A slice of June...... :)

Kathrynn had the idea to make a treasure hunt one day, and dressing up as a pirate seemed like the appropriate thing to do.... :)



Another double rainbow......


Making paper at the library:

Tearing pieces of paper....

putting the frames into the mixture of blended paper/water.....

getting the water out....

setting aside the paper to dry!

This was an awesome library activity- neither of us had made paper before!




Lemonade stand:
A perfect idea for a 90 degree day... She made over $8 in 30 minutes before we sold out... :)



Wonderlab glimpses:


Two projects she wanted pictures taken of (hence the posed smiles :P )

Always blessed to be so much a part of this girls life! <3

Trapeze!!!!!! Workshops Spring 2010

Finally! It took me awhile, but I've finally gotten up the pictures from this month's trapeze workshops!!!!

Kathrynn went to three workshops, and I went to one. :P
Trapeze is one of Kathrynn's greatest passions, and some of these pictures captures her focus as well as her joy. This is her third summer doing trapeze. The first workshop was spent reviewing some old positions and then practicing some new skills. And the second and third workshops were spent focusing on new positions for catches.


Workshop #1
Warming up on the trampoline. :)


Knee hang.
Perfect catch from the knee hang! I love taking pictures during catches- the shots always blow my mind! :)




Catch video from workshop #1






Workshop #2

Kathrynn practiced a new position on this day- called a split i think?


Practice video from session 2







After practicing it for awhile, her teachers told her she was not ready to be caught using this position. She ran over to me in tears, very upset that she hadn't mastered it to the point of being ready to do a catch with it. We talked to one of the teachers, Jake (who is pictured above and below catching) and he agreed to let her do one more practice of the position. This time she did it perfectly, and she was ready to try for the catch. They were impressed with her determination and focus. ;)


The catch! She had the opportunity to do the catch twice- the first time was a bit off and Jake grabbed one hand and not the other (eventually getting both arms), and then the second catch was perfect!


Catch from video workshop #2 (the one hand catch)






Here are a couple of videos of me.......
I had decided last year that I'd try it, and so when we went to the second workshop I did!
I was raised to be afraid of heights, so this was a pretty monumental task for me!
After climbing up the ladder for my first jump I was so overcome by fear that all I could think of was how I could get down in that moment NOW. The first thoughts that passed through my brain were "I am NOT jumping off this platform" and "How can I get down with out jumping?"
After doing some Lamaze type breathing (Wes told me later he thought I was going to have a baby up there bc of my breathing!) I calmed down and did it. And I did it 4 more times! Each time I was wanting, kind of wanting....., to go into a position- a knee hang or a back flip. But each time I went flying through the air all I could do is hang onto that bar for dear life, and ultimately let go only to end the flight of terror, and land in the net that was waiting for me. lol!


The first one

Wes was shooting the clouds, then turned to me. I managed not to freak out each time by looking out at the trees, not down to the ground. :P




Me, flying through the air. :)


Workshop #3

Warming up.....

Her new move for this day was the straddle.

The catch! I don't have any videos to enclose here, but you can go HERE ((click on the HERE)) to view her doing a catch from the straddle position.

Kathrynn just came into see me blogging about trapeze, and she asked "When is the next trapeze workshop?" Yup, this kid was hooked from day one. :)

Anansi play at Leslie's house :)

Kathrynn and her dear friend Leslie :)


One thing that has been a constant over the past 4 years is Kathrynn's love for our friend Leslie. Leslie has been a waldorf inspired teacher for over 25 years, and Kathrynn's connection with her has been magical.
Each week Kathrynn goes to Leslie's house for 4 hours of play and exploration. It's always been such a wonderful part of our life- bringing much joy to Kathrynn, and some "me" time for me!

Last week the girls in Leslie's class performed an Anansi play that one of Leslie's older students had written. The girls helped shape their lines, create their own outfits, as well as plan other components of the play.

Here are a few wonderful pictures of the girls, and a few videos. :)





Before the play, they did a song to help introduce the location of the play, which was taking place in Africa....







Kathrynn, the Sun Goddess, in her "spot"

Her friend Hannah played the role Anansi, and her friend Virgina was the narrator in the back corner.




Giving her lines....








In this video you can see a shot of her friend Zoe, who played one of the animals that Anansi tricks. :)

Kathrynn was so proud of herself, she is just beaming in this picture!
All the girls had so much fun, it was lovely to watch. :)


Leslie, we love you!!!! :)

A brief slice of our Joyful lives.....

For me, this one picture conveys a thousand words.....

While you can't fully view the lack of walkable floor space in the room, the room is pretty much covered with remnants of Kathrynn's activities from the day: markers spilled out all over the room, her little piano for impromptu performances, the tape for various projects, pieces of paper here and there, and a barrage of coloring books, blank pieces of paper, and coloring calenders.

The majority of said day was spent working on 2 coloring calenders that she and I have been working on - together (but mostly Kathrynn) we had colored the boarders on the various months, and now it was time for the central pictures to be drawn. Kathrynn went to town and drew pictures for all 12 months. She took intermitant breaks to play tunes on her piano and do other various activities.

There are plenty of thing *not* conveyed by this picture, but the main and pretty much all encompassing reality that is not explicitly stated is the freedom Kathrynn has in her life. Because she has the freedom to pretty much spend her days as she wishes, her creativity pours out of her in a way that is both passionate and joyful. Kathrynn has both the time and space to follow her passions, and there is no value placed on what she chooses to do with her day, whether it be watching a show, coloring or drawing pictures, writing letters to friends and family, playing with her littlest pet shops, star war, or super hero characters, doing math worksheets, playing with friends, reading, or whatever else interests her that day.

