ClareC
Creative Clay Session
We are really happy to be welcoming local potter Marilyn Ross to the Beautiful Beginnings session this week (Thursday 20th June). Marilyn is renowned locally for her signature green glazed pottery decorated with ladybirds, leaves and beautiful dragonflies etc.
Marylin has much experience in encouraging children and adults alike to get creative with clay and parents will be as welcome as their children are to explore the clay and see where their creativity takes them.
Marilyn has kindly offered to fire the clay in her kiln and add a glaze if people would like. This is a really good opportunity for children and parents to play and explore together. All Welcome.
We’ll add pictures soon! Looking forward to it.
Baby Bring & Buy Sale launches Parent Tribe
The Beautiful Beginnings Baby Sale on Sunday 16th June will also see the launch of Hatti’s online magazine Parent Tribe. Hatti will be there to share her story and to answer questions about how you can become involved with the tribe.
If you are a parent working from home, or would like to be, or have creative ideas you would love to turn into a home based business so you can spend more time with your children, becoming part of Parent Tribe is a great place to gain support, advice and to make new contacts.
There are also a couple of tables left for the sale, so if you are interested in hiring a table to sell on some baby things and clear some space in your home then please contact Hatti or Clare.
Hatti – 01900 816695/ 07786327318
harrietburt@ymail.com
Clare – 01900 606565/ 07906 188345
clarevictoriacooper@yahoo.co.uk
Storytelling enhances children’s creativity
Image courtesy of Victor Habbick/FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Reading bedtime stories is a nightly ritual for most parents and their children. Listening to stories is a gentle and timeless way for parents and children to connect and for little ones to relax and settle to sleep. For a little while now, at bedtimes we have replaced reading stories from books with imaginary, made up stories, and these days, given the choice, our little ones will always choose an imaginary story, they ask “tell me a story from your mouth!”
Whilst these stories are fun to tell and the girls love to listen to them, it is only recently I’ve noticed how much this storytelling influences their play and creativity during their days. Somehow our imaginary stories spark their imaginations differently than reading stories from books.
Recently they’ve asked for many stories about unicorns and mermaids, and whilst these have been fun to tell, I’m fascinated at the creative stuff that has unfolded in the following days. We woke up to my 5 y.o. making a poster for her own Unicorn Festival, she asked to plait sparkly wool into unicorn bracelets like in the story (our magical unicorns gave their human friends a lock of their unicorn tail as a magical charm bracelet!). Much of their art and drawings have images from our stories.
I wonder if not having pictures to look at means they create their own images and this further fuels their own creativity and imagination? Perhaps a book is started and finished, opened and closed, perhaps presented to them as a finished product, whereas imaginary stories are limitless and children can re-create them as they wish.
My 2 y.o. has now become the official bedtime storyteller, her imagination is infinite and she definitely makes certain we are listening. I am now the one to be amazed at her language, creativity and enthusiasm, it seems storytelling is inspiring and infectious.
Of course reading books is a great thing to do with children, and as a writer I love books, but spending the time telling stories once in a while has a different, magical quality. Give it a try, and take the opportunity to let your own imagination, creativity and inspiration out. Your children will love it and you may even surprise yourself with your bedtime tales!
First Edition of Parent Tribe available now
Hatti has launched the first edition of Parent Tribe magazine today!
In this issue Hatti shares the stories of some really interesting families who have all created a lifestyle that combines their children, their passions and creativities and home businesses. There is tasty cooking from Sarah the botanical chef and I have shared some simple yoga practices to bring some peace to busy days. Hatti’s design expertise really shine through as the magazine is beautifully presented which makes it a joy to read!
It is available to read online at www.parenttribe.net
There are also special introductory offer to join the tribe online skills directory. Find out more http://www.parenttribe.net/the-tribe/
The love we share
Often as parents we talk and think about all the things we do with and for our children, the many things we wish we could do, or the stuff we need to do. Parents of little ones are busy people and generally give much of our time, energy and love to our children and families.
