Pesach Is Coming: Dramatic Play Fun!

All work and no play makes for some very grumpy children (and adults alike)! There is so much to be done in the weeks preceding Pesach, but in this special holiday that is so much about our children, what if I told you that you could have it all? Work and play and a little help from your little ones?

Honestly, aside from eating all the foods we need to get rid of and staring at my master lists of things to do, things to buy and things we have stored (somewhere??) from last year, I have been in a bit of De Nile (pun totally intended). But S is learning about Pesach in school and with his usual enthusiasm has come home playing about it, talking about it and teaching Y about it as well. For good reasons this year, I just can't go completely overboard with prep for play or holiday activities--but some simple setups at home (and even in the yard) invited the boys to get busy playing about and helping to prep for this upcoming holiday.

S's wonderful teachers created a dramatic play matzah bakery in their classroom, which of course he loves and requested at home. Amazingly, we were short on empty boxes for a matzah oven, but I did have a growing collection of recycled-once-so-far shoe boxes that could withstand an upgrade. So I turned an old Shabbat Box project into a Pesach matzah oven along with some cardboard and wooden craft stick matzah pans with handles. The sponge painted candlesticks and kiddush cups were totally holiday appropriate here and with a bit of hot glue, some recycled bottle caps, a fire drawn into the background and very limited assembly, our oven was matzah ready. Kids could totally help with this project (and in a way, I guess S did--just not at the time of its actual creation).

We happen to have a Pesach play set the boys received as a gift a couple of years ago from their Safta and Saba, so they use the wooden matzahs from there to bake. They also made a set of play matzahs for our kitchen using cardstock cut into circles and doing crayon rubbings over Lego and Duplo boards and even a handmade template with dots of dried glue to create the texture. You can add in props like aprons and chefs hats, other Pesach themed toys and dishes, you can even add a timer to your oven (we have a digital one from Dollar Tree) and count the 18 minutes! Our two little bakers were very busy getting matzahs in and out of the oven FAST, all while busily setting the seder table with seats for each of the brothers and "one for Eliyahu!"

But before the seder begins, there's a lot of cleaning to do! And no one here loves to clean like S and Y do. Really, no one. But their enthusiasm for the task is enough for all four of us! And I won Mommy of the Year by investing in a roll of tin foil especially just for them. Yup, S told me I'm "the best Mommy ever" because I let him and Y play with soapy water, sponges, rags, and unlimited amounts of masking tape and tin foil. Child labor? Dramatic Play? Tomato, tomahto... And the best part (right next to their gleeful smiles and giggles) was that our kitchen set and toy dishes (and the floor, kids table and chairs) all got cleaned thoroughly for Pesach!

Even outside time has been infused with child-led play about building (and even drawing) pyramids. I've been slowly clearing up and setting up our backyard area as we prepare the space to hopefully house a raised bed table and our season's garden. Taking out some of the toys we've had stored away upstairs in the boys' room that can withstand outdoor elements has been a great way to clear up indoor space, jazz up our backyard for some playing and will hopefully also help keep the boys busy at play while I am busy in the garden this year.

For it's work, work, work, every day and every night... But here, even before Pesach, we still make some time and space for a bit of play. Happy cleaning and preparing if you're at it and remember, play is kosher for Pesach and all year round!

Happy Playing!

Get Outside And...Play with Peppermint Playdough and Petals

I grew up always hearing the gardeners in my life complain about weeds and yet, as an adult who gardens, I cannot help but be completely fascinated and enamored with them! Indeed, while something I plant with intention and care can whither at the mere thought of too much water, not enough sun, shifts in soil pH or an approaching pest, a dandelion sprouts up with vigor and vim between the cracks of our sidewalk. Weeds are amazing! They are independent, self-sufficient, often times beautiful and adapt to the many shifts and changes in their environment. And in the spring, weeds are often among the first signs of renewal of renewal in our yards and gardens. Indeed, the first colorful blooms of the season in our yard are the abundance of weeds that are freely growing where apartment landscaping wants to lawn to be. (I, admittedly prefer the violets and dandelions.)

Petal play is such a whimsical part of childhood. Mixing mud cakes and garden "salads," fairy potions and garden side tea parties would not be possible without the copious amounts of weeds in our yard (and our little snipping garden--but more on that later). And when I'm setting up activities to take outside to our I Wonder station, sometimes it's fun to mix the "traditional" with the "less traditional." We don't often think about playdough as an outdoor activity, but why not? Especially if you are one of those folks who doesn't like the potential mess inside, outside is a great place to take playdough activities! So I grabbed my ingredients and favorite stovetop recipe, added a spring green color with food coloring and some peppermint essential oil for scent, and set up shop outside. I also picked a selection of the most beautiful weeds wildflowers.

