What helped me the most with raising my children was the book ‘Raising Warriors: Preparing Your Children For a Godly Life’. It is honestly a game changer
I decided my priority this week was learning to not yell at my kids. The first few days were a fail, but today was the first day I didn’t yell all day! This video gives me so much hope to have a peaceful home soon:)
I never yell at my child (he’s 4yo) because once he was born, I got to know one simple tip: just stop for a second and ask yourself three questions: 1.what he really tries to say me with this behaviour (he’s tired, he’s hungry, etc) 2.what i would like to teach him in this situation? (Eg that when he feels tired, he should say this to me instead of shouting, he should lay down and relax) 3.what’s the best way i can teach him that (will shouting make him fall asleep? Nope, i can show the example by myself or putting to sleep his toys, telling the story about once i was little and could not fall asleep)
Interesting- as I look back at our years I yelled a lot when my older kids were little but seldom yell now. I’m not sure when/why I stopped… I think it’s when I realized yelling doesn’t work. Some times whispering is really effective- especially when I need to communicate with my toddler. Then we all slow down to communicate.
Nicholeen Peck has a lot to say about this. She says it has to do with using your will over your emotions to react, and having a written plan/cue cards to handle disciplinary issues. She also says that it's a skill to master, so getting good at this can require a lot of practice, too.
I never yell, but whenever I feel myself giving demands instead of being respectful, because I'm feeling frustrated I wisper in my toddlers ear what I would like him to do and pretty much every time he calmly does it, because I've asked him in such a gentle way and it's almost like I'm telling him a secret 😊
Madi, I'm a mom to 6 kids and I get often asked how I manage life with them... where there's simplicity, there's natural flow... less friction... steadier energy levels... the kids feed off the way us, adults, do life. Always make time to be a good listener and quick to forgive. They are so compassionate and gentle by nature... I feel like I've learnt more from them than anything else I've read about motherhood!❤
totally agree that they feed off of our energy! so important to care for ourselves and our thoughts/inner work. love you girl! always love your comments!
I am SO PUMPED to hear this! So glad you're enjoying it. That seriously makes me so happy. I hope to have the holiday one out by christmas too but we'll see haha I think i need a rest for a bit :)
Creating cozy places is one of the best memories I have growing up. It was the smell of home (always something baking or cooking) it was the sound of home (good music playing) and it was knowing my mother always was there with a hug and a welcome. I love creating that place now too as a mother. Loved this Madi! ❤
Love the vid, Madi! ☀️ I am so grateful that God is walking beside me as I try to be what my parents were not. Not giving my kids what I didn’t have, but BEING the parent I didn’t have. If I look back on years past, I think the #1 thing that made me slow down, be present, cultivate a good environment for my kids, and enjoy my days is to delete social media (FB, X, IG, snap, etc) and put my phone completely away. I do like to watch a couple people on RUclips and check the weather, but I do that during designated times. All the wonderful memories I have spending time with my Granny, she was never occupied with a phone. Yes, it was before cell phones, but I couldn’t imagine a world with her nose stuck in that screen.
I so agree … my heart was aching reading comments about happy childhood memories because my childhood was awful, but it has made me such a brilliant parent knowing what not to do. Your children sound very lucky ❤
Outdoor play is an " extracurricular " all of it's own ❤ And , our home is a million times more peaceful since fully embracing gentle parenting... Love this Madi, thank you!
Setting the ambiance...thats been huge for me lately. "..make your home feel like a woman lives there.." I love having the opportunity to do this now. I say it to my older son often that my goal is to make our home feel peaceful ♡
I do the same. My son is off at university and he loves to come home. He says it grounds him again and makes him feel calm. The chaos and madness of university life are left there for a while and he truly relaxes. We make no plans. It’s about relaxing and centering himself again. 😊
Thank you so much for your videos Madi 🙏🌼 We lost our baby boy right before his birth four months ago. Life is really tough but your videos brings calm and remind me that there is still beauty in life and to enjoy those small moments with my daughter even although we still grieve. The ones about just watching the sunset or the stars made me cry ❤️ Children are a blessing 🙏❤️
I am so grateful for you! You opened my eyes to permission to live differently and see the world differently. I have always been feeling behind and overwhelmed and tend to overdo and maximize everything I do. Feeling like a constant failure. Because of you I removed an extracurricular and can breathe. I reduced homeschool curriculum to basics. I have not left my house for ages because so overwhelmed by everything. Ending up doing the bare minimum and feeling like a failure for it. You turn the story around. Make it a mission to do the bare minimum and failure is attempting more. Sigh of relief. It’s just the start but already you have lightened my load inside and out. You are such a great inspiration. Thank you!
Thank you for sharing, I also struggle with overdoing everything and then experiencing overwhelm. I have 8 kiddos and homeschool and our best days are when we have no pressure from outside activities.
