This family-oriented group is gathering to create a secular humanist community in which to raise our children.  Our focus is to discuss parenting issues pertaining to humanist values and participate in multi-family activities to create bonds within our community. Children are welcome, but parents should bring quiet activities for children to do by themselves or with others.

We are also providing some limited age-appropriate guided activites for the kids in which to explore and learn about our humanist values. If you have any ideas for the Secular Humanist Parenting Group in general, have any topics you would liked discussed, or are looking for a way to get more involved, feel free to contact Kevin (assistant organizer) through Meetup.

Currently we are meeting once a month on Sunday afternoons, 2-4pm.  Locations vary.

Sunday, April 14th, 2-4pm Edinborough Park Adventure Peak, Edina

Sunday, January 13th, 2-4pm  Edinborough Park Adventure Peak, Edina

Join us at Edinborough Park for an exciting family outing. We can meet at Adventure Peak which is a 44-by-44-by-37 foot high climbing, low crawling, slip sliding Northwoods adventure. Climb into the 30-foot tall oak tree, slide down one of the four giant tube slides or wash down the triple wave slide. Climb across a canyon, scale the climbing wall and venture to the 30 foot lookout to spy around the Park. From the lookout, slide down the very popular and very fast new super slide. Adventure Peak also features great areas for toddlers to explore. The Tot Area includes climbing, crawling, sliding and even bouncing in an inflatable air bounce geared just for them! The entire padded, netted and enclosed structure has over 45 events to keep kids challenged and entertained for hours.

Sunday, December 23rd,  2-4pm Oxboro Library, Bloomington: Midwinter Holiday Traditions

Centuries ago in northern Europe, the Midwinter season was commonly known as “Yule.” Most freethinkers know that this ancient holiday was usurped by the Christians, but we too often still let religion define and characterize modern-day celebrations.  At this gathering, we will consider what aspects of the older traditions can provide a more authentic and deeper meaning to the season. We will learn some songs, listen to stories and read kid’s poetry together that all focus on the natural world and the joys and challenges of winter.   There’ll be activities and crafts to try and ideas to share on how we as secularists can make this season our own in a way that represents our values and worldview.  Facilitated by Audrey Kingstrom, Community Coordinator for the Humanists of MN.

Sunday, December 9th, 2-4pm Brookdale Library, Brooklyn Center:  Midwinter Holiday Traditions

Snowed out!

Sunday, November 25th, 2-4pm Oxboro Library, Bloomington:  "Parenting Beyond Belief"

We’re back at the library! Join us in a discussion regarding our own mortality as inspired by the next chapter in Parenting Beyond Belief. Chapter Six: Death and Consolation takes us into the ever difficult topic of how to talk about death to our children. Don’t worry if you haven’t read previous chapters (or even this chapter) as the discussion is not entirely focused on the book. Hope to see you there!

We are also continuing our small program for children ages preschool to elementary age. At approximately three o’clock any children at the meeting will be invited to join in reading selected stories from “Love Your Neighbor-Stories of Values and Virtues” and other stories while the parents continue their discussion for about thirty minutes.

Sunday, November 11, 2-4pm Woodlake Nature Center, Richfield

We are heading outside once again for a family centered gathering. Join us as we gather at the Richfield Wood Lake Nature Center. This Nature Center is a 150-acre natural area dedicated to environmental education, wildlife observation, and outdoor recreation.

Meet at the Interpretive Center which will offer us a chance to learn more about plants, animals and the environment. Then we will stroll along some of the three miles of trails and boardwalks that wind through the park.

Sunday, October 28, 2-4pm Oxboro Library, Bloomington:  "Parenting Beyond Belief"

This meeting of the Secular Parenting Group we will continue our discussion of Dale McGowan’s book Parenting Beyond Belief. Chapter Four is titled “On Being and Doing Good”. Join us as we discuss the moral development of children and the advantages we have as secular parents to be able to do this. Don’t worry if you actually haven’t read the chapter as the discussion is uses the book for inspiration and not necessarily a reiteration of what was written.

We are also continuing our small program for children ages preschool to elementary age. At approximately three o’clock any children at the meeting will be invited to join in reading selected stories from “Love Your Neighbor-Stories of Values and Virtues” and other stories while the parents continue their discussion for about thirty minutes.

Sunday, October 14, 2-4pm Minnetonka Orchards: Family Outing

Let’s pick some apples! The Secular Parenting Group is having a fun filled family outing at Minnetonka Orchards. Join us for some Sunday afternoon fun with hayrides, petting barn, and other activities. We will also have the opportunity to make fresh apple cider as they celebrate Cider Fest. Children under 3 are free.

Sunday, August 26th, 2-4pm Oxboro Library, Bloomington:  "Parenting Beyond Belief"

This meeting we are continuing our discussion of Dale McGowan’s book Parenting Beyond Belief. We will focus on Chapter Two “Living With Religion”. Join us as we discuss the essays contained within this chapter which include Dr. Roberta Nelson’s “On Being Religiously Literate” and Margaret Downey’s “Teaching Children to Stand on Principle-Even When the Going Gets Tough”.

Sunday, August 12th, 2-4pm Ridgedale Library, Minnetonka:  "Family Rhythms"

Our discussion topic will be family rhythms. Families involved in organized religions often have some structure built into their schedules: prayers at this time of day, gatherings on this day of the week, and observances at this time of the year. Secular families have the opportunity – and challenge – of deliberately building their family’s rhythms from scratch.

