Natural Parents Network's 2nd Annual Holiday Gift Guide & Giveaway! {12/6, 26 winners, US, ARV $2,587}

Welcome to the Second Annual Natural Parents Network Holiday Gift Guide!

If you need to complete your holiday shopping, find a birthday present for a friend, or just treat yourself to something special, the NPN Holiday Gift Guide has something for everyone. But what's even better, the NPN Holiday Gift Guide is a great opportunity to shop consciously and to support many naturally minded small businesses.

Faith, Trust, and a Little Bit Of Poetry

I decided to give Hobo Mama's Poetry Challenge a try. Hope you enjoy!

Trust

Loving you before
I ever meet you
Trusting life will always be
The greatest lesson I could ever
Learn. Welcome to the great
Endevor. I have the greatest
Optimism that you will
Never be alone
Every hope is yours

Partners:

He loves me
For my eyes
My smile
My laugh
He loves me
For my hair
My body
My life
He loves me
For my strength
My endurance
My compassion
He loves me
For my fears
My anger
My faults
He loves me
Without change
He loves me
For me

Faith:

Life is always life
Always moving forward
Breathe, Eat, Sleep
Life is always life
Yet two are never same
Even one sees constant change
Life is always life
Some are grand or modest
Others sad or destitute; But
Life is always life
Each life is different
Each life a chance
We choose the paths
That change our life; But
Life is always life

From Design to Reality: An Unschooling Adventure

 We recently took a trip camping at a lake. It was all kinds of fun, beautiful, and all the stress that comes with taking three small children on such a trip. But while we were there we did something awesome.

L1 has been fully obsessed with camping and fishing. Since we were already camping, he was ready to go fishing. So, he needed a boat. I suggested he draw up a design for the boat he wanted.

We got to work, searching the beach and our supplies. Driftwood. Rope. An old tarp.

L1 was very specific in his instructions. We followed them. This was his time and his project and it was our job to help him make his vision a reality. 

We talked about levers, knots, buoyancy, the mountains around us, the fish we could catch, the birds we saw, the rocks, the sun, the clouds, the sounds we heard and made (including a rad percussion jam session on a piece of driftwood with tree roots that all made a different note) and any number of things in between. Then we stepped back and admired the work. And saw L1's dream sitting in front of us.

We all played on the ship for the duration of our trip. Captain Beard, Captain Skeleton Turtle Jack, Princess Captain Jack Harkness (Who also turned to Princess Captain Jack Harkness Zombie), Mr Smee, and more characters joined in swordplay, teamwork, exploration, feats of strength, balancing acts, and breaking out into song.

That was one amazing day at our school.

Beyond the Farm

Welcome to the August 2012 Carnival of Natural Parenting: Farmer's Markets
This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama. This month our participants have written about something new they've learned about their local farmers.

Farmer's markets are some of our favorite places to visit. My calendar is marked Wednesday through Sunday with local markets. We have always gone with our children and found great things to eat. Our boys love picking out honey, berries, apples, sugar snap peas, and all kinds of deliciousness.

Some market peaches I canned with vanilla. Mmm.

But, did you know there is more than food at most farmer's markets? Artisans, crafters, and musicians! The newest goal my boys have is to SMELL the farmer's market. They target the soap makers. We had a wonderful experience with the gal from Snohomish Soap Company. L1 saw her basket of travel size bars and wanted to smell. He very politely pointed to each one and asked me if he could smell. The vendor was very polite and didn't take long to pick up that HE was the customer and treated as such. When he made it though the whole basket, he chose one called Milk and Honey, paid his dollar, put it in his hand basket and ran off to show everyone what he bought. 

And this wasn't the end of it. He showed L2 and they shared. Then, at the next market we went to (you know, because two in one week is normal, right?) they didn't head straight for the honey sticks or blueberries. They wanted to find the smelly soaps. And they did; they found Cedar Mountain Botanicals. Again, a great experience where they talked to the vendors, introduced themselves, and did what they could to help my boys really have a good experience.

Food is easy to love. Sweet treats and bright foods; those things were easy to get my family interested in what the market had to offer. Now I am glad to see there is still more for us to explore and love. More great, local people to get to know and ways to keep our money supporting our community.

***
Visit Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama to find out how you can participate in the next Carnival of Natural Parenting!
Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:
(This list will be live and updated by afternoon August 14 with all the carnival links.)

10 Simple Ways to Make the Farmer's Market More Fun for Kids — Lorie at Reading Confetti shares ideas and books to help kids get the most from the farmers market experience.

10 Things I Want To Teach My Daughter About The Importance of Shopping at the Farmer’s Market — Jennifer at Hybrid Rasta Mama shares the ten lessons she hopes to impart to her daughter about the importance of shopping at local farmers markets.

Charmed by Two Small Town Markets — Shannon at GrowingSlower was charmed by two small-town farmers markets while on vacation.