In addition to the dough and flowers, I stocked our basket with some favorite playdough tools (rolling pins, plastic knives, cookie cutters) and even some plastic planting pots. One potential issue of playdough play outdoors is surface availability. You may not want your playdough full of soil and mulch (or maybe you do!) and you may not want it stuck to the sidewalk. If you have a table outdoors, that's great, but in the absence of a table to work at, I love plastic trays. I got ours at the Dollar Tree at one point; of course, I haven't seen them there since--but any type of tray will work, even recycled sushi trays.

The boys got to decide how to use the materials and they had a lot of great ideas! I played, too, because even at 30 or so years their senior, petals and peppermint playdough are still such fun!

We had a great time planting playdough flower gardens, making designs and carefully thought out landscaping decisions...

...I even worked a self portrait into creation--striking resemblance, if I do say so myself!

It was fascinating to see the prints left behind in the dough from small leaves and flowers!

In the absence of colorful weeds and wildflowers, or in addition to it, you might consider planting/providing a small snipping garden in your yard. We just recently added ours after I came across the idea in the fabulous play gardening companion, The Garden Classroom: Hands-On Activities in Math, Science, Literacy and Art by Cathy James. In gardening with young children, there can be a world full of "no's." No walking on the garden plot, no picking flowers, no watering over here... I love when I can get to a "yes" and a small garden where it is OK, and even encouraged to snip, pick and play with the flowers (or foliage or herbs) and use them in play of all kinds is the perfect way to do so.

Our snipping garden is just a few inexpensive flowering plants with small blossoms and foliage planted in a plastic window box from last year's dollar store selection. When selecting your "crop," choose whatever is on sale or a small section of your actual flowering plants, herbs or smaller veggies. Perhaps your snipping garden will be an herb garden or a lettuce garden instead, or contain a bit of a few different things. The most important thing is that touching, picking, snipping and using what is growing inside is allowed and encouraged.

Just above the snipping garden hangs a small tin pale with scissors. Tiny garden signs label the space as a "snipping garden" where the boys and guests can "help yourself!" It is situated quite close in proximity to plants that are not for cutting/picking and if this becomes more confusing, I may move it to a more solitary location. Nonetheless, so far the boys have taken quite well to being able to get their hands on this little bitty flower patch while being more cautious and protective over our pansies and strawberry plants int he background!

Playdough activities outdoors add a new and exciting element to a familiar activity that is typically done indoors. This is a great way to inspire outdoor play for children who may be more reluctant toward some of the sensory experiences outside. Here are some variations on the same theme using playdough outdoors:

• Self portraits: as depicted above, you can use balls of dough rolled into circles either on a tray or even on a vertical surface such as a wall, fence, or tree trunk to create a self portrait or funny face using flowers, foliage and nature's loose parts
• Nature prints in playdough: flowers, leaves, pine ones, seeds, pods, small pebbles, acorns...what can you scavenge and discover to add a unique print to playdough?
• Playdough Fairy Gardens: this unique base to fairy garden play is great both indoors and outside, where there is an abundance of nature's loose parts and tiny treasures to add...
• Adding Texture & Scent with Fresh Cut Herbs: In lieu of (or addition to) petals, why not cut some sprigs of fresh herbs from your garden to add to your playdough. Snipped and torn into very tiny pieces, you can add a unique scent and texture to your dough fresh from the garden. We've done this indoors on several occasions (usually when I have some herbs from cooking to use up) and it is a wonderful activity to adapt to outdoor use.
• 
  

  

  In this blast from the past, S is using playdough
  to explore "parts of a flower" (seeds, stems, leaves
  and blossoms)--this is a great activity to take
  outside as well!

• Add Playdough as a Sensory Component of a Potting Shed Dramatic Play Center: Adding elements of dramatic play to your playgarden is a great way to expand on and enhance outdoor play. Empty planting pots, gardening tools and flowers (real or artificial) can be a great addition to your outdoor dramatic play setup and playdough is a great material to add some sensory exploration (not to mention a means to stick your flowers in your pots) to the scene!

And, of course, you can use playdough outdoors in any of the same ways you'd use it indoors. It doesn't even have to be "garden" related. It's easily transportable, you could even take it to the park (we have!) and, especially when you make your own, it is both budget and environmentally friendly overall. So we'll see you outside...

Happy Playing!

