Candlemas

 

 "At the beginning of February, when the infant light of spring is greeted thankfully by the hoary winter earth, it seems fitting we should celebrate a candle Festival to remember that moment when the Light of the World was received into the Temple, when the old yielded to the new.”

~ from All Year Round

 

I was a bit overwhelmed on Friday when I realized that the first of February was upon us and I hadn't prepared at all for St. Brigid's Day and Candlemas. This past week was filled with wonderful  distractions but the re-entry into reality was a bit of a rough landing! As always, what's meant to be will be and and things don't always need to go as planned. Being alright with that and letting go of expectations is the trick! I'm learning :)

 

It seems as we've studied more about St. Brigid we've come to really adore her. As I stood at my counter this morning and began to piece together the cross above (with Iris leaves that my hunny picked just for this occasion), we sat there, watching it come together and were struck by the reverence and especially beautiful rhythm making this cross possesses. It's simple but divine. Hanging this on our entryway seemed only fitting and as we learned, that is part of the tradition! I believe, we as a family, have found our patron saint!

The littles and I also made our super, special Celtic Tea Cake this morning in honor of St. Brigid

 

We even braved the blustery, winter day and ventured out to finish our ice lantern and earth candles.

 

Tonight, as we sit down to a pancake supper by candlelight, we will gather our thoughts toward the Light; thinking of what it means to begin anew, accept what works and what doesn't and somehow make sense of it all. I'll lovingly look at my children and my husband and thank God that I've been given this chance to shine my light with them. They help me to remember who it is I'm meant to be, who I was, why I'm here, what this whole thing called Life is about. Candlemas is such a reverent time, honoring the Light that lives within us all, reminding each other that we're each good enough just as we are.

 

 

"This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine."

5 Journeys Around the Sun :: Happy Birthday, Charlotte

 

On the night you were born,

the moon smiled with such wonder

that the stars peeked in to see you

and the night wind whispered,

"Life will never be the same."

Long ago a little angel flew from star to star gathering light and strength, which came from all around her. At each star she met big angels who showed her the way. One day Big Angel said, “It is time to go to the Sun.” Little angel followed to a place of warmth shining like gold. There bees and butterflies sang to her of love. Big angel lead her to the moon, clean and crisp like new snow. From the moon she saw the most beautiful sight- a place of flowers, trees, rolling oceans, and two special souls who seemed to be smiling up at her. “May I go there?” little angel asked big angel. “It is time,” Big Angel said. “Use the gifts of light and strength you have gathered to carry you over the rainbow bridge. There a mother and a father have been waiting for you.” Little angel carried her gifts over the rainbow bridge to her new home on the Earth.

From the first moment her parents loved her and they called her Charlotte, and Charlotte was her name. When she was born it was a warm winter evening and a million stars were smiling down on her from the sky. Her Daddy saw her first and immediately knew her, as if it had been forever. She was a very big and strong baby, quite ready to be here on Earth.

And then Charlotte was one year old and she was was very busy. Its almost like she'd been a baby before because she was able to do many things babies her age could not. She was talking, singing, getting ready to walk. She was eating by leaps and bounds and getting stronger everyday. She loved to play with her Daddy and with her older brother and sister. Charlotte also became a big sister when Kiki was born.

When she was two years old and she loved to ride on the back of Daddy's bike. She loved playing outside and running after her doggies. She had a special swing that she would share with her older sister. She was a wonderful big sister to Kiki and loved playing with her and being her friend.

When she was three years old Charlotte loved to play and help out in the garden. She would work beside Daddy and pull weeds, plant seeds, and harvest when it was time. Charlotte loved to help Mama in the kitchen and would help bake and knead bread, cookies, breakfast, lunch and dinner. And she really loved to make homemade play dough, too!!

When she was four years old Charlotte began to really love drawing and painting. She loved to listen to stories, tell stories, and sing. She also began to write her name and practice schooling at home. Charlotte began going to Open Meadow and met many new friends, like Scarlett, Otto, Emerald, Emory and Lesley, and Aliah. Charlotte loved to spend lots of time outside, playing in the garden and playing with Kiki and all of her neighbors. Charlotte also became and big sister again when Seraphina came to her family. Charlotte is a big help. She holds the baby lots, sings to her, plays with her, feeds her, and gathers diapers and wipes. Charlotte has blossomed into such a caring, capable, fun, and lovable girl.

