This family is the source of my joy and strength on a daily basis. We laugh, yell, fight, cry, talk over one another and generally like being in our little group more than we like being with anyone else. We are a tribe of gals, forging our way onto the many myriad paths of life, guided by our strong bond of love. Together we can do anything - and this is felt by all of us.
Our road to this point in the partially blurry (yet accurate) depiction in this photo wasn't an easy one. We aren't a traditional family, and the current cultural systems don't necessarily offer a lot of support. So we are making this up as we go. We have evolved from a 'diverse/alternative family' to just a family as we learned not to let labels of the culture affect us much. We are a family of choice vs. blood bond and that is an awesome thing to experience.
It still isn't easy, but it's gotten smoother as we grow together. What the bigs in the tribe have learned from the littles has been nothing short of life changing. We sat down and asked them thoughts to share about their advice to us (as they get lots of advice from us it seemed only fair). Some of this required a bit of editing, but this is what they had to say:
Wisdom From Our Children
- Make more goofy faces
- Let's. Go. Outside!
- Messy art and neat art are both art.
- Be nicer. Be nice to everyone.
- Laying around in a family pile watching movies is way better than going out.
- Dress up - even if there is no occasion for it.
- Breaking something is an opportunity to create something new and different.
- Don't recycle everything. Some of it can be saved for art, ya know? (This was actually stated by the six year old)
- There can never be enough snuggling.
- We're lucky and blessed to be together and we're made of magic.
What the kids share with us is full of merit and wisdom. We ask them questions and listen to their voices so they continue to use them as they grow. We are one family made of four individuals and connected by love. And we are all the better for this experience.
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