Tag Archives: family

A Happy New Year of New Beginnings

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I so love the start of a new year, all fresh and sparkly in my mind. I have been so enjoying not only the holidays and Christmastide, but a feeling of energy and new beginnings in the quiet coziness of the holidays. I was running with work hours close to the last minute of the holidays, and in fact, we only got our Christmas tree up on December 22nd! But since then, I have had some time off of work and have had time to think and dream and plan. It’s been so refreshing and nourishing.

I had a health crisis in 2023 and have spent much of this year working a lot and feeling as if I was trying to catch up to something -maybe the someone I used to be – before I got sick. Slowly, we emerge from things in life differently than we were before but still ever joyful. I realize I could have died in 2023, and am so grateful I am here still. Thank you all so much for your support. I am ready to re-emerge with some new content for you this year and sending you all some love in this season of new beginnings. I love the more introverted vibe of this season – nesting with blankets and hot drinks and inside fun, but still being able to go outside for a walk in the rain or bright sunshine with colder temperatures!    I am always delighted with the possibility and prospect of snow as well.

January is one of my favorite months of the year. Suzanne Down had a beautiful little story in her most recent newsletter, and I found the public domain version of it here to share with you: https://etc.usf.edu/lit2go/165/buttercup-gold-and-other-stories/2902/the-little-new-year/. It would be a lovely one to tell with puppetry for your children but it is also worth a read if you have older children or are an empty nester to remember the spirit of Christmastide and new beginnings all around!

Here are some of the days we will be celebrating in January:

January 1 – New Year’s Day

January 6– The Feast of Epiphany and Epiphanytide that stretches until Lent begins on Wednesday, March 5 this year (and Easter is on Sunday, April 20 for those of you planning ahead!)

January 18 to January 25 Week of Prayer for Chrisian Unity https://www.oikoumene.org/resources/documents/resources-for-the-week-of-prayer-for-christian-unity-2025

January 20– Martin Luther King, Jr Day – also celebrated January 15 and April 4 in The Episcopal Church

Janaury 18– The Feast Day of St. Peter

January 25 – The Feast Day of St. Paul

Rhythm is strength, and I have things in place for the house with outside the home work, farm work, and homeschooling our ninth grader this year. I will be detailing this and how I run the house and farm this month in this space. I still work for two different companies providing physical therapy and lactation services plus have my own business so the days can vary, but I am finding it easier to balance everything than it used to be.

The farm is at six horses right now that require care multiple times a day, and two beehives plus our indoor dogs and cats (and an outdoor cat that has decided to live here part time). We put an addition on our barn this year, and I am looking forward to expanding the apiary in the spring, and planting a garden. We still have many renovation projects to go in the house (we are starting with adding a bathroom upstairs this month), and landscaping and pasture pieces to fulfill, but slowly we are getting there. This house and property has been an incredible project. We were lucky to find this during the pandemic, but it has been a ton of work with literally not one thing from insulation, plumbing, water lines, heating, etc needing to be redone up through the pastures, barn, etc. It can be overwhelming at times, but then I remember how much I wished and prayed for this place and get my gratitude on again!

Creating is high on my list this year, including writing more, seasonal crafting, and watercolor painting. It feels really nice to have enough energy to be back in that space! I even got some new paintbrushes for Christmas and have plans to paint monthly with a friend. ❤ I decided that after I take my beekeeping class this year, I am going to enroll in an art class. Our son has less extra curricular things than his sisters did at his age, so I think I can find the time to do these things!

I usually pick a word of the year instead of making resolutions, and this year I chose the word “COMMIT.” I am committing to myself and my health this year. The things that need to be done are going on the calendar and I am blocking time out as I need to. Do you have a word of the year to bring you focus and clarity? My past words have included words such as radiant, abundant, vibrant, bold (2023) and last year was replenishment.  This year, I have really sat with a planner, a vision board, and a prayer board and just thought about how to bring pieces of “COMMIT” to life this year and what types of support I will need to make that happen. I can’t do it by myself, but I have a team assembled to help me commit to my health, along with family and great friends that are family. I am very lucky and grateful.

