After discovering "The Slow Movement" and learning ways to live a simpler, more meaningful, less consumer-driven lifestyle, I'm having a major dilemma with planning a birthday party for my daughter. We've been able to forego the standard party for the past two years and she hasn't noticed. A cake and presents with family has sufficed. However, she's turning the big 3 now and is fully aware of party hats, birthday cake (which magically tastes better than other varieties of cake) and presents. I'd like to do something special for her, but I'm trying to find something different...something more meaningful than renting a clown. Or a pony. Or a bouncy house.
So, I came across this article by Megan Tietz from Sorta Crunchy that addressed my concerns perfectly. Check it out! Yes, there are other ways to host a child's birthday party!
http://simplemom.net/simple-birthday-ideas/
While you're there, SimpleMom and SortaCrunchy are inspirational websites full of creative ideas.
Some ideas for my daughter's birthday party are swirling in my mind. She really wants the cone-shaped party hats, a birthday cake, and cats. Therefore, I'm thinking we could make homemade hats, a healthy cake from a local natural foods store, and we could have the kids bring items to donate to our local cat shelter. Let me say that I love Evite, but I really want to use this opportunity to mail paper invitations and write paper thank you notes before our mail system becomes obsolete. It can be a learning moment. So retro. Love it.
I've also asked her Waldorf teachers to hold a rainbow bridge ceremony during the day she attends. This classic Waldorf ceremony will be a first for us and is a tradition that I want to start with my children in the home. Please watch this gorgeous video from our local school if you've never seen the beauty and reverence of a Waldorf birthday:
http://www.greatoakschool.org/2010/10/29/the-rainbow-bridge-ceremony/
This video always makes me cry. It reminds me that my daughter is a soul inhabiting a body. The weight of her existence is enormous. Her connection with The Creator is eternal. The day she entered the world and began breathing oxygen was the richest day of my life. I need more than pinata to celebrate that.
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