All The Art! And a lil' Bit of Mental Health!

grief and loss – help children deal with death

grief and loss – help children deal with death

When your teen loses a friend as a parent, you have been hit with a double whammy. You yourself are trying to process this death and then you also have the added bonus of processing your child’s grief. It’s a double hit to your psyche.

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creativity in counseling

creativity in counseling

As a counselor who works with children, preteens, teens and emerging adults, I constantly struggle with finding creative and engaging ways to provide therapeutic services to my clients. I have a background in art and play therapy so I am almost always found with art materials and things to play with either in my portable therapy kit or in my office. Creativity in counseling can be very crucial when it comes to making an impact on the therapeutic relationship and experience for yourself and your clients.

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What is a visual journal you ask?

What is a visual journal you ask?

What is a visual journal you ask? Some of the earliest forms of art like cave drawings, called Petroglyphs, are, in fact, visual journals. They depict daily life, struggles, battles, the fight to live, hunting etc… Compare that today and if you look at my social media feeds you see images of my daily life, my struggles, food I like to eat and other daily documentation. My personal journal looks quite the same. And it wouldn’t be my journal if it didn’t have some bling or other artistic additions to it.

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Taking The Journal Visual! Upgrade the Diary!

Taking The Journal Visual! Upgrade the Diary!

When you think of “the journal” you may be instantly bored by the idea of keeping one, but a visual journal is a regular journal upgraded, it’s the 2.0 version! Visual journals use a mixture of words and art; like drawings, magazine cut outs, or paintings even. They are like a diary with artistic flair. Typically a visual journal still outlines the day ro day musings of the author but might add drawings of ideas or sketches for an upcoming piece of art. Many famous artists had visual journals and used them to do initial sketches of ideas or drafts of an image they were looking at at the moment.

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face painting on the cheap! halloween, or anytime!

face painting on the cheap! halloween, or anytime!

I absolutely love Halloween! I love decorating. I love the food. I love the overall fall vibe it’s got going on, I love everything! And some of the fun part of it is dressing up! I have a whole suitcase in my closet full of different fun dress up costumes and accessories. And Halloween is definitely a big part of that suitcase as is face painting!

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Diverse & Inclusive Holiday Decorating for Kids

Diverse & Inclusive Holiday Decorating for Kids

During the month of November and December we have a lot of holidays going on for a lot of different people. Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and winter solstice to name just a few of the most common. Christmas gets a lot of commercial attention, but your family’s holiday can be just as much fun and just as lovely as those glossy magazine spreads, even though it may not be Christmas.

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Mask Making as Art Therapy! Exploring Who You Are!

Mask Making as Art Therapy! Exploring Who You Are!

People have been making masks and wearing masks for all kinds of reasons for thousands of years. We wear them as a form of entertainment like in a play, we wear them to disguise ourselves like in a costume party. Famous people wear masks or disguises so as not to be recognized. Masks were worn during Greek mythology times. They are worn as tools for telling a story during a rite of passage or recreating an event that happened in the past.

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Bustin’ Myths About Art Therapies | Best Art Therapy Techniques

Bustin’ Myths About Art Therapies | Best Art Therapy Techniques

What even is art therapy? How in the world does it fit with straight up couch therapy? Therapy in the old days typically was portrayed as a dark mahogany walled-in office with a therapist sitting in some kind of a fancy leather chair and a patient lying on the couch talking about their issues. The therapist is typically portrayed as an older male (think Freud) who is taking notes and asking questions. This is obviously an antiquated version of what therapy looks like. So let’s bust all the old myths about therapy and specifically art therapies.

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Rosh Hashanah! Let’s Celebrate The Jewish New Year!

Rosh Hashanah! Let’s Celebrate The Jewish New Year!

As a child growing up Jewish, I remember celebrating certain BIG Jewish holidays, like Rosh Hashanah, in a large synagogue outside San Francisco somewhere. Don’t ask me, I don’t remember the name. (maybe ask my mom) But the place was HUGE and with many buildings. I also don’t remember the inside of the sanctuary ONE BIT. But I remember the lobby, which was the sanctuary for kids looking for sanctuary from the sanctuary. LOL!

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8 Art Therapy Activities to Help Kids Identify & Manage Feelings

8 Art Therapy Activities to Help Kids Identify & Manage Feelings

Your kids may be having a serious case of the feels these days—from sadness and anxiety to feeling disconnected, lonely, and bored. And no wonder! While most of us are not certified art therapists, we can still incorporate a few art therapy activities to help them identify and manage their emotions.

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mental health is many things

mental health is many things

What exactly is mental health? According to the website called mentalhealth.com, “Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make choices. Mental health is important at every stage of life, from childhood and adolescence through adulthood. Over the course of your life, if you experience mental health problems, your thinking, mood, and behavior could be affected. “

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breathing exercises for anxiety for kids and teens

breathing exercises for anxiety for kids and teens

Anyone who can breathe can do breathing exercises, therefore anyone with anxiety can do breathing exercises for anxiety. It’s just that simple. Breathing is one of the few things our autonomic nervous system controls. It basically means this happens even when we don’t tell it to. That and blinking. I know there are more but I can’t remember them at this time. Lol

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Yom Kippur is Saying I’m Sorry, and it’s good for everyone!

Yom Kippur is Saying I’m Sorry, and it’s good for everyone!

Yom Kippur is one of our major Jewish holidays! Being raised Jewish in a very SMALL synagogue near San Francisco I got a front seat view of all the experiences and practices involved in my faith. I have ALWAYS loved honoring the deep traditions and the values I have been taught. When lighting the Chanukah candles on my grandmother’s menorah it makes me think about how many family members and generations who have lit the same menorah as me for decades before myself.

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back to school stress management

back to school stress management

Summer days are over and we are back in the swing of things across the country. Schools have reopened, lunches are being prepared, homework is getting done (or not) and stress levels have gone up. I want to get into back to school stress management challenges and opportunities with you, in the hopes I can help!

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Creative drawing is so much easier than you think!

Creative drawing is so much easier than you think!

How many of you doodle? I am a huge doodler. My mom will tell you she’s not artistic but I can tell you that if you looked on the kitchen counter she has at least one or two pieces of paper or old envelopes that she has drawn repetitive patterns or just circles or # type images. She says she does it a lot when she’s on the phone. It gives her hands and eyes something to do while she’s talking. I don’t think she’s the only person that does creative drawing, without thinking they are doing creative drawing. Wink wink.

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Michelle offers in-person camps and art experiences, she also hosts live art events and can bring an art experience to your location. Her blogs give you the inside tips and fun stories of being creative every day with your kids, but also just for you!

Every Family Needs Creativity!

Let’s get creative together, relieve stress, and ignite the imagination! Enjoy creativity with your kids or on your own! In-person, online or with wine!