Greening Sam and Avery

outdoor play link up - playing in the dark

Welcome to the Outdoor Play Link Up!

Lots of great ideas were linked up last week but my favorite was for sure the rainbow walk that was linked from Gratefully Growing in Grace.

Sam is super into rainbows and I think she would really love the idea of going on a walk to find those colors. Plus, I am always a fan of combining a craft project and outdoor play. Head over here and check out this great post.

This week Sam and I stayed up a little bit late to try out some outdoor play in the dark! We wanted to see if we could find the moon and see some stars but of course, it got cloudy. Bummer. But with flashlights in hand we still had a great adventure. We played around with what we could spot with our flashlights, listened to the sounds of the night and walked around the yard. The best part was heading to the back of the yard where we have buches and trees. We had some pretty big backyard birds that we scared out of their sleeping spots, which of course scared both of us, but after we recovered from the startle was very fun to experience.

Can you see her? She loved getting a chance to play on her swingset too in the dark!

I was surprised that she was not afraid at all, which was great! Playing in the backyard at night is great practice for little ones that are going to be going camping and need to be more comfortable outside at night. You can discover if they have any fears or hesitations about being outside in the dark and address those fears in the safety and comfort of your own yard. Your child will then be much more comfortable in the dark when you are out camping! Love practicing camping skills at home before heading out!

How did your kids play outdoors this week?
 
Share your ideas for outdoor play activities with us! Here’s just a few guidelines for sharing.

Any kind of children's outdoor play is welcome. If it happened outside, then please link it up!
 
Please do not share any competitions, promotions, or posts that are not related to Outdoor Play.
 
Please remember to link back to this post and help us spread the word about the importance (and fun!) of outdoor play!
 
Each week we will feature an activity from the previous week. By contributing you are giving permission for an image and link to your post to be republished.

 

Day 365: a whole year

A few vacation pictures for you to enjoy while I ramble on about this one year mark!

A whole year.

 
Of learning, crafting, exploring, attempting and being outdoors.

 

A year of challenging my skills and knowledge as an environmental educator.  

I have learned so much about what it takes to get little ones interested in and excited about nature.  

But I still have learned enough or taught enough.  

Raising responsible environmental citizens is a process that takes longer than just one year.  

People have asked me since I started this blog what will happen when I hit the one year mark and I have never had an answer. Until today... 

It occurred to me that their learning and my teaching does not stop today. I HAVE to keep going!  

Will I keep posting everyday? I think so. But maybe involve more guest posts and more links to resources.  
 

I am hoping that I still have something to offer all the moms and educators out there that read this little blog. And I know I have more to learn about early environmental education.
 

So, thats it. The journey continues. With more adventures, more learning, more reading, more exploring and discovering to come. I hope that our family continues to get "greener" everyday!

Now, for the winner! Dawn! Thanks for being a follower. Please email me within 24 hours with your mailing address to acknowledge the win, otherwise I will be forced to choose another winner!

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The Nitty Gritty!

So, some of the things that I learned on this camping trip....

1. Lifejackets are a MUST! We actually saw quite a few little kids that weren't wearing them which really surprised me. Not only is it SO much safer for the girls but since there was almost no current to the river where we were swimming I really didn't have to worry about them. I could sit on the side of the river, play in the rocks with Avery and not have to worry that Sam was in water up to her chest. It took a HUGE load of stress off of me and made the water play time so much more enjoyable.

2. The clamp on highchair is a must for all camping trips. It was so easy to plop Avery in that chair while I made meals, waited for meals to be ready or just to keep her occupied for a few minutes. I could not imagine having to eat all of those meals with Avery on my lap and the clamp on chair was super easy to pack.

3. Inside toys are worth packing. Sometimes they just need some quiet inside time before bed or early in the morning. Packing a few puzzles, markers, books and coloring books was a huge help for us several times throughout the trip.

4. If you have a hang-up about your kids going to bathroom outside GET OVER IT! When the bathroom is 100 yards away sometimes it is just easier to let them go behind a tree. Make sure they understand when it is appropriate to do this and help them so that they don't make a big mess of it but otherwise I don't see the harm.

5. Let go of the schedule. I went on the trip thinking the girls would still go to bed on time and would still get naps. Some of that happened, but not everyday all the time. Yes, they were a little extra crabby but not too bad and they have certainly caught up now. I think letting go of the stress of keeping to the schedule would have really helped me.

Any other thoughts on camping with kids?

Day 364: camping wrap up

The last day of camping was pretty simple. Well, as simple as cooking pancakes and breakfast burritos for 30 people on a charcoal camping grill can be. As simple as having 13 kids ranging in ages from 15 to 18 months all wanting to fish at the same time. So, yes it was a crazy and chaotic morning but it was a morning filled with beaver tail slaps, kids in boats on the water, fish being caught, toddlers chasing grasshoppers, families eating together outside and sunshine!

Not much could be better than all of that in my mind.

 
Exhausted and ready for bed. I have many more other pictures and stories to share but those will have to wait for tomorrow!

We will be celebrating Day 365 by looking back over our trip, telling the stories and looking at the pictures plus I will pick a winner of THE GIFT! (so if you haven't entered be sure to check the sidebar page.)

Day 363: camping where the kids outnumber the adults

Yes, there are more "kids" in this giant family group then there are "adults".  Although I think some of the adults are sillier and more out of control then some of the bigger kids!

Here is where we are today!  Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park Be sure to click over and check out the pictures of the incredible rock formations that we get to explore and swim around in.