The Olympia Farmer's Market (and a giveaway!) — Shannon at Pineapples & Artichokes and family took a trip to their state capitol to experience a new market. See what they saw, and enter to win a book written about that very market.

— Exploring the farmers market by Jennifer at True Confessions of a Real Mommy writing at Natural Parents Network — with a scavenger hunt!

Exploring the Market ... Alphabet Style — That Mama Gretchen is in the midst of creating a learning tool for her toddler and it's all about the market!

Unschooling at the Farmers Market — Megz at Aspen Mama loves building memories as a vendor at the Market.

Montessori-Inspired Vegetable Unit — Deb Chitwood at Living Montessori Now shares links to Montessori-inspired vegetable printables and activities to help your family get the most out of a trip to the farmer’s market.

Markets — How sustainable mum has fitted a monthly farmers market into a weekly food shop.

The Farmers Market In Under An Hour ("Carl Style") — Andrea and family at Tales of Goodness adapt their farmers marketing approach to make everyone happy.

Tales Of a Troubled Gardener — Sam at Love Parenting writes about her dream of self-sufficiency and her lack of gardening skills!

A Few {Of The Many} Reasons Why I Love Our Farmer’s Market — Even though the experience can sometimes be less than peaceful, MomeeeZen shares why she enjoys taking her family to the Farmer's Market on Saturday mornings.

Experiencing the Farmer's Market from a Different Perspective — Emily at S.A.H.M. i AM had a great time letting her toddler lead the way at the farmer's market...

Ask A Farmer's Daughter — Abbie at Farmer's Daughter answers questions about her life growing up on a small family farm in New England.

Giving Up the Grocery Store — Kerry at City Kids Homeschooling shares her family's summertime challenge to eliminate trips to the grocery store and rely almost exclusively on local, farm-fresh foods.

Urban farming and fresh food in the city — Lauren at Hobo Mama takes trips to farms, gardens, and markets within reach of a big city.

Market Tip: Get to Know Your Farmers — Justine at The Lone Home Ranger finally gets up the guts to talk to her farmers and learns she is among ardent food lovers.

New Farmer's Market Find — Kellie at Our Mindful Life is excited to make a new find at her new farmers market.

"The Real World" Grassroots Edition — jessica at instead of institution takes some time out to write a love note.

9 Insider Tips for Farmer's Market Newbies — Dionna at Code Name: Mama chatted with a few farmers to bring you some insider information on how to get the most out of your local farmer's market.

The Place Where I Can Say "Yes!" — Erica at ChildOrganics gives you a tour of her favorite vendors at her local farmers market and discusses the benefits of creating community through the market.

Raw Local Milk — Jorje shares her family's field trip to a local dairy. Learn what you can appreciate from a small town farm at Momma Jorje.com.

Italian Secret Vegetable Soup Recipe — Alinka at Baby Web convinces an Italian Farmer & Cook to reveal a precious minestrone recipe and shares it with her readers.

Where do our eggs come from? A visit to Sucellus Farms. — Carli at One Fit Mom takes her family to meet the chickens that have been providing their daily eggs.

Beyond the Farm — Jennifer at True Confessions of a Real Mommy and her family enjoy looking beyond the food at the local farmer's market to see the wares of the over vendors.

Magic at the Market — Do you ever take time to really look at the food you eat? Amy at Anktangle enjoys marveling at the beauty (and the utility) of the foods and goods available at the farmers' market.

Farmer's Market Discoveries — Laura from Pug in the Kitchen reminisces about the discoveries she's made at the Farmer's Market throughout the years.

Are You Getting the Most out of Your Farmers' Market? (My List of Not-So-Common "Musts") — Sheila at A Living Family shares some uncommon ways to squeeze even more joy and connection (and yumminess!) from your local farmers' market experience.

Pick Your Own And Eat It — Luschka from Diary of a First Child shares their trip to a PYO farm and the journey from picking to eating her favourite food

Your Humanity is Showing

More hoopla about breastfeeding. This time some moms daring to do so in their military uniforms with Brynja Sigurdardottir Photography. The storm of comments and judgments began. 

Being in uniform demands a certain decorum.

An American soldier feeds Japanese children in 1945 on Okinawa, site of an 82-day battle and Allied victory.Photo Credit: Getty Images

A responsibility to represent the strength of our force.

Soldiers show children how to play with yo-yos during humanitarian mission in the Philippines, September 2007 U.S. Navy (Michael Larson)

Because soldiers are trained killers. 

U.S. soldier carries a wounded Iraqi child (Marine Corps photo)

And breastfeeding makes women appear weak.

And while in uniform, soldiers are required to behave a certain way.

I refuse to show any images of the horrific things 

soldiers have done in uniform. They are graphic, 

heart-wrenching, and a horrible representation

 of who we are as a country.

