we had some fun conversations as we worked on this project. My goal is to show the kiddos that love is just not romantic but how we should live most days of the year instead of just Valentine's Day. We are picking three random acts of love to complete in this time frame. Remember we ALL need Love!