These are a few of the things we are enjoying this month:

  • Daily outside time – when our children were small and we lived in neighborhoods, this was mainly in the form of a daily walk, and park time. Now it is mainly in the form of barn chores but I also am starting to walk again. I actually don’t generally mind the colder weather.
  • Puzzles and board games
  • Green smoothies and juicing
  • Making freezer meals
  • Exercising – this includes at home with Bodi (the former Beachbody), the gym, walking, and some events at our local yoga studio.
  • Creating
  • Going out as a couple
  • Playing with our horses, dogs, and cats
  • Learning more about beekeeping. I am excited about my beekeeping course. I found a great mentor last year who came and helped me, but I am looking forward to being more knowledgeable on my own!
  • Indoor and outdoor gardening
  • Indoor microgreens!
  • Decluttering from digital spaces (social media), and decluttering the garage and basement.
  • I am taking a beekeeping class this month through our county’s beekeeping club!
  • We found a sweet new parish closer to the farm – our old parish was just too far away and we always have to do things around the horse schedule. This new parish is a small country church, and it’s adorable. You can see a picture on my Instagram stories!

If you are looking for fun things to do with children, these are things we have enjoyed:  Cut out paper snowflakes, including really cool 3-D snowflakes; dip candles; roll candles; play board games or card games with your children;  draw, paint, model; whittle wood; make popcorn together; bake together; play in the snow – build snow forts; have snowball fights; snowshoe; downhill or cross country ski;  ice skate on a pond; read and tell stories; build forts inside; take a walk outside in the cold – look for animal tracks or berries or birds or all of the above; knit, crochet, cross stitch, finger knit, spin, sew; sing and make music together – learn some new songs; clean, scrub, dust, work around the house – rearrange furniture; go bowling or find an indoor swimming pool to swim in; write letters to family and friends; write stories together; snuggle on the coach with hot chocolate and marshmallows; cook for a neighbor; find a place of worship to attend and get involved; throw a party; clicker train your dog, cat, or other animal; take care of plants; start seeds indoors when it it is time

On the parenting and  homeschooling front, our oldest lives and works about an hour from us but comes to farm frequently because her horse is here. Our middle child is working towards her own business in the equine industry, and our youngest is a freshman in high school. He is enjoying being on a cybersecurity team and being in Sea Scouts. Homeschooling doesn’t look quite like it used to when I was homeschooling three children Monday through Friday, but we still have days of homeschooling in addition to several days of classes at a local hybrid high school.

THINGS TO LOVE THIS MONTH!

Things to love this month:

The January Book Box

Warming Meals

The most wonderful new resource from Raising Little Shoots is here! My Christian readers will love the gentle wisdom in this collection: https://raisinglittleshoots.com/word-for-the-way-a-new-year-devotional/ I just LOVE this! Definitely go check it out!

The other thing I am really enjoying is Hearth & Home for all things homemaking. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do: https://www.myhearthandhome.com/

I hope you are a member of The Child is the Curriculum for seasonal living, Waldorf homeschooling, Waldorf parenting, and support! I just renewed my membership, and I hope to see you over there: https://www.thechildisthecurriculum.com/subscriptions/?register=1

Lastly, if you love a good book club I am doing this one: https://everyday-reading.com/the-2025-everyday-reading-book-club-list/ You can follow along on Instagram, which makes this really appealing.

Looking forward to celebrating throughout the year with you and supporting you on your parenting and homeschooling journey!

Many blessings to you,

Carrie

Joy in the Home

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“We must make the mother happy, as the child thrives on joy!” – Michaela Glockler

In this time where I see parents more and more searching for right answers, (convinced there is a “right answer” in matters of parenting), increasingly time- pressed and pressured from the economic side of life, with perhaps less differentiation between children and adults, there often can be little joy in parenting.

The smallest interactions with your child have the potential to be joyful, if one slows down long enough to experience this. All children, but small children especially, need the gift of time. Some have labeled this “slow parenting”, but this wisdom used to not need such a label. This does not mean they are shut off in their rooms for long periods alone and with technology but instead of infusing into the life of the family through a continued call to come and be held by the warmth and joy in the house.

