Mindfulness Kids Craft

I love that the practice of Yoga teaches us how to practice mindfulness. As a Mom of a toddler sometimes it’s hard to get in a long full yoga practice for but taking small moments to practice mindfulness and be more present is something I strive for every day. I take moments in the day to center myself through breathing exercises and I tend to have short home practice. I practice pranayama (breathing exercises) anytime I start feeling the stress creep in. I practice while driving, or at home when the kids are making me feel overwhelmed and at work. Most of us will take a big breath when we feel upset without realizing because it is a natural reaction or we have people in our life that will tell us to take a deep breath when we are worked up. Generally speaking focusing on the exhale has a calming effect and the inhale is more energizing. I’m sure many of us have told our children to take a breath too.

A the little one refocus their energy is to redirect them to another activity. I have found the calm down jars are a great way to let them focus on something while removing them from the situation that has escalated. These jars are so easy to make at home and they can be customized for every child’s preferences, maybe you make it using their favorite color or you can drop little toys inside for them to watch. I like this much more than the idea of the typical time out routine. If you can have them sit quietly while watching the jar settle you can see them settle their minds at the same time. You can search

Mindfulness

in a jar recipe

Any jar; such as a mason jar or if you prefer plastic you could use an empty water bottle

Glitter Glue

Glitter

Food Coloring

Warm Water

Mineral Oil

Small Toys

Start with a clean jar, pour in glitter glue to fill your jar about 1/3 full, then add warm water to fill the jar and mix gently with a whisk. Add the food coloring a few drops at a time until the color reaches the intensity that you desire. Optional, the addition of mineral oil will give it a little more viscosity and slow the settling of the glitter a bit. If you want to add a toy you can it might give your child a specific focus point, in yoga this is called dristhi, which might be helpful if they are distracted easily.

In closing don’t forget to breathe and try making one of these calm down jars for your little one ,

might give you both a chance to take a breath.

And in the spirit of Valentine’s Day we would like to invite to Share the Love, a Valentine’s Day family Yoga event to benefit Bliss Kids Yoga, a local non-profit that works to bring Yoga to underserved youth in Austin. This will be held at Austin Yoga Tree on February 14th from 1-4PM.