Soldiers can be mothers. Mothers feed  their babies.  Breastfeeding doesn't make them more or less or enough. They are just ARE, so leave them be. They deserve support, not judgment. If their uniforms don't allow for ease of breastfeeding while following their code, then maybe some considerations need to be made to the uniforms or the code. Military families deserve the support and knowledge that their families are well cared for for the work they do to protect our country. Maybe if we were more connected to who we are as humans, there would be less need for the military.

Mother of All Wars: The Battle to Breastfeed in Uniform

For information about Breastfeeding in Uniform

Is Breastfeeding the "Cause of an Outside Organization"? The Case of Moms Breastfeeding in Uniform

Military moms fight back in nursing-in-uniform storm

Wordless Wednesday October 19th, 2011: Leaf Walk!

THIS is what makes living in the northwest easier through the long, gray, dreary winter!

Lesson in a Picture Book Pt 5

So, we are off the Eric Carle wagon, and have moved swiftly onto the Dr. Suess train. Imagine my surprise when my 22mo sat still and listened to every page of Cat in the Hat! He carries it around with him, asks for it frequently, and insisted we have 2 copies of it from the library. (Also, L2 has started REQUESTING we go to the library! How awesome is that!?) So, it is time to delve into the world of Dr. Suess, and what could be better for my food loving boys that to start with Green Eggs and Ham? Though, when I was child, my parents read this book to my food finicky brother to encourage him to try new foods. It didn't work.

Monday: Making Green Eggs. Kind of. I don't really want to just dye eggs, but mixing green veggies with eggs for a yummy quiche souffle sounds right up our alley! It sounds fancy, but it really isn't hard.

Ingredients:
Eggs
Milk (we use almond milk)
Choice of veggies to add; we'll be using green peppers, green onions, and some asparagus.
Salt
Pepper

Whisk eggs and milk, pour into oiled ramekins. Add veggies, salt and pepper to taste. Place ramekins in pan (a cake pan or such) with about 1/2 in of water in the bottom. Bake at 350degrees until a pick comes out clean!

Tuesday: Exploring foods. My dad used to play a game with us where we would go to the grocery store and pick out anything we wanted. As long as we had NEVER eaten it before. So, we will head to the market and see what we can find. In the past it was things like caviar, sugar cane, and something we affectionately named booger fruit. (Kiwno Melon) Then everyone tries the new foods. Some are great, others...not so much.


Wednesday: Get crafty! Make green eggs and ham out of whatever: felt, construction paper, paint, ect. Then, act it out! Eat in a box? In the rain? 

Lessons in a Book Winter Pt 4; Winter Wonderland Edition

Uncle Andrew busting it up.

L1 is excited. This weekend we are headed on our yearly trip to the mountains. Grandma made the slight mistake of telling him we were going in one week, which is unfathomable to a 3yo. He was ready to go RIGHT.THEN. It didn't help that it snowed the next day. And has kind of snowed everyday since. He calls Grandma to tell her he needs his snowmobile and is ready to go.

L1's new jacket and Arctic Cat hat.

So, of course, our weekly trip to the library required a search for snow related books. We ended up with a GORGEOUS non-fiction work called The Story of Snow: The Science of Winter's Wonder. It is filled with microscopic photographs of snowflakes, in all their glory. I love it, my boys like to flip through it and describe the flakes rather than read the information.

Monday: Our family is a snowmobiling family. We take many precautions when riding with the boys: there are harnesses to keep them strapped to us, and helmets that are REQUIRED, no exceptions. Also, being out in the snow means layers of clothing. So, Monday we will be having getting dressed races! I will split clothes to two ends of the hallway, then run back and forth putting on the next piece. We aren't concerned about teaching them to be in the harness, as they are very familiar with baby wearing, but we are concerned about them adjusting to wearing a helmet. Snowmobile helmets are full head and face, and can be daunting for kids. So, we will spend some time trying them on, getting them adjusted and hopefully getting comfortable with them.

Tuesday: Snow scenes! Paint, glitter glue, cotton balls, sequins. Need I say more?

Not your average Grandma!

Wednesday: We are making SNOW! I don't expect to have any real snow by then, so we have a snow making kit. If we happen to be lucky enough to have snow, we will be out playing in it. And maybe making some Snow Cream. (Just hush up about dirty snow.)

Snow Cream
1 gallon snow
3/4 cup maple syrup
2 tbsp vanilla
2 cups milk (in our case, almond)
Stir and eat!

What do your kids like to do when it snows?

Lessons in a Picture Book Pt 3

This week, we continue to explore Eric Carle books. This week: Walter the Baker. I really do love Carle's style, the stories are simple and I can expand on them easily, the colors are bright and hold's even L2's attention.