Make Your Own Melt & Pour Gardener's Hand Soap

Melt and Pour soap making is so easy, even I can do it! In fact, I've done it once before with these DIY Lavender Bar Soaps. It's a great way to save some $$$ on those fancy artisan soaps, to stock up on a vital household necessity using ingredients you're comfortable with and also makes for a lovely gift. I start my soaps with this oatmeal soap base, and with Pesach drawing near, using up the brick I had left in the pantry seemed a perfect way to contribute to the preparation project at hand...

As it is also the beginning of gardening season here, lots of dirty hands are coming in the house. (Not to mention the rest of the body--these are great in the bath and shower as well.) Some folks like to wear gardening gloves and although I am often rather sensory averse to certain textures (and you'd think dirt would be one of them), I love digging right into the soil bare handed. But when I do get inside, I want something to rub those dirt covered fingers clean again and somehow I just feel better using a good ol' fashioned bar of soap. Even better if it's hydrating like oatmeal soap is! And even better still if it happens to include some of my garden harvest!

Last week, Y and I traveled to our local garden nursery for two plants. Parsley and chamomile for his Peter Rabbit Garden Birthday Party. Rookie parent mistake bringing your budding green thumber to a garden nursery for two things. He fell in love with a broccoli plant and spent a good 20 minutes running his hand over various herbs and smelling them. How could I (a plant hoarder) say no to just a few additional starter plants on our way out?

I did, however, promise myself that I'm not going to "save" my herbs until the end of the season this year, but rather use them throughout their production period and I got started right away with these Gardener's Hand Soap Bars:

You will need:

• 1 lb oatmeal soap base
• lemon, rosemary and peppermint essential oils*
• fresh lemon balm, rosemary, mint (I used spearmint) leaves*
• silicone soap molds
• 1 quart sized crock pot and metal mixing bowl in comparable size or microwave safe glass dish and microwave
• metal soap tins for storage (optional)

*I used this particular combination of herbs and essential oils, but you can pick and choose your own variety!

Instructions:

I use the crock pot method for melting my soap base but if you prefer to microwave your soap base in a glass dish, you can do that instead. Just work over a medium heat setting, stopping every so often over the course of 3-4 minutes to check and stir. In the crock pot method, I fill the crock base with water about half way to create a "water bath." Place your soap block (you can cut it down with a sharp knife for more even/faster melting if you wish) into a metal mixing bowl and slip it in over the water bath. Cover your crock pot and turn onto low heat. Once your brick is melted completely (you'll want to check every half hour or so to make sure you don't burn it), you can turn the heat off and add in several drops of your oils until you've reached your desired scent. Next, grab a small handful of leaves from each of your herbs and finely chop them into the mixture. I used kitchen shears for this. Mix your concoction once more (I like using either a plastic spoon or wooden craft stick) and pour into your soap molds. You can pop the mold into the fridge or freezer for faster solidifying, but it will work just fine to leave it out at room temperature as well. I happened to leave mine out and went to go pick up S from school. Once we got home and settled in for afternoon naps, my soaps were done and ready to be popped out of the molds and stored in metal tins.

Although I did this project solo, you could involve children with it. As it gets quite hot to handle, adult supervision and support is a must. Children can definitely help with selecting scents, cutting herbs, pouring in drops of oil and mixing as well as popping the finished bars out of the mold and into storage tins if you're using those. I think the one thing I love best about soap making is how excited everyone is to wash their hands well and frequently afterward! That's always a bonus...

You can store and use your Gardener's Hand Soaps at home or save a stash to mail out for mother's day. They would make an equally lovely hostess gift or gift for a gardener you know and love. So don't be afraid to get your hands nice and dirty out there as you begin prepping your soil for planting this season! Hands and children, for that matter, are washable--you'll just need a really great bar of soap when you get in.

Happy Playing!

Peter Rabbit Garden Party

I am pretty big on birthdays here but not so much of a party person. It seems like as soon as I throw in the pressure of a birthday party to creating themed activities, all of my creativity flies out of the window! But one thing we did implement here as of Y's first birthday just over a year ago is the family only party. It seemed silly at first to have a party with just the four of us, but it was so much fun, S wanted one, too and we've kept it going.

Y turned two this year! His English birthday fell on the same day as Purim, right after the first day of Spring. His Jewish birthday was over Shabbat, so this past Sunday we had his family party at home with a Peter Rabbit Garden theme. Y has loved playing and planting in our garden and both of the boys love Beatrix Potter books right now. S may have been a bit more cognizant of birthday celebrations at nearly 5 than Y is at just 2 (and in related news, he's already told me he wants a Peter Rabbit Garden Party for his birthday this summer, too). To combat my party panic induced lack of inspiration, I perused the internet for ideas--but in the end, I selected a very simple menu and activities list. We kept it short and sweet and tailored to the tastes and interests of everyone here (especially the birthday boy!) because going overboard and showing up exhausted to the party was just not an option for me this year. (I kind of overdid it last year with the boys' carnival themed parties.) And you know what? Everyone had a great time! There were just the right number of activities. It was not overwhelming, it moved at a reasonable pace and Y (and S for that matter) were still talking about it this morning!

