An untidy room

Sometimes, when I walk into D's room and find it looking like this:

I feel like going all "wire hangers" on her...but I don't because that would be a little extreme and might be considered child abuse.  She might decide to write a book about it when she's all grown up because her therapist suggests it.  Not good.

Griffin Remedy

Came across this brand at Whole Foods in a pinch.  I needed some toxin free hair care and at the time I had not bought Beautycounter hair care and didn't want to wait for it to get shipped.  A quick "google" on the brand and I found that they are based in San Francisco.  I meaaan...I wouldn't want to live in San Francisco, but I gotta give that city props for being so progressive.  I saw this brand was from SF and immediately decided it was good.  I was not wrong.   It's a good product without a high price tag.  Check it out and let me know what you think!

Whoa..who's been slacking?

ME, THAT'S WHO!

Well...not exactly.  I've been so up-to-my-ears running my daughter's school that it leaves very little time for play.  And my blog is play, isn't it?  I would need to play...outside, going to events, shopping, eating, etc to actually have content to post.

All right.  I'm just going to do a little bragging in this post so you all know just what I've been up to.

That's our little Waldorf Early Childhood Education Program. Isn't it sweet? School started on September 3rd so I've been really busy.  Prior to that, the fam and I took a trip to NYC.  I probably could've included some posts from that trip but, again, we were busy!  NYC is the city that never sleeps so neither did we!  More later....

Storytelling

There is magic in storytelling and I don't know about you, but as an adult, I've totally forgotten about that.  Only after I discovered Waldorf education was I reminded of the magic of storytelling.  Stories in the Waldorf classroom are told orally with puppets, not by reading from a book.  There really is a difference in these two storytelling formats (if you can even call the later storytelling).

D is really lucky because she has a grandma (G's mom) that is a wonderful storyteller. Grandma J was visiting a couple weeks ago and were driving around.  All the while, Grandma J was rattling off stories about their old dog, Pierre and made up silly antics.  Even I was getting mesmerized by her stories.

And it is believed that if your child was having any kind of issues, whether social or emotional, you could address it subconsciously through storytelling. Here is a good post from Parenting Passageway about the Importance of Fairy Tales

I'm not sure how in the world Grandma J knew this, but we are in the midst of swimming lessons for D and all of a sudden, Grandma J tells a story about Pierre, the dog meeting a turtle. And the two had a race.  The turtle won and Pierre was very disappointed so he practiced and practiced until he got better and the next time the two raced, Pierre won.

When I heard that story, I was so thankful for my mother-in-law and her infinite wisdom...I hope one day D thinks of me as such - full of wisdom as opposed to full of cr**.  Or maybe just a bit of both cuz full of cr** can be fun.

Actually, one of our Waldorf mothers told me - children LOVE stories.  They especially love when these stories are about you or their father!  But don't start the story with, "Once when I was young.."  Start the story as any story, "Once there was a girl and she..." and then after the story you end with, "...and that little girl was me! (or your mom! or Belinda)"

I tried that once, but the first thing D asked when I started the story was, "What was her name?" Guess that's not going to work so well for me.  Never mind. The point is - Storytelling is so important in childhood.  It's magical.

I'm not there yet. I still read D books every night before she goes to bed.  Maybe I'll try transitioning to storytelling as she gets a bit older??

Why I choose Waldorf education

There are so many reasons why Waldorf education resonates with me.  From the focus on play and storytelling to emphasis on social skills versus rote memorization and academics in the early years to just the overall feel of a Waldorf classroom.  If I had been given the option of a Waldorf education, I'm pretty sure I would've thrived in this environment.

Friends

It's funny...when I drove D to Annie Camp that first day, I prepped her.

"Now D, you are going to Annie Camp today.  It's your first day and you'll be going by yourself."
D: "Is Maddy straight going to be there?"
Me:  "No."
D: "Oh, so I'll make new friends like I did at horse camp." (Even though M did attend horse camp with her.)
Me: "Yes!  Just like that."

She seemed to be fine with that.

Fun places in California!

We went camping this weekend!  We went to Lake Cachuma up by Santa Barbara area.  It's quite large and is surrounded by a beautiful lake - but no swimming allowed!  D and hubs went out on a lovely boat ride though and they got to see deer!  My friend and I missed the boat ride because the general store was having a book sale - great books for just $1.00.  Errr...I might've gone a wee bit crazy at the book sale but I got quite a few great classics for when D grows up.  Plus, I really love books and having a vast library would be my dream for my future home - built in book shelves in the living room, the sitting room and possibly the kids room!

On Sunday, we went into the city of Solvang.  Such a cute "Dutch" town. I was really excited to go because it sounded so quaint and charming, plus they have little Elves' homes hanging over some of the  doors to the stores.  I was excited to see that!  But, shortly the excitement wore away as I started to realize that this town is sort of a tourist trap.  Really nothing to be found here that is so unique given that it is a "Dutch" town so it would seem that actually going to Holland would be a better and richer experience.  They had a Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory (that can be found in CO)..they had a toy store that had regular run of the mill toys like Legos...Madame Alexander dolls...just housed in a cute little toy store manner.  We had lunch at the Red Viking - I ordered the Smorgasbord (naturally since I love buffets).  Again, a bit disappointed since the food was really not very good.  Then again, I'm told that the food in Holland is not very good either.  Guess I'll have to just go again and see for myself.  Oh yeah, I've been to Holland as a child but was dragged around to do touristy stuff with my parents and had no inkling about being interested in any type of cuisine that was not burgers and fries.  Yea, can you believe it?  I grew up on McDonald's.  Gross.

Highlight of the trip?  The Quicksilver Miniature Horses Ranch located in Santa Ynez.  I mean...serious pocket ponies!!  I really wanted to leave with one.  I can't take it.  If you get a chance, definitely check out this ranch!

Second great place is the Sunny Fields Playground in Solvang.  I wish we had one of these in the South Bay...

Man, I know there is so much great stuff out there beyond the South Bay...we just have to get there.