Easter Wreath DIY

I did this wreath last Easter.  It was one of the first crafty things I did since Penelope was born.  I remember putting her in her bumbo and letting her play with an plastic egg and she watched me while I worked. Oh, what a difference a year makes!

It was really easy to make.  I bought a wreath from Michael's for a couple of bucks. I left the plastic wrap on the wreath, but it probably would have been cuter if I had wrapped in a colorful ribbon first and then hot glued the eggs to it.

Then I just picked a spot to start and started hot gluing eggs to the wreath.  I did the colors in a specific order and tried to line it up best I could, so that no two of the same colors were touching each other.

It probably took me 30 minutes to complete.  I was worried that it wouldn't be able to stand up to the elements outside or being tossed about while in storage, but it did great last year on the door and great all year in storage.  This year some of the eggs sort of opened up but they were easy to close back up.  And really you can't even tell unless you are up close.



I also thought I would show you a picture of this little decoration I have. I didn't make it, I bought it at Target a couple years ago the day after Easter for less than a dollar.



But it would be super easy to make!  You could cut out felt petals and hot glue it to the center circle of felt.  Then you could find the wooden letters and eggs at Michael's, pain them and then hot glue it all to a gross grain ribbon!

Empty Your Cup

When I attended my very first Birthing From Within training, one the first things they taught us was how to empty our cup.

How do you empty your cup, you ask?  Well,  first let me tell you a story.  

A Zen student was having tea with his Master.  He held out his cup to be filled with tea.  His Master began filling his cup. 

And filling. 

And filling.

And filling.

The student cried, "that's enough, its almost full!"  But the Master didn't listen, and he kept pouring.  Till the tea was over flowing the cup and pouring over the sides. The student cried, "Stop!"  That is enough!  It's spilling!!"  The Master replied, "How am I to teach you anything, if you come to me with your cup already full?"

You must empty your cup.  Then you can learn from me.

So what's in your cup?

In your cup is everything you think you know about anything and everything.  You can apply this to pregnancy, birth and parenting.  You might have come to pregnancy, birth or parenting with your cup so full you can't even begin to learn from your experiences.  Or you may have quickly emptied your cup upon arrival to these events, because once you entered you realized you knew nothing! 

Have I lost you yet?

You could also apply this to learning anything new.  A new idea, a new concept, a new way of living.  If  you empty your cup, you can begin to open your mind to learning something new or imagining a new way of living.

When you have a knee-jerk reaction to something it's because your cup is full.  When you make a judgment too quickly its because your cup is too full.

What can you learn if you throw out everything you "know"?  Who are you, if you empty your cup?  What kind of parent would you be if you could throw out everything you "know" and be open to receive something different?

Maybe its not good to throw out EVERYTHING.   Maybe just de-clutter your cup by 75%?  50%?  Experience is helpful.  So keep some of your experience in your cup, but empty it enough to still be able to receive new information, new ideas and new possibilities.

What new possibilities, you ask?

That story is coming tomorrow!

New Pregnancy Blog and other great links

A new blog just started up, called Delightful Pregnancy. I heard about it from one of my favorite parenting blogs, Peaceful Parenting. When I went to her site to check it out, I saw a post calling for birth stories and I immediately sent mine in. Turns out I was the very first person to respond and she posted my story this morning! She brought me to tears, reading how my story affected her, and it made me even more glad I submitted it-maybe other women will have the same reaction and find some inspiration by reading it.

I also just read some great news I wanted to share. The CDC just came out with new numbers today that show that home birth is on the rise! It's still only 1% of the population that chooses to give birth outside the hospital, but at least we are making progress!

And lastly, my dear friend Lindsey, just got back from her Introductory training to Birthing From Within (the type of childbirth classes I used to teach) and she has started to blog about her experience. I am so excited for her and so happy to have a resource like her in town. I finally have someone that I can refer people to for childbirth classes!