While occasionally the "mess" does annoy me, I also love how it fuels her creative passions. Is having a room clean throughout the day really all that important, in the large scheme of things? When the end of the day comes, sometimes we pick up everything, and other times the room stays pretty the same, ready for the next day of creative surges, however they manifest. :)

I am fully appreciating the spaciousness Kathrynn has these days, to be who she wants to be, to do the things she wants to do.... I am honored and blessed to be a witness to it all.

Kathrynn's "Everyone's Birthday Party"

Although I've taken a long hiatus from posting lately, our lives have continued to be filled with amazing wonderment, and i continue to be filled with such deep appreciation for the amazing life that we have!

One of things that I continue to love and appreciate about Kathrynn is her immense creativity. A few weeks ago she came up with the idea to have an "Everyone's birthday party"- where we would celebrate each person as if it were their birthday! Kathrynn spent a lot of time planning for this party- in fact, it was more planning and effort then any of her "real" birthday parties!!!

The afternoon was filled with fun activities that the girls moved through at their own pace.

First up, decorating cupcakes. Oh my! The girls had so much fun with this!!!!!



Eating was equally as fun. :D



After this they decorated hand puppets using some lunch size brown paper bags, beads, markers, buttons and yarn.


I think we had sequins on the floor for over a week-- I had so much resistance to vacuuming up all the sparkly remnants. :)

Next, pin the tail on the monster! Kathrynn drew the monster. :P



Next up was a fun version of cooperative musical chairs--- instead of taking a chair out and then a person sitting out when they didn't find a seat, the girls would sit on each others laps.







Last was the home made version of a pinata that Kathrynn and I came up with. :)
The idea of this pinata was not to destroy it, but just get it to tip over so the candy and goodies could come out. :)




Lastly, the girls opened up their "goodie bags", which kathrynn had decorated the front of with each girl's favorite animal, and we filled with various goodies we'd found around the house. :)




One of the best parts of this party was watching all the fun that all the girls seemed to be having throughout the party. They were all so creative and in their joy as they moved through the various activities! It was a great afternoon, and a great idea for a party! :)

Boundless Joy....... and entertaining our neighborhood :)

I've mentioned before that for me, Joy is not just about being happy.... it is about Feeling whatever you are feeling in that moment, and being authentic with that feeling. I find that young kids can often demonstrate that authenticity, and for the most part I'm finding that Kathrynn has been able to maintain that authenticity of being.


Earlier today she was so angry about certain things not going a certain way.... so passionate in her feelings, is she....

It used to be that her authenticity was too overwhelming for me.... it left *me* feeling uncomfortable. It led to many struggles between the two of us. As I began to work through my own issues, I learned how to be a witness in such situations, rather then a victim. Today, I was able to be a witness for her- just Being there for her, and connecting with her as she needed. When she was done, she jumped out of my lap, and was onto something new.

Today I was witness to the "unhappy" kind of authenticity, AND so much of the other kind too.
Our day ended with her deciding to put on an "act" for people who were walking and driving by our house. She made a couple signs and was ready to go!





We put the signs on either side of our property. She was sure people could see them when they were driving or walking by, and would lead to her having more "customers." She was so filled with excitement when cars were headed our way. It was interesting to watch the people in their cars- most of them were smiling, taking in the joy of this child doing acrobatics on her front lawn!





Tonight, when I reflect back on our day, I am left having such appreciation that i can (usually) offer her unconditional love and support, and and hold the space for her so that she can feel whatever it is that she is feeling *freely* as she moves through her process.
For me, holding the space, and being a witness is all about being in the Now. There are no past stories of victim-hood, or worries of the future. All that exists is that moment, in its perfect unfolding. This perspective has brought such amazing beauty to my life. I am able to look into her eyes and just move into a timeless space where only Love lives. It makes everything so much more amazing to me. The mundane becomes fragrant with the essence of what is life.

It is in the moments of her authentic joy that my heart enlarges- no matter if that joy is one of happiness or not........ and my True Being radiates.

Appreciation Thursday!

Officially making the jump from gratitude to appreciation....... I've loved the word appreciation ever since reading Michael Brown's discussion of that word, and yet the word gratitude felt good too while blogging. Now i'm moving on over to blogging about appreciation! :P

1- I'm appreciating finding the areas in my life where I have judgment. I've realized how much judgment gets in my way of experiencing true connection with others, and more importantly, myself! If i am weighed down by judgments, then my body literally feels out of flow. When I am able to process through my judgments, I am left experiencing true Joy of the Now.

2- I'm appreciating my connection with my mother these days. I have been doing some deep integration work, and feel as though there is a clarity of connection that exists now that I've never felt before.

3- I am appreciating the greens from my lawn and garden. 'Nuff said on that! :)

4- I am appreciating the sweet friendships my child has. It is lovely to see her immersed in her joy with her friends. These days much of that Joy is sparked from The Warriors series, by Erin Hunter. Kathrynn loves to play "clan cats." :)

5- I am appreciating the ability to say yes to myself, which might look like a no to others. :)

Another awesome wonderlab day..... :)

We were there the day before, and Kathrynn had such a good time, I thought of making it a blog post. But i've posted about Wonderlab so many times before!!!
But after the great day we had their last week, i really just couldn't help myself!

We went to an AWESOME presentation by Silly Safaris out of Indianapolis. They guy was really very good..... I laughed throughout the entire program!!!!!

You can see the various animals he had that day..... An owl, bullfrog, boa constrictor, cockroaches, a rabbit.... and his sweet dog, named Bear. :)
Kathrynn thought this guy was absolutely fantastic and also laughed throughout the whole show. :P









All the kids lined up to see the animals at the end....


Some random shots of her having fun. :)




This place just seems to get better with as she ages. :)