Hi, I’m Maureen. My husband Jeff and I have two children—Norman (11) and Frankie (9). We fell in love with Family Montessori from the very beginning, and both of our children attended preschool and kindergarten here. When I sat down to think about what I might share with younger families, one core value of our family stood out right away: we say yes to experiences.
At our house, we’ve made an intentional choice to create a culture of adventure and togetherness. We seek out opportunities to try new things, big and small, often right here in our own community.
We’ve gone on family hikes and marched in local parades. Our kids have learned to water ski, drive a golf cart, and bottle-feed a baby lamb at our neighborhood farm. We’ve cheered our kids on at local chess tournaments and youth soccer games, watched them run lemonade stands and garage sales, and celebrated messy victories after neighborhood pudding fights. We’ve said yes to woods camping with friends, volunteering at a local animal shelter, rock climbing, apple picking, and cooking new recipes. We’ve biked to Loveland, floated down the Little Miami river, swam in secluded swimming holes, Many of these experiences are free or low cost—library reading programs, fossil hunting, organizing neighborhood water fights, or joining the library’s chess club. Others require more planning or energy. But all of them share one thing in common: they invite our children to step into something new.
And truthfully, it’s not always easy. We’ve had tantrums, tired legs, and unpredictable weather. One time, we rallied the family to go strawberry picking—coordinated with friends, packed up the minivan with everyone, drove 45 minutes—only to find out (by knocking on the farmer’s home door) that the farm was weeks away from opening. So we pivoted, found a nearby state park, scavenged some snacks from the depths of the minivan, and ended up having a fantastic hiking adventure instead.
These moments teach flexibility, courage, and resilience. They remind us that adventure isn’t about everything going perfectly—it’s about showing up, together.
We believe these shared experiences are helping our children grow into curious, confident, and connected people. They’re learning how to meet the unknown with open hearts, to try something even if it feels hard or uncomfortable, and to trust that we’ll be there with them every step of the way. This is the approach we desire for them as they continue to grow into young adults. There will always be opportunities to meet new people, try new things, and enlarge their circles of comfort. And we hope that when these opportunities arise, they will be ready to jump in with both feet.
There is so much available in our town and the surrounding areas. All we have to do is be ready to say yes!