We love a book about cooking. "It like Daddy! He cooks, like at Daddy's restaurant!" My boys have their own aprons and tools, including knives from Pampered Chef.

Monday: We won't jump right into cooking this week, as you might think. This book has another important message in it. How we treat people. My boys are generally sweet and caring, but we all need reminders sometimes. When Walter's rolls fail to please the Duke and Duchess, they throw them at his feet and banish him from the city in the wall. So, we are going to build a wall, and make our city inside it. This will have one of two outcomes: L1 will invite his brother to join us, but L2 will knock things down causing anger and frustration. Or, L1 will disallow L2 into the wall, which will end just as badly. I am hoping that by intentionally creating these situations, I will be in a better frame of mind to help them work through the issues that have become frequent in our home. In the story, a cat knocking over milk is the beginning of the end for Walter. So, it really does all lead to a great chance to work through this typical sibling behavior.

Tuesday: Making Pretzels! Yay! I am going to give this recipe a try, though if you have another that you KNOW works, I would love to try it. I am hoping it holds up well enough for the boys to really try and create their own shapes.

EDIT: This recipe is faulty in wording. I am trying things out to see if I can fix it, and contacting original author.

Gluten Free Soft Pretzels Recipe

Pretzel Ingredients:

• 2-1/4 cups warm water
• 2 TBSP brown sugar
• 1 bag Pamela’s Gluten-Free Bread Mix including yeast packet
• 2 TBSP olive oil
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 butter or margarine, melted
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tsp powdered cinnamon

Pretzel Directions:

1. Whisk together 1-1/4 cups warm water, brown sugar, and yeast in a small bowl. Allow to sit for a few minutes until bubbles begin to show yeast activity.
2. Pour Pamela’s Gluten-Free Bread Mix into a large bowl. Stir in olive oil and the yeast mixture until completely combined.
3. Cover with a damp towel and allow to rise for one hour.
4. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper and divide dough into twelve pieces.
5. With wet hands, roll each piece into a “snake” between six and eight inches in length. Lay the snake onto the parchment paper, then gently flatten the dough with wet fingers until about half previous height.
6. Pick up one end of the snake, so that half of its length is lifted from the cookie tray. Twist the dough 360° and gently lay the end down again. Pick up the other end of the dough and give it a full twist in the same direction. Smooth any rough spots with wet fingers.
7. Repeat with each section of dough, so that both cookie trays have six pretzel twists on them.
8. Cover both trays with plastic wrap, and allow the dough to rest for another 30 minutes.
9. Preheat oven to 450°.
10. Mix remaining cup of warm water and baking soda. Using a pastry brush, gently paint the twists with the baking soda mixture.
11. Bake twists for 8 to 10 minutes until golden brown.Brush with butter and sprinkle salt.

Thursday: Once Walter gains the approval for his pretzels from the Duke and Duchess, he makes a giant basket of them to share with the townspeople. Thursday we will be taking our treats to a play date to share with our friends. There are many allergies/sensitivities in our group, so I hope they will be well received. 

We also have a bit of a bonus Lesson in a Picture Book this week: Over at Little View of a Big World we have been wandering Seattle with Larry the Dog. This week we plan to visit the Freemont Troll, tour a chocolate factory, and eat some yummy Thai food. L1 will have his camera, and we hope to share the adventure with you!

Lessons in a Picture Book pt 2

This week we are feeling like being creative. Lots of coloring, painting, cutting, gluing, and shaping. Our book of inspiration plays right into this! Eric Carle's Draw Me a Star. The plan isn't a difficult one. Each day, I will pull out a different medium from our crafting supplies. Then we can read through the book, starting where we left off the day before (whenever the energy drained from the activity!)

Monday: The book starts simply. Draw a star. Draw a sun. So on. So, we will use crayons, markers, and pencils to draw.

Tuesday (Maybe Wednesday): paint. I am thinking of introducing my boys to fingerpaint. I love finger painting, I have been overly concerned about the mess. So, I picked up some new paint smocks from IKEA (Ok, they are meant to be bibs. They work.) and we are going to get messy. Honestly, I wish it would be decent enough weather to do this on my covered porch outside.

Thursday (or Friday): Tissue paper and glue. This is the method Eric Carle uses for his artwork. By tearing the tissue into shapes, then overlaying the drawing on top. I am pretty sure our art will be pretty abstract, but what kid doesn't like to rip up paper and play with glue?

This week is all about exploring our creative options. I have not been very good at digging into our well supplied art kit, even though my boys love it. They don't ask, and I rarely offer because I am lazy about cleaning it up afterwards. My other goal is to get in and make a mess with them. I don't have to take the time cleaning elsewhere in the house, and then be resentful to come back to their mess. I am going to make my own mess, and not try to manage theirs. We are going to have space to do what we like with our art, and hopefully enjoy ourselves and each other. Dang, I hope that isn't too much to ask!