The best thing about a Peter Rabbit Garden themed party is how seamlessly it fits into our family life right now. (I may have slightly selfishly suggested it strongly...) And the ideas here can easily be implemented into your own garden themed party, lesson plans and/or family activities.

The Menu:

Purim. Birthdays. So MANY treats. And with just weeks before Pesach, there are a lot of foods that are on the move list here as it is. When it comes to family birthday dinners, we want to include the birthday star's favorite foods. Y loves a lot of foods (basically every food he's ever tasted) and especially loves meat, corn on the cob and hummus. What can I say? We decided on hot dogs and french fries for the main dinner fare, of course, with a side of corn on the cob. And no party is complete without cake and ice cream--so we shlepped some really good ice cream home from our last family trip to Baltimore and Tatty made an ice cream cake. We also bought cupcakes. Oh well, so much for the lighter fare after all these weeks of endless treats. But we started it off with a quaint little theme related snack course of veggie sticks seemingly right out of Mr. McGregor's garden, homemade dill dip and some "garden fruit smoothies." 



I often go all out of paper goods and decorations for parties. It's a lot of waste. On the other hand, with a lot of dishes being used, it does make it a bit easier when you can just wrap up the disposable tablecloth at the end and toss it all. I tried to fall somewhere in the middle this time. We used our regular tablecloth and cover (it happens to have such a lovely floral print that it fits right in). We bought some floral and rabbit themed paper plates and napkins (I think these were intended for another upcoming holiday and not my son's birthday party, but it works!), and Y really liked a set of sparkly plastic silverware he saw at the store when we were picking out the plates. I stashed that inside an empty planting pot--it was adorable! We also set out our "Veggie Patch" and "Garden Fruit Smoothies" in advance (we already had plastic cups and straws) and it was time for the party to begin!


The Activities:

I will admit that I worried I didn't have enough activities for the boys. I don't know why. It's crazy to think that two boys need ten different party activities or that given the opportunity, they can't also come up with ten more once the main ones are done or in between waiting for one to be finished before starting the next. So I really only had a couple of hands on activities planned plus face/hand/arm painting. We already had a set of face paint crayons from last year and with my limited artistic abilities, I figured we could have some fun with bunny noses and whiskers, and a few simple drawings of favorite vegetables and fruits. I may or may not have been seen sitting on my front stoop yesterday with a pink nose and black whiskers across my cheeks. S wanted strawberries drawn on each of his hands and a carrot on each arm. Y followed suit. Everyone had a bath last night!

Peter Rabbit Mini Gardens: I saw this idea in Sharon Lovejoy's fabulous book on gardening with children, Roots, Shoots, Buckets and Boots. We upcycled a very old pair of rainboots of mine. I put my husband and boys up to the task of pounding drainage holes in the soles while I ran errands in the morning. I hear they had a lot of fun with this part. Y had accompanied me to the garden nursery last week to pick out a parsley and chamomile plant. We also had some radish seeds and short and sweet carrot seeds for planting. I prepped each boot with potting soil leaving just enough space at the top to sow seeds and stick in one of the plants before having each boy scoop a bit more potting soil over the top and sides. Y chose a little of each type of seed and the parsley plant. S picked just carrot seeds and the chamomile, which he says he would like to try as some tea like Peter Rabbit the next time he has a tummy ache. I have idea if the carrots and radishes will grow successfully beneath the herb plants, but the boots are so whimsical out there in our front garden and this was the perfect way to give them one last shot at life now that they were no longer suitable for my feet. (I did however trick my husband and tell him I'd changed my mind and wanted to wear them again after all!)

Veggie Printed Reusable Farmers Market Bags
I knew I wanted to do some veggie print painting and I also had a couple of bunny shaped cookie cutters for Peter Rabbit stamping. Initially I thought we'd just make some paintings on paper with tempera paints--but how cute would it be to make a set of reusable Farmers Market/snack pouches? I love these canvas pouches for packing up snacks on the go or bringing to the market for produce. So I swapped in the fabric paints we had on hand and set out the ends/tops of the veggies I'd prepped for our snack along with the bunny cookie cutters and each of the boys decorated one.

I love that the project is something we can actually use as opposed to just a picture to hang up. Everyone was amazed at the flower shapes that the celery bottom and bell pepper tops made! And no one tried to eat fabric paint covered veggie scraps--phew!