But our children give too. They give us ALL their love yet we can sometimes be too busy to see it…
- your little baby beaming you her best smile the minute she opens her eyes and sees your face in the morning
- the way your nursling strokes your skin as he enjoys his sleepy breast feeding
- your little toddler who won’t leave your side as she feels so safe and loved in your presence, she will only sleep with you, as you are her world
- the eager three year old who picks all the daffodils in your garden because she knows they’re your favorite flower (thanks surya, i loved them!)
- the tired toddler who has held it together all day then saves her huge tantrum for you as you try to cook your family’s evening meal. She feels safe with you, she knows you can handle her feelings and will love her through.
- the chirpy boy who chatters all day, he loves you so and wants to share all his thoughts and feelings as he knows you’ll listen. By listening now, hopefully he’ll still share so much as he grows.
As busy parents its sometimes easy to forget, that when all the toys are put away and friends have gone home, we are our children’s world, and they love us just as much as we love them, sometimes they just have different ways of showing it.
Parenting is so much more than a never ending list of tasks to do, and it is the LOVE WE SHARE that makes the difference.
Parent Tribe
It is an exciting time at Beautiful Beginnings just now, as Hatti is soon to launch the first edition of her new online magazine Parent Tribe.
Parent Tribe is all about supporting families to lead creative and inspiring lifestyles together as a family. So many new mums and dads count down the few short weeks or months of their maternity and paternity leave, worried and reluctant to leave their babies and go back to work as they feel they must.
Parent Tribe offers a new perspective on this, sharing ideas from many families around the world who have decided to re-create their family so one or both parents are able to be with their children as much as possible. Hatti will share interviews with many different families who all have their own diverse ways of ‘making it work’.
Hatti is the ideal person to create this magazine, as she has, for the last few years, been a gentle and connected mother to her beautiful son, as well as developing her own web-based design business www.creativesoulmarketing.com where she has been supporting other small ethical businesses in their marketing and design.
I am excited to be writing a regular yoga column, sharing ideas of how simple yoga practices can help you create peace, focus and relaxation throughout your day.
For more info, and to subscribe or contribute, visit wwwparenttribe.net
Ultimately we aim to support families to be together and be creative with life. We’d love to help parents to raise their own children and have fun together. Most importantly we want to support families to have time for one another.
No more heart-wrenching moments when mum (or dad) goes back to work. No more feeling this is the only way because we have to ‘pay the bills’. No more separations of worlds with children being cared for by someone else, while mum and dad are at work.
We just want everyone to be able to be together. As much as possible. And parents to fulfill their own dreams, as well as their children’s.
Association of Breastfeeding Mothers Membership Offer
The Association of Breastfeeding Mothers is a charity providing great support, information and training about breastfeeding. I found their info and helpline so useful as a new breastfeeding mum.
They have a special offer for April 2013 offering UK membership for just £15.00 – what a bargain!
http://abm.me.uk/abm-membership-offer/
Have a look and treat yourself, it would also make a great gift for a pregnant or newly breastfeeding friend.
Easter Holiday Dates
Playgroup will be running on Thursday 4th & 11th April.
There will be no group Thursday 18th & 25th April.
We’ll be starting again on Thursday 2nd May to begin our Nature Month activities.
We have some space in The Settlement garden, so the little ones can look forward to plenty of digging, planting and watering. If you have any spare plant pots, please start collecting them and lets hope for some sunshine.
Wishing you a happy and peaceful Easter time.
Sling Share
At the Beautiful Beginnings session tomorrow (Thurs 28th March) parents are bringing along their different slings and baby carriers to let each other try them out and get the feel of how the different styles of carrier work.
It can be so useful to try one out before you invest in a new one, and tips from an experienced baby carrier are so valuable!
We’ll have wraps, ring slings, Mei tai and ergo. If you can make the session tomorrow please do bring along your baby carrier and share your tips with us. I’m still trying to get the hang of feeding in a woven wrap so looking forward to help from others too.
There will also be lots of Easter crafts, stories and fun for the little ones too.
Hope to see you there.
