At the last second, I changed my mind against picking my kids up from the bus in the car and instead grabbed the umbrellas and a jacket. It was warm. I figured they had probably not had recess, what with all the rain. The afternoon included a longer-than-normal piano lesson for my son during which…
Featured
National Kids Yoga Conference returns!
I had an amazing day at the National Kids Yoga Conference! More writing to follow, but see my @MindfulHealthy Twitter Feed @CrunchyChewy Twitter Feed and Mindful Healthy Life Facebook page for updates from the day! And here’s a pic of me and a former student, who was volunteering at the conference and who teaches yoga…
Channeling the yoga class I didn’t take my kids to
This afternoon was pretty only with respect to the weather. The rest of it had lots of ugly moments, and buckets of tears from my five-year-old. No, I didn’t do yoga with my kids today, and we didn’t meditate together before bed or anything like that. But I did hold on to the imagined beauty…
No expiration date on learning or growing
Today I led a meditation at a health & wellness fair at my children’s school! This happened because last year, after I attended the first National Kids Yoga Conference, I suggested to the principal that mindfulness activities at school be considered, in general and in particular using the wetlands learning lab we built three years ago….
Writing To-Do List: Making it Public for #NaBloPoMo
Since the start of November means the start of NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) and NaBloPoMo (National Blog Posting Month), I feel the need to make my Writing – and my writing support – To-Do list public: for accountability and to show the whole picture. I have come to understand that I can’t just say I will write every…
Take Back Your Health Conference returns
I’ve attended every Take Back Your Health conference since it launched in 2011 and am so pleased that it is back again this year in Arlington, October 3-4, 2015. I wanted to be sure to share that ticket prices go up tonight, Tuesday, September 1. Buy your ticket here through our affiliate link and support…
End of summer, with grief and relief
As summer 2015 draws to a close, I am filled alternately with grief and with relief. Now, it’s pretty typical for me to flip-flop from one extreme to another in my emotions in the space of about two minutes. I remember one fall day I took my children to Ticonderoga Farms by myself and thought…
Modeling moderation when mama abstains
As a woman whose health can’t support her drinking any alcohol, I feel pretty out of the mainstream with all the funny jokes out there about needing a drink. I can’t even tolerate decaf coffee anymore, so I feel similarly out of step when others talk about the day not starting without java. It’s not…
5 Things I wished I’d know before my c-section (and VBAC)
Today is the last day of Cesarean Awareness Month, something I would not have expected would apply to me when I first got pregnant a little more than 10 years ago. But it does. After my 2006 c-section, I went on to have a homebirth with my second child, thanks in no small part to…
Lukewarm on/in spring
Dear Spring, This is difficult to say, but I’m no longer sure that I love you. We’ve had some amazing times together, I know. And I have always loved your greeny-gold and that feeling of newness you bring with you. But lately things have just been too up and down. The temperature, for one. The…
Family legacy ambivalence
Welcome to the April 2015 Carnival of Natural Parenting: Family History This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama. This month our participants have shared stories, lore, and wisdom about family history. Please read to the end to find a list of…
Itemizing and strategizing at year’s end
As 2014 winds down, I’ve been feeling a little better physically but am still somewhat overwhelmed in general and in my head. It’s becoming clearer and clearer to me how physical health is related to emotional, spiritual and mental well-being. This post is my attempt to inventory all the destinations of my energy so I know…
Holiday at home
Since I was planning to travel to visit my mom in early November and we are planning to spend time with family in Indiana over Christmas, it seemed like a good idea to just hang out at home for Thanksgiving this year. And mostly it was. But it was also kind of long and sometimes…
How to talk to depressed people
Memory assistance is one of the best things about blogging. I was looking everywhere for a piece I knew I’d started on what to say and not say to someone who is depressed. When I logged in to update the blog after a nearly season-long hiatus, there was the draft, from July 20, 2014. I’m…
Conjuring home: intention in renovation
Welcome to the September 2014 Carnival of Natural Parenting: Home Tour This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama. This month our participants have opened up their doors and given us a photo-rich glimpse into how they arrange their living spaces. *** It’s been two…
Author Dav Pilkey shares history of learning challenges
A few hours ago, my eight-year-old son and I popped back on the Metro from the Library of Congress National Book Festival at the DC Convention Center after sampling just a fraction of what the event had to offer in this, its first year taking place inside. The key attraction that got us there by 11…
Activist, educator, mother: spin the dial
What words would you use to describe yourself? How do those words change when you become a parent? What do your choices look like with the glasses of parenthood on? This week I felt like some of my many identities came together outside the Federal Triangle Metro station at the Moms Clean Air Force-organized rally…
Pulling the plug on BlogHer14
It is with an ache in my gut — literally — that I have to come to terms with the fact that I am not going to BlogHer ’14. I had to believe the trip was possible when I bought the ticket. We’d had two snow days that week (including my birthday. What a rockin’…
Conviction and compromise on the road
Welcome to the July 2014 Carnival of Natural Parenting: Family Vacation This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama. This month our participants have shared their family-travel tips, challenges, and delights. Please read to the end to find a list of links…
To BlogHer, or not to BlogHer
I’d already lost count of which snow day it was when I bought a registration ticket for BlogHer ’14 in San Jose, California, the annual blogging conference’s 10th anniversary year. There had been so many days that the weather had forced me to scrap plans to work toward the launch of my new site or…