Guest Post – Page 2

Good Trouble for Kids: build a racially conscious library

March 3, 2021

The below is a guest post from the creators of Good Trouble for Kids; an arts initiative to promote racially conscious reading.

Good Trouble For Kids is an especially valuable children’s book subscription program in this moment of an expanding consciousness that being antiracist must include intentionally engaging children through reading, art and conversations on racial and social justice. Antiracist work is daily, and must start early. Part of that work is insisting that school curricula and the literary canon become more inclusive of a diversity of authors and histories, and that parents and schools build racially conscious libraries. The market of racially conscious children’s literature has exploded, and Good Trouble For Kids wants to help parents and educators sift through these books. We offer a unique arts-based approach. Our Xtra Good Trouble, the write-ups we do on each book through the lens of literature, visual arts, and culture, is the foundation of our work.

We believe that for racial justice to expand, it needs to be rooted in the hearts, minds and imaginations of young people. Merely studying racism doesn’t cut it; students need to explore these topics through art, literature and culture to deeply engage and metabolize the lessons. Good Trouble For Kids offers parents and educators a unique and necessary lens to promote change.

Art & literature are medicine. Good Trouble For Kids wants to help people learn how to use it. Please subscribe to Xtra Good Trouble for our write-ups, or get the books too. You can subscribe to Xtra Good Trouble as a stand-alone offering, or you can do a full subscription that gets you the book and the write-up! Subscribe to the full service at Good Trouble For Kids!

5 questions about hosting an au pair during COVID-19

February 10, 2021

Sarah Vogel is a local childcare consultant with Cultural Care Au Pair. In this role, she helps families decide if hosting an au pair is the right childcare solution for them and provides year-round support to host families and au pairs. Her most challenging and rewarding role is being a mom of two children, ages 4 and 6. To learn more about Sarah and the au pair program, learn more here.

Finding flexible, affordable, and trustworthy childcare was never easy. Then came the COVID-19 pandemic. Suddenly, many working parents were juggling working from home with overseeing online school and keeping younger kiddos entertained. While families could survive this scenario in the short term, it certainly wasn’t sustainable in the long term.

It’s no wonder that interest in the au pair program spiked during the pandemic. While classrooms and day care centers closed, news outlets featured stories of au pairs helping parents not just survive, but thrive, during the pandemic thanks to these key benefits:

Ability to limit exposure to the virus with live-in childcare
Structure and support for kids at home
Competitive cost – comparable to other childcare options
Families gain a new cultural perspective and enjoy sharing American culture with their au pair
Au pairs become like a member of the family, sharing comfort and support during these unprecedented times

Benefits aside, it’s still important for families to consider what it means to have a new person in their homes during a pandemic. Here are a few of the questions I’ve received from families considering hosting an au pair during this time:

Are au pairs still coming to the U.S.?

The short answer is – yes. Due to the pandemic, there are some challenges and delays in the visa process, and there are travel restrictions in place from certain countries. However, hundreds of au pairs have successfully joined their host families in the U.S. since this summer.

Given these circumstances, Cultural Care recommends that host families apply with an agency at least 3 to 4 months before they would like to welcome an au pair into their home and that they are able to be flexible with the start date.

How do you welcome an au pair during COVID?

In the past, families would go to meet their au pair at the airport or bus stop with signs, balloons, and hugs. These days, it’s best for everyone to follow state and local safety guidelines when welcoming an au pair. Many families put a welcome sign made by the kids on the au pair’s door or a goodie basket in his or her room. There are also considerations around social distancing and quarantine (more on that later). The bottom line is that you can still make an au pair feel welcomed even if it’s not the same as before.

Does an au pair need to quarantine when he or she arrives? What do we need to do during our first days and weeks together so we all stay safe?

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention developed guidelines for those coming to the U.S. from other countries. Additionally, families should check state and local rules around testing and quarantines for those arriving to your area. Depending on the family’s situation, they may ask their au pair to stay in the bedroom they’ve provided for a period of time while monitoring for any health issues. Or, a host family may ask the au pair to stay at a hotel at their expense after he or she arrives.

