Snow Play
Well it seems that this year has been a white, white winter for most parts of the country. Even in San Francisco where we live, it’s been unusually cold and rainy, fluctuating from wet and chilly one day to bright and sunny the next and back again. 
Yet for Maya, Zai and I, usually the Winter’s not complete until we make at least one trip to the snow even if we have to drive to it!
For me, growing up where “snow days” were always a welcomed possibility for that extra time off from school, I find that now I just can’t let Winter go by unless I see some real SNOW! I have to touch it and play in it, sled and snowboard, otherwise I’m just not ready for Spring and resent any sort of hot weather until I feel that cold, cold of snow FIRST!
Living in San Francisco where the seasons Continue reading »
Filed under From the Life | Tags: family, fun, play, season, winter | Comment (0)Early Childhood Conference – March 13, 2010
Chabot College and Las Positas College will be hosting an early childhood conference on March 13, 2010 at Chabot College in Hayward. The theme: Our Focus: The Child & Creciendo Juntos: Educadores, Niños y Familias. This conference is specifically geared toward early childhood professionals who educate or care for infants, toddlers, preschoolers and school-age children.
Maya will be presenting some of the lessons of her Claiming Face curriculum and how to use creativity as a tool for self-empowerment. She will also be selling and signing her children’s books and art prints at the conference. Her presentation is scheduled for 11:00am – 12:20pm on Saturday.
Conference Details:
Saturday, March 13, 2010
8:00 am—5:00 pm
Chabot College
25555 Hesperian Blvd. Hayward, CA 94545
Sponsored By:
Chabot College
Las Positas College
Every Child Counts
First 5 Alameda County
More information and to register for the conference visit their website.
Hope to see you there!
Filed under Conferences | Tags: children, CLAIMING FACE, conference, creativity, empowerment, family | Comment (0)A Heart in the Dark: Wintertime
Monday was the darkest day of the year, the Winter Solstice. We are now at the deepest point of winter. I love knowing that. I can feel the season turning. 
At our house we’ve been filling our dark hours with Christmas crafts and keeping our windows steamy with lots of baking. Our tiny apartment is severely, profoundly decked out and we’ve got 6 different Christmas radio stations on our Pandora. Although I love absolutely any excuse to make things and decorate, it’s taken me a few years to fully receive 
the gift of Christmas brought to me by Matthew and his father and their profound love of the holiday. I’ve needed to go on a little Christmas journey.
When I was 20, my family disowned me at Christmas for being queer. Now so many years later, I rarely ponder on it. We have very little contact. But for years, Christmas served as an anniversary and was re-colored by the experience. The whole season became bittersweet. Over time, I looked for ways to finally Continue reading »
Filed under From the Life | Tags: celebration, Christmas, family, festive, fun, holiday, light, season, Solstice, winter | Comment (0)Last Minute Gift Ideas
Give the gift of art this holiday season. Is there someone on your list that still needs a gift? We’ve assembled special holiday packages of our archival art prints. Buy them as a package and save $20 than when purchased separately plus save on shipping costs. Perfect as a gift for a special someone or share the love (and art) with three friends.
My Colors, My World:
Can you find the colors in your world?
This holiday package contains the three images: Open Eye, I See; Mud Pie Extravaganza; and Iris Tea Party
I Know the River Loves Me:
Do you have a special relationship with the river or know someone who does?
This holiday package contains the three images: Beginning the Journey, Standing in the River, and Floating Free
Nana’s Big Surprise:
Can you spot all of the hidden treasures within these images?
This holiday package contains the three images: Grandma Dancing, Kids with Chicks, and Grandma Hugs
Visit our Etsy Shop for more great gifts for the holiday season, including a print of our delightful Solstice Fairy. Order by December 15th to ensure Christmas delivery. Special holiday packages available now through December 31st 2009. Start shopping>>>
Happy Holidays from Reflection Press!
Filed under General | Tags: Etsy, family, holiday, illustrations, season | Comment (0)Invisible Families
When I was a child, they didn’t teach about my family in school. They didn’t talk about my family on television or in the movies and definitely not in books. At least not the books I ever came into contact with at my library or school. If my family was mentioned at all, it was to condemn, ridicule, or shame. Why? Because I have a gay father.
The messages I heard repeatedly from my childhood were loud and clear in everything I read, everywhere I looked, and everywhere I went. I must be the only one. My family must be something I’m supposed to hide – a difference not to be celebrated, but embarrassed and ashamed of. My family, and therefore I, must be less than, unwelcome, an outcast, deserving of the harsh treatment because otherwise someone would try to stop it, someone would talk about it, someone would tell me it was ok, right? These messages followed me throughout my middle school and high school years and into college. Never once did I meet another kid like me, never once did a teacher acknowledge families like mine existed, never once did I not feel fear that someone would find out my secret and tease and shame me for it. My family was invisible. I was invisible.
At the end of my junior year of college, after I had told maybe a handful of people my entire life about my family, I was sitting at a computer researching scholarships. When out of nowhere I found an organization called, COLAGE. An organization for children who have lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender parents! I couldn’t believe it! I wasn’t the only one, I wasn’t an outcast! I wasn’t supposed to be ashamed. No, in fact, I could be proud! Proud of Continue reading »
Filed under LGBTQI Families | Tags: acceptance, empowerment, family, lgbt, reflection | Comments (3)
