Waldorf philosophy grants each day a colour.
Wednesday's colour is YELLOW.

The round of days and colours help to create rhythm in children's lives.
{Rudolph Steiner called rhythm the 'carrier of life'}
and into this rhythm, for us in the Northern Hemisphere, is coming the longest day of the year~
the Summer Solstice.

Enjoy this sunny selection of crafts, ideas and handmade goodies 
to help you and your littles mark the changing seasons and sunny days ahead!
1. How to Make a Flower Garland (Tutorial at BTRT)
2. Blithe Daisy Fairy at Rjabinnik on Etsy
3. Beeswax Suns (Set of 8) by Pretty Dreamer on Etsy
4. Sunbeam Gnome Dolls by Mama West Wind on Etsy
5. Giant Sun Weaving Craft Tutorial at Twig & Toadstool
6.  Baby Slippers by Wild Child Clayworks on Etsy

One of the blessings of homeschool, for our family, is the ability to spend time at the barn.

This is our third season of riding for our almost-8-year-old.
Riding provides so many benefits for Rowan.
Balance, routine, responsibility.
That incredible bond that can develop between humans and animals.
And as a sensitive child with anxiety (Tourette's), being around the sensitive, curious horses allows her to be free to be herself and to trust her companions who wear their hearts on their sleeves, too.
{{You can see our previous riding related lessons learned here.}}
 This year we are participating in a 'part-board' arrangement which allows us to pretend like we have our own horse for 3-4 hours a week (which includes a 60 miniute lesson).  Three mornings a weeks we complete our schoolwork early and head to the barn.  On rainy mornings we clean or learn anatomy or other horse-y topics, otherwise Rowan rides and we punctuate her basic skills ("eyes forward, heels down, elbows in, hands up") with equine versions of 'What Time is it Mr. Wolf' and other games to increase confidence and skill.

Our increased barn time has meant my re-introduction to skills that I have not used since a riding accident at 16 put me off of horses.  I am thoroughly enjoying the rhythm of grooming and tacking up, longing and supervising Rowan's riding.
And I have become a student of a master teacher.
And I don't mean our most excellent riding coach, either.

Dancer is my teacher.
And as a parent who is also my child's teacher, her lessons are invaluable for me.

Dancer is 22 years old.
A Quarter horse mix, who just barely stands tall enough to avoid being a pony.
Dancer has a mind of her own and she knows how to use it.
After all, she knows better what is expected than any kid who is on her back
(or mom on the end of the lead line)!

It is a life lesson for me to step back and take her lead,
allowing her expertise to bring out the best in my daughter,
even if that teaching is sometimes very frustrating and challenging for both of us human types!

Here are a few lessons Dancer is teaching to me....
#1 Be Creative 
It is my job to get dancer from her paddock each morning.
Some days she comes readily enough into her halter and to the barn with me.
But other days, not so much.
It only took one morning of following her all around, to have her bolt each time I drew near, for me to realize I was going to have to do better.
I carefully planned my next visit~ armed with apples to feed the OTHER mares and entice Dancer into my range. It worked!
Next day... Dancer laid down in a far corner, and refused to stand, even after I haltered her.
I swear she was grinning at me.
Not one morning has been the same, and no trick has worked twice.
As Karen Pryor (positive reinforcement training guru) learned when working with dolphins~ that you simply can't force a creature to your will... dolphins swim away.... horses lay down~ you have to be invested and have something to offer.
Kids are pretty much the same.

#2 Know Where You are Going and How You Will Get There
My daughter is easily distracted.
And a farm with kittens, dogs and other horses (this morning... a garter snake) is a great challenge for her.
When she is riding, it is imperative that she know where she is going and how she will get there.
She must LOOK in the direction she is heading in order to bring herself and the horse to that goal.
The moment she looks away, Dancer takes her own head.
I don't know how she does it, but one glance at a cat catching dragonflies by Rowan
and Dancer turns around and trots to the middle of the ring.
The second Rowan stops thinking direction, Dancer takes charge.
As parents/ teachers, we face the same challenge!
We need to know where we are headed and how we are going to get there.
We need goals and we need plans.
And then we need to remember lesson #1 and be creative and flexible, too!