Either way, it’s important for the family and au pair to stay connected during their time apart. Some families cook dinner together over zoom or have a game night over Facetime.

My kids are doing virtual learning. What role can an au pair play in their online schooling?

Au pairs can offer invaluable support for online learning students and their parents. Au pairs can be responsible for helping children log into online learning sessions, overseeing homework time and planning activities when they have breaks.

On the other hand, au pairs are not trained educators and can’t be responsible for making lesson plans, teaching new material, or corresponding with a child’s teacher.

I want my au pair to have a great experience, but I also want our family to stay safe and healthy. How do I find that balance?

The answer here is communication. Clear and consistent communication before an au pair arrives and when they are here about important topics like mask wearing, social distancing, and travel is essential to ensure a host family and au pair are on the same page.

It’s also important for your family to follow the same guidelines as your au pair. That means, if you ask your au pair not to dine inside a restaurant, your family isn’t doing that either. Sharing the responsibility for keeping each other safe will help strengthen the bond between your family and au pair.

Lastly, don’t forget about flexibility and fun. All of us have learned to be more flexible as the pandemic has gone on. We are also finding new ways to enjoy life safely. Remember, au pairs come to the U.S. to experience American life in a family, so think about what special traditions, foods, and experiences you can share with your au pair. Many au pairs who have been here during the pandemic say that they have become so close with their host families because they spend quality time together and have supported each other through difficult times.

During this uncertain time, finding the right childcare is more important than ever. Please feel free to contact me with any questions and to discuss if hosting an au pair may be a good fit for your family.

Navigating life’s ups and downs with grace and ease: mindfulness for the whole family

January 30, 2021

During the pandemic we have noticed a drastic behavioral and emotional shift in one of our children. Sometimes it’s a burst of anger, or tears over something minuscule other times it’s slamming doors and yelling at us. I have tried to stay true to practicing mindfulness with my kids since understanding it more. Attempting to work towards dealing with situations calmly and methodically is a challenge but slowly is becoming routine. I am human and I’ve had my fair share of losing my calm but I try my best to remember to take a breath before reacting and attempt to deal with the situation by talking through it and more than anything else; listening. The Kids Mindfulness Project started by Shelby Samperton inspires to enlighten children and parents with mindfulness practices.

The below post is written by Shelby; author of ‘Pearl The Mindful Turtle’, ‘Pearl And The Rainbow’, ‘Pearl & Birdie’, ‘Pearl Coloring Book’, and founder of the Kids Mindfulness Project.

As a single mother of 3 young kids, I was curious to find a better way to handle all of life’s ups and downs. When I first started looking into mindfulness, I was instantly drawn to the sense of calm and peace that the practice created within me. As I deepened my practice, it became clear that this power, this sense of enlightenment and peace, was already within me. I was able to activate it and strengthen it through daily mindfulness practice.

One of the biggest misconceptions about mindfulness is that it means you are always happy, never stressed, always at peace. Mindfulness doesn’t remove difficult emotions, rather it gives you a tool box to pull from when something difficult arises, and it will. Life is full of struggles, difficulties, obstacles, and challenges. As John Kabat-Zinn says, “You can’t stop the waves, but you can learn to surf.” Mindfulness is a practice that teaches us to be present, to be accepting, to be equanimous.

Through my mindfulness practice, I have found that when a challenging or triggering situation arises, I have a big emotional reaction, I feel things very intensely and deeply. The imperative difference is that I recover much faster. I give myself the space and time to feel my feelings, to explore them without judgement. In most cases, I will learn something about myself in the process. I am then able to let that experience and those feelings go. They no longer control me. I am no longer a victim to my emotions. I am empowered by them. This is the magic of mindfulness. A magic that is already inside
each of us. Mindfulness helps us to ignite our magic and grow our light.

One of the benefits of mindfulness is cultivating the space to respond rather than react to a situation. When we are present with a triggering situation, mindfulness helps us to take a breath, to observe the situation without being overwhelmed or controlled by it. That response can be “This situation is not serving me, let me take a break and get back to you.” If the triggering or difficult thought arises in your mind you can recite “No thank you. Not right now.” and begin to shift your mindset away from the negative and toward a positive thought.

