Getting a Daily Dose: Nature Walks
My good friend Molly is actively involved in this amazing initiative in Emmet County-- Getting Kids Outdoors. Watching her pour so much time and energy into this beautiful, simple, and so needed idea of celebrating and encouraging outdoor play has been a reminder of one of the things I love most about northern Michigan: the mamas I get to raise my children alongside.
Instead of going on and on about how much it means to be able watch our kids grow amidst a tribe of parents who love this place-- and all its slower, sweet possibilities-- I would rather just show you. Because of Molly and her commitment to unstructured time to explore the outdoors, my family takes daily nature walks-- be it on trails or at a conservancy property or simply in our backyard-- we just go. We get outside and notice the signs of the seasons.
I often let Max just lead the way.
So I can sit back and watch his knees get dirty (how I love this true symbol of spring).
The world outdoors has so much to offer, from simple textures to big, muddy adventures.
We just go. And it most natural way, it brings us back to our center, every time.
For more simple and fantastic ideas to get kids outside, and to see upcoming events in the area, visit http://www.gettingkidsoutdoors.org
Instead of going on and on about how much it means to be able watch our kids grow amidst a tribe of parents who love this place-- and all its slower, sweet possibilities-- I would rather just show you. Because of Molly and her commitment to unstructured time to explore the outdoors, my family takes daily nature walks-- be it on trails or at a conservancy property or simply in our backyard-- we just go. We get outside and notice the signs of the seasons.
I often let Max just lead the way.
So I can sit back and watch his knees get dirty (how I love this true symbol of spring).
The world outdoors has so much to offer, from simple textures to big, muddy adventures.
We just go. And it most natural way, it brings us back to our center, every time.
For more simple and fantastic ideas to get kids outside, and to see upcoming events in the area, visit http://www.gettingkidsoutdoors.org
3 Comments
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Comment by robin on April 18, 2009 at 10:48pm - great pictures----i can smell spring.
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Comment by Catherine Pumford on April 19, 2009 at 5:12pm - Excellent. Is that little Max about a mile ahead of you? I would say getting kids outside is great for parents as well. Bella can only see the two dogs of course. Keep the writing coming.
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Comment by Sus on April 24, 2009 at 12:48pm - I grew up in a place where we could have taken daily nature walks, and did, often ending at the Molly Whoopie bridge (do you know that fairy tale?) or the fort whose stairs I tirelessly dug out of the hillside. I love living in my town - and we do live very much in town now - but wish whenever I read your stuff that I could step out my back door and into the wilderness with my kids. I guess it's that or chatting with a neighbor every time we leave the house. Which I also love.
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