One thing that made my parenting easier was to ignore mainstream Christian parenting books. Finding you and The Mellow Mama along with other gentle/respectful parents really changed my mindset. I feel like there’s this expectation that kids should be mini adults, shouldn’t have feelings, and should be robots. Letting all that go and enjoying what is has become so freeing.
Couldn’t agree more! We quit a lot of things so we now have space in our day to just be, to sit outside and study birds with the littles. My daughter especially loves birds so we are leaning into it.
Same here with my son (he will turn 3 in Mar 24) I've taken him swimming but beyond that the only activities apart from nursery 15 hrs a week is just soft play / play centres/ parks & play dates etc where he can do his own thing ❤
I used to have my first in a ton of activities even though she was only a toddler! We quit everything but preschool and swimming, and it’s so much easier for everyone.
That favorite childhood memory is key! My 2 year old loves to “drive” and I will drive around with her in our yard and driveway. It reminds me of when I was little and playing in my parents cars and makes me feel like a kid again playing with my daughter.
This.. is truly incredible. I suffer with severe social anxiety and I always feel SO bad that I can't and don't take my kids to the super busy soft plays at the weekend or the splash park that is filled with thousands of people when it's hot (not often as I'm in the UK) but my kids don't really mind and I realised it was just me and my thoughts.. my kids never have been the type to do loads of extra curricular activities apart from my eldest who started horse riding not long ago. They are home bodies like me and they enjoy it so much. This has taken such a load off my shoulders.. you have no idea how much you've helped me ❤
I am so inspired by you! I discovered your videos a couple weeks ago and quickly watched them all. I immediately started simplifying my life and feel more at peace and calm as a mother. I am so grateful I found your videos and truly believe they have changed the course of my life. Thank you.
Thanks for sharing these tips! So many resonated with me… “set the ambiance,” “make it feel like a woman lives here,” and “the best time to plant a seed is today!” Unfortunately, we live in Ohio (zone 5) so it’s a bit tricky to follow this in the late fall & winter but I will definitely be doing this more often in the spring & summer with my kiddos ❤
As a parent of an autistic son, society always make you feel as a bad parent… I juste trust my own intuition now and my son is happy. Not an easy child but I love him the way he is.
I have 3 ASD kiddos and releasing societal expectations has been liberating. Rediscovering the world the way they experience it is beautiful. Children are our best teachers ❤
This was encouraging to me because while listening I realized we’re kind of already doing it. I struggle often feeling like I need to keep slowing more and more and more and THAT becomes the race. But as I was listening I realized we do a ton of these things. And the busy alternatives mentioned don’t describe our life anymore. It’s not about arriving or anything. But it is nice to stop and think, “oh, we’re kind of doing it… now.”
yesssss i agree that minimalism and slow living can be the opposite side of the same coin of consumption culture if you're not doing inner work along the way. however, it really sounds like you are! give yourself grace.
I thought the same- when I put my boy in preschool I was watching in the window and the did things that we already did. It gave me confidence to raise my kids because I realized kids need to play to learn
We are also living a life Of slow living. We embrace each day with simple slow living. We homeschool and just let the kids BE KIDS. They are not in any extra curricular activities. Their choice. They just want to play and explore their world around them. We are not on a strict schedule for the day. We go with the flow. Having a very flexible lifestyle. My husband and I own our own business which gives us the opportunity to be so flexible. I know not everyone has that option but we knew that’s what we wanted and made it happen so that we could have the kids at home with us. Thank you for sharing your ways of slow living with your kiddos and always providing us with amazing content. We appreciate it more than you know. Much love from our channel Kimberley & Scooter Jamieson/6breakingloose ❤
We could all use a little reparenting. That is a nice memory of your dad waking you up to see the stars. I think over the past few weeks I have spent more time on my phone than I had previously, so I am planning on cutting that out, yet I have been reading like a mad woman on top of it so maybe I am just more mindful of how much I pick up my phone. I have a few favorite nature places. Definitely want to recommend parents to read to their kids even when they are in their teen years!! I read to my children after dinner, who are 16, 14, and 3 months old. We have gone through so many booiks!!!
I feeel the extra-curriculars. I was just talking with my husband about this a couple days ago. My kids are 2 and 5 and aren’t in extra curriculars. My 5 year old did a couple different ones but didn’t want to continue. All of my friends kids are in them (and multiple activities) and I just feel like I’m failing my kids somehow. We decided not to push and let them tell us when they are ready.
I'm not a mother yet but all of your content brings me hope, Madi! Thank you for what you do! I hope to be a mother and so I am excited to be intentional with them like you are with your kids :)
The Ramona and Henry Huggins book series are both great...the audio books are fantastic, too. I never read them as a child, but I had the joy of reading them to my daughter when she was little. We would play the audio books when we cleaned and did chores❤
My kids are grown now but I did a lot of what you are saying. Before it was trendy to be a minimalist, I read that children didn't cope well with too many toys, activities etc. So I limited both and they thrived playing imaginative games outdoors or going to the park after school. They learnt to swim and were allowed to do one other activity in the week. One weekend we were supposed to be going to a dog show but it rained hard all day, so we stayed home and had our own dog show with their toys and I 'judged' Best in Show! Great memories.
