Nature with children

“It is infinitely well worth the mother’s while to take some pains every day to secure, in the first place, that her children spend hours daily amongst rural and natural objects; and, in the second place, to infuse into them, or rather, to cherish in them, the love of investigation.
                                                                                          ~Charlotte Mason


Oh how I love to get my hands in God's earth! To feel the dirt between my fingers!  Dirt covering my hands just feels good!  It's comforting.....it gives me peace.  It is very therapeutic. The boys are the same way.  What little boy or girl does not like to dig in dirt.  And make MUD!  It is exploring, it is FUN and probably feels good to them to get a little dirty.  The boys made a huge dirt pile under their fort yesterday. At one point Ryan ran is with such urgency begging me to measure how tall his dirt pile was getting.  I quickly grabbed the tape measure and ran out with excitement.  One foot!  Both the boys were ecstatic!  A one foot dirt pile!  WOW!!!! It quickly came tumbling down and then they started all over again.

 And then there is the joy in planting something and watching it grow.  Like a child I get up daily to go see what has taken root.  And I watch it closely to see every little bit of growth.....daily and sometimes two or three times a day! 

Nature is just beautiful!  It amazes me! I am so thankful for this gift from God!  As the weather is changing and the boys are out more often all day they see that beauty as well. Matthew is ready to begin his nature journal for Spring and Summer. To document what God has given us.
We have made it a point to teach the boys the gift of nature. That precious gift from God.
We talk about it, we touch it and sometimes can taste it.  Even in our own backyard! 

My hope is that the boys love for nature grows every year we plant something.  It doesn't matter if it is a cucumber growing from seeds or a potted plant on the patio. Just to see it grow is a joy for us!

Brant loves his vegetable gardens.....and some fruit!  My love is for the flowers.  Each year I try to plant something new and different.  And keep old ones that we truly loved from the year before.

Spring is near and my mind is full of ideas of gardening. What will I plant this year?  What can we watch grow?  I know I will plant two flowers that I fell in love with last year.  And they did very well in our yard.
Zinnias and Butterfly weed.  Both were big hits around here and the butterflies loved both. 

That just makes me smile!

Charlotte Mason did the world a great favor when she impressed upon parents the importance of stirring up a love for nature in our children. She observed that children are drawn to the natural world 'naturally,' but they must be instructed how to observe carefully and appreciate the wonders about them- otherwise, when they reach adulthood, their desire and keen observation will die. We feel this need especially today, in a world where our children are surrounded by contrived entertainment with technology at their fingertips. It's so much easier to watch a movie or play a computer game than to take a walk and actively engage the mind. But, if the study of nature is presented in a positive, enthusiastic manner, children will no longer spend dull, boring days outside trying to find anything to pass the time. Once children's powers of observation have been stimulated they are able to see details of God’s glory in the smallest leaf, while their playmates only see the grass as a good soccer field.
             Linda Fay-Charlotte Mason Help(http://www.charlottemasonhelp.com/)





I enjoy gardening, but I always try to make sure the boys are right there with me. Helping out in some way. Digging, placing seeds in the ground, watering, etc. They are usually looking for bugs, worms, rolly pollies, lady bugs, etc. Basically exploring the world beneath them. That is my goal anyway!

So today and tomorrow and the next and next.........we will be outdoors exploring nature.