Waldorf-y Fun...

There's this educational philosophy that I have been dabbling in for awhile called Waldorf. Some of it I like...some of it I'm not crazy about...but isn't that true of most things? One of the things I love about Waldorf is that it calls for more simplicity...back to basics...which is right up my alley. Now, don't get me wrong, we have more than our fair share of plastic crap toys all over our house, but I would love to move toward less toys...and more natural, handmade toys. In my experience, my kids do LOVE the Waldorf style toys that we make or buy (they're pretty expensive as they're handmade) and they've stood the test of time. They'll certainly be family heirlooms that can be used for generations of OAH kiddos!

There are some Waldorf websites that I love to follow, including The Magic Onion. She is an amazingly creative mommy who is full of crafty fun ideas. We had great fun making her walnut mice! Here's a photo of our little mice that the girls have played with for three days now...by far outlasting many of the plastic crap toys we have laying around!!



In addition, Waldorf emphasizes the use of nature as a natural classroom. Boy, do I ever appreciate that! This weekend we were out at the land, working on the barn (which my dad said is not really a barn...it's technically called a "loafing shed") and the girls found this adorable little fuzzy caterpillar. Wee One wanted to bring it home with us and I agreed, thinking we'd let it go in our backyard the next day. The girls gave it food and water then went to bed. Later that night, I discovered this:



Little caterpillar was making a web...like a spider. Hmmm....interesting...we kept watching. Several hours later, it looked like this:



And the next morning, our tiny caterpillar had completed her cocoon (or chrysalis...not sure yet)and appears to be resting:



How awesome that we happened to find a caterpillar that was at this exact point in her life cycle...and that she chose our home as her metamorphosis home! We are so honored to give her shelter while she performs a little miracle of nature! God's plan for these tiny creatures is so amazing that I can't help but think that it's meant as a metaphor for us...how we all go through a metamorphosis during our lives...perhaps many times....as we live life and find our way to who we're truly meant to be.