Let’s share the things we routinely do as a family every day, week, month, or season that set the tempo of our households. How do we intentionally place values that are important to us into everyday life, whether it’s nightly reading time, a weekly visit to someone special, or annual excursions to the apple orchard?

*Simplicity Parenting: Using the Extraordinary Power of Less to Raise Calmer, Happier, and More Secure Kids" by Kim John Payne has an interesting section on family rhythm and how he believes it impacts our kids.

Sunday, July 22nd, 2-4pm, 2012, North Mississippi Regional Park, Mpls:  "To Label or Not to Label"             

Join us for the next Humanist Parenting Group! This meeting we are going to focus on labels we use to identify ourselves. Do you identify yourself as a humanist, atheist, skeptic, all the above, or none at all? How we label ourselves affects how our children see us and how they identify themselves. Should we use labels or will the possible negative connotations outweigh the positive? Is it advantageous for the religious to be able to use a label for themselves? Wendy Thomas Russell recently wrote about this issue on her blog.

This meeting is going to be located at the North Mississippi Regional Park. Meet us by the play area. If you wish to come early, the park is having a “Bugs under the microscope” activity for kids at the Carl Kroening Interpretive Center starting at 1:00. It’s free! It is recommended to bring chairs as this makes for an easier time to gather for a discussion.

Sunday, July 8th, 2012,  2-4pm Oxboro Library, Bloomington:  "Parenting Beyond Belief"

We are excited to announce the start of a series where we will discuss Dale McGowan’s book Parenting Beyond Belief. Once a month, we will read a chapter in this book and discuss the subjects that were presented. For our first meeting we will start with (surprise!) chapter one “Personal Reflections”. Join our discussion which will include Julia Sweeney’s “Navigating Around the Dinner Table”, Richard Dawkins’ “Good and Bad Reasons for Believing”, and Penn Jillette’s “Passing Down the Joy of Not Collecting Stamps”.

The Humanist Parenting Group meets twice a month on the second and fourth Sunday. Children are welcome, but bring along something for them to do. If you have any topics you would like discussed, if you have any ideas for the Humanist Parenting Group, or are looking for a way to get more involved, feel free to contact Kevin (assistant organizer) through Meetup.

Sunday, June 24th, 2:00-4:00pm, Mueller Park, Minneapolis:  "Religious Bullying"

In two recent posts on Parents Beyond Belief, Larry Mathys discussed a few situations he encountered and offered a set of suggestions for secular families that may have children going to school with religious bullies. Although school bullying is usually the focus of most news reports, where else should we be concerned about it? How should we handle it?

Join us at Mueller Park in Uptown. Bring chairs if you like to make it easier to gather around for discussion. Children are welcome. Playground equipment is available. 

Sunday, May 27th, 2012, 2--4pm, Newell Park, St. Paul:  "Looking Ahead at Summer"

The warm weather is upon us so we are heading to the parks for our upcoming gatherings. This week we will be at Newell Park in St. Paul—just 4 blocks west of Hamline University. Bring the children along; this park has suitable play areas for toddlers as well as the “older” kids.

Seating for adults is available right next to the playground, but bring along camp or lawn chair for greater flexibility if you wish. Here’s a good chance to get better acquainted with humanist parents as we make plans for future summer outings.

Parking available. Look for us near the playground.

Sunday, May 13th, 2012,  2-4pm Oxboro Library, Bloomington:  "What of Mothers"

We will honor our mothers and the mothers in our midst at this Mother’s Day gathering by considering the attributes we ascribe to “mother.” Is there a unique relationship each of us has to our mothers and that mothers have to their children? Are there special characteristics embodied in the role of “mother.” Are these attributes solely relegated to women? Should men and fathers also aspire to these character traits? Or, on this day, do we simply celebrate the relationship of mother to child?

Historically mothers have been largely responsible for raising children. In the 21^st century we expect fathers to be actively engaged in that task as well. But do we as humanist parents accept responsibility for creating the kind of world in which they can grow and flourish?   The history of Mother’s Day stems from the humanist ideals of 19^th century activist women, Anna Reeves Jarvis and Julia Ward Howe. These women were advocates for peace and human rights to ensure the welfare of every mother’s child. For a brief overview of that history check out the following links.

http://www.peace.ca/mothersdayproclamation.htm

http://imaginepeace.com/archives/6818

 Come share your ideas and insights, your hopes and aspirations in raising your children. Get better acquainted with other humanist and freethinking parents. There will be a short story time for the kids, along with free play, and refreshments for everyone.

Sunday, April 22nd, 2-4pm.  Oxboro Library, Bloomington:  "A World of Books"

At this meeting, we will focus on creating a literacy-rich home environment. We will begin by sharing our favorite books from childhood. Then we’ll learn about some recently published notable books from freethinking mom, librarian and blogger, Mindy Rhiger.   Our discussion will also explore family rituals related to books and literacy.

Bring along your children, if you'd like. We’ll have a short story-time on springtime observations for them. Here’s an opportunity for free-thinking kids to share with each other and get better acquainted. Of course, there will be plenty of time for free play, so do bring along some quiet activities for them to do by themselves or with the other children.