I haven't written for this blog in ages and now that my television has decided to stop working (it involved a loud popping sound) I feel that it's about time I began again.
Although most everything I wrote about involved crafts I have decided to widen my spectrum of writing. Since this is meant to be everything to do with parenting I should be writing about all our little family events, crafts, expeditions, and so on. So today I'm starting with my concern over my children's nature deficit disorder and what I decided to do about it.
Being in my 30's I did not grow up in a time when kids played outside until the sun went down. I did not run out the door with my baseball glove, unless it was to practice, nor did I have a swimming hole I could while the summer away in. There was no playing in the woods, all nighters at a local beach, or anything else that involved nature for the most part. I grew up having a sibling or babysitter watch over me at all times. All outdoor play was monitored and at man made playgrounds. That's if I was taken to a playground to begin with. Don't get me wrong, I have some great memories of camping with the family. And as I grew older we occassionally took large family trips to places like Yosemite but with time that grew few and far between. And truth be told, I don't blame my parents. Nowadays most homes need a dual income so no one is around to have these kinds of outings. And even when you are out it's rare when you can really call a place you're in NATURE. Our parents were fortunate to have those memories and I am determined to do my best to make sure our family is instilled with the same love of nature that we, as adults in this household, have.
I have been wanting to begin hiking with our family for some time. Now that my husband has found time in his schedule to go I have been planning some of our mornings around short hiking trips. Our first trip was a hike through Irvine Park. We picked a trail and headed out hiking for about an hour. I had a backpack full of snacks, water, extra clothes, and a first aid kit. We hiked for about an hour taking breaks whenever necessary and the kids did as well as I expected. There was some whining but we took it nice and slow and I distracted them by reminding them about the train and zoo tickets I had waiting for them. I even threw in a pony ride just to sweeten the deal. That seemed to do the trick. All in all we hiked for an hour, watched the kids on their pony rides, boarded the train, then visited the OC Zoo. By the time we got home we had been gone for about 3 hours and the girls were happy to just sit quietly and relax.
This weekend I thought we'd take it a little slower for them so as not to turn them off from my new found hobby. I planned today's trip to be geared more towards them so we drove out to Anaheim's Oak Canyon Nature Center for a Saturday morning nature walk led by one of the naturalists. It started out in the eduaction center where the girls played with puppets and looked over live animals as well as not live ones. That was followed by an hour long walk through the beautiful and wonderfully shaded trails of Oak Canyon all the while listening to the informative tidbits our naturalist had to offer.
Our girls recieved this type of "hiking" quite well and my hope is that by slowly introducing them to the great outdoors we can continue to increase their desire and comfortability with, and for, nature.
Nature is not the only thing I am a huge fan of. Arts and crafts are something I enjoy sharing with my children and doing myself and since our morning walk was quite easy going I decided to have a nice lunch at home followed by a trip to Michael's for a make-it-take-it event. What this means is that you show up with your child and Michael's provides all that you need to create whatever craft they have set up for the day. Today was a Japan inspired craft. My girls colored a koi fish which they then glued to a paper kite before adding glitter and a string. The only thing that might have improved the craft was if they had given the children little take home sheets about the koi fish and how they are connected to Japan. Then again I suppose the parent can do that themselves at home. By the time we finally got home it was after 2:30pm and we were able to rest before attending a family get together.
So make a mental note, friends. Nature is good. Get out more and teach your kids about all the wonderful things that exist in what was once their own backyard. It's costs little and will last a lifetime. And craft! Get those creative juices flowing. Children nowadays are too stressed and not allowed to be as free and creative as they should be. Exercise the body and the mind. And do it often.
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