Mindful playing with my Daughters.

Welcome to the March Mindful Mama Carnival: Mindful Mama Challenge

This post was written for inclusion in the Mindful Mama Carnival hosted by Becoming Crunchy and TouchstoneZ. This month our participants have challenges they’ve set for themselves toward becoming more mindful. Please read to the end to find a list of links to the other carnival participants.

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The challenge is this: Bring myself closer to a more mindful center. Considering this is why I started this particular blog….with the intention for creating a space for me to share what I find…The Mindful Mama Blog Carnival couldn’t have come at a better time. I suppose it’s karma, and I like it!

As a mama to two growing girls, I hope I am doing all the right things; providing them a safe environment,, feeding them healthy foods, allowing their spirits to grow, and curiosity to wander. With all my musings for learning, finding myself, doing this or doing that, what I am figuring out is when it comes down to what my girls really want…it’s not the softball and t-ball games, or the endless play-dates we arrange…it’s not the trips to the library or the beach. Of course those things are great, but what it is, what IT really is…they want TIME with me. And not just watching them, in the same house, under the same roof and space, kind of time. It’s the HANDS ON play. It’s what I call, the Mindful Play, kind of time, that they crave.

It all dawned on me when I broke out all the arts and crafts. It was a Friday and had been a long week, but I promised the girls we would get creative. So I laid everything out. And I have ALOT of everything! Arts and crafts galore cause I love it! So, there it all is laid out and I show them the basics: washing brushes inbetween colors, using different strokes, blending, etc. Then I got the brilliant idea that while they start that, I could get a load of laundry in so I wouldn’t have to worry about it over the weekend, and maybe clean the bathroom too, especially since the girls are occupied. I could get alot of “stuff” done. Well, I kept getting interrupted by the girls asking me questions. By the fourth question I realized…..Ahhh Haaaa. Rani…..stop. Sit down and play….they care about what they are doing, but they want to do what they are doing, WITH me. It’s like it all came to a head and I realized I must be present for them. So I did. I sat down and laughed, played and created with them. It was so simple yet so hard to realize. I was too busy trying to get things done, when what I needed to do was to just do the things that meant the most right in that moment. And that moment now becomes a precious memory that we will never forget! That is my deal behind mindful playing!!!!

There are many ways to by mindful, and one wouldn’t thing the concept of play would need any help. And really it doesn’t. We just need to listen to our kids and by thankful that they want to spend time with us and how precious that really is.

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Visit The Mindful Mama Homepage to find out how you can participate in the next Mindful Mama Carnival!

On Carnival day, please follow along on Twitter using the handy #MindMaCar hashtag. You can also subscribe to the Mindful Mama Twitter List and Mindful Mama Participant Feed.
Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:

• The Importance of a Moment Jennifer at Hybrid Rasta Mama reflects on the need to slow down and breathe in life instead of rushing from one moment to the next.
• Mindful Playing With My Daughters Rani at Om She Said looked at her girls and realized that more than anything they wanted her right there next to them, playing, laughing, creating, and having fun; that’s exactly what she did!
• Watch Your Words Patti at Canadian Unschooler challenges herself to make her words a reflection of her intentions.
• The Mindful Benefits of Knitting Dionna at Code Name: Mama shares how knitting has helped lift her out of depression and has given her a new form of meditation.
• Self Compassion: How Thinking About Bad Experiences Can Make You Happier and More Compassionate CJ at Imperfect Happiness challenges herself to be more compassionate…with herself.
• Calming the Home Environment by Selecting Traditional Toys Sam at Love Parenting discusses the benefits of natural toys.
• Quieting my Infernal Inner Ramblings Tree at Mom Grooves writes about her commitment to get out of her head and into the moment with her daughter and husband.
• Changing Our Everyday The Aniweda Dream is sizing up the changes they’ve made by moving across the country and looking at how to make their lives more mindful as a family.
• A Mindful Cup of Tea Amy at The Daily Muttering tells how she’s trying to regain control of her life with the chaos of 3 kids thanks to the introduction of a simple daily ritual.
• Mindful Mama Moontime Lucy at Dreaming Aloud shares how becoming conscious of her moon time has helped her find balance in herself as a woman, and a mama.
• Speaking to the Need Shana at Tales of Minor Interest shares how she tries to stay mindful of her preschooler’s needs.
• Going Within Amy at Anktangle describes a centering practice she’s been being more intentional about lately, and which she has come to realize is a precious gift in her life.
• Waking Up With Meditation Amy at PresenceParents shares how awakening with presence carries her through the day.
• Mindful Meditations Zoie at TouchstoneZ explores six weeks of seated meditation and discovers some things she doesn’t expect.
• Mindfulness in the Kitchen – an Everyday Challenge Kelly at Becoming Crunchy shares how she’s been challenging herself to involve more mindfulness in everyday tasks – especially in the area of cooking for her family.