I learned about creating a "yes" space from you and it has helped a lot!!! Now I need to work on acknowledging emotions instead of fighting them. Definitely going to be a growing experience for the whole family .
Yes, Madi, yes it was the case, it did bring hope. Thank you. It's too difficult to find words right now, but yes, it brought hope and I always love these videos. Thank you. ~Cristina in Texas
Slow living is completely opposite I of what I was raised to believe. I was told that I had to work harder, do more, achievement if I wanted to be accepted. It's so true that we are losing ourselves chasing things that aren't truly important. Slow living is essential for being emotionally healthy and raising emotionally healthy children. I think that is the best legacy moms can give their children. Thanks for sharing this message. We cannot hear it enough.
im doing my garden so that when i have my morning smoothie, the few minutes we are going out the house and moments before we come in, and midday picnics can all be in the garden, in nice weather. we arent going anywhere fancy, but hes getting vitamin d and im getting my endorphins or relaxing.
Love your videos you are such a great role model! Too many parents have their kids in sports 7 nights a week and there is absolutely no time for creative play or to simply be a kid, it’s so sad! I wish I could find some friends like you in my area!
❤ Love you Madi. You're a huge inspiration to me. I want to recreate simple moments together as a family; spur of the moment icecream/coffee dates, hikes through the woods or by water, quiet snowy morning walks, swimming races, dancing through the grass on a dewy summer evening...❤
I always feel pressure to pack more in my kid’s lunches! How did you know? We truly live in a society of more is always better & it’s simply not true. I often add food he doesn’t eat because I don’t want to be judged. I didn’t even realize it until you mentioned it in your video. Thank you.
LOVED this video! This was the very first video of yours that I found and watched and I truly believe this topic is sooo needed in our modern society! Thank you!
Needed this today ❤ Id love to homeschool, but I work part time just so I can pick my daughter up. Just so i'm involved in that for her. But still trying to declutter and slow down, so there is so much more time to do everything else. ❤
What's a childhood memory you want to recreate for your kids? 🌈 Thanks to Pique for partnering with me on this video, be sure to check them out here: bit.ly/3r9jx7T
I love your videos! You are incredibly warm. Totally agree with no extra curriculum. My daughter (6) only attends swimming classes and rest of the time outside school is kept for playing and being with me or other family members.
I just found you but I can already tell I plan on binge watching way more of your videos! lol Do you have a video on how to finger knit the chunky big blanket? Its been on my to do list forever:)
Dear Madi, You have my favorite RUclips channel! I love your work! Thank you for being a voice for sanity and calm, compassionate, enjoyable parenting! I am about to have a baby in a week (home birth!) and I have decided to give up all unnecessary screen time for an entire year in order to focus on my kids. I plan to support your channel in the meantime by buying some of your guide(s) around Christmas. Wishing you and your family a blessed year, and I'll be back next year to catch up and see your adventures in motherhood! Love
Thank you! I'm back on youtube earlier than expected. We got past the infancy where I needed to be fully engaged, and then my baby has had a rare medical issue, and for a little while, I needed the stress relief while trying to figure out what to do. Interestingly, one of the few things that might be good for him is to see sunsets and sunrises for the red light, so we go outside to do that daily now! I do plan to catch up on more of your work now. Earlier today, I saw you open up your RUclips award! Congratulations!!! 💗
It is so much more practical. Our kids need downtime as much as we do. I have 5 kids. We only allowed 1 activity per kid which was beyond enough. # of our kids (girls) ran Cross country so they were all on one schedule (1 year apart in school). Losing family time was never acceptable and today we have a family dinner, just to show the impact it had on our family. We talk, share, support, disagree (respectfully), and enjoy one another. We are teaching the grands now how to define, acknowledge, and use emotions appropriately. Perfection, no. Keep trying - YES!
Wonderful message for our culture. I try to practice these things too. It makes a huge difference. We are involved in some thing’s regularly but it’s very intentional. Do you do any extra curricular activities with your kids? What are your days like on those days if you do?
Hi, I’m new to your channel, and I enjoyed this video, but the most impactful thing you said here, for me, is “make your home feel like a woman lives here”. I’m 32, and a sahm. But honestly I never think of myself much as “a woman”. Im feminine, I’m female. im a mom, im a wife. Occasionally a lady. A good girl. But not often “a woman” and I really think that’s what’s missing from my home and my life,- feeling like a woman lives here. -I don’t want to be just an old wrinkly ‘teenager.’ Or a frazzled, never-quite grew up 20somethjng. I want to be an elegant, Dignified, Soft, graceful, centered, level-headed, sturdy, intelligent, industrious, neat and tidy, whimsical woman, but also full of life, full of love. My house at the moment looks like kids are raising kids here.