And now Charlotte is five years old, and like magic, she is about to lose her first tooth! She has grown strong and is very smart and helpful, and a good friend. We are happy to know Charlotte and to be a part of her fifth birthday. Her smile and heart are as warm as the sunshine. Her laughter is contagious and brings joy to anyone who hears it. She tries very hard to do the best she can at everything and has a spirit and energy that is inspiring to see.

Charlotte, you are the one and only ever you.

 

 

Angel Song is Everywhere

That which we believe to be born anew symbolically every Christmas Night, is the human soul in its original nature, the childhood-spirit of man as it was at the beginning of earth-evolution; then it descended as a revelation from the heavenly heights. And when the human heart can become conscious of this reality, the soul is filled with the unshakable peace that can bear us to our lofty goals, if we are of goodwill.

~ Rudolf Steiner

 

As sit here, waiting for the words to come, I'm looking out my window and watching the snow fall. It's light, but deliberate. It's steady and will continue to build upon the foundation that lies awaiting it's fall upon the earth. Much like me at this time, I am steady and mindful of my actions, my words. I am light but deliberate with thinking, my love. I am building on the foundation that we as a family have built up together, honoring every brick, every bit of mortar. The power of these 12 holy nights has been astounding.

 

 

There are several images from the week that have stayed with me. The image above is a picture of our Remembrance table at our church. This table is decorated every Christmas by the same lady in honor of her husband who passed away at a young age after a long, brave battle with cancer. I grew up with that family so it always stirs my emotions to see the beauty of their love poured out onto this table. She dedicates her act of honor not just to her husband but to all those who are being missed. I saw this table, took a deep breath, and realized (like I do every year) that there were Angels all around us. All over the world there were families missing someone dear to them, our family included. Less than two hours away from me there were 26 families missing, deeply, little angels and warriors that had been taken. I see this table and I see the love of so many, the memories of millions, the longing, the acceptance, and the peace.

Then there is this image. My Charlotte, singing her little heart out with the other children in her Sunday School class. It melted my heart in a way I didn't know it could melt. Her sweet little voice echoing above the others, the words flowing from her mouth like water from a fountain. She didn't waver once. She knew every line. Her 4 year old little heart sang to its deepest content.......and I cried. I cried not because of pride but because I could feel the deep reverence of the moment, the waterfall of peace, the selfless gift of her life. I felt endlessly grateful for her, for my other children, for the children that surrounded her, and for all the other lives that have touched mine.  My gratitude has peaked in a way I never knew it could. 

The fourth light of Advent is the light of man.

The light of love, the light of hope,

To give and understand.

 

 

This week has truly been about giving and understanding hope and love. With a world in turmoil, I have never had more hope for a brighter future than I do now. I'm not quite sure that I understand this new sense of hope, but I know it stems from this avalanche of love and gratitude that has been renewed within me. I have always had much love and gratitude but it seems deeper, fuller, less conditional and more open now. Understanding comes from experience.....living in this light has been life changing. This post would go on for days if I explained it all to you, but I'm confident that you might understand.

 

 

The powers which bring peace to the soul can be found within ourselves. True peace of soul is present only when that peace has sure foundations, that is to say, when it is a force enabling man to know: In thee lives something which, if truly brought to birth, can, nay must, lead thee to divine Heights, to divine Powers. — The lights on this tree are symbols of the light which shines in our own souls when we grasp the reality of what is proclaimed to us symbolically on Christmas Night by the Jesus Child in its state of innocence: the inmost being of the human soul itself, strong, innocent, tranquil, leading us along our life's path to the highest goals of existence. May these lights on the Christmas Tree say to us: If ever thy soul is weak, if ever thou believest that the goals of earth-existence are beyond thy reach, think of man's divine origin and become aware of those forces within thee which are also the forces of supreme Love. Become inwardly conscious of the forces which give thee confidence and certainty in all thy works, through all thy life, now and in all ages of time to come.

~ Rudolf Steiner

 

As I delve deeper into these holy nights, I will be more and more immersed in this season of mindfulness. A quite profound gift came my way.......a book of soul and spiritual exercises by Rudolf Steiner. I opened the package and tears just flowed freely. I knew immediately why this book had made its way into my hands and my heart and soul were rejoicing.  The season of my life has just begun, and the tasks at hand are more colorful. I couldn't be more relieved!

