Rituals with kids can be really, really sweet. 💖 Kids love being a part of your seasonal celebrations. They LOVE the simple activities, the creativity, the nature & the MAGIC. I really encourage you to include kids in your life in your rituals & celebrations as often as possible.

That being said, there are two important things I always keep in mind when my kids are involved:

1. Keep it simple!

Kids have way shorter attention spans than you think. So don’t set your expectations too high. Don’t try to do too many things, and don’t be too rigid. Try and be open to the energy of the kids. Let them guide you – even if it takes you off track. Just ave fun.

2. Let it be goofy! 🤪

Don’t make things too serious. Let kids be silly. Don’t worry about things being ‘perfect’. The best parts always end up being the unscripted, unexpected parts.

With all that in mind, here’s an outline for a sweet Summer Solstice Celebration I had with my family. It’s perfect for kids of all ages. 😄

These are all ideas, and this is just an outline. Don’t feel like you need to everything. Take the parts that speak to you & leave the rest. Feel free to adjust however you see fit. See where the evening takes you.

Summer Solstice Celebration

SUPPLIES USED: Noise makers (rattles, drums, tambourines, anything you have around the house); fire making supplies; S’more fixings; camera; speaker/phone to play music.

SET UP
Lay out a blanket & light your fire before you begin. In my experience, getting the fire started always takes longer than you anticipate. So do this step before you begin. Invite your kids to help you build the fire.

CLEANSE YOUR SPACE
You can start your celebration by cleansing the space & clearing the energy. A super fun way to do this with kids is with noise makers. Use whatever you have on hand: rattles, drums, tambourines, popcorn in cans, aspirin bottles – anything you have that makes noise. Get creative! What do the kids feel inspired to use as instruments?

Play a favorite family song & dance around your fire, shaking your noise makers to cleanse your space as you go. (If you can’t think of a song try one of these: “Happy” by Pharrell, “Yes I Will” by Michael Franti & Spearhead, “I Gotta Feeling” by Black Eyed Peas, “Walking on Sunshine” by Katrina & the Waves. These are all perfect for Summer Solstice.)

GROUND INTO YOUR RITUAL SPACE.
After you’ve cleansed your space, sit down on your blanket. Close your eyes & take several deep breaths. Talk to kids about breathing all the way down deep into their bellies.

Decide how many breaths you’re going to take. (Depending on your kids’ ages, 5-10 breaths may be sufficient.) Tell the kids how many breaths you’re going to take & count each breath slowly on your fingers together.

TALK BRIEFLY ABOUT THE MEANING OF THE SUMMER SOLSTICE.
Take a moment to discuss the meaning of this sacred seasonal day & how it relates to this ceremony:

• The sun’s been growing every day since winter began & today is the longest day of the year!

• Today we celebrate the sun because it reaches the PEAK of its growth cycle.

• We each have a fire that burns within us–your own piece of the sun burning brightly inside of you.

• At the Summer Solstice we celebrate our own sacred fires. We invite in the fire of this longest day sun to add to our own fires so that we can burn brighter & stronger for the days & weeks of ahead.

SHARE YOUR PEAK MOMENTS
Since we’re honoring the sun & the peak of its cycle, this is a good time to celebrate our own peak moments from this first half of the year.

What do you feel proud of? What accomplishments have you recently made? What’s something new you learned to do in the last few months?

Everyone take a moment to share something you’re proud of. (This is always one of my favorite parts about rituals with kids. They share the most beautiful things. If you can, write down what they share after your ritual. It’s really beautiful to look back on in the future.💗)

MAKE S’MORES
We are celebrating ourselves & our accomplishments with this super special, awesome, summery treat! If you feel moved, offer up a bite to the Universe, God, the Earth – whatever name you use for the Divine.

TAKE A FAMILY SELFIE
I love to document our family celebrations. Take a selfie of everyone together celebrating this sacred seasonal day. It would be an awesome tradition to collect your photos with a note about what everyone shared. 💕

SAY THANKS
Take a moment to say a brief prayer of thanks to whatever higher power your family believes in. Don’t worry about getting the words perfect of saying the exact right thing. Just say whatever comes to your mind & heart. It’s completely okay if it feels awkward & the words are clunky. (This is why we call it a spiritual “practice”.)

Remember to thank your selves, each of you, for showing up & doing this powerful work. Ask the kids if there’s anything they’d like to say.

CLOSE YOUR CIRCLE.
Just like you started, dance around & shake your noise makers to end this ritual.

Afterward, reflect on your experience.
I encourage you to spend a few minutes after every ritual writing about your experience. What did you include in this ritual? What worked? What would you do differently? Also include anything you want to remember about this experience with your kids.