Today is a milestone day for me! My forthcoming book (Early Childhood Activities for a Greener Earth) has been sent on to the publisher for typesetting. I am so thrilled!
And, so very, very tired.
My suggestion for the day is fitting, then. Rest! Here in Minnesota we've been blessed with some lovely, crisp fall days with plenty of sunshine. I like to spread a blanket out on the ground under a tree and just enjoy lying down together. Of course, lying down and being still is hard for some children (especially my son!) so I like to have a book or some sliced apples for us to enjoy together. Of course, there are many ways to tempt them to come and be still. When J was playing in the leaves and I was lying on a blanket, I invited him to bury me in leaves and then to lie down with me. It worked! We lay under the leaves, listening to them crackle, for a good 3 minutes before he was up and off again.
Young children are often loathe to be still for long periods of time, but doing this practice frequently invites them to enjoy stillness, and they can eventually "work up" to longer periods of quiet reflection.
We get so busy and so focused on "doing" all the time. It's lovely to carve out some time to just rest and be together.
