The Christmas I Grew Up With Is Long Gone

The kind of Christmas I grew up with is long gone from my reality. 

Maybe you know what I mean - back in the 90s when you couldn't even see the tree skirt because of the presents piled so high and extended so wide you weren't able to imagine how Santa even got them in the house. 

The privilege I experienced as a child still takes my breath away at times, and while there is an inherent privilege in my children's life that will remain, things look quite different. 

Here are some of the ways we've framed Christmas for our kids: First, when my kids came out of the womb I told them Santa wasn't real (no kidding). Second, we spend very little on our kids for Christmas, around $100 per person. Third, we focus on buying local, and having meaningful experiences over the holidays. 

One of my favourite traditions we've created is making natural gifts for wild animals as a family (like 🍊🍿and 🌰) and taking them to our special tree in the forest. We decorate the tree with our offerings to the animals, and then we sing songs and drink hot chocolate. We got the idea from the book "Night Tree" by Eve Bunting - check it out here. 

This year is no exception - and for our family, we are holding fast to personal connections and meaningful experiences over a consumeristic holiday. Not only will this be easier on our bank account, but I know teaching our kids about the meaning behind these choices will form their expectations around Christmas and the holidays for the future. 

What are your favourite holiday traditions? I love to hear about them.

Peace,
Megan

Nature Crafts at Appleseed

At Appleseed, we are passionate about nature and creativity and how we combine the two. We believe using our hands and our creative brains is a large part of yoga and we strive to create a large space for these two in the lives of our children. We trust our children to create on their own and give them the tools they need to do so. We believe everyone has the power to build up a culture of beauty around them using their own creative skills and nature around us.

We also do our best to honour, learn from, and preserve the beauty and simplicity of nature’s design. Our crafts are committed to being chemical-free and eco-friendly wherever possible, as we strive for a life of respect, balance, and health for our children.

Simplicity, beauty, nature, and health. All reflected in our nature craft creations. All indicative of our connection to each other, our communities, and the earth. So come craft with us at Appleseed - we do nature crafts everyday in our yoga camps, as well as in some of our special classes and birthday parties. If you have a brilliant nature craft idea, we’d love to hear it!

Check out a recent video we posted to socials with our favourite crafts we’ve done through our 8 years in business!

Appleseed Featured in a Recent Laurier Alumni Article

In July 2025, Megan was approached by her alma mater Wilfred Laurier, to contribute to an article on entrepreneurship in the next Purple and Gold newsletter. She jumped on the opportunity, and not long after in August 2025, Appleseed was featured in a Laurier Alumni article in the Purple and Gold newsletter.

Megan graduated from Laurier in 2006 with a BBA in Finance. She is a proud Alumni of Laurier and the work they do to back women entrepreneurship. It was a pure joy for her to learn about and be featured alongside so many other brilliant women in the business world.

Check out the article and don’t forget to read about the other entrepreneurs featured! Appleseed is proud to have worked with Diamond Teachers Group in the past, and supports and loves the work Julie is doing in the one-on-one education world.

You can also find a special post with these leaders on LinkedIn.