Acceptance is another foundation of mindfulness. Recognizing that what is happening in your current moment is not your end but simply a moment on your journey. I am confident we have all had moments of deep uncertainty, fear, confusion, and mistrust recently. By reciting, “right now it’s like this” can help bring your thoughts back to the present moment. You can simply notice and observe what is happening around you without the push or pull of trying to control the outcome.

Each time you make mindfulness part of your routine, you are retraining your habitual mental tendencies to be filled with more awareness, compassion, and control.

If you are interested in bringing mindfulness practices into your family, please feel free to reach out for family or individual mindfulness sessions. You can reach Shelby via email here. Also visit Kids Mindfulness Project online. Please follow the Kids Mindfulness Project on Instagram!

Am additional post written by Shelby Samperton last year for Beltway Bambinos can be found here.

Prioritize self-care in a seven day Sacred Pause

January 26, 2021

Alexandra Raquel Hughes is a certified energy healer and intuitive life coach, a life-long researcher and writer who is currently working to be ordained as an Andean Priestess. She’s a Peruvian-Canadian expat mom married to a Catalan, who has lived in 8 countries, speaks 4 languages and holds an MPhil in Development Studies from the UK, and a BA in Environmental Studies from Canada. She’s an Earth loving, tarot reading, astrology junky (Pisces with Capricorn rising) currently based in Brazil with 3 strong personality kiddos and ever-loving left-brained husband. You can likely find her in the bath, garden or dancing under the moon. Below you will find a guest post written by Alexandra that I feel will resonate with most of you, especially after the year we’ve had. I hope you will join me in participating in this free 7-day Sacred Pause experience; more details on that below.

Here we are, D.C. Mom, rapidly approaching February.

Less than one month into the New Year and so much has happened to throw us off kilter. (As if 2020 hadn’t already perfected the art of WTF-induction, right?!)

2021 was baptized with some shocking, sad, and scary events, followed by a break-the paradigm presidential inauguration.

All the messages coming in are saying the same thing:

Sister, it’s time. The world is ready for a rebirth. There is work to be done.

This is especially true for moms who want, at the very least, to lay healthy groundwork for their children, for the future generation.

Groundwork that promises our kiddos a world with social justice, regenerating environmental health, and the opportunity for them to express themselves fully as who they were born to be.

Overwhelmed (yet driven) by the proposition?

I get it.

It’s a lot to take on.

We all know that mom-life is busy and loud.

That our news and social media feeds are even louder

And we’ve also hopefully learned that rushing around doing #allthethings, went out of style when the pandemic started. (#truthbomb: it never really worked for you, anyway 😉).

So where do we begin to respond to this call to re-design, re-birth, and re-build?

The answer is to begin with YOU.

You shuddering with the notion of scheduling self-care in?

Hear me out.

I know that while it may feel selfish, the first thing you need to take care of right now is YOU.

But (capital “B”), without approaching the craziness from a healthy and balanced place, you cannot be the mother or woman the world needs right now.

A leader is someone who models a way of being and doing, someone who influences change.

And guess what? As a mom, you do this all the time.

So whether you like it or not, you are a leader.

But to be the leader that your children, the future generation and the world needs, you need to be grounded and balanced.

It is only from this grounded and balanced place that you can reflect, access your inner wisdom and only then take wise heart-centered steps towards being, and thus making, the change you want to see.

On January 28, I’ll lead a group of amazing moms (like you!) through 7 days of simple, meet-you-where-you’re-at rituals designed for busy moms who:

feel the world tugging at their heartstrings (and sanity 🤯) right now,
want to heal their nervous systems and find inner peace, so they can…
step into their power as change-makers and leaders.

The Sacred Pause is a free collective sisterhood experience that will equip you with the tools you need (and can go back to time and time again) to:

✨ heal your nervous system

✨ slow down & find inner peace

✨ connect with & strengthen your intuition

Our 7-day gathering is also my invitation for us to gather as creators of the future generation, and talk about feminine leadership and the rebirthing of a new world.

You can sign up for the Sacred Pause HERE.

I really hope you see the urgency in taking time for yourself as a means of honoring your role, and of empowering yourself as a change-maker.

