If you have been reading this site over the past couple of years you would know that we are big fans and proponents of allowing space in a child’s life for pure imaginative play. In imaginative play there is so much creativity and inspiration and development for those growing brains of our kids. Without ads, children can learn so much about themselves and the world they live in, without sway of billions and billions of dollars of commercial influence. 

Recently we were introduced to Pure Play Kids – a toy company started by Mike and Tania Grant who were on a quest to find the best possible playthings for their own kids. “After examining every aspect of the children’s products industry, it became clear that much was wrong with how children’s products are designed, manufactured, marketed, sold, used, and discarded in the United States. Pure Play Kids was formed to fundamentally improve the marketplace for children’s products and to provide parents with superior choices for raising their own families. 

Play is the work of children, and toys are the tools. Play is sacred, and toys should be cherished. Through unstructured play we nurture our imaginations and develop emotionally, socially and cognitively. Pure Play Kids stands for toys that are kid-powered (not battery-powered), open-ended (not pre-programmed), and will grow with kids (allowing parents to buy better, not buy more).”

Visit their website. Find out about their mission of providing beautiful products that are kinder to the world we live in. And read about the Living Room Impact test which states that Pure Play Products will look far better occupying all rooms of your house than will plastic toys!

Last December I was on a walk in New Jersey with a few of my 8 siblings. We were all in town for a tribute at Manhattan College to my dad, post mortem, for his athletic excellence. It was a great gathering, all of us there from all points of the U.S. and beyond, sans kids and partners. And this winter walk through our childhood streets was a great part of it.

We passed a great SLOW CHILDREN sign. Not your modern day bubble head sign, this one was a relic from our own youth. Complete with knickers! My brother got a picture as a nod to Slow Family Living.

My friend Lauren photoshopped FAMILY over CHILDREN and voila, the Slow Family Living sticker is born! I love driving around with this emblem on my van, telling all the world, we’re taking it as slow as we can. Taking the time to connect and really enjoy family life in whatever ways we can. You can get one too if you want. To tell the world there’s a Slow Family in that car.

Renee Trudeau is a local mama and author and a coach and advocate for balanced living. A few years ago she wrote a book called The Mother’s Guide to Self Renewal for helping mothers reconnect with themselves. For 48 hours on and before Mother’s Day she is offering the book as a free download so get on over there and get yourself one.  Or tell a new mom you know. What mama do you know doesn’t need a little self-renewal?

We did it! We did it! We are super excited to have our two new workbooks up and available for download. We’ve been working on them for a while now and they are ready for your perusal. Thanks to Jenny Medford for helping us figure out the technical side of things and making the download process seamless.

The Slow Family Living Workbook is yours free. Yes, you got that right. Free. Just go and get it Help us spread the word. It’s our gift for all of the help and input we’ve received helping us get clear on what tools we could create to help people define their own version of slow.

The Family Mission Statement workbook will help you and your family determine who you are, why you entered family life in the first place and where you want to go from here. It is our hope that the questions in this booklet will help bring you and your family to a clear understanding of your desires, needs and values as a family unit – from which you can begin the process of allowing your own mission to unfold.

And remember as you do the work in the books, there is no right way, only the way that feels right to you. You will not be tested but it will definitely behoove you to know it.

Our book, My Book, is here! And it’s fantastic! It looks good. It feels good and we are happy to send it out into the world today. Hoo-rah folks!! We are so excited!!! Come and get your own copy. It will change the way you start each day!