Welcome to another exciting edition of Mindful Monday on the We Nurture Podcast! In this episode, I’ll be talking about the importance of letting children know that there is goodness in the world. Life is hard, so children need to know that even in difficult times, goodness does exist. You'll learn that parents need to protect our children from our adult fears and anxieties and that we, as adults, need to be a model of happiness that our children can look up too. We come to understand that fear can make a child shut down and that we shouldn’t expose them to news and other adult content while they are still young. We should, instead, shower them with love and positivity. Positive affirmations can help your child develop a sense of being safe. And, we can positively affirm that today’s episode is not to be missed!  

May this episode encourage you and help you to discover hope and joy in life everyday and that you'll find the strength and courage to show your child that there is indeed Goodness in the World!

Key Points From This Episode:

• Why it is important for children to know that there is goodness in the world. 

• Why children need to be protected from adult fears and anxieties.

• The way Chinyelu’s childhood experiences of war formed her beliefs!

• Discovering ways to be a model of happiness for our kids. 

• How to help your child develop a sense of safety.

• What it means to meet the world with warmth and an open heart.

• How to create moments of stillness.

• The importance of positive affirmations.

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Long ago, in a tiny house at the edge of the forest lived grandmother.  

Grandmother loved to spend her days in the garden tending to the flowers.  She grew more than she needed so she could share with the birds and small animals that came to visit.  Grandmother had a tiny root cellar beneath her house where she stored her carrots and pumpkins in the winter and in the summer it was cool. in the summer. It was where she always went when there was a storm and she needed to be safe.   

“This protection story was written for the children of Ukraine. It is in loving memory of my beautiful grandmother who passed away last winter, a first generation Czechoslovakian farmer with Ukrainian ancestry. Her name meant “one who comes from where the wild roses grow.”  And in gratitude to my Ukrainian friends whose light and beauty sustained me for 10 years when I was away from home. There is nothing more important than home and kin.  

We recommend this story for ages 3 - 7

About the Author

Darla Barrows was born and raised on a small family owned dairy farm in the Driftless region of the Midwest.  She and her family recently moved back to the Driftless to be near her parents who have turned their 70 acres of farmland into prairie flower conservation. Darla holds a degree in ASL Interpretation and Transliteration from Saint Paul College and is a graduate of the Birth to Three Program at Sophia’s Hearth in Keene, New Hampshire. Darla first began teaching Parent and Child classes twenty years ago in ASL before becoming a Waldorf Parent and Child educator and running her own program in Canada for nearly a decade. Darla is a mother, a gardener, and works as the Online Programming Coordinator for Sophia’s Hearth.

To discover more please visit wenurturecollective.com/stories-for-children

In this episode, I talk about my parenting experience with bossy and aggressive behavior.  I discuss the importance of having unconditional love, compassion, and empathy as a way to understanding how our child's behavior stems from their internal fears and desire to control (because of their fears).
In sharing my personal story my hope is that it will help you if you are facing this kind of behavior. If you think my story and advice might help a family member or friend, please share it with them.
Throughout the episode, I challenge you to shift how you view aggressive behavior to see that what your child is actually needing, is actually asking for is you. They’re asking for your unconditional love, your compassion, your empathy, your understanding and your kindness. 

Key Points From This Episode:

• My personal experience with bossy and aggressive behavior
• The power of judgment-free observation.
• A consistent approach to moving through the locked aggressive feelings of a toddler. 
• How to understand your child’s behavior with unconditional love and empathy. 
• How to support all your children when one is hurting from the actions of their sibling.
• Remodeling aggressive actions to become respectful communication and healthy interactions. 
• The main goal when dealing with challenging behavior.
• The importance of a parent’s kindness, empathy, unconditional love, and compassion.

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

We Nurture Collective

We Nurture on Instagram

We Nurture on Facebook

The Three Little Deers and the Great Storm

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Today, the We Nurture Podcast is all about making your child blossom like a spring flower! We have the added pleasure of being joined by health and beauty coach, Jolene Hart.
Jolene speaks about the importance of getting your child into the rhythm of eating with the seasons from an early age. And that it’s possible to make healthy eating fun for them!
Tune in to hear Jolene's advice and tips from her own personal and professional experience.

Key Points From This Episode:

• Jolene’s most important food recommendations to include in family meals.
• Making healthy eating, vegetables in particular, fun for children.
• Detoxing: why this is not a scary concept but one to be embraced. 
• A bit about Jolene’s research process.
• How you can cultivate a foodie curiosity in your own home.

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Jolene Hart Website

Jolene on Twitter

Eat Pretty: Nutrition for Beauty Inside and Out

Eat Pretty Live Well - A Guided Journal

Eat Pretty Everyday - 365 Daily Inspirations

Shine On

Ignite Your Light

We Nurture Collective

We Nurture on Instagram

We Nurture on Facebook

The Three Little Deers and the Great Storm

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Today on Inspirational Wednesday, I'll show you ways in which you can nurture your child's confidence and I'll share the value of raising a self-confident child, how to achieve this, and how a child’s early experiences lay the foundation for their life. For a child to be self-confident, they need to be given the freedom to experience new things in their world of “play“ and you, as their parent, need to allow them the opportunity to be governed by their own will. Moreover, parents need to practice what they preach, as children learn as much from observation as they do from activity. Make sure you tune in to hear how you can raise a self-confident child!