#3 Communicate
It only took a couple of experiences of being trotted around the ring while fruitlessly sawing on the reins and making panicked noises for Rowan to realize she needed to communicate better with her mount.
She was never in danger, but Dancer was teaching her a lesson.
You have to communicate with others in order to work together as a team.
You have to agree on a common language and common terms of reference.
You can't lean forward and say halt!
You can't kick your horse's sides and expect her to slow down.
You can't make her walk just because you think 'walk' in your mind.
As parents and teachers we must do the same.
Learn to read one another and to be clear about our needs and expectations.
Fine tune and re-establish these as skills improve and contexts change.

#4 Be Kind
We are blessed with a coach who values her animals and is teaching our daughter to do the same.
We have the opportunity to work with horses that have personalities and who still meet the world with curiosity and trust (this is not always the case with 'school horses').
Some people may feel that a horse that carries off her daydreaming rider is ill-behaved, but we appreciate that Dancer creates so many learning opportunities for Rowan~ she will be a better, more attuned rider for it.
And kindness begets kindness.
Dancer is a firm teacher, but a kind one.
She offers critique quite clearly.
She teaches the lessons she has to teach with confidence and without fear, and she draws a like spirit from the children she teaches.
They put their trust in her when the climb on her back and pick up the reins.
I always tell my daughter that not everyone can be super smart, or super athletic or super xyz but that EVERY single person has the ability to be kind. And no matter our other gifts, we should strive to excel at kindness.  Being with Dancer, bonding with her, learning from her allows my sensitive and easily bruised child to enter into safe and kind relationship.

And as her parent and teacher, I can only hope to do half as well.
So here's to creative, kind, communicative and clear visioned teachers
who come into our life and teach us how to live and learn! ♥

Crowns are just about my favourite thing to make!  We use favourite colours, names, animals, meaningful symbols, seasons and so on

Hooray!
Thanks to all who entered our giveaways for our 6th Anniversary celebration at BTRT.

Our creative readers and followers came up with so many lovely colourway possibilities in our Create Your Own Colorway Challenge! Each winner will receive a 35" playsilk dyed in their custom colors, and if all goes well, their ideas will become part of our collection of gorgeous multicoloured silks in our Etsy Shop.
{{By all 'going well' I mean that I can pull off the vision of these creative folks!}}

Drum roll, please......
(All winners have been randomly drawn using random.org if one of them is *you* please email us at info@beneaththerowantree.com OR message us on Facebook) ♥♥

Looking for a great project for your scrap fabric or fat quarters?
Tired of trying to keep track of your double pointed knitting needles and crochet hooks?

Give this simple pattern a whirl.
It is so quick, you can make two, one for you and one for a friend!
{Or a kid... my second one got snagged by my 7 year old 
before the last threads were cut!}
I am preparing today to go away for a weekend of meetings
and I want to bring several pairs of DPNs, as well as crochet hooks,
stitch markers and such for keeping my hands busy.
But I loathe sorting and re-sorting my needles, and I always seem to lose one DPN from every set.
My other needle cases and rolls are all too big (straight needles)
or too small (felting and embroidery needles).

So I scanned my (currently messy) work area to see what I might have on hand
(I am committed to using up my borderline hoarder stash of supplies!)
and my eye fell on a dress my daughter outgrew, but I couldn't part with
because I love the fabric (Japanese linen w/ elephants!).
Score!

You can make this simple needle roll using scraps
(patchwork would be cool!)
and in about 25 minutes.
I just chopped the bodice off the dress and left the coordinating hem on.
Denim would be neat, too.
OR/ grab a fat quarter (FQ) and make it even easier.