Early years children need just the smallest flexible rhythm around diapering/bathroom; eating; playing and working; rest and sleeping with warmth infused in a happy and stable rhythm. Middle years children need heartfelt guidance of what to do with emotions, how to participate in an expanded community life and with expanded rhythms and responsibilities. The adolescent needs to begin the work of discerning right judgment, right initiative, right independent thinking – among other things. Four years in high school goes by rather quickly.

The backdrop to the developmental tasks in hand of the parent is that of joy. How can you bring more joy into your homes and into your attitudes in parenting? How you nurturing your own path? This is important not only for tiny children who notice so many small details in their world, but even for the teenagers who will notice the home cooked meal, the flowers on the table, the smile when they enter the door and more. We can hold this space throughout the stages of development.

Our third child is now fourteen and entering ninth grade, the first year of high school in the States. We are embarking on this journey for the last time and I am thinking and meditating in regards to how to help guide him in the best possible way toward his future. At this point, we also have coaches, mentors, other parents of his friends, to also assist us and to love him. This is invaluable. Your community is so important and helpful in this time.

How are you planning your new parenting and homeschooling year to bring joy?

Love to all,

Carrie

Read Along With Me – “How the Future Can Save Us”

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We are on page 20 of this wonderful book by Stephen Sagarin, who is a faculty chair, cofounder and teacher at the Berkshire Waldorf High School in western Massachusetts. It is so fun to read his musings on Waldorf Education, and I hope you are enjoying reading along!

We are in Section 7 of the “Method” section and the author talks about how so often we begin Waldorf Main Lesson with this idea of dancing, singing, eurythmy and bean bags. Rudolf Steiner himself said in Soul Economy (by the way, one of my most favorite set of educational lectures compiled and often overlooked by people) that “while a person is engaged in limb activities that simulate the metabolism, thoughts that were artificially planted in the head during the previous years are no longer there. When children jump and run around and are active in the limbs and the metabolism, all thoughts previously planted in the head simply fly away.”

Many homeschoolers have complained for years that they would take the family for a walk prior to school, and then by the time they come back, everyone uses the bathroom and has a snack, half of the morning is gone! Sometimes we have limited time and we really just need to get to work in the grades.

Section 8 discusses taking notes. Those in my generation often wrote down nearly word for word what our teachers were saying, especially in high school and college. We were fast writers! LOL. Sagarin says perhaps this isn’t the best tactic, and he often teaches without having the students take notes and then the next day he comes in and writes a very concise summary on the board that students can copy without having to listen. Think about how you want to approach this in your homeschooling, especially as you move up in the grades. Section 9 is about the value of doodling.

What do you think of this book so far? Here in the States, the school year is fast approaching, and I hope this book gives you some thoughts for your new homeschooling year.

Blessings,
Carrie

A July To Remember

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The best summer memories usually are not the big things like a flashy vacation, but instead the slow and ordinary moments that make up the days of summer. Picking blueberries and eating them off the bush or eating tomatoes off the vine. Sunrises and sunsets. Watching the fireflies.

Farm life is busy and content this time of year. We split a beehive last week, got two horses in (one is a sale horse), and are busy with summer farm life. We don’t have a garden, mainly because where I want to put it still needs trees removed, but I am hopeful to have some raised beds built in time for fall.

I used to get July Doldrums – it was so hot and miserable at times with small children with endless days of park and pool (fun, but exhausting by the end of a hot month). Now our children are almost 23, 19, and 14 so summers look different. Jobs and adult responsibilities, and farm chores and activities for our 14 year old who is still at home.

So, this July, here are the things we are celebrating:

4- Independence Day

22- Feast Day of St. Mary Magdalene

25- Feast Day of St. James the Apostle

26- Feast Day of St. Anne and St. Joachim, Parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Are you thinking about summer menu planning?  I have a back post on July Menu Planning to grab! You might also love this ebook of Waldorf School recipes! https://www.waldorflibrary.org/online-library/ebooks/ebooks/a-collection-of-recipes-from-shepherd-valley-waldorf-school-ebook

I am looking forward to sunflowers, catching fireflies, and watching our adult girls show their horses. I hope you are looking forward to something as well! Also, August is so close and that is my birthday month so I am definitely looking forward to that.