Great video! I loved the point with music instead of screentime! You can dance or just relax while listening to it and I will maybe even implement this in my life even though I don’t have kids lol 😄😄
I really appreciate your thoughts about putting music on instead of tv. With four girls, its easy for "one pick each" to take all day. I am gonna try to limit to Bluey and Christmas movies. I would also love to get back into reading to them, on the last Narnia book, but its hard to read with 4. Any suggestions on keeping them and focused on the story?
Would you do another wardrobe update video please? I love your style & this white top (dress?) you have on… OMG looks stunning, seems like an amazing fit! Would you tell us what is it & where from pretty please?
Another wonderful & restful but informative Video! Thank you ❤ aaaaand i was trying to find the Video where you talked about the beautiful blanket in the backround of your video with the sun & the moon 🥰 where is it from again? Greetings from Austria 😊
I’m loving your videos 🥰 I’m from Australia I have 4 children agers 15 to 2 years old I feel like I’m constantly running around and your videos are so calming a breath of fresh air 💨 thank you 🙏 I want to get your season guide but we are in spring here 🌼 do you have the spring guide to purchase ? 😃
I just am so inspired by you and am working at this lifestyle myself and it's so wonderful- But as a single woman living this lifestyle, do you have any advice? For how to still meet someone. I'm not a hermit by any means or insecure, but I don't hustle and bustle like the rest of the world. I do love to stay home or have a small circle. Did you meet your husband in this lifestyle or before?
Slow living doesn’t mean doing nothing, but just doing things with intentionality and a speed at which you are comfortable with. I met my husband in high school so we’ve been through it all 😂
My grandmother did this for me every year and it was wonderful! I tried to do it for my kids this year too... My teenager was actually interested, but the younger kids stayed asleep... There's always next year..
![[#2024MAMA] BIGBANG (빅뱅) - 뱅뱅뱅 (BANG BANG BANG) + FANTASTIC BABY | Mnet 241123 방송](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/EQsYfiPR9uM/mqdefault.jpg)
What helped me the most with raising my children was the book ‘Raising Warriors: Preparing Your Children For a Godly Life’. It is honestly a game changer
I decided my priority this week was learning to not yell at my kids. The first few days were a fail, but today was the first day I didn’t yell all day! This video gives me so much hope to have a peaceful home soon:)
I struggle with this- any tips? I’d love to hear if you are open to sharing!
I never yell at my child (he’s 4yo) because once he was born, I got to know one simple tip: just stop for a second and ask yourself three questions:
1.what he really tries to say me with this behaviour (he’s tired, he’s hungry, etc)
2.what i would like to teach him in this situation? (Eg that when he feels tired, he should say this to me instead of shouting, he should lay down and relax)
3.what’s the best way i can teach him that (will shouting make him fall asleep? Nope, i can show the example by myself or putting to sleep his toys, telling the story about once i was little and could not fall asleep)
Interesting- as I look back at our years I yelled a lot when my older kids were little but seldom yell now. I’m not sure when/why I stopped… I think it’s when I realized yelling doesn’t work. Some times whispering is really effective- especially when I need to communicate with my toddler. Then we all slow down to communicate.
Nicholeen Peck has a lot to say about this. She says it has to do with using your will over your emotions to react, and having a written plan/cue cards to handle disciplinary issues. She also says that it's a skill to master, so getting good at this can require a lot of practice, too.
I never yell, but whenever I feel myself giving demands instead of being respectful, because I'm feeling frustrated I wisper in my toddlers ear what I would like him to do and pretty much every time he calmly does it, because I've asked him in such a gentle way and it's almost like I'm telling him a secret 😊
Madi, I'm a mom to 6 kids and I get often asked how I manage life with them... where there's simplicity, there's natural flow... less friction... steadier energy levels... the kids feed off the way us, adults, do life.
Always make time to be a good listener and quick to forgive. They are so compassionate and gentle by nature... I feel like I've learnt more from them than anything else I've read about motherhood!❤
totally agree that they feed off of our energy! so important to care for ourselves and our thoughts/inner work. love you girl! always love your comments!
@@MadisunGray thank you, Madi!!😭😭
Your magazine is sooo good by the way! I hope you'll have another one before Christmas time!🕯
I am SO PUMPED to hear this! So glad you're enjoying it. That seriously makes me so happy. I hope to have the holiday one out by christmas too but we'll see haha I think i need a rest for a bit :)
Awwww yaaay! 🎉 Love you ladies, y'all encourage me so much.
Σας αγαπώ κυριες μου παρολο που τα παιδια μου ειναι μεγαλα σας βλεπω και ηρεμώ!
My children are grown but I agree with all your points.
Raising my children was the very best part of my life! They truly are gifts from our Lord!
❤️❤️
99😅😊😅van levend 😊😊😊
Creating cozy places is one of the best memories I have growing up. It was the smell of home (always something baking or cooking) it was the sound of home (good music playing) and it was knowing my mother always was there with a hug and a welcome. I love creating that place now too as a mother. Loved this Madi! ❤
Yes that sounds amazing Emily!