The Goody "Bag:" I think the Goody Bag eventually became my favorite part of all birthday parties growing up. It was always exciting to wait for the party--whether it was your own or a friend's. It was always fun to be at the party and eat the treats and play the games, but it was also always a little sad when it was over--except when you got a goody bag on the way out! In a way, it kept the party going just a little longer. Many times goody bags are loaded with candies and cheap toys. Those are fun and traditional (and there are some of those things in here as well), but rather than go all out on a lot of this kind of thing, I kept it simple and took a creative spin. Instead of the classic bag approach, each boy got a large plastic planter from the dollar store along with a small (but "real") gardening trowel and fork. They will each get to decide what to plant and grow in these pots--this will be their very own garden to tend to. I will definitely help them as needed, but they get to be in charge of their personal "plot" this season. And because no goody "bag" or bucket is complete without some toys and treats, we also added some "cotton tails" (cotton candy) and "magic beans" (jelly beans) inside of these little bunny bags. They also each got some bunny shaped crayons (it sure is handy having your Peter Rabbit themed birthday fall near a holiday with a bunny theme), a jar of playdough, a jar of sparkly slime and a carrot shaped bubble necklace. They got to take it outside to play in our garden and set off some firecrackers leftover from S's last birthday with their Tatty while Mommy did a bit of clean up and sitting down!

Everyone came in covered in chocolate, sweat, face paint, mud and smiles. A birthday party success! And of course, an obligatory shot of Y going into the cake face first because there are many ways to eat a birthday cake but there is only one right way!

So whether you snag some of these ideas for your own garden or gardening theme, or even your own garden party, I hope you have some good, messy, Peter Rabbit style mischievous fun. We'll be back soon and until then...


Happy Birthday, Y and Happy Playing!

Mad Science Monday: Get Outside And...Into the Laboratory!

On most days, this area of our Play Garden is a Mud Kitchen--but on this particular day, a Tuesday, actually (because Monday had been quite rainy), it became a Scientist's Laboratory for the day! Stuff was gonna get colorful. Stuff was gonna get messy. Stuff was gonna 'splode! Oh YEAH!

The boys were greeted at the I Wonder Station by a sign with a question: Can you be a scientist? I set out some props and materials and let them have at it for as long as they wished. I am embarrassed proud to say that all three of us had to be lured back inside close to bedtime with edible treats.

And while the boys were definitely busy having fun, they were also learning. They were engaged in meaningful symbolic play about being a scientist. This led to some great observation of chemical reactions and colors mixing. It led as well to mathematical discoveries as they measured and estimated potions and concoctions. They developed their fine motor skills using pipettes and tongs and gross motor skills loading up the trunk of our red tricycle to drive some laboratory materials up the sidewalk. They had opportunities to practice social skills and problem solving when it came to sharing space, ideas and resources. They built vocabulary with big words like "laboratory" and "scientist" and even "horticulturalist" (S wanted to be a "scientist who works in the garden).

Folks, I'm not gonna lie--this was messy! This was also fun. This was kind of a self cleaning experiment as well if you consider the baking soda and vinegar factor--but I definitely did a lot of dishes that night and none of them were the ones we ate from! It was worth it and you know what? We'll probably do it again... And if you would like to turn your outdoor space into a Scientist's Laboratory for a day or two or even more, here's what you'll need:









The Bare Basics:

• Tools for filling, squeezing, pouring, grasping... I had a collection of plastic beakers from the Dollar Tree and added in some squeeze bottles, plastic tongs, pipettes, funnels and other tools and toys from our sensory bin tool collection. You can use whatever you have--even if it's from the recycling bin! You don't have to have "real" science tools (but you can use those if you do).
• Water
• White vinegar
• Food coloring or liquid water color 
• Baking soda
• A plastic bin, pan or sensory table

Optional Add-ons:

• lab coats
• goggles
• clipboards and paper, pens, pencils for documentation

Before you begin you'll want to fill some of your containers with water and some with vinegar. Initially I planned to do all of my starter containers with vinegar but we didn't have a lot left (this is in no way indicative of how many science experiments I do here). I decided that having a "control group" was a great way to incorporate scientific method to our activity and filled some containers with water. I added a couple of drops of different colored food coloring to each of my containers. I did not label which ones had water and which had vinegar--this was the fun and surprising part! Pour a generous amount of baking soda in the bottom of your bin/pan or sensory table. Let your little scientists in training have at it! Pretty quickly, the boys discovered that some bottles when squeezed or poured into the baking soda made bubbles and some did not. We talked about why, but then I really did step back and refrained from hijacking their play. I let them mix, concoct, explode, stir, scoop, squeeze, transfer and even snip bits of flowers and leaves from our snipping garden and add them into their potions and concoctions as well. 

