Easter celebrations are fast approaching in our little Kinderhaus! One can't help noticing the word "East" in Easter which tells us which direction to look with hopefulness during this first full month of Spring. Despite the recurrent bouts of snowfall and frost, we are greeted by the dawn earlier than we were during the past few dark months and for that we are thankful! 

Listen carefully on your next stroll and you will hear the calls of the red wing, the goose, and the robin heralding the movement of tiny sprouts and insects between blades of grass and grain! If you visit a local farm this month, you might see little chicks hatching from eggs and on your visit to a neighbour's house, perhaps some purple crocuses are peeking up from the earth. All these beautiful first greetings are especially heart warming even as we may continue to don our winter jackets at the bus stop. 

The rain comes down sometimes as shards of ice but with each rainfall some of the snow is cleared from my front step just in time for visitors! 

And visitors are most welcome in our Kinderhaus during this month packed with interviews for candidates for our inaugural program! Invariably, I have been greeted by bright smiles and warm hand shakes each week as I meet with parents and students who have registered for the Fall.

These first moments of greeting are especially delightful for me as the Kinderhaus teacher. Rudolph Steiner, the father of Waldorf education, tells educators to "receive the children in reverence" and truly it is impossible to do otherwise as their unique personalities set foot in the space. 

To be reverent means to be in a state of awe and wonder. As children enter the space, their curiosity invariably overtakes any initial hesitation they may have about exploring each area of my home. I am truly in awe of  how each child brings a new energy into the Kinderhaus. 

In all cases, the children are drawn to Rosie, the guinea pig and have a chance to feed her a fat leaf of lettuce. Whether careful or confident, the way each child interacts with our little pet tells a tale of wonder. They greet our little friend with a bright light in their eyes - it is the dawning of a new relationship! 

 "Hraldmonath" is the anglo saxon name for this volatile, windy and changeable month. The term "hrald" literally translates to"rough" so "hraldmonath" is usually a rough month. Rough because we can feel spring in our bones but must still endure many days of cold and bitter winds. However, the days are lengthening and brightening and we can smell spring on the breeze. 

The willow across the street hangs her yellow tresses in a  fashion that suggests a shaking off of winter. Juniper Glen is brightening up its spaces too! We knocked down a wall to let in more light and are planning on painting the spaces in cool colour that both calms and enlightens our minds! 

I've also drafted the curriculum for our upcoming year and am planning each of the lessons with a particular focus on moments of transition like tidying toys away, coming back indoors after romping outside and saying our goodbyes. All of these periods of change are like the transitions of the seasons - it can sometimes be difficult to let go and ready ourselves for the next experience in the rhythm of our day or year. ​

Accompanied by assistance in sorting and storing, doesn't that seem like a much gentler transition than clapping and hollering out "Time to clean up! Let's get ready for song circle!"? 

In March, the rugged winds bring rains and rain means rainbows of colour! This month, we celebrate "Holi" the Hindu festival of colour and we tap into the luck o' the Irish by making rainbow finger kites that fly us to our pots of gold. Shamrocks sit in pots on the nature table next to our seedlings in the bright sunshine. 

I sip my milky chai tea and the children help me chop leeks for the delicate soups of spring and to flavour poached fish for dinner. Yes. Change can be rough but oh so welcome at this lovely time of year. 

I almost called this first entry "waiting" but the excitement that I feel as we prepare for Juniper Glen to open in the fall is more than that. It is nothing less than gleeful anticipation. The feeling that you get when you put a seed into the earth. The sense of hope that you feel when you frame your degree and hang it on the wall. The inability to stop looking at an ultrasound photo of your niece or nephew in profile.The audacity and joy you feel when you and a handful of others decide to make a real change in your community. These feelings are not waiting. They are anticipating! 
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February is always a month of anticipation. We know that under the snow the grass is restoring itself. The bugs, bears and frogs have slowed their rhythm to simply exist with almost no activity whatever. Sometimes it feels that we should do the same - hibernate indoors and come out when we feel the warm sun in our blood. 

When I organized a Community Consultation to plan for a local Kinderhaus & Nature School on a snowy Candlemas day, I worried I might just sit alone "waiting" for people to come. Imagine my delight when parent after parent arrived and even interested community organizations showed up to share big dreams for our children. Over steaming cups of tea and with brightly coloured markers in hand, we shared ideas and I tried to keep up by scribbling notes furiously! 

And guess what? The seedlings have already begun to sprout! March is booked solid with interviews for prospective students and only a few spots remain for April's interview sessions!  

So now what? Now we try out new bread recipes in anticipation of Bread Baking Day in our Kinderhaus! We pop popcorn on the stove, cut coffee filter snowflakes and stock our nature table with treasures we find in the snow. 

As the days lengthen, we bring colourful imported fruits into the home that are plentiful, tropical and at their best: kiwi, pineapple and blood orange. 

We hammer nails and rip out walls to bring more light and warmth to all our spaces in the Kinderhaus. Right now, my favourite task is designing a little reading nook under the stairs for when a student may need a little quiet time alone. 

For all these efforts I am rewarded in the mail with this beautiful diploma from LifeWays which confirms Juniper Glen as a LifeWays aligned program that seeks to create a home away from home for children in their kinder years! 

Then there are days where we imitate the chipmunks and curl up in our blanket nests. We play indoors creating small worlds of wonder and imaginative sculptures. 

At night we light candles, read and tell stories. We create our own warmth in anticipation of the warm days ahead.