Love the vid, Madi! ☀️ I am so grateful that God is walking beside me as I try to be what my parents were not. Not giving my kids what I didn’t have, but BEING the parent I didn’t have. If I look back on years past, I think the #1 thing that made me slow down, be present, cultivate a good environment for my kids, and enjoy my days is to delete social media (FB, X, IG, snap, etc) and put my phone completely away. I do like to watch a couple people on RUclips and check the weather, but I do that during designated times. All the wonderful memories I have spending time with my Granny, she was never occupied with a phone. Yes, it was before cell phones, but I couldn’t imagine a world with her nose stuck in that screen.
I so agree … my heart was aching reading comments about happy childhood memories because my childhood was awful, but it has made me such a brilliant parent knowing what not to do. Your children sound very lucky ❤
Same here!
Outdoor play is an " extracurricular " all of it's own ❤ And , our home is a million times more peaceful since fully embracing gentle parenting... Love this Madi, thank you!
I LOVE that!
Setting the ambiance...thats been huge for me lately. "..make your home feel like a woman lives there.." I love having the opportunity to do this now. I say it to my older son often that my goal is to make our home feel peaceful ♡
yes! i love this
I do the same. My son is off at university and he loves to come home. He says it grounds him again and makes him feel calm. The chaos and madness of university life are left there for a while and he truly relaxes. We make no plans. It’s about relaxing and centering himself again. 😊
Thank you so much for your videos Madi 🙏🌼 We lost our baby boy right before his birth four months ago. Life is really tough but your videos brings calm and remind me that there is still beauty in life and to enjoy those small moments with my daughter even although we still grieve. The ones about just watching the sunset or the stars made me cry ❤️ Children are a blessing 🙏❤️
I am so grateful for you! You opened my eyes to permission to live differently and see the world differently. I have always been feeling behind and overwhelmed and tend to overdo and maximize everything I do. Feeling like a constant failure. Because of you I removed an extracurricular and can breathe. I reduced homeschool curriculum to basics. I have not left my house for ages because so overwhelmed by everything. Ending up doing the bare minimum and feeling like a failure for it. You turn the story around. Make it a mission to do the bare minimum and failure is attempting more. Sigh of relief. It’s just the start but already you have lightened my load inside and out. You are such a great inspiration. Thank you!
Thank you for sharing, I also struggle with overdoing everything and then experiencing overwhelm. I have 8 kiddos and homeschool and our best days are when we have no pressure from outside activities.
One thing that made my parenting easier was to ignore mainstream Christian parenting books. Finding you and The Mellow Mama along with other gentle/respectful parents really changed my mindset.
I feel like there’s this expectation that kids should be mini adults, shouldn’t have feelings, and should be robots. Letting all that go and enjoying what is has become so freeing.
There is a lot of bad theology out there in my opinion
@@MadisunGray👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Couldn’t agree more! We quit a lot of things so we now have space in our day to just be, to sit outside and study birds with the littles. My daughter especially loves birds so we are leaning into it.
I love this! my kids are super into birds as well! that's so fun!
I have never put my kids in any other activities except swimming just to learn for a few years and then we stopped.
We are very slow to do extracurriculars as well!
Same here with my son (he will turn 3 in Mar 24) I've taken him swimming but beyond that the only activities apart from nursery 15 hrs a week is just soft play / play centres/ parks & play dates etc where he can do his own thing ❤
I used to have my first in a ton of activities even though she was only a toddler! We quit everything but preschool and swimming, and it’s so much easier for everyone.
I felt awful for ages that the only activity my toddler did was swimming lessons, now I'm so glad
That favorite childhood memory is key! My 2 year old loves to “drive” and I will drive around with her in our yard and driveway. It reminds me of when I was little and playing in my parents cars and makes me feel like a kid again playing with my daughter.
I wish my parents did this with me. It’s great that you’re raising your children like this.
We can give our kids better ❤️
This.. is truly incredible. I suffer with severe social anxiety and I always feel SO bad that I can't and don't take my kids to the super busy soft plays at the weekend or the splash park that is filled with thousands of people when it's hot (not often as I'm in the UK) but my kids don't really mind and I realised it was just me and my thoughts.. my kids never have been the type to do loads of extra curricular activities apart from my eldest who started horse riding not long ago. They are home bodies like me and they enjoy it so much. This has taken such a load off my shoulders.. you have no idea how much you've helped me ❤
You got this mama ❤️
I am so inspired by you! I discovered your videos a couple weeks ago and quickly watched them all. I immediately started simplifying my life and feel more at peace and calm as a mother. I am so grateful I found your videos and truly believe they have changed the course of my life. Thank you.