Adjust the size to suit your needs... length and width are totally negotiable,
and the same instructions would make a great little crayon or pencil roll, too.

Fabric & Notions:
•  Any woven fabric, 18 x 22" (to make the DPN size pictured)
•  Ribbon to tie the roll, 36-40"

Instructions:
     Prewash and press fabric.
     Cut two pieces, 18" x 11" OR fold FQ in 1/2 width-wise (right sides together)
     Place right sides together.
     Stitch around the entire outside, using a 3/8" seam allowance
     and leaving a 1.5-2" opening on one long side for turning.
     Trim seam allowances.
     Turn. Press, folding in seam allowance on side opening.
     Topstich along ONE short side, close to the edge.
     Turn the topstitched edge up 5-7" as desired (I like 6.25")~
     adjust for needle height or pencils etc.
     Press in place or pin.
     Fold ribbon in 1/2 and place between the folded edges on one side
     Pin in place.
     Topstitch around entire piece, closing the side opening as you go.
     Go back and reinforce the stitching at the ribbon.
     Decide how many pockets you need.
     Make wider pockets for scissors, snips, circular needles and notions.
     Make narrower pockets for individual sets of DPNs or hooks.
     Use tailor's chalk, pencil, etc. to mark where each pocket will go.
     Topstitch to create the divisions.
     Extend your stitching beyond the top of each pocket for better wear.
    Fill it up and hit the road!
Have a great weekend... I am all ready for mine! ♥♥

As our sixth anniversary in business approaches,
I have been reflecting on the tools and practices that have been essential
to our business development, branding and communication...
our 'tricks of the trade'.

One of our core practices has been niche marketing, supported by branding.
And our branding has been supported by Vistaprint products for the past 5 years.
(Click the link for great deals on Vistaprint products!)
{{And not a few family celebrations, too, read on for this bit!}}

So I thought I would share our experiences with you,
whether for your small business or your home!

We strive to create an overall shopping experience with our Etsy shop.
An experience which extends beyond the shop itself.
This means that when our products are shipped out,
we want to connect with our customers in a positive way.
Vistaprint products have allowed us to extend the feel and brand of our business
into each order we ship out.
We have certainly inserted our share of business cards into outgoing packages.
But it only begins there!
We have relied on VPs 'standard postcards' most heavily to share our philosophy,
contact information and product care details with our customers.
VP offers hundreds of images and edit-able details to create the cards (front and back)
along with paper choices and so on.
We have most often uploaded our own images (using VPs readily available specs or templates)
in order to create a cohesive visual experience.
You can fit a lot of information on these sweeties!

We have also been able to use and adapt a variety of VP products over the years.
I am a big fan of the business card sized magnets,
they come in handy in any home and with an attractive image,
keep your business in people's minds!
We have also used thank you cards, self-inking stamps, hats, tote bags, pens, calendars...
as freebies, prizes and inserts.
We often use business cards for specific goals (like increasing blog traffic with our pictured 'Play Date' cards) and turn address labels into thank you stickers, like our 'Instructions: Play' version.
Satisfied with quality and service for business, 
we have also used Vistaprint for:
• Christmas cards,
• themed birthday party invites and thank-you notes,
• address labels,
• photo books for the grandparents,
• personalized kid tote bags for school and activities,
• hats for bad hair days,
• personalized keychains for backpacks,
• sticky notes,
• personalized journals for our madly writing daughter
• and magnetic note pads for grocery lists... whew...
around and for our home and family life.
No kidding!

We use the Canadian site for Vistaprint and find that orders generally ship ahead of schedule.
You can sign up for their email list to receive frequent discounts
and I enjoy the 'My Portfolio' feature for my account which allows me to quickly re-order past products
(and remember what I have ordered in the past for blog posts ♥)

Take a peek at Vistaprint and see what might work for your home or business
{{it has really worked for us!}} ♥♥