Friday, March 28, 2014

The Sling Diaries, Vol. IV // Everything Shines: Listening


From mountaintop trees to crashing waves in the sea, we are listening. Under star bright canopies, between golden sunlight rays, we are listening. Through cracks in the pavement where wildflowers grow, while studying colored lines of the brightest butterfly wings, we are listening. By fireside, through desert domes, through fields of sage and wild oaks, we are listening. With eyes open, eager and wide, we crane our necks towards the sky, to observe, to absorb, and to listen.

Luna is our great teacher in this art, this magical act of listening. She hears with ease the messages from all these beautiful, voiceless things. She knows the words of her brother, the wind, dances to the voice of her sister, the leaves. Recognizing the harmony between all living things, she follows in the path of her father, sweet sun, and her mother, bright moon. She knows when to rise, when to fall, when to laugh and when to rest. She takes in every breath as an instrument for love, breathes in all the wisdom given freely from the earth, and breathes out into the world her part of the whole. She knows it all through listening.

The voice she hears and teaches us to hear, is one of great intuition. It is the language spoken through the patterns in the natural world, the patterns weaved within us all. With Luna by our side, we remember to appreciate and rely on this sacred gift, and we learn to listen. The answers are there, laid around us and buried in the earth, hidden in the depths of the sky, and painted across our hearts. We need only to listen. So we move into forests, we move into seas, we study the flowers, and we learn how to be. In silence, in stillness, in gratitude, and by following our child's path, we learn to hear the voice in all the beautiful, voiceless things. And forever, we are listening.










































This entry is part of the Sakura Bloom Sling Diaries. We are wearing Luna in a simple silk sling in Sandstone. Thank you so much for following along! Love & hugs.




Tuesday, March 25, 2014

Freshly Picked // Review & Giveaway!


It had been just a few months of my using Instagram, when I found out I was pregnant. I remember being so amazed when I discovered this world of moms I never knew existed, who were united on this platform through their creative ideas, amazingly crafty endeavors and business ideas. Susan Peterson, the founder of Freshly Picked, a moccasin company for kids, was one of the first entrepreneurs I had the pleasure of encountering. When I landed on her page I immediately was a fan of her product, her approach, and of course, imagined my little unborn someday running around in her adorably cute shoes. Fast forward over a year later and here we are this week, growing our own little business lives through Instagram and watching our Little Moon getting beyond excited for her very first pair of moccs! And what makes it even more special, is that we've had the total honor of collaborating with Susan and the incredibly kind folks over at Freshly Picked in order to do a review and a giveaway for their amazing shoes!


Luna will be nine months old in just a few short weeks and she has started crawling around like crazy and pulling herself up on everything possible. We are all having so much fun with this stage of her life and discovery as a new human being, and also realized it was time to get her her first pair of shoes, as she's been a barefoot kid up until now! Since I've been dreaming of these moccasins for quite some time, you can imagine my excitement when they first arrived. Perfectly purple, true to size, soft and supple, handcrafted with love, just like we'd always envisioned! And when we showed them to Luna, she was ecstatic! First, of course, putting them in her mouth, the usual greeting for all new things these days. Then, she watched in amazement as we put them on her, smiling and looking from them to us and back again. The shoes slipped on perfectly and with ease, with great help from a nicely hidden elastic band around the ankle, which is super stretchy and strong. Luna was thrilled to see herself in her new shoes and stand and kick in them. Even with there being a little room for her to grow into this pair, they stayed on super snug, even with all her acrobatic moves!












One of my favorite aspects about the design of Freshly Picked moccasins, is that the same pattern is used for both shoes, so your child's feet get to mold the sole and create which side will be the left and right. The leather is so nice and soft, even after just two times of wearing the moccs, they were starting to form to her feet so comfortably. We really couldn't be happier with these shoes, with the amazing kindness and generosity from the makers, and we are SO EXCITED that we get to give a pair away to one of YOU! If you'd like to enter to win a pair for your own little one, in your choice of color and size, please leave a comment below and let us know! You can also put additional entries into the giveaway by following us and the directions on Intsagram! Thank you as always for letting us share, for being a part of this community we love so much, and to Freshly Picked for teaming up with us. We love you!

Big hugs,

Ashley, Oscar, Luna & Francois