Tag Archives: spring

Lovely Month of May!

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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.

This month we are celebrating:

1st- May Day – you can see back posts here  and here

11th -Mother’s Day

24th- Rogation Days – you can see this back post, “A Rogation Heart”

29th- Ascension Day – here is a post about celebrating this feast with children

The Twenty Sixth- Memorial Day

31st- The Feast of the  Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

I am leaving today for a peaceful retreat with the ladies of my church. It will be a fun three days up in the mountains and a time to relax and recharge, which I really need. It’s been a busy year so far of treating patients, homeschooling, and farming.

We are also off to Alaska this month for the trip of a lifetime! I hope to see a whale, and you can follow along on my IG @theparentingpassageway.

Other things on my mind:

  • De-cluttering and deep cleaning with natural cleansers
  • De- cluttering and painting the garage
  • Spring tales for children and puppetry for small children
  • Gardening
  • The lake and the pool. Our son is sailing quite a bit with Sea Scouts, and the season is open!
  • Spring menu planning!
  • Exercising. Here is to a balanced May that involves spending an amount of self-care (receiving) closer to the amount of time I spend caring for others (giving). I have gotten smarter over the years (and my children are grown up), so I have scheduled my workouts first for May and then work. Farming chores are pretty consistent times, so that is easier to plan around.
  • Screen Free Week is May 5th to 11th!   Here are some real-life strategies for reducing children’s screen time. As adults, we often need to reduce screen time and social media time and I am making that a habit focus for May. Join me!

This year, I really looked at dividing my year more quarterly, so I am already looking ahead to these last two months of the second quarter as a bit of a personal challenge, and figuring out what kinds of things I would love to see happen in July, August, and September. The year is flying by!

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

Many blessings,

Carrie

Eastertide Joy

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Happy Eastertide!  I love the season of Eastertide, which began on Easter Sunday and will last until  Pentecost Sunday (which is on June 8th this year).

I find it comforting that the spiritual journey of Lent, often hard and arduous, gives way to an even longer period of joy and yes, even fun.  There are forty days in Lent, and fifty in Eastertide, which to me signifies and marks the very adult needs of beauty, fun, and play.

Oh yes, to play.  Adults need to play!  Play is not only the realm of children. We need it as well!  Play is often the creative wellspring of adults.  I am also convinced that it is a key to adult  mental wellness.   We often seem to forget this in our drudgery of work, traffic, children’s activities, cooking meals and changing diapers and cleaning the house over and over, but  our need to play (and rest and relax) is every bit as real as our need to work and help each other.  The child inside of us is never far down if only we reach for him or her.

In this fifty days of Eastertide, I challenge you to play, to rest and relax, and to notice beauty. Find and take your joy in the ordinary moments.  They are there, even amongst the chores of housekeeping or holding tiny children.  They are there, even in the times of your teenager dealing with end of semester tests and finals.  They are there, even with your children who are feeling the call of spring and nature to be wild and untamed.   They are there, even in traffic and whizzing cars.  Find those moments and hold onto them for what they are; the seeds of creativity and relaxing love.

I am using this Eastertide to do fifty days of physical activity that nourishes me – walking and exercising, getting out in nature. My husband and I are headed to Alaska and I am excited about that!

I have also been making a list of spring meals for meal prep. I am finding this to be a very important part of the week with working outside the home and on the farm.

If you are looking to celebrate Eastertide with your children, here is a list I shared in 2018 and am sharing again for family activities:

  1. Visit a sheep farm where the sheep are being shorn and then wash, card, and dye some fleece.
  2. Make projects having to do with sheep – I have an entire Pinterest board devoted to to wool and knitting here
  3. Spring clean your house (deep clean)
  4. Get rid of things you no longer use; paring down in the spring feels so good!
  5. Re-vamp your diet to include even more fruits and vegetables and meatless meals.
  6. Take great care of your skin
  7. Cleanse your rhythm from things outside the home that are no longer serving you or your family
  8. Look at our bee and butterfly friends in the garden, in books, and in crafts.  There are some ideas on my spring Pinterest board
  9.  Clear your life from people who bring you negative energy
  10. Make time to spend with those you love and trust – family and friends
  11. Think carefully about new endeavors.  What are you growing for this season?
  12. Find a wonderful new book to read!
  13. Go hiking.
  14. Go camping. If your spouse doesn’t like to camp, gather a moms and childrens group to go.
  15. Spend time in nature every day.
  16. Add some puppetry to your life
  17. Try journaling 50 days of gratitude
  18. Change your priorities so you have time for self-care.
  19. Slow down and rest
  20. Learn some beautiful new songs for spring for circle time or to sing as a family
  21.  Carefully investigate your spiritual path and find a way to deepen your inner work
  22. Go easy on yourself and give yourself space
  23. Find an app to help you meditate or visualize
  24. Go swimming
  25. Get a massage or sit in a sauna.
  26. Spend time with animals.
  27. Get to know your local farmers and enjoy local foods.
  28. Create art
  29. Plan ahead…or not. Whichever brings you joy in your homeschooling!  Here is some inspiration for planning high school and here is some inspiration for planning the grades.  Also, here is  a whole Pinterest board devoted to the  Early Years
  30. Learn some new Waldorf verses
  31. Pick fruit
  32. Plant a garden
  33. Create something beautiful for your outdoor space
  34. Plan new adventures in travel –
  35. Have a May Day festival shared with friends
  36. Plan for Ascension Day
  37. Plan for Pentecost through these musings
  38. Make some rock art
  39. Create, cook, and sing for Pentecost
  40. If you celebrate Pentecost as a family, consider a gathering for Pentecost
  41. Encourage someone or become someone’s mentor.
  42. Drink more water
  43. Set up a new exercise plan
  44. Catch up on your doctor and dentist appointments
  45. Take naps
  46. Walk in nature
  47. Watch a sunrise
  48. Go slow and enjoy spending time with your children.  If you are homeschooling, less books and more play.
  49. Have a picnic
  50. Dye eggs and try your hand at some spring crafts

Happy Eastertide, friends!

Blessings,

Carrie

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 apple tree blossoms, the greening of the pastures, the spring frolicking of the horses. It’s a beautiful place to be.

This month has things worth celebrating! This feeling, along with gratitude, is something to really hold on to in these tight economic times. I think our grown children feel pretty uncertain about the future with the way the economy is. It’s hard to make ends meet, even as one young adult has a good job, and our other child working in a niche industry. Our fifteen year old isn’t quite there yet with having to think about all of that, and I am happy for him to be in high school land for a little longer. The advantages we have as present parents to be able to talk about finances and how to make life flow with our children cannot be overstated. I am so happy all of you are helping to guide your children so well. It’s really invaluable!

Our main festival dates in our family this month include:

13- Palm Sunday

Holy Week

20- Easter Sunday and the start of Eastertide

23- St. George

25- St. Mark

29- St. Catherine of Siena

and I am looking ahead to Ascension Day (Thursday, May 29th) 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.  Pentecost is June 8th! Seems like far away, doesn’t it? Do you have summer plans already?

The other thing to look forward to is Screen Free Week the first week of May! Do you celebrate this? https://screenfree.org/how-to-celebrate/

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

  • Since we will be in Easter and Eastertide here,the  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.
  • Spring cleaning, decluttering, and moving ahead with some simple decorating I have wanted to do in our home. We recently built an additional bathroom upstairs, but the amount of projects left at the farm is a bit mind-boggling.

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

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 as they tend to grow over the summer a lot!

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

In our family:

  • I love to get the vast bulk of my planning done over the summer. Our youngest is in a classical hybrid high school and will be a sophomore in the fall. The singular focus is to get him ready for university and for possible 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!
  • We do have a little work to do in writing over the summer as our high schooler needs to be a bit better in that area.
  • Our oldest two children are adults and we are glad to see them frequently.

Happiest of Spring to you and your family,

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