We start under the full moon 🌕 on January 28. Click here to learn how it works, and to join us.

In the meanwhile, I want to invite you to pick two of the following to support yourself during these next few weeks:

Get back to basics with your news and social media intake. Delete notifications on your smartphone and limit your news checks to twice daily. Play with the Screentime function if you have one.
Connect with nature daily. This can look like standing on the Earth, going for a walk, hugging a tree for 3 minutes, sitting still and taking 10 deep breaths next to your favorite houseplant. It doesn’t need to be complicated, but it is one of the best ways to recalibrate your nervous system, and the DC area has loads of beautiful nature spots for you to enjoy.
Move your body. Stretch, shake, dance, walk, run, do yoga….just move. And if you can do this for 10 minutes while consciously visualizing tension and anxiety leaving your body, even better.
Take notice and document what you appreciate in your life. My favorite time to do this is before I lie down to sleep, but taking a moment to feel gratitude at any time of day works.

Looking forward to seeing you on the inside

P.S. If you’re telling yourself that you’re too busy, read on…I want you to imagine 7 days of it sacred pause — with guidance and in sisterhood. How grounded and balanced would this leave you feeling? The return on your investment of time and energy is a focused mind, centered and open heart and boosted efficiency.

Don’t believe me? Here’s what others have said:

I loved being part of the Sacred Pause. Alex is a true guide in navigating and prioritizing soul nourishing self care. I love how she gently led us to find the time to commit to ourselves, even though we’re all busy women. Alex truly walks her talk, and took us on the journey with her. I highly recommend this for all women with too much on their mind to make self care a priority. ~Rosalie Puiman

Thank you so much for creating the glorious Sacred Pause. What an amazing gift! I am grateful for all this week-long Experience brought forth… The connection to nature was amazing and necessary and right. Ahhhh… I am thankful for how you lifted us up and reminded us who we all are — Queens . Yes, we are! ~ Leisha Davis

My Gym Bethesda & My Gym Potomac offer outdoor classes and more

September 18, 2020

This guest post is from My Gym Bethesda & My Gym Potomac. We hope you take advantage of their many programming options with your Bambinos.

My Gym Potomac and My Gym Bethesda are excited to bring new OUTDOOR CLASSES to both Bethesda and Potomac! Our same great interactive and fun fitness classes just with smaller groups, social distancing and we are wearing masks. Our traditional grown-up and baby, independent and sibling classes are available. We have also added gymnastics and dance to our outdoor offerings.

Want to learn more about our very popular private POD PLAY DATES? We can bring PE or gymnastics fun to your back-yard Pod school group just one time or on weekly basis with a fun My Gym teacher to lead kids safely in fitness and games and fun.

We also have opened INSIDE in Potomac for small group private play dates, camps (Weds. 1-4pm and Thursday 9:30am-12:30am,) in-gym classes and Birthday Parties. Click here to see our updated cleaning protocols.

We also have ZOOM classes available for those who prefer them for just $50 monthly for unlimited Zoom at home!

We hope to see all the kids at My Gym soon! Please feel free to email or text us any questions at My Gym Potomac or My Gym Bethesda or check out our complete websites: My Gym Potomac & My Gym Bethesda.

A letter from a homeschool mom in regards to our new realities

March 19, 2020

Parents are figuring out how to juggle work, managing a home, caring for kids, pets and elders and now adding teacher to their routine each day. As anxiety heightens we thought hearing one perspective of a local homeschool mom may be helpful in navigating these new waters. The takeaway from her outlook is to take a deep breath {several actually throughout the day} and don’t expect to have your kids sitting down at a table learning from 8:30am-3pm. Don’t forget to take care of your needs as a parent also.

