how i mother

sarah napthali, author of Buddhism for Mothers...my heroine of the week

as i was looking online for the newest books on Mel's reading list, i ran across Buddhism for Mothers. it's synopsis sounded like something i needed, so along with both Peaceful Piggie books, Peaceful Piggies Yoga and Peaceful Pigges Meditation, i added BforM to my shopping cart. it was a great move on my part...well, that and acutally reading it. since being at my mom's, i've had a LOT of free time...to read, color mandalas, create animals out of Sculpey (yay 50% off coupon from Michael's) for Ita's garden, play my djembe...and over all spend time reflecting. i haven't really had to be anywhere or do anything. i've been able to take the time to reflect on how i parent, how i treat others, how i treat myself.

along with the book, i've added the Gifts of Imperfect Parenting blog series to my little list. the following excerpt rang true:

'We can NOT give our children what we don't have. If we want our children to have courage, compassion, and connection, we must practice these things in our daily lives. If we want them to love and accept who they are, our job is to love and accept who we are.'

this also goes a little bit along with the self-care talk i sat in on by Renee Trudeau last Fall. in the second drawer of my nightstand, sits The Mother's Guide to Self-Care. must pull that out when i get home.

does all this answer the how i mother question? probably not, but it lets you peek into the windows of my train of thought.