Winter Solstice Traditions

I love Winter Solstice. For me this time of year really does tend to naturally bring about a time of quiet and time for reflection - simply because of reality of the season here: it's colder, dark earlier and there is no garden work to do.;-) I feel this is part of the natural cycle and if we can embrace it then it can be a really joyous part of life. I also think that celebrating these times of years brings a deeper connection to nature.
Yesterday we started our day with waffles and peach butter. Then we headed up the mountain to enjoy some time in nature. It was so beautiful up there - everything was covered in fresh powdery snow.The boys sledded, we walked, the dog romped and plowed his face through drifts of snow.The boys like to play board games on special days but yesterday we also had some fun playing this game out in the woods. One minute you see him...the next minute you don't.
It's called Stand Under a Tree, Give it a Shake and See How Much Snow Falls on You. Very fun! It's important to make sure you are dressed for it - you don't want all the snow falling down the back of your coat collar. Brrrr. It also helps to have loads of light powdery snow around. ;-) This was played A Lot!!

And it is quite the trick to try and time your picture taking to get a snap of the main release of snow falling down. See here? There are at least two people under that tree. :-)Our dinner was homemade pizza (with a new favourite dough recipe given to us by a friend). We also had our fire ritual - the same as last year, when we write down something in our lives that we wish to let go of and then burn the paper we've written it on.

We then say what steps we will take to replace those negatives with positive things. I encourage the boys to think of at least one action that they can take to make what they want to happen happen.

We all really enjoy this tradition. I find that my children really love having traditions in their lives. I wonder which of ours our boys will choose to carry into their adult lives. After this serious business ;-) we did some fire writing (or played Jedi - depending on your preference) and then the boys ended the evening by opening their solstice gift. It was a wonderful day.