This is where we are camping for two nights, swimming, canoeing, playing, hiking and exploring!

Day 362: meeting the family to see some elelphants

Our whole group of 31 people is meeting at Elephant Rocks State Park today. We will explore, have a picnic lunch and wait here until we have all gathered and our campsites are ready for us at 3:00pm this afternoon.

I have been to this park many times but it has been years! I can't wait to see the beautiful views and boulders again and share all of this with Chris and the girls.

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The Nitty Gritty!

Since this is the first day of our three day adventure I thought I would share a little bit of back story about what we are doing.

Growing up my family spent three days camping and canoeing with our extended family every summer. At some point, I think I was in high school, the older cousins were getting married, moving away and everyone's lives were changing in a way that didn't make the family float trip possible anymore. We went just our immediate family for a few years but then when my older sister went away to college even that stopped. Now, 10 years later, we are ALL getting back together to do the family trip again. We all have kids of our own now and there will be faces not there that aren't with us anymore. But the memories will will flow out of each of us I am sure! I can't wait to reconnect with cousins I haven't seen in ages and introduce them to my girls.

Those family float trips are some of my best memories growing up. I learned more about the outdoors and my abilities on those days then during any other time in my life. I have no idea if this will once again become an annual thing. Since some of the family is coming from Turkey and many are coming from other states I highly doubt we will do this again, at least as the whole big group. But even getting to do this just one more time is incredible!  

Hope you will come back on Day 365 to see all the pictures! 

Day 361: camping with kids -- what to pack

Today is the packing, cooking, preparing day for our big three day camping trip. For many people out there that do much more extreme adventures then just a simple family camping trip preparing for this kind of trip would probably take them just a few hours. But there are 31 people camping! Which means the meals have been split up between all the different households and we all have to prepare and bring some portions of the meals. That is a lot to think about. Plus, camping with kids always means there is different gear involved then when just adults go camping.

So, I thought I would share our packing list of stuff we are bringing just for the girls.

• clothes.  more clothes then you might pack for a normal trip away from home for three days, plus these clothes are the old, stained, grubby clothes that I don't care if they get ruined on the river and beach!
• swimsuits.  again I do not pack our brand-new cute suits for them to wear. I can remember growing up that my swimsuits never quite looked the same after three days in the river!
• nets, buckets, shovels, rakes and other "sand" toys. The Black River doesn't really have sand beaches, mostly just rocks, but you need the sand toys anyway. Packing enough for each girl to have their own set (just don't want to deal with tantrums from having to share!)
• camping chairs. Yes, we have small, child-sized camping chairs for each of the girls. Makes the meals and campfire time more fun for them to have their own little place to sit.
• life jackets and floaties. A MUST whenever kids are by the water!
• sunscreen and bug spray. We use the California baby brand and have had great success with both the sunscreen and bug spray.
• child-sized sleeping bags. Both girls now have their own. I just think it makes for less bulky packing so I don't have to bring as many seperate blankets and things.
• water bottle for each kid. Allowing each child to have their own water bottle instead of just drinking out of cups means I can more closely monitor how much water they are drinking to make sure they are getting enough.
• a few indoor toys. Just in case the weather turns rotten (keeping my fingers crossed this does NOT happen!) I have a small amount of simple art supplies, books and puzzles for the kids.
• water shoes. Both girls have Keens but after discussing this and sharing a few memories with my sister we both decided to pick up some slightly less expensive water shoes. The river current has been known to rip a shoe off and some of our shoes never quite lost that river smell! 
• the comforts of home. For my kids this means blankets, stuffed animals and their own pillows. A bit extreme for three days and only two nights but if it means they will go to sleep without problem and sleep through the night in a new place the extra stuff is totally worth it!! 

I think that is just about all the extras that we are bringing for the girls. Anything I am forgetting? Would love to know what your families necessities are for camping trips with your kids?

Day 323: sam goes fishing

Pawpaw brought Sam her very first fishing pole. We were hoping to get it out and wet the hook from the kayak yesterday but couldn't get it put together and working in time. So today we walked to our local neighborhood pond so she could practice her casting and learn a little bit about fishing.

 
 
 
She was very good at following the instructions and wanted to do it by herself but after a few casts and she didn't catch a fish she was done. I am sure that is the way it would be for most little ones.

I knew there probably weren't any fish in this particular pond but wanted Sam to get a chance to try out the fishing pole with her grandparents.

Today was all about practicing. In preparation for a big family camping trip we have coming up soon we lit another backyard fire and roasted marshmallows. I want my girls to be familiar with campfires, know the rules and not be tempted to get too close.

 
Avery wanted desperately to help me blow on the fire but I convinced her to blow from a safe distance away.

I am really hoping that I will be able to enjoy the campfire and not be stressed with worry about them getting seriously hurt. Lots more practice is needed!

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The Nitty Gritty!

Practice makes perfect for almost anything that you do outdoors. Starting small and working up to bigger adventures are a great way to treat outdoor activities with little kids. Things like backyard fires, picnics, playing in a tent set up in the backyard, camping in the backyard and many others are all great ways to practice skills that your kids will need to be comfortable with when they do outdoor adventures with the family.

If you are familiar with PlayOutdoors their campfire blog has lots of articles on how to get kids outside. Plus, I actually wrote an article for them that is suppose to be published on Jne 6th about camping practice with little kids. And if you need information on how to poop in the woods there is a great article on there right now!