Each day we start anew * We are curious. We learn from each other and together * We seek adventure everyday * Say yes first * Move slowly. Be open * Create together every day * We celebrate each other and all the reasons our family is special * Our daily tasks can be light and fun * We make space and time for play * We work together and get creative when times are tough * We believe in making our own magic.
Last weekend I took a little time after the girls had gone to bed to work through my friend Shawn’s latest ecourse, Create a Playful Family Manifesto. I’m a big fan of ecourses, having participated in several amazing ones over the past few years. My trouble always is keeping up the pace… completing all the ‘homework’ and absorbing all the incredible information presented to me. This is the reason I LOVED Shawn’s latest ecourse in particular, because it consisted of three email ‘lessons’ received over the course of one week, and so maybe for the first time ever, I was able to read and consider and then actually do the work for a finished result in just an hour or so!!
Lately it feels like my family, and my parenting style has multiple personalities. We go from one end of the spectrum to the other: content, happy & magical moments to crying, shouting & tantrum city (and I’m ashamed to say that’s not just the girls!). Sometimes the whole mood of our family seems to change in a split second. I am so very conscious of it, but sometimes when I get caught up in the moment and emotion of what is happening, I find myself behaving in ways I’m definitely not proud of… it’s something I find myself reflecting upon on a regular basis, and I’m always looking for new ways to make myself more intentional and able to lead my family in a more positive way.
Working through the process to write a Playful Family Manifesto (or Playfesto as Shawn calls it) I found myself feeling as though I was creating a really great foundation for us to use throughout our daily life.
Even though this past week was by no means perfect, I found myself mentally referring to our playfesto on several occasions… Belle asked me to play a game with her while I was trying to write a schedule up for Ava’s netball team… no was on the tip of my tongue, but then I remembered ‘Say Yes First’… Lola’s doggy slipper lost an ear, and while I was mending it I invited her to come and help me (something I would normally just do quickly by myself, but… ‘we create together every day’…
Shawn’s last lesson in the ecourse was about displaying and using the manifesto you create so that it is actually a living document, not just an exercise that exists in your journal. I was so inspired, that I’ve decided to embroider our manifesto onto a piece of felt and then frame it and hang it in our home where we can all see it every day. I embroider at snail’s pace, so it’ll take me a couple of weeks to finish, but I’ll be sure to post a picture when it’s done.
What do you think? Have you ever written a manifesto for your family? Is it something you’d like to do? How do you think it would shape your family life?
