Miss Mittens Learns to Meditate is more than a bedtime story. It’s a nightly ritual that helps kids wind down, feel emotionally supported, and fall asleep more easily.

In this beautifully illustrated book, children follow Miss Mittens and her pet friends to meditation school, where they learn simple tools to calm their bodies, explore emotions, and imagine what they want most.

Along the way, they practice:

Breathing to self-regulate

Lying down for meditation

Listening to calming sounds to relax

Using visualization to create what they wish for

Blocking out distractions to focus

Saying affirmations like “I am brave” at bedtime

Including others, even those who seem unkind

The story gently explores the idea that unkindness is often a sign of wanting to belong. When Shadow, a stray cat, steals a toy and calls the others names, Miss Mittens chooses compassion. She forgives him, invites him to join, and shows him kindness. By the end, Shadow is sitting in meditation class, beginning to feel like he belongs.

The pets learn how to notice how they feel, breathe through challenging moments, and imagine what they want most. This helps kids move from reaction to awareness while planting gentle seeds of the feeling they truly need.

They also experience sound from crystal singing bowls which demonstrates the emotional shift that can happen when children are given simple tools to relax.

At the back of the book, you’ll find a parent guide and a complete bedtime meditation script. It walks you through how to ask simple bedtime questions, help your child turn a desired feeling into an affirmation, and gently weave it into the meditation as you read it aloud while they fall asleep.

This part matters. Just before sleep, the brain moves into a receptive state where the subconscious is most open. It’s a natural window to gently wire in more confidence, calm, and connection.

One story. One affirmation. One loving voice at bedtime can shape how a child sees themselves and the world.

Perfect for parents, caregivers, therapists, and teachers who want to create a bedtime ritual that nurtures connection, confidence, and emotional development.

Author Biography

Penny McAlpin is the owner of Inquire Within Meditation and a certified Meditation Guide, Yoga Therapist, Advanced Yoga Nidra and Kids Yoga Nidra facilitator, and Sound Practitioner. For over 11 years she has guided individuals, families, and organizations toward greater clarity, resilience, and presence through workshops, corporate programs, and private sessions. She also served as the Global Vice President of Entrepreneurs’ Organization (EO), bringing her expertise in leadership and emotional wellness to a worldwide community.As a mother of two, Penny wrote Miss Mittens Learns to Meditate to help families create meaningful bedtime rituals. The story feels playful, yet it’s intentionally designed to give parents a simple way to connect with their children at the end of the day. With intention-setting questions and a customizable meditation script, parents can help children release daily tension and “wire in” confidence during the formative years when science shows that 95% of a child’s perspective of who they are and how they decide to show up in the world is formed by the age of seven.Penny lives in Phoenix with her family and their beloved pets, Miss Mittens, a Ragdoll cat, and Henry the Bernedoodle, who inspired the characters in this story.