By the time we were all football carried inside by Tatty who had lollipops for the shorter scientists (who'd already finished dinner) and some homemade vegetarian chilli cheese fries for the slightly taller scientist who hadn't had dinner yet, we were all covered in splashes of color, baking soda and mud. In other words, a great time was had by all. 

HAPPY PLAYING!

Photo Friday: I Run a Nature-Based Playgroup and I Did Not (and Still Do Not) Always Enjoy Being Outdoors

If you've read a post or two here or know me personally, you can see that getting outside, especially with children, is something I greatly value. What you may not see or know is that I did not always love being outdoors and I still don't.

I created the artwork in the photo above after receiving an assignment in a 4 week course on becoming a natural teacher. The instructions were to use magazine clippings, words and pictures/photos to illustrate your vision, goals and inspiration for being an outdoor educator. As you can see, I followed the directions to a T. But honestly, I had a hard time even beginning. I even got S and Y on the job with a huge piece of paper, crayons and old gardening magazines, recycled seed catalogs, scissors and glue. Turns out, your kids can do your homework but it's still their work at the end of the day and not yours. And then, I suddenly (and finally) had a vision for my Vision Board. It's a simple statement that encompasses all that I do and am striving for, not to mention nature's loose parts, beads, glue, dried lavender buds and copious amounts of glitter... I plan to have my husband help me hang it above the door heading out to our back garden (#shortpeopleproblems) so I will see it every time I'm in the kitchen.

One of the things I frequently hear from parents in my playgroup, fellow friends and educators and even other parents I don't know personally is that they do not like to be outside. Some would even describe it as an aversion. I've taught in classrooms where teachers preferred to stay indoors with a child who needed extra assistance or to remain inside for some reason rather than come out with the class. And when it comes to running a nature based playgroup that meets in parks, I have heard plenty of temperature, climate and environmentally related complaints--yet, again and again, these families show up with their children. (It should be noted as well that I, too, have been "too cold," "too hot," uncomfortable from "too much wind" or "too many bugs..."). Why do we do it? Why do we get those kids to the park again and again? Because somewhere, beneath the layers of outwear and discomforts, we know that this is important. Whether it's the dose of Vitamin D, the fresh air, the space for our kids to run off steam, the peer pressure, the media pressure, or maybe some deep seeded memory of being four ourselves and running through a field of grass and blooming lilac bushes in a perpetual state of wonder, we are drawn again and again to the great outdoors.

I spent a lot of time playing outside as a child. We were a toss-em-out-into-the-backyard kind of family. I made mud pies and salads, I ate chives by the handful and smelled like an onion for the first 8 years of my life. I got bug bites and splinters and impetigo and skinned my knees and once I even fell in a tree with a branch caught precariously between my legs. I am not athletic. I didn't ride a bike without training wheels until I was 8. My dad taught me in what I'd describe as one of the best days of my life. The first time I went camping I was in the 4th grade and went on a weekend trip with the Girl Scout troop I was in.  I missed my mommy. There was a rat in the outhouse. Did I mention I ate something that didn't agree with me and spent a lot of time in the outhouse? I kept a stiff upper lip, but the lower one may have gone a bit wobbly here and there. I attended an incredible outdoor day camp each summer in the Heldeberg mountains in upstate NY. I remember loving it. My friend remembers me complaining a lot. You say tomato, I say tomahto....

At some point, a great deal of my outdoor life was commuter based. Getting from the door to the car. Getting from the car to the door. It wasn't until college that I began to take up and try out hiking, biking, all-season camping, snow shoeing, even skiing (which I HATED), hunting (equally unsuccessful), jet skiing (that was fun), canoeing (not as fun), and a bit of gardening here and there. Here's what you should know: I love that I did all of this. I did not always love it when I was doing it.

I'm the kind of gal who would talk your ear off about how much I wanted to go camping. Then I'd buy a tent and pitch it in my living room and microwave a s'more. Then, I'd finally go camping and the first time I tried to pee in the woods, I'd miss just a little. Your flashlight got a little wet in the process but I dried it. My clothes didn't fare as well. Once we got home, I'd go back to talking your ear off about how much I love camping, but the reality is that I loved the idea of it. I loved the accomplishment of sticking it out. I never loved the actual act of it and I don't know that I was ever truly present in it.