 

Speaking of color.......here are a few photos of how we celebrated our Christmastime. I didn't take too many, for once, I put the camera down and just experienced the moments!

 



Father and Son impromptu guitar play! Oh, it was magical!

 

 

love

 

 

We finally got some sledding snow and a wooden, 6 person toboggan!!!

 

This past year of blogging has been so full and satisfying. I'm loving that in many ways it has become a testimony to the life I lead with my family, honoring our moments together, and keeping them in a place where they can all look back on and see. A living album of our days. I've enjoyed, very much, sharing this space with you......thank you for welcoming us into your lives. We look forward to more time together.

 

From our family to yours, we wish you a blessed year, full of love, peace, anticiaption, and discovery.



Our first week of Advent

Now the twilight of the year

Comes, and Christmas draweth near.

See, across the Advent sky

How the clouds move quietly.

Earth is waiting, wrapt in sleep,

Waiting in a silence deep.

Birds are hid in bush and reed

Flowers are sleeping in their seed.

 

Through the woodland to and fro

Silent-footed creatures go.

Hedgehog curled in prickly ball

Burrows 'neath the leaves that fall.

Man and beast and bird and flower

Waiting for the midnight hour

Waiting for the Christ-child's birth

Christ who made the heaven and earth.

~ Ann Ellerton

 

Our first few days of Advent have been quite special. We had some lovely family time to tip it off. We spent lovely time at our church yesterday, welcoming in the Advent season, sharing a cup of coffee with our neighbors, and then the children all rehearsed a piece of music they will perform in the church's Christmas Eve service. I wished I had taken a picture of our Charlotte. Her little face with a smile from ear to ear as she sang her little heart out (when she remembered the words). This is her first ever performance, well.......actually, when she  was not not even 2 years old she was a little Angel in the Christmas pageant. She flitted about, not following at all what was happening. She gave those that came to see it quite a laugh, and me a run for my money! Either way, it was beautiful to watch.

 

 

 

We have had our Nature Table and Advent Garden set now for about a week.  We just couldn't wait! Our Nature Table is donned with a blue silk and a porcelain dish with some stones and shells. Our chalkboard drawing reads the first part of Rudolf Steiner's poem for Advent.....

 

The first Light of Advent is the Light of stones,

Stones that lives in crystals, seashells and bones.

 

Over our Advent garden (which is located on a large dresser in our dining room) is ready and waiting for the addition of all those who will  arrive in time for the coming of the Christ child; stones, plants, sheep, donkeys, shepards, the Angel, Joseph and Mary. As the days go on, we will add other elements to bring a focus toward waiting........in hope, in honor of, and in love. We have 3 stars hanging above our garden and will have more as time goes on. On Christmas morning, the largest star will be hung in honor of the one we've been anticipating all through Advent.

 

 

It's been a beautiful week of preparations. This week we will also celebrate St. Nicholas Day. I'm working  on handmade gifts for the littles and the big kids. Below is a picture of a felted bill fold (?) for my son. He loves wallets......I thought I'd see how it goes :) for my oldest daughter, I'll be making her a little felted pouch for her jewelry.



Here, in this photo, are the fixings for some peg dolls for the littles. I'm excited to get my hands on these colorful felt pieces and see what little friends are born from them.

 

Season of Mindfulness:: Day 4

 

An invisible thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of time, place or circumstance. The thread may stretch or tangle, but will never break. May you be open to each thread that comes into your life - the golden ones and the coarse ones - and may you weave them into a brilliant and beautiful life ~ Ancient Chinese proverb

 

 

I saw these words this morning at The Magic Onions  (on their Facebook page) and they inspired my focus for today's mindfulness meditation. How do these invisible threads effect your relationships? How do they effect you during this Advent season? Are your threads breaking off as you become unattached to certain aspects of your life? Do you want to be unattached? I'm working on realigning my relationships with my  hopes for where I would like to be. It would be hard to get anywhere if you where surrounding yourself with those who were not holding you up or contributing positivity to your moments. It's because of those people that we are so deeply connected to that we have gotten where we are today. There are those people we are connected to that we don't even know, like that guy at the coffee shop! It's our smiles, our "how do you dos", it's holding the door open, it's offering a helping hand. These threads that connect us is what makes our days that much brighter, or darker, depending on who we let in. Who are you letting in?