Dear new homeschoolers,
Our world has been turned upside down and anxiety is running on high. Adding into the witches cauldron a bit of panic, a roll of toilet paper, and an unavoidable new view to educating your children, you may be ready to toss out the potion and pour a glass of wine – but it’s only 9:00am.
Welcome to the world of homeschooling!
There is an entire community of us who have chosen this journey on our own – minus the panic, fear, and anxiety that is running rampant – and we are here for you {search for homeschool in Facebook}.
You didn’t choose this path. Are you hoping to wake up from a homeschooling nightmare to a school bus outside tomorrow morning? The reality will soon set in that homeschooling is your only option until we return to our regularly scheduled lives, so put on your big girl panties and get your head in the game.
Just kidding. No big girl panties required – you can do this without losing your sanity and without drinking mid-afternoon. Do you want to know the biggest secret we homeschool families keep? Once you read it, you can’t unread it. And I promise that you can feel this way too.
We actually enjoy our kids. We actually like being around them. We actually want to partake in their lives and set the most influential examples for them.
We also spent years freaking out over how to educate them ‘the right way’ before realizing that homeschooling is not hard. It is not supposed to break you (or your child). It should not mean crying, kicking, or yelling. How can this be, you may ask? How can you work, homeschool, keep up with your house, and get food on the table day after day? Buckle up, here’s the best advice you are going to get.
Throw away the schedule that is circulating all over social media. It will set you up to feel like a failure. It will lead you to giving up before you’ve even had a chance to truly begin. It will push you farther away from your child instead of bringing you closer together. A school day should never be 7 hours of scheduled 30-minute long learning activities. It doesn’t matter your child’s age or grade level, when working one-on-one, lessons can be completed faster than you can make lunch. This may sound crazy, but when thinking about a child’s attention span, it makes complete sense. Anything longer than this will not be absorbed and will cause tempers to flare – on both sides of the table.
Give respect to your children. Do not lecture them and expect them to learn. Talk with them and let them be the guide. You will be amazed at everything they know – and everything they are hungry to learn. You can look up answers together, laugh at mistakes, and find commonalities you never knew you had. Will you butt heads? Probably, but you are the grown-up, not the child… which means that you should not argue. You should ask your child to explain their reasoning. Through calm and engaging conversation, you will be able to plant the seeds your child needs to grow.
Think outside of the standard education box. You have been trained to follow the same set of rules applied to every child in a classroom… but your child is not the same as the classmates he had. You can provide so many more opportunities right now than you know. With hundreds of websites and apps offering free resources, your child can follow along as zoos offer live classes, create stop-motion videos, listen to podcasts, or email pen pals across the globe. You can keep things as simple as you need or as intricate as your child desires. There is no way to fail this journey unless you give up.
Set examples:
Do you want your kids to read without a fight? They need to see you choosing to read throughout the day.
Do you want them to pick up after themselves? Don’t yell or repeat yourself, just hold a fun conversation and start picking up with an invitation for them to help. They will catch on.
Be together sometimes and be apart often. Read books together – all ages – big kids need to be read to, too -and do it every day. It can be at bedtime or lunchtime or first thing in the morning, but read. Here’s the one you’ve been waiting for – the one recommendation that your child may struggle with the most: Let your children be alone. Do not hover. Do not interrupt. Let their whining and boredom be ignored while granting them the freedom to harvest creativity. Turn off iPads and screens, turn on background music, set a few boundaries, and then walk away. Watch your child bloom before your eyes.
Homeschooling is not rocket science. It’s generally a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants kind of lifestyle, and one that includes cooking together, cleaning together, laughing together, and learning together. It’s filled with challenges and excitement – and moments you would miss out on if things were different in the world right now. So take a minute to breathe in the gift of time that you have just been granted. You get the chance create a deeper relationship with the human beings that you have created. Forget all the expectations you have sitting on your shoulders and just enjoy this time. The world will eventually fall back into it’s regular routines, but you have the chance to greatly change the way you have previously lived.”

Elizabeth MacDonald is a professional writer, author, blogger at Our Lucky Seven, and homeschool mom of five. Juggling life for MacDonald is a bit like balancing on a tightrope while baby wearing, flipping pancakes, and holding a conference call, but somehow everyone makes it across alive and happy.

Therapeutic sessions at Rock Creek Park Horse Center

March 10, 2020

This guest post is written by Amy Dick who is a volunteer at Rock Creek Park Horse Center. Tucked into the woods of Rock Creek Park is Rock Creek Park Horse Center, located at 5100 Glover Road, NW.