Things to Do With Children:

  • Fourth of July decorating; patriotic crafts
  • Find traditional patriotic American music to listen to!
  • Go to Independence Day parades!
  • Sunflower crafts
  • Drying herbs and making things from herbs
  • Picking produce; canning and preserving
  • Earth looms and weaving could be lovely; see my summer Pinterest board for even more craft ideas

Here are a few of my favorite things for small children:

Here are a few of my favorite things for older children/teens:

  • Swimming and sliding on rocks in creeks; maybe even venturing to a water park or splash pad
  • Catching fireflies
  • Gazing at stars
  • The Magic of Boredom

Things for the Home:

  • Going through the school room or school area and cleaning out
  • Ordering art supplies and new resources for the next school year
  • Making new seasonal things for the home
  • Changing out toys if you are on a toy rotation for smaller children
  • I am going to be working in our basement this month – so much to clean up down there and I want it neat and tidy
  • We are getting new towels, which might not seem that exciting, but who doesn’t love soft and fluffy towels?

Homeschooling Fun!:

Our children are mainly finished with school. Our oldest is a pediatric intensive care unit nurse, and our middle daughter just started a business buying, training, and selling horses. She moved back to our area this past week after working and living on her own for a year out of state, so it is nice to have everyone in one area. The first night she came back we had dinner at the farm with their boyfriends and it has just been fun to have them and their friends around this week!

My main goal for our ninth grader this year is to have a strong academic year, to keep him physically fit with kickboxing and boxing (and farm work), to keep him busy building and doing things on the farm, to have him enjoy volunteering as a helper/apprentice at his former middle school boys only program and to grow into leadership, and to branch out into Sea Scouts. He thought about doing naval JROTC but wasn’t quite ready for the commitment of weekend drills and overnight drills, so he decided Sea Scouts would address some of the skills in swimming, boating, sailing, boat mechanics that he is interested in. He is also still interested in computer programming as well, and is working through some things on his own with his dad’s help and then can use dual enrollment to pursue that further in eleventh grade.

Inner Work:

I feel like being on the farm has brought me back around to the inner work of the family life. Here is a back post that I am working off of: https://theparentingpassageway.com/2009/12/10/my-plan-for-personal-development-as-a-homemaker/

This is my current Waldorf book – have you read it? https://www.waldorflibrary.org/online-library/ebooks/ebooks/an-examination-of-children%E2%80%99s-senses,-the-damaging-effects-of-the-media-and-the-therapeutic-possibilities-of-puppetry-ebook

And this is worth a re-read every year before school starts: https://www.waldorflibrary.org/online-library/ebooks/ebooks/and-who-shall-teach-the-teachers-ebook

I hope you have a blessed July!

Warmly and with many blessings,

Carrie

Foundation of the Year: June

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June is one of my favorite months of the year! It’s a time of berry picking, summer rhythms, summer decluttering, and new projects in my head and on paper.

In the midst of scurrying around, and work, there are memories to be made this June. Some of the things we are looking forward to:

Boating on the lake

Going to the beach on the lake

Kayaking and camping

Berry picking and making jam

Planting and harvesting veggies and flowers

Experimenting with new recipes

Spending time together as a family!

This month we will be celebrating:

The Slow Summer – think lakes and pools, tubing, horseback riding, camping, spending time with family and friends. All of my favorite things in one month!  Here is a wonderful guest post by Christine Natale, Master Waldorf Teacher and author about creating the magical summer

14- Flag Day

16 – Father’s Day AND – 

Wed June 21 is Summer Solstice

24 – The Nativity of St. John the Baptist/ St. John’s Tide (see this back post for festival help!)