 

 

 

 

How are you preparing today? This week? This season?

Glimmer, lantern, glimmer

Glimmer, lantern, glimmer

Little stars a-shimmer.

Over meadow, moor and dale,

Flitter, flutter, elfin veil

Pee-wit, pee-wit, tikka-tikka-tik,

Rucoo, Rucoo

 

Glimmer, lantern, glimmer

Little stars a-shimmer.

Over rock and stock and stone;

Wandering, skipping, little gnomes.

 

The weather has turned quite quickly to wintry. Martinmas is upon us and I can only think of how much we need the warm, heavenly glow of candle light. There has been so much upheaval over the last few weeks. Hurricane Sandy hit hard areas around us, those we love have suffered great loss and millions we don't know have suffered as much, if not more. We have been faced with the reality of looking long and hard at how we live our life......what we depend on for survival, what we can do without. We live in a world of constant contact and movement and I know there have been many who have been living quite frontier-like, although it hasn't been dreamy at all.

 

The story of St. Martin is one that encompasses all that is compassionate and unconditional. Martin gave to another human being when no one else would. He sacrificed some of his comfort so that another fellow human could experience warmth and generosity. Martin acted out of grace.......and I feel like at this time when we are usually more focused on turning inward we are also being called by our neighbors to look outward.

 

It is bittersweet to sit in our warm home with all of our luxuries safely around us, wood stove crackling, lights on when needed, and hot water at our beck and call. How I wish we could somehow alleviate those who haven't had a hot shower in days, if not weeks. How I wish to offer a hot meal to a fellow human who has been stranded in their multi-story apartment building with nothing but what they were able to grab in advance of the storm. How I wish that so many were not looking at so much devastation and loss.

 

Our family is one of action! We aren't idle in moments like this so with all those "how I wish" statements above we've managed to use that energy and put it toward looking outward. We are in the planning stages of a massive event. One that could potentially bring hundreds of people together with just one common goal, thanksgiving. We are looking to bring those who have lost so much together with their neighbors and give thanks for what is left and what can be restored. We will feed their body and souls with the unconditional grace and love and good old fashioned home cooking! Martinmas comes at a time where there is so much to give and we can certainly be inspired by the Light that shone so brightly within him.

 

The littles and I made more lanterns today! I know, I've been a bit lantern crazy!! They're just so beautiful to have around and their warm glow will melt away and coldness in the air. We made very simple lanterns using the traditional method of pasting tissue paper on a glass jar. I'll end this post with a few snapshots of our experience and just one question.......

 

How will you be inspired by St. Martin this year?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Michaelmas Shooting Stars

 

 

2012, the Year of the Dragon......It is the year in which we embrace the dragon, acknowledge, tame, accept, allow and understand all that they mean.

 

Michaelmas, a celebration of the archangel Michael and his ability to harness the courage he needed to slay (or tame) the dragon. Michaelmas is a time of much centering and inward reflection; a time to defeat the dragon within us, to look at deeply and shed light on the dusty places within our souls to allow our own star shine.

 

I could go on and on about what this time of reflection has meant to me. This Michaelmas season has brought about some wonderful shifts and exciting new possibilities. My heart has been opened wide and I've been able to listen and receive my calling, the whispers of my Angels who are guiding me along the way. My journey is not only continuing but most certainly beginning anew.

 

These thoughts are a bit much for the wee folk in my life. They absolutely can comprehend on a spiritual level the sacredness of this time; the purposeful work, the quiet storytelling and the magic of seeing the story of St. Michael come alive in our life. To help bring the story alive even more I chose to share with them this handwork project. Many years ago when my eldest first went to school we were blessed to be able to send him to our local Waldorf school. His teacher floated on air. She was as gentle as a lamb, as quiet as a mouse and her eyes twinkled like little stars. The children adored her, as did I. It was pure magic to watch her effortlessly move through a room of 20 or so children, sing a beautiful song and just like that the children would focus their attention her way. They quieted and they glistened in the pure magic of the moment. It was on a day just like this where I was able to assist the classroom in the making of these Shooting Stars.

 

The SITS Fall Back into Blogging Challenge has proven to be a bit difficult for me. I've been unable to keep up with the days and the blog challenges due to unexpected daily life occurances :) That being said.....I've mananged at least one post, albeit a day early, and so...... well, better late than never, right ;)

 

 

First, we went in search of Goldenrod to use for dying our felt.