Thanks for sharing these tips! So many resonated with me… “set the ambiance,” “make it feel like a woman lives here,” and “the best time to plant a seed is today!” Unfortunately, we live in Ohio (zone 5) so it’s a bit tricky to follow this in the late fall & winter but I will definitely be doing this more often in the spring & summer with my kiddos ❤
Can you do videos with what your kids eat or you? What do you guys eat? Simple basic food or do you make meals from scratch?
As a parent of an autistic son, society always make you feel as a bad parent… I juste trust my own intuition now and my son is happy. Not an easy child but I love him the way he is.
I have 3 ASD kiddos and releasing societal expectations has been liberating. Rediscovering the world the way they experience it is beautiful. Children are our best teachers ❤
This was encouraging to me because while listening I realized we’re kind of already doing it. I struggle often feeling like I need to keep slowing more and more and more and THAT becomes the race. But as I was listening I realized we do a ton of these things. And the busy alternatives mentioned don’t describe our life anymore. It’s not about arriving or anything. But it is nice to stop and think, “oh, we’re kind of doing it… now.”
yesssss i agree that minimalism and slow living can be the opposite side of the same coin of consumption culture if you're not doing inner work along the way. however, it really sounds like you are! give yourself grace.
I thought the same- when I put my boy in preschool I was watching in the window and the did things that we already did. It gave me confidence to raise my kids because I realized kids need to play to learn
We are also living a life
Of slow living. We embrace each day with simple slow living. We homeschool and just let the kids BE KIDS. They are not in any extra curricular activities. Their choice. They just want to play and explore their world around them. We are not on a strict schedule for the day. We go with the flow. Having a very flexible lifestyle. My husband and I own our own business which gives us the opportunity to be so flexible. I know not everyone has that option but we knew that’s what we wanted and made it happen so that we could have the kids at home with us. Thank you for sharing your ways of slow living with your kiddos and always providing us with amazing content. We appreciate it more than you know. Much love from our channel Kimberley & Scooter Jamieson/6breakingloose ❤
I love that. Sacred childhood 🤎
We could all use a little reparenting. That is a nice memory of your dad waking you up to see the stars.
I think over the past few weeks I have spent more time on my phone than I had previously, so I am planning on cutting that out, yet I have been reading like a mad woman on top of it so maybe I am just more mindful of how much I pick up my phone.
I have a few favorite nature places.
Definitely want to recommend parents to read to their kids even when they are in their teen years!! I read to my children after dinner, who are 16, 14, and 3 months old. We have gone through so many booiks!!!
YES 🙌🏾
I feeel the extra-curriculars. I was just talking with my husband about this a couple days ago. My kids are 2 and 5 and aren’t in extra curriculars. My 5 year old did a couple different ones but didn’t want to continue. All of my friends kids are in them (and multiple activities) and I just feel like I’m failing my kids somehow.
We decided not to push and let them tell us when they are ready.
Love that ❤️
I'm not a mother yet but all of your content brings me hope, Madi! Thank you for what you do! I hope to be a mother and so I am excited to be intentional with them like you are with your kids :)
this makes me so happy 🤎
The Ramona and Henry Huggins book series are both great...the audio books are fantastic, too. I never read them as a child, but I had the joy of reading them to my daughter when she was little. We would play the audio books when we cleaned and did chores❤
Your dad sounds wonderful, I’m happy for you that you have those special memories
He is ☺️
My kids are grown now but I did a lot of what you are saying. Before it was trendy to be a minimalist, I read that children didn't cope well with too many toys, activities etc. So I limited both and they thrived playing imaginative games outdoors or going to the park after school. They learnt to swim and were allowed to do one other activity in the week. One weekend we were supposed to be going to a dog show but it rained hard all day, so we stayed home and had our own dog show with their toys and I 'judged' Best in Show! Great memories.
❤️
Beautiful video Madison. Your the only minimalist slow living person I enjoy on RUclips. Thank you.
I agree!
so sweet thank you!
I learned about creating a "yes" space from you and it has helped a lot!!! Now I need to work on acknowledging emotions instead of fighting them. Definitely going to be a growing experience for the whole family .
Yes, Madi, yes it was the case, it did bring hope. Thank you. It's too difficult to find words right now, but yes, it brought hope and I always love these videos. Thank you. ~Cristina in Texas
I’m so glad ❤️
Slow living is completely opposite I of what I was raised to believe. I was told that I had to work harder, do more, achievement if I wanted to be accepted. It's so true that we are losing ourselves chasing things that aren't truly important. Slow living is essential for being emotionally healthy and raising emotionally healthy children. I think that is the best legacy moms can give their children. Thanks for sharing this message. We cannot hear it enough.
I totally agree with this message as Im on the path of following this for my toddler . im a young mom with brains !
The other day my 2 year old and I spent hours planting seeds in our yard! 😊 thats so cool to hear you do it too.