29- The Feast of St. Peter and St. Paul

Summer Homeschooling and Development:

I am planning an entire (nearly) social-media free month in June and we are kicking off the month by going camping. Do not fear, I will still be posting here on the blog and we will be following along chapter by chapter with our new book to read, “How The Future Can Save Us- Fresh Perspective on Waldorf Education-Principles, Methods, Curriculum” by Stephen Keith Sagarin.

Also look for a few posts on self -care and how to use self- care as the bedrock foundation of your homeschooling and parenting journey.

I am running back to basics this summer – it’s been a crazy few years on the farm with a lot of changes! So I need the basics in my life back, beginning with Gratitude: Eight Facets Of A Healthy Family Culture | The Parenting Passageway and Finding Rhythm With Grades-Aged Children | The Parenting Passageway. If you have littles under the age of 7, you might like this back post: Finding Rhythm With Littles | The Parenting Passageway

Our oldest two children live on their own and have their own lives, but I am busy planning ninth grade for our youngest child. He will be attending a two day a week hybrid school, but we have some blocks and things to add in for his high school transcript. He will be volunteering one day a week at the homeschooled middle school boys outdoor/adventure program he went through and graduated from, and he has plans to start working on areas of interest throughout high school in order to be college ready, which is his goal.

Looking forward to hearing what all of you are up to!

Blessings and love,
Carrie

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One thing that the changing of the months and years brings us is this steadiness.  In an ever changing life and an ever changing world, the months, seasons, and festivals will always be turning round and round.  It can bring us and our families peace and stability if we choose to embrace it.

There are so many glorious things to celebrate about May:  flowers and greenery, bees buzzing, spring time alive, and the activity of children everywhere perking up.  The world is ready to be outside in May in the Northern Hemisphere, and we feel the liveliness and promise of Spring.

What we are celebrating this month:

May Day – May 1

50 Days of Eastertide

Ascension Day – May 9

Mother’s Day – May 12

Memorial Day – May 27 ( a great time to look at summer plans)

Other things on my mind:

  • De-cluttering and deep cleaning with natural cleansers
  • Skin care (yes, skin care).  Time for radiant, dewy skin in May!
  • Spring tales for children and puppetry for small children
  • Gardening
  • The lake and the pool. Our pool is opening for summer this week, and the lake is beckoning
  • Spring menu planning!
  • Exercising. I exercise 5 days a week and it helps keep me sane.

These are a few of my favorite things for small children:

  • Hiking on The Feast of Ascension, watching clouds
  • Making Pentecost crafts
  • Gathering for May Day and dancing around a May Pole!
  • Making crafts for Memorial Day, Memorial Day parades
  • Pedal toys – trikes and bikes! Have your own Memorial Day parade

These are a few of my favorite things for grades-aged children:

  • All of the above, plus
  • Swimming and miniature golf
  • Playing in the water and sand
  • Observing all the dragonflies, bees, and butterflies
  • Calming rituals for rest times and the end of the day.  

These are a few of my favorite things for teens:

  • All of the above, including screen free week
  • Spring cleaning and spring decorating of the home, gardening tasks
  • Spring cooking, making special treats for The Feast of Ascension and Memorial Day
  • Planning surprise May Day baskets for neighbors, and doing things to serve others.
  • Picnics at the lake
  • Later night walks in the warm air – great time to talk after the smaller children have gone to bed

These are a few of my favorite things for myself:

  • Celebrating our family with family meetings and family game night.
  • Celebrating our marriage (32!) with a night out.
  • Drinking lots of water and herbal teas.
  • Acupuncture

I would love to know what is on your mind for this month of May.

homeschooling/education:

Our older two children (22 and 19) have graduated from homeschooling have jobs and live on their own. Our rising high school freshman will have classes two days a week, and will be volunteering one day a week at his former middle school homeschool program to assist the teachers and mentor younger students.

We will have some blocks of learning at home as well, so will be happy to post those plans as we go.

where is the blog these days?

Well, unfortunately no one really reads blogs anymore.  Compared to its heyday, readership here and in blogs in general,  is super low.  I write mainly for myself at this point, I think, and still hope to compile all these posts into ebooks at some point in the future.