 

 

We came home with two filled little baskets and began plucking the flower from the stems.

 

We put the flowers in a pot, covered them with water and boiled them for several hours.

 

 

While the flowers were boiling we went in search of the

 perfect stone to help add some weight to our stars.

 

 

One of the more fun parts......wet felting!!

 

Once the felt was formed into a ball, we dried them a bit then added them to our

strained goldenrod dye where they bathed for an hour or so. We let them

set/dry overnight. In the morning, we put them in a pillowcase and finished drying them in the dryer.

 

I added some needle felted star decorations and a ribbon tail and put them in

my littles hands; they ran for the door to send them into the sky.

 

 

"The Autumn winds wail through the wood,

Through rushes and through reed.

Who is the rider of radiant light

On the snowy white, shimmering stead?

Of garment of gold he rides along,

His face like the sun so bright.

O Michael, lend us your starry sword,

The darkness of Earth fill with light."

 





 







To look within

Autumn is a wonderful time of year. I know I expressed my joy and contentment with this phase of the seasonal cycle in my last post......I just can't help myself. September marks a time of many new beginnings........first school days, Rosh Hashanah, Michaelmas, the changing of the seasons from Summer to Autumn and the Full Harvest Moon. This time feels much like a "look within" time. A time to seek out the light within the summers waning and shine it inwards. A time to seek out our "dragons" and tame them anew. A time to replenish all that was given outward and now replenish inward.

Michalemas is upon us, the Festival of Courage, and as I mentioned above this is a wonderful time to seek out our inner dragons; to be courageous in our endeavor to seek out our best selves; to be persistent in our abilities to be loving and inspiring parents and teachers; to realize that the best gift we can give each other and ourselves is to be true to our deepest dreams, to be steadfast in making them a reality, and to be brave enough to share them with the world. The dragons in our lives give us the obstacles we need in order to keep learning and to keep moving upward and onward. If we ignore these dragons they just keep getting stronger.......if we can tame them and acknowledge that they live within us we can learn from them and be peaceful in our ability to grow fully within ourselves.

"Perhaps all the dragons of our lives are princesses who are only waiting to see us once beautiful and brave." ~ Rainer Maria Rilke

 

To help us begin our Micaelmas preparations Charlotte and I made our first ever dragon for our seasonal table. I am not an experienced sewer and having a three month old at home.......well, time seemed to elude us! Thankfully DH was home and he offered a much needed arm and respite to allow for us to complete our project. It did take us ALL DAY but I think if we were able to just sit uninterrupted it wouldn't have taken so long. But there again......

 

I found, quite by accident, this lovely link to a post over at Rhythm of the Home. It is written and contributed by Angela Mobley from The artist, the mom. It is beautiful and pretty clear in its instruction. If you're an avid sewer it should be no problem. If you aren't, like me, you'll find yourself muddling through, but it will prove fruitful in the end!!!

 

 

Here we traced our pattern on our lovely ruddy felt.

 

 

All of our dragon pieces:: feet, gussets, ears, spikes, body, wings

 

 

Charlotte's first turn at the sewing. It proved to be a bit difficult as the felt was rather thick

but she persevered and accomplished quite a bit.

 

 

Our nearly finished dragon about to receive her stuffing:: raw, plant dyed wool

 

 

Our beautiful and already quite beloved Dragon.

She is gentle and kind and loves to fly through our home.

 

 

We now have many dragon-tamers in our home.

 

 

How does your family celebrate Michaelmas? Do you have any practices that you could share in how you acknowledge the dragon within you? How do you tame your inner dragon?

 

 

Wishing you all a lovely season of  looking inward to find the light within you xoxo

From my head to my feet,

 I am the image of God.

From my heart to my hands,

I feel the breath of God.

 

 

When I speak with my mouth,

I follow God's will.

 

 

When I see God everywhere,

In Mother, Father, in all dear people,

In beast and flower, tree and stone,

Then no fear shall I feel.

But love for all that is around me.

 

 

 

~ Rudolf Steiner

First Days

September is upon us. School has started, leaves are falling, the air feels crisp. The light has shifted into a more autumnal feel.......less blazing heat and more fragmented light. It happens every year. It's inevitable. These are our first days of Autumn.