My dad did the same thing when there was a meteor showers!! We would go to a dark field with a blanket! This was one of my favorite memories too!! ❤
im doing my garden so that when i have my morning smoothie, the few minutes we are going out the house and moments before we come in, and midday picnics can all be in the garden, in nice weather. we arent going anywhere fancy, but hes getting vitamin d and im getting my endorphins or relaxing.
sounds amazing ❤️
Love your videos you are such a great role model! Too many parents have their kids in sports 7 nights a week and there is absolutely no time for creative play or to simply be a kid, it’s so sad! I wish I could find some friends like you in my area!
Thanks ❤️
I loved this video you made. It made me emotional when you shared about your dad bringing you out to see shooting stars.
❤️❤️
❤ Love you Madi. You're a huge inspiration to me.
I want to recreate simple moments together as a family; spur of the moment icecream/coffee dates, hikes through the woods or by water, quiet snowy morning walks, swimming races, dancing through the grass on a dewy summer evening...❤
spur of the moment ice cream! and hikes by water omg yessss I'm adding these to my list in my journal haha
I always feel pressure to pack more in my kid’s lunches! How did you know? We truly live in a society of more is always better & it’s simply not true. I often add food he doesn’t eat because I don’t want to be judged. I didn’t even realize it until you mentioned it in your video. Thank you.
LOVED this video! This was the very first video of yours that I found and watched and I truly believe this topic is sooo needed in our modern society! Thank you!
Needed this today ❤
Id love to homeschool, but I work part time just so I can pick my daughter up. Just so i'm involved in that for her. But still trying to declutter and slow down, so there is so much more time to do everything else. ❤
Love your videos, Madi. I am always encouraged and inspired by them 🩷 Thank you!
this makes me so happy ❤️
What's a childhood memory you want to recreate for your kids? 🌈
Thanks to Pique for partnering with me on this video, be sure to check them out here: bit.ly/3r9jx7T
I have so many memories playing dolls with my little sister so I’d love to recreate that with my daughter even if it’s just her and I.
Chasing rainbows! 🌈
I loved when we went to the creek or lake. I was raised in Arizona so it was an event!
Madison, your videos are relaxing and always bring hope to me.
this makes me so happy ❤️
Your videos are beautiful and inspiring ! Thank you !
Thank you friend ❤️
I love your videos! You are incredibly warm. Totally agree with no extra curriculum. My daughter (6) only attends swimming classes and rest of the time outside school is kept for playing and being with me or other family members.
thank you 😊
Thank you for the playlists
Gardening with my son is the highlight of my summer. Inspired by you ❤
love that ❤️❤️
La Jolla tidepools a fave of us local homeschoolers
We love it!
Thank you!
And by the way, the wholehearted journal is so beautiful!!!! I love it so much!
Thank you!!!
I would love to hear your podcast recommendations! ❤️
I just found you but I can already tell I plan on binge watching way more of your videos! lol Do you have a video on how to finger knit the chunky big blanket? Its been on my to do list forever:)
This is my favourite kind of content from you maddy !! Thankyou girl xxx
So sweet. Thank you ❤️
Dear Madi, You have my favorite RUclips channel! I love your work! Thank you for being a voice for sanity and calm, compassionate, enjoyable parenting! I am about to have a baby in a week (home birth!) and I have decided to give up all unnecessary screen time for an entire year in order to focus on my kids. I plan to support your channel in the meantime by buying some of your guide(s) around Christmas. Wishing you and your family a blessed year, and I'll be back next year to catch up and see your adventures in motherhood! Love
this is so sweet Ashley ❤️ I love that you have your priorities in order
Thank you! I'm back on youtube earlier than expected. We got past the infancy where I needed to be fully engaged, and then my baby has had a rare medical issue, and for a little while, I needed the stress relief while trying to figure out what to do. Interestingly, one of the few things that might be good for him is to see sunsets and sunrises for the red light, so we go outside to do that daily now! I do plan to catch up on more of your work now. Earlier today, I saw you open up your RUclips award! Congratulations!!! 💗
Madisun ❤ I NEEDED this encouragement today- I can’t thank you enough ♥️🙏♥️🙏
aw thank you dana! that means the world to me!
Oofff that one hit hard regarding the extra activities. But it was much needed to hear ❤
It is so much more practical. Our kids need downtime as much as we do. I have 5 kids. We only allowed 1 activity per kid which was beyond enough. # of our kids (girls) ran Cross country so they were all on one schedule (1 year apart in school). Losing family time was never acceptable and today we have a family dinner, just to show the impact it had on our family. We talk, share, support, disagree (respectfully), and enjoy one another. We are teaching the grands now how to define, acknowledge, and use emotions appropriately. Perfection, no. Keep trying - YES!
Yes 🙌🏾
Beautiful video! Would love to hear and see more about the finger knit blanket!
It’s in my Fall Journal!
Wonderful message for our culture. I try to practice these things too. It makes a huge difference. We are involved in some thing’s regularly but it’s very intentional.
Do you do any extra curricular activities with your kids? What are your days like on those days if you do?
hi maddie! love this video! please do a day in the life homeschool soon!
