Whew! We are all probably looking forward to the rain letting up a bit, with youngsters stuck indoors a lot lately! While we’ve enjoyed splashing in the puddles, we definitely look forward to some more sunny days ahead!

One recent outdoor activity I recently did with my kids which they had a lot of fun with, and wanted to do again and again, was to build “fairy houses” to attract woodland or garden fairies. This doesn’t need to be very complicated.  In the woods we just found a spot in the middle of a ring of trees that looked like a perfect place for a fairy house. We propped up sticks and bark against a corner and then covered it with moss and lichen and decorated with little pinecones and acorns. They had so much fun with this they wanted to build one in our garden the next day.

Making a woodland fairy house!

Our first class of the season will start on March 3, and is called “The Senses”. In this session we will explore our senses as we learn each week how we can use all of our five senses in the outdoors to learn about nature. Children will discover how we can learn much more about our environment besides just looking at it, in this hands-on session that will especially focus on hearing, smelling, and feeling the world around us.

Thanks, and hope to see you outdoors!

Stephanie Derammelaere

I’ve seen various versions online of how to create a “nature table” – a place in your home where you and your children can display seasonal nature objects. We didn’t have a good place for a table, but we did have a mantle that did not get much other use, and we’ve since dedicated it our “nature mantle.” Really, you don’t need much – just a small area to display some of the treasures you and your child inevitably find during your excursions outdoors. It’s a nice reminder of the season we are currently in. Currently, we have on our Winter “nature mantle” several pinecones, a pretty feather, some seed pods, and some bare branches in a vase.

This month’s eco-tip is about growing your own vegetable garden! While it might seem a strange time of year for this, if you would like to pursue this option with your children, winter is the time to start planning! The ecological ramifications are obvious – local food is much better for the planet, due to no carbon emissions being used in transporting produce (most produce in the grocery store has traveled an average 1,500 miles!), and you can grow them without using pesticides, fungicides, and synthetic fertilizers, which leaches toxins into our soil and water supply. You can’t get more local than your own backyard!

This is also such a great project to involve even young children in – and what better way of encouraging healthy eating habits? Children are much more likely to eat fruits and vegetables that they’ve helped plant, maintain, and harvest themselves. You can get children involved in the process early on, by getting their input on what types of fruits and vegetables they would like to grow, and letting them help in choosing a proper site in the garden (which can lead to a discussion on sunlight, soil, shade, etc.) There are several books at the library dedicated to specifically gardening with children.