I also loved hiking. I lived for 5 years within walking distance of a great lakeside hill with a 2-3 mile trail. I hiked it frequently and became comfortable and confident enough to love it. I learned to like things outdoors if I could repeat them enough to become comfortable and confident. Familiarity is my security. But novel hikes were always a challenge. Similar to camping, they were events I looked forward to and glorified, complained about while I was there and then raved about after I got home.

The first Pesach after S was born, we went and stayed by friends of mine from my college years. During Chol Hamoed (the interim days of the holiday) the family invited us to go on a little nature walk. It would be stroller friendly, we'd take the kids and a few snacks and some water. They looked up the location on an app on their phones.

Ok, so as it turns out it wasn't stroller friendly. It was not a little nature walk ona trail; it was a freakin' mountain. Here I am in my leather boots (great hiking shoes), a skirt (cuz you can do it in a skirt), wearing a baby (cuz you can do it wearing a baby) and my sheitel (wig--because why hike in only one set of hair when you can hike in two?) and below is a photo of what we actually did on our little nature walk...

Never. Ever. Again. I'm so glad I did it. I climbed a freaking mounting in a skirt, wearing a leather boots and a baby and a sheitel and I am never ever doing this again. I brought home a sense of accomplishment. My husband brought home Lyme Disease. Never. Ever. Again.

But what if on a daily basis, you don't enjoy being outside? What if you are averse to it altogether? I love to garden and I love seeing my kids play and I even feel playful with them out there. But I don't like bugs so much (I try to fake it till I make it). I was supposedly severely allergic to bee stings as a kid and I'm still afraid of bees. I plant a pollinator's garden every spring. I dress like the photo above year round. Minus the leather boots, sometimes with a hat or scarf and not a sheitel. Are you hot in the summer? So am I. I hunch my shoulders up to my ears whenever it's raining because for some reason I think this will make me stay dryer or warmer or something like that. And even though I have a garden and sometimes in spite of me having it stuff actually grows, I'm not very good at it. I am better at keeping humans alive, watered and fed.

And then I wonder. I wonder back to those early days of being happily tossed out in the yard and the years that followed when I walked two feet with my shoulders up to my ears between the car and the front door, cursing under my breath because it was raining. What happened? I don't remember. But when I watch my boys outside, grinning from ear to ear, eating freshly picked strawberries, falling down and skinning their knees, making mud pies, catching raindrops on their tongues, hoarding sticks and interesting rocks and picking wildflowers from the side of the road--I don't want their shoulders to go up to their ears when it rains. I don't want them to forget why they stopped liking to play outside because I don't want them to forget why they liked it in the first place.

And here's how I tackle my own aversion to being out there... I don't know if these ideas work for everyone or if they will work for you, but it works for me:

• What's your WHY: I have mine, what is yours? Why is it important to you to get outside? If it is for your children and or students, I commend you. I also encourage you to find a why for yourself as well.
• What do you love? What is something you love to do? Are you a knitter or crocheter? Do you love coffee? Do you enjoy reading? Are there things you love to do indoors you could bring outside with you?
• Find something out there that draws you in: If it's flowers, a garden, listening to the birds, an interesting tree stump, a particular park or spot--find something that draws you in again and again and seek it--again and again. If you can, bring a bit of it in with you, whether it's cut flowers in a vase, a photo of a sacred space, a smooth rock, a particular shell...
• Make the space a reflection of you: If you have a yard or outdoor space, treat it as you would your bedroom or living room. Make it a reflection of you. Have things out there that you love, that inspire you to return, that bring you joy.
• Check in, not out: One thing I struggled with often both as a teacher and parent was my tendency to see outdoor time as one to check out. Rather than being engaged with the act of being outside, I was engaged with prep work for my class or catching up with correspondence at home. I'm not saying never to use outdoor time for these purposes, but rather to try and set some time to intentionally be with yourself outside. To notice and observe the experiences of being there without judging them--even if it includes some feelings of discomfort. And even if it does include feelings of discomfort, also notice other elements--sounds you hear, sounds you don't hear, smells the remind you of something in your childhood but you're not sure what, a bird splashing in a puddle, a cloud shaped like a T-Rex... 
• Go with a friend: Like company? Bring some! 
• Go alone: Like solitude? Take some.
• Have a mission and/or destination: if "just going outside" is not your favorite, make it part of a larger mission or destination. Go outside, and... Choose an activity you love to do out there (even if it's not an "outdoor activity") or choose a destination at the end (a favorite coffee shop or boutique). There's nothing wrong with coupling a less preferred activity with a little reward. And if you can make the brain connection between being outside and reaching that reward, you can spark some of those neural connections to develop into muscle memory; you may find you need less of that reward to feel the good feelings of being outside. And, coming from true experience, it's OK if some of the time--and even all of the time--those good feelings of being outside don't come until you're back indoors!