For the most part, you can find me on IG (I am on Facebook as well, but I don’t always like the negativity and divisiveness of FB and therefore think about getting off Facebook daily, so IG may be your best bet to follow me).  I will continue to write here as well, but I do wonder if it will drop off to be just IG in the next few years.

The other place you can find me is on the  wonderful forum that The Child Is The Curriculum.  It is an amazing place, and has all your curriculum shopping needs, discussion groups, book studies, and everything all in one place!  I love it, and hope you do as well.

Lastly, you can always email me admin@theparentingpassageway.com to set up a consult by phone – I have half hour and full hour paid slots. 

Can’t wait to hear what you are up to in May!

Blessings,

Carrie

The Beauty of April

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I am looking forward to Easter and a lovely Eastertide. It seems to me as if the land is awakening from slumber and the signs of life are so encouraging – the nest with five little blue eggs on my porch, the green leaves coming on the trees, the greening of the pastures, the spring frolicking of the horses. It’s a beautiful place to be.

This month has things worth celebrating!

Our main festival dates in our family this month include:

1- Easter Monday

8- Will you be watching the solar eclipse?

23- St. George

25- St. Mark

29- St. Catherine of Siena

and I am looking ahead to Ascension Day (Thursday, May 9th) and the Rogation Days that precede Ascension Day ( the Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday prior to Ascension Day).  There is also a Novena of 9 days that begins on Ascension Day and ends on the Eve of Pentecost. 

These are a few of my favorite things this month for my family:

  • Since we will be in Eastertide here,  dyeing of eggs,  thinking of the Paschal candle and light in our home, indoor dish Easter gardens, Easter carols (yes, they are real!) and attending church are in my heart, This is growing my own garden in my heart.
  • Gardens outside as well – especially leading up to Rogation Days which is a wonderful time to have seeds, gardening tools and homesteads blessed. My seedlings are getting tall and I will be planting them outside this weekend.
  • Spring cleaning, decluttering, and moving ahead with some simple decorating I have wanted to do in our home. We are re-doing our laundry room, which is something small that we can afford, but it will be nice to have that done. Other projects coming up include building a dry lot behind the barn for the horses in inclement weather, and painting thousands of feet of fencing!

These are a few of my favorite things for small children:

  • Ramping up all kinds of physical activity since the weather is generally nice…hiking, kayaking, roller blading, walking, never disappeared these past months, but I feel so drawn to these activities now.
  • Incorporating more and more loose parts play and re-arranging indoor and outdoor play areas.

These are a few of my favorite things for grades-age children:

  • Spring handwork – wet felting, making beautiful spring crafts
  • Movement outside and exploring nature
  • Adjusting our rhythm to the seasons, but sticking to strong awake, rest and bedtimes, along with regular nourishing whole foods mealtimes.

These are a few of my favorite things for teens:

**Exploring new interests and possibilities for summer. There are many wonderful camps for the summer. Sometimes by age thirteen or fourteen, the appeal of going to camp dissipates and sometimes it doesn’t, so you can carefully observe your child. It can be hard to know how hard to push. ** Sleep! A lot of teens really need sleep over the summer.

These are a few of my favorite things for my own inner work:

  • In the past I had created a Sacred Hour – half to be spent in personal study, and half to be spent with our children in sharing the Saints, the Bible and Anglican traditions. This Eastertide, I am devoting some time to Anglican Studies and also using the Venite App for daily readings.  I am feeling very happy about this.
  •  I am starting my own version of the 75 day hard. The similarity ends at 75 days! LOL. Mine essentially includes a focus on meal planning and prep, exercise and activity in nature, things to promote lymph movement and restorative practices.

In our family:

  • I love to get the vast bulk of my planning done over the summer. Our youngest will be headed to a classical hybrid high school as that is what is available in our area. The singular focus is to get him ready for university and military service, which is his goal right now. So legally we are homeschooling, but I feel as if my planning is done as the off days are following the plans laid out by the hybrid school. Bittersweet!
  • Our oldest two children are living on their own, one about 45 minutes away and the other six hours away. Blink and off they go!

Happiest of Eastertides to you and your family,

Carrie