Good idea!
This is a video that i really REALLY aprecciate it! Thank you so much!
❤
❤️❤️
Hi, I’m new to your channel, and I enjoyed this video, but the most impactful thing you said here, for me, is “make your home feel like a woman lives here”.
I’m 32, and a sahm. But honestly I never think of myself much as “a woman”. Im feminine, I’m female. im a mom, im a wife. Occasionally a lady. A good girl. But not often “a woman” and I really think that’s what’s missing from my home and my life,- feeling like a woman lives here. -I don’t want to be just an old wrinkly ‘teenager.’ Or a frazzled, never-quite grew up 20somethjng. I want to be an elegant, Dignified, Soft, graceful, centered, level-headed, sturdy, intelligent, industrious, neat and tidy, whimsical woman, but also full of life, full of love. My house at the moment looks like kids are raising kids here.
So amazing!! 😊☺ are there links for the music playlists somewhere? ☺✨✨
Oh my goodness, point number 2! Yes!
YES. so simple but so huge impact wise to just free up some time.
Thank you, Maddie!
❤️
so glad I found you and omg how gorgeous are you! an actual angel
100% love love love this! ♥️
Great video! I loved the point with music instead of screentime! You can dance or just relax while listening to it and I will maybe even implement this in my life even though I don’t have kids lol 😄😄
YES 😂
Ah your Dad waking you guys up to see the stars 🥲
Love this
Thank you so much Madisun!! All of these tips are AMAZING... and thank you for even bringing up the controversial ones 😉
❤️❤️❤️❤️
I really appreciate your thoughts about putting music on instead of tv. With four girls, its easy for "one pick each" to take all day. I am gonna try to limit to Bluey and Christmas movies. I would also love to get back into reading to them, on the last Narnia book, but its hard to read with 4. Any suggestions on keeping them and focused on the story?
Would you do another wardrobe update video please? I love your style & this white top (dress?) you have on… OMG looks stunning, seems like an amazing fit! Would you tell us what is it & where from pretty please?
Another wonderful & restful but informative Video! Thank you ❤ aaaaand i was trying to find the Video where you talked about the beautiful blanket in the backround of your video with the sun & the moon 🥰 where is it from again? Greetings from Austria 😊
This one has the blanket ruclips.net/video/UwBGnR3B-Tg/видео.htmlsi=0TXAIysymmcXjZW5
It’s from Australia!
I love this!!
I’m loving your videos 🥰 I’m from Australia I have 4 children agers 15 to 2 years old I feel like I’m constantly running around and your videos are so calming a breath of fresh air 💨 thank you 🙏 I want to get your season guide but we are in spring here 🌼 do you have the spring guide to purchase ? 😃
This is so sweet. Thank you ☺️ This one was my first guide, so I don’t have a spring one yet.
@@MadisunGray yay I can’t wait for all the seasons to come 🎊🙏🌈😌
Really loving your videos and all advice you give. Mom of 4 (8 years and under) and yes you’re on point with this! I can’t wait for another video🤍🤍
Great video ✨
Yes! Love your content.
Yay! Thank you!
Beautiful video always, it's so refreshing. Pique is my favorite Matcha, so delicious💖💖💖
so happy to hear this! yes, me too! long before they offered to sponsor a video I've loved their teas and their matcha is bomb!
What are some hand crafts you recommend for 3 year old boys?
I just am so inspired by you and am working at this lifestyle myself and it's so wonderful- But as a single woman living this lifestyle, do you have any advice? For how to still meet someone. I'm not a hermit by any means or insecure, but I don't hustle and bustle like the rest of the world. I do love to stay home or have a small circle. Did you meet your husband in this lifestyle or before?
Slow living doesn’t mean doing nothing, but just doing things with intentionality and a speed at which you are comfortable with. I met my husband in high school so we’ve been through it all 😂
AMEN! Beautiful and true!!!
❤️❤️
Love this video! Where did you get your dress? 😍
Yes!! i Love RIE!
it’s so good!
Love your videos
Thank you ❤️
This is so NICE ❤❤
Thank you ❤️
Could you do an update on the kids capsule wardrobe? :)
I just did! Probably 4 videos ago!
Don't give up on star gazing! Perhaps in another year, they will be ready to wake up.
yes! you're so right, and i'm still excited for it
I think you’re thinking of meteor showers ✨ I have fond memories of my dad taking the time to include them in my life too.
YES!
Hey Madi, I can't seem to find the playlists you mentioned in the description? Thank you for the video ❤❤❤
oops I forgot to add them I'll do that now! xo
💙
You reminded me that my mom took us out to watch a meteor shower too!
such a peak childhood memory!
My grandmother did this for me every year and it was wonderful! I tried to do it for my kids this year too... My teenager was actually interested, but the younger kids stayed asleep... There's always next year..
❤❤❤
❤️❤️
❤❤❤❤
❤️❤️
How old are your children?
Omg I thought this was Ellen fisher