Key Points From This Episode:
• Self-confidence is developed and driven by the child’s own will (impulse and desire to do what interests them).
• Nurture your child’s will by giving them opportunities to help in daily life activities.
• Give your child plenty of time for unstructured play.
• Engaging a child’s will harnesses their inner strength and thus builds their confidence.
• As a parent, work on your own self-confidence.
• Mindfulness of your words and actions that are directed at your child.
• Being a strong role model for your child to imitate.

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Once upon a time, in a green meadow dotted with wildflowers, there was a cozy earthen hollow that went deep into the ground. This is where a family of groundhogs lived. Every morning they climbed out of their hollow and ate handfuls of yellow dandelions and red clover. But it was not enough food for little groundhog because he was always hungry. So the family scurried to Farmer John’s compost pile to look for good food to eat. 

We recommend this story for ages 3 - 7

About the Author

Chinyelu Kunz, is the founder of We Nurture Collective. In 2020, after 25 years as a Waldorf early childhood educator, her growing passion to support parents of young children, on a bigger platform, led her to leave classroom teaching. She created the parenting podcast, We Nurture which was quickly followed by The Stories for Children podcast. She loves writing stories for children and hopes to do this more in the future.

To discover more please visit wenurturecollective.com/stories-for-children

Today on Blossoming Tuesday, I am continuing the discussion of how to understand your child's drawings. I'll explain the importance of being patient with your child and allowing them freedom of expression as they transition through their developmental stages. You will begin to understand that something as simple as the ability to draw a circular shape, sun-ray shapes, dots, and lines sees a child go through many processes and developmental stages. We start to understand the significance of drawing as allowing a child to begin their exploration of their path to self-discovery. We follow along as Chinyelu explains how drawings can represent ego-consciousness, self-awareness, and cognitive connections. We are left with many examples and interpretations of the meaning behind drawings. Tune in to understand how to use these interpretations to better understand your child!  

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Today on Mindful Monday, I will be exploring what it means to cultivate a habit of mindful eating. You will learn, through my personal stories and tips, what wholesome food is and how to introduce it into your children's lives. First, I'll begin with the understanding that food needs to be seen as much more than just what we eat. I will guide you through what a good relationship with food looks like and how to foster this in your children. Secondly, I will share insight into the healing properties and connections that come with being present in all aspects of your food purchasing, preparation, and eating. I will then share tips on how joy, gratitude, and experiences shape the way your child will grow up thinking about food. Tune in to explore all the ways you can help your child connect with wholesome food!

Key Points From This Episode:

• Understanding Chinyelu’s inspiration behind the book, Farmhouse Manna.
• A background of her relationship with food and her love for cooking and gardening.
• The importance behind our intentions when preparing and eating a meal.
•  Exploring what it means to feel our soul senses.
• How children develop life skills by participating in meal preparation and food shopping.
• The power of observing our child's reactions and behavior towards different foods.
• Rhythm, repetition, and joy allow a child to develop a positive relationship with food.
• Minimizing pressure around finishing food 

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Today is Q&A Friday on The We Nurture Podcast and our Instagram followers voted for todays topic on how to end non-stop begging. First, I’ll discuss why begging is a learned behavior and the importance of teaching your child to accept your decision. I also discuss why suppressing your child’s emotions is not helpful for establishing healthy communication. Next, I’ll talk about how you can calm yourself and really listen to your child and then I’ll go through some steps you can take to help your child stop begging. I’ll look into three examples of how you can help your child learn to wait before discussing three things you can avoid doing in a begging situation. Finally, I’ll discuss the role you may be playing in modeling this learned behavior and encourage you to self-reflect in order to help your child learn how to wait. Tune in to end your child’s begging today!

Key Points From This Episode:

• Why begging is a learned behavior. 
• The importance of teaching children to accept their parents’ decisions. 
• The importance of allowing your children to express their emotions and not suppressing them.
• Establishing healthy communication. 
• Some steps to help you stop your child’s begging. 

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Today on Seasonal Thursday, I'll discuss how to create spring rituals as a way to refresh, restore, and reconnect. Spring is known as a time for an evaluation of what we should keep and let go of, mindfully connecting to areas in our life that need focus. I'll explore how these rituals are a way to inspire fresh ideas and shift focus in the home, body, and soul. During today’s episode, you will learn how to implement a slow and intentional daily practice and the benefits it has for a child’s well-being. With the goal of creating self-care, love, and joy, you'll understand how consistency and predictability are key to nurturing your child's growth. Don’t know where to start? Tune in to learn simple and effective techniques to create mindful and engaging day-to-day practices.

Key Points From This Episode:

• The positive outcomes of using spring rituals for refreshing and restoring your home, body, and soul. 
• How you and your child can nurture areas of your day-to-day life with valuable intentions.
• How cornerstones and healthy rhythms promote balance in a child’s life.
• Exploring the importance and benefits of creating rituals.
• How rhythm, reverence, and rituals lead to peace, calm, and joy.
• Incorporating spring rhythms into your rituals to promote reconnection to increase a child’s wellbeing.
• How to use each day to focus on individual rituals. 
• Four examples of simple, consistent rituals to create and shape your own daily practice.
• Rituals that nourish your body.
• The importance of mindfulness when creating new rituals for your child. 

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