We have three school aged children in our home. Two are attending our local public school while the other has begun her schooling at home. We are not taking these first years so seriously as she is only four and a half but she feels ready nonetheless. Charlotte is a go getter. She is eager to begin to write and keep up with her siblings. We try our best to follow the natural rhythms around us, allowing for an organic learning experience. We draw our creative energies from nature and the seasons, we follow Rudolf Steiner's grain and color of the day, we try to create an environment that is full of mindful work........baking, painting, cleaning, felting, gardening, singing, and stories.

Our little "homeschool" is our dining room. Our seasonal table sits there as well as our rhythm chart. Its the center of our home, next to our kitchen and play space. The room is draped with westerly sunshine all afternoon thereby creating a warm glow during our afternoon hours. It is cozy and sweet and so far........a comfortable place to learn.

 



 As a mother and teacher I am trying to allow Charlotte to blossom as she is.  In a traditional Waldorf setting writing wouldn't begin until quite a bit later in a child's education.  Charlotte, however, is eager and has been practicing all on her own for sometime.  She is eager for it. She asks for it. As we try to establish Waldorf traditions in our home I also feel it is my responsibility to her to honor what it she feels like she is ready for. Little steps at a time. So as our first lessons we practiced spelling her name. Atop her name is a picture of herself with a few of her favorite things; butterflies, rainbows, sunshine and flowers. We also began to learn all about Monday; how Monday is connected to the Moon and that part of our main meal will incorporate the grain rice (according to Rudolf Steiner's Grain of the Day). We've begun this process by creating a book on the days of the week.......I will post photos once we are finished!

Another thing Charlotte was eager to do was memorize. She loves to memorize poems, stories or jokes and perform them for her family and friends. This is what she learned to day.......

"The world is full

Of a number of things.

I'm sure we should all

Be happy as kings."

 

 

If you are homeschooling I would love to hear how your first days are going. I'm looking forward to an exciting year ahead with homeschooling as well as being able to create a relaxing and nurturing environment for our children that attend school elsewhere. If you have children that go to school outside your home, how do you create a space where they can come home and decompress? 

Weekly Gratitude :: May Fair

Welcome to Gratitude! If you feel called to join along please link up in the comments section below with any post that expresses your gratitude and reverence for the "little things" in your life. Share on your blog, spread the word on Facebook or any other social outlet. Let's slow it down and enjoy our time and remember to be thankful for all the moments that make life worth while! 

This week was one of those weeks where stopping was not an option. Every moment was full! Monday, the lady I care for moved into the new Camphill facility in our area. It was such an exciting day, however emotional stressful, the space is beautiful, the people are amazing, the view from her new house is breath-taking. It was a long day of unpacking and meetings but a happy day, nonetheless. The whole experience has been so wonderful and for that I am truly grateful!

The rest of the week consisted of being with my Mother who is still recovering from her surgery from 12 weeks ago. I am very thankful to be able to give her my time and to spend good quality time with her. It isn't easy some days but I wouldn't change anything (except it would be nice for her to be well again!).

Then came preparing (mentally) for a friend who had asked me to prepare several dozen baked goods for a Celebration of Life she was holding in honor of her Father. I felt honored she had asked me to provide the treats but had become overwhelmed at the amount that was desired. In the end, we decided that we (our family) would ignore the tasks at hand in lieu of some FUN! I am so grateful we did......it had been weeks since we had all been together (sadly our son was not able to join us so he was missed very dearly), outside, laughing and enjoying every single second.

We left nice an early and went to our local Waldorf School to take part in their Spring Fair. I will let some of our photos tell the rest of our story. There was so much more we didn't get to photograph......Bella on the zip line, the Kindergarten space and puppet show, children walking around on stilts, the girls jumping into hay bales, the St. Michael and the Dragon wagon ride! It was all so thrilling and wonderful.

Wishing you all a lovely week full of the most wonderful moments that you will cherish for a lifetime xoxo

Here is my Bella climbing the pole to reach a banana.



Here she is with her prize!!

KiKi is loving the slide

 

Charlotte has mastered the tight rope, with Papa standing close by :)



Charlotte and KiKi magically became butterflies xoxo



KiKi is getting ready for the boat race!



Playing in the stream during the boat race!

Charlotte with her new friend tying the Maypole.

Bella and KiKi skipping along......their happiness is so beautiful to see!