Happy Friday and Happy Playing!

Make Your Own Stick-bound Nature Journal

 Every budding naturalist needs a nature journal! Opportunities for writing, drawing, documenting and collecting small, flat treasures from the great outdoors are a huge part of our nature adventures. There are many options on the market when it comes to stocking your Nature on the Go Kits with a notebook or journal. You can use a regular, run of the mill notebook or journal--even better if you can recycle one that's been partially used over the school year. You can buy waterproof notebooks especially constructed for outdoor use. You can carry a sketch book or pad. But what better way to bring a bit of nature on the go than to create your own stick-bound nature journal?

There are a few ways to do this project and while it is a great one for kids, some adult assistance may be necessary with younger ones. We've done this activity in a couple of styles here; a smaller sized nature notebook with the binding on the side (as pictured to the left) and a full page size version with the binding at the top (as pictured below). Here's how you can make both versions at home (or at the park, as we did on our nature based playgroup's first meetup of the season).

How To Construct Your Own Stick-bound Nature Journal

You will need:

• a stick: this is a great task to put your little ones up to--finding the perfect stick! It needs to be an appropriate size for your paper and not too thick or brittle. It needs to be just right and little ones have an inherent talent for finding and collecting these!
• cover paper: For your cover, I recommend a sturdier paper, either construction paper, watercolor paper or card stock. If you are making the smaller version, you'll need only one sheet. If you are making the full sized version, you'll need two.
• filler paper: I love to use recycled/scrap paper as filler. Mix it up between lined and unlined, graph paper, sketch paper, colored paper, recycled artwork and plain ol' white paper if you like. You can choose how many sheets to include. I like my journals to be about 10 pages long, so if you're making a folded version, you'll need 5 filler sheets and 10 filler sheets for the larger one.
• rubber band: long enough to stretch the width of your binding without snapping and breaking, I prefer thinner bands as they are easier to work with
• a hole punch
• art supplies for decorating your cover: If you are creating a cover from scratch, decide what medium you'd like to use. For our larger nature journals, I set the boys up outside with watercolor paper and watercolors at their portable easels. I recycled some old artwork of mine to create my cover and recycled artwork can be a great cover source! For our group activity at the park, I brought along oil pastels and anything goes--whatever floats your boat!

Instructions:

Version 1:

For the smaller version of the stick bound journal, I folded the cover and filler papers in half, width wise. I positioned my hole punch about an inch and half or two down from the top and up from the bottom. If you like to be really exact, you can use a double hole puncher. I don't have one and didn't care! For me, the easiest way to ensure the holes would line up on the filler pages was to slip them inside the hole-punched cover and match up the hole puncher to the existing hole before pressing it through. Lastly, pinch one end of your rubber band and thread it through the top hole, so a small loop comes through to the front. Slip one end of your stick through the loop and lay it flat on a tabletop. Pull the other end of your rubber band (on the backside) through the other hole in a little loop and stretch the loop over the other end of your stick. This will affix your stick in place. You may need to wiggle it a bit to adjust the length evenly, but it should be secure at this point and create the binding of your journal. Voila! 

Version 2:

For the full sized page version, you'll follow much of the same instructions as with the half size journal. However, rather than folding your pages, you'll leave them flat. Take your cover page and punch a hole about an inch and half or two inches inward from the left and from the right top side. Position your back cover below it, with the part you want showing, out. Using the existing hole on the front cover as a guide, punch through the back cover. Set that aside for now. Take about half of the filler sheets (my hole puncher can go through about 5 sheets of regular weight paper at a time, but you may need to adjust this if you are using thicker paper or more sheets than 10). Position the front cover over the top, centering your filler sheets as you'd like (especially if your cover sheet happens to be a bit wider around the edges than letter size). Punch through, using the existing holes on the front cover as your guide. Set those aside and repeat this step with your remaining filler paper. Once everything is hole punched, line up your paper and holes, and loop one end of your rubber band through from the back to the front of one hole. Slip one end of your stick in place and from the back, stretch and pull the other end of the rubber band in a loop through the back of the other hole, to the front and over the stick to affix it in place. Adjust your stick as necessary and you're done! 

The last thing to do is decide how, when and where you'll use your nature journals! Stock your Nature on the Go Kits. Pack a set in your car. Set them out on your art or writing center. Perhaps they will be child led and directed. Perhaps you'll provide prompts or use them for a particular project or purpose. You might even decide to gift these to someone special who also loves nature and art! The options are limitless and when you make it yourself, especially from recycled and natural materials, you're saving green both in your wallet and in the environment. 

Happy Trails and Happy Playing!