Rock Creek Park Horse Center offers therapeutic sessions with horses for people of all ages, including children. Equine Assisted Psychotherapy is an experiential approach to psychotherapy with horses. “Experiential” means that the client has hands-on experiences with horses, assisted by facilitators. Therapeutic sessions with horses help individuals and groups safely explore solutions to manage stress, depression, anxiety, PTSD, interpersonal conflict, and more.

All sessions are on the ground – there is no horseback riding. Our facilitators are certified by the Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association (EAGALA), the global standard for equine-assisted psychotherapy and personal development.

What makes horses good partners in therapy? Most people love animals, especially beautiful ones like horses. But the primary reason is due to horses’ nature. They are social, herd, and prey animals with an extraordinary ability to interpret nonverbal communication. Horses pick up on and respond to people’s unconscious signals and emotions. Horses’ behavior and responses often remind people of the characters and issues in their lives. Through interactions with the horses, EAGALA equine therapy empowers clients to explore, problem-solve, discover, be creative, and gain valuable insights.

Horses do not know our past, education, gender, race or other labels we may apply to ourselves and each other. They live in the moment. Unlike humans, they have no biases. These qualities also make horses valuable therapeutic partners with helping people seeking insight, perspective, and solutions to their personal challenges.

Want to learn more about EAGALA therapy? A brief, excellent video summary can be found here.

EAGALA contacts at Rock Creek Park Horse Center are:
Amber Power, Equine Specialist (301) 908-0767
Ilse Eisele, Mental Health Specialist (434) 533-5545
You can also send an email.

Rock Creek Park Horse Center also offers:
Trail & Pony Rides
Lessons
Camps
Volunteer Opportunities

The Kids Mindfulness Project

February 12, 2020

Shelby Samperton was curious to find a better way to handle all of life’s ups and downs. As a single mother of 3, she understands the importance of leading by example. When she first started looking into Mindfulness, she was drawn to the sense of calm, understanding, and enlightenment the practice created within her. Shelby was instantly inspired to share and grow this practice not only within her own family but with others as well.

I am very passionate about practicing mindfulness with my children and working towards dealing with situations calmly and methodically so I was thrilled to learn about Shelby’s take on this when I came across a discussion on the Mama’s Show. Not only has Shelby launched the Kids Mindfulness Project but she also wrote and published a book about equanimity called Pearl the Mindful Turtle. Below Shelby explains more about the foundations of mindfulness as well as ways to incorporate them into your daily lives with your children and we hope you take away some beneficial tips!

The Kids Mindfulness Project is an initiative to bring mindfulness practices to children and their families. Research shows that families with parents and children who practice mindfulness show far less stress and fewer conflicts.

Mindfulness is a practice of being aware in the present moment. It is operating from a place of calm and peace rather than reacting to situations or emotions. Mindfulness practice can be used in may ways, breathing techniques, mindful meditation, even just being mindful when you eat or drive in the car!

Teaching children how to practice mindfulness will instill in them lifelong skills to draw on in difficult times. Mindfulness encourages a non-judgmental way of being and feeling in the present moment. By going inside yourself, kids can learn to self-sooth, calm themselves down and operate with a clear mind. Mindfulness encourages that all feelings and emotions are valid but we don’t need to react to them. By practicing mindfulness, we learn to accept our emotions, feel them and then let them pass. Research shows that students who practiced mindfulness and mostly who practiced it before a test or an exam had a much higher performance rate.

The Kids Mindfulness Project encourages families to find little ways to practice mindfulness every day. Just like any skill, mindfulness is a practice and will grow stronger with a consistent practice.

We recommend trying mindfulness in the car, on the way to and from school. Kids may not be open to it at first, but just like trying anything new, keep going!

We love the Pinna app. It’s a kids only podcast app. On Pinna, you can find the Relax And Be Happy podcast. These are short, mindful mediations aimed at teaching children how to be mindful. It’s a fun and easy way to incorporate mindfulness into your every day routine! Other wonderful calming apps are Headspace and Calm.

If you have any questions or would like to learn more about the Kids Mindfulness Project and in-home family or one-on-one sessions, please visit our website or send an email!