On Friday mornings we head to the Environment Center at Camp Kawartha in Peterborough for an amazing outdoor program for babies, toddlers and preschoolers called Oaks and Acorns. The program is lead by three lovely mamas who lead us in a welcome song or two and then set us free to explore with our children. We follow the kids. This means we start out on the trails and then usually end up among the trees and bushes crawling on the ground as we follow them. It is a ton of fun and a great opportunity of get outside in nature together.
As we head into the summer months our weekly meeting will change to a monthly meeting as summer activities get busier. Reece and I still plan to head up there weekly on Friday mornings to meet up with some of the other mamas in the group that want to continue on a less formal basis.
Last week four of us showed up and off we went following four little boys through the forest. We had a fabulous time and the boys...well let’s just say Reece talked about it for the rest of the day.
Take a peek at the fun we had.
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| Looking for bugs |
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| Peeking over the bridge |
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| I can see the other side |
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| Heading to the creek |
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| What's in there? |
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| Caution - poison ivy |
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| Four boys, happy at the end of a hike ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Linking up with Naturally Crafted Mama for {into nature}
Linking up with Happy Whimsical Hearts for Happy Family Times
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The local educational farm near us does something similar with the littlest kids. No talking (mainly applies to the parents) and just follow the little ones as they explore. They find so much. Just this morning Gray found the tiniest of ants crawling across the floor and he pointed it out to me so excited. Life really is magical.
ReplyDeleteWe love our little group, so glad to hear you have something similiar. And magical is the perfect way to describe it - the process, what the kids find and our experience each week, it is all magical.
Deletehow fun! a little gang of nature explorers!
ReplyDeleteYes, nature explorers they are and loving every minute of it :)
DeleteIt looks like an amazing place and a wonderful this to share together!
ReplyDeleteIt is a great spot, we are very lucky to have it.
DeleteLovely pictures Kim and it sounds like you guys have a lot of fun!
ReplyDeleteHave a great week.
Thanks Tracey, we do have a ton of fun.
DeleteWhat a neat program! Sounds like Mama enjoyed it almost as much as Reece!
ReplyDeleteUm, yes, I do enjoy it at least as much as he does :) I feel a very deep connection to nature and sharing it with Reece is so very special for me.
DeleteWhat a great time, and a fantastic program. Such a wonderful gift to give to your little man, not only your time, but that time spent in nature.
ReplyDeleteIt really is a fantastic program and we are very lucky to have found it.
DeleteLove these little people out loving up nature. It's good medicine all the way around.
ReplyDeleteSuch good medicine Lisa, I totally agree :)
DeleteWhat a fun time!! I love getting my little one out in nature as much as possible. I love that you have the freedom to just follow him instead of try to keep him on the trails. Thank you for sharing at Happy Family Times!
ReplyDeleteIt was and is, every Friday. We will have less freedom as the poison ivy takes over, but we still plan to crawl on the forest floor whenever we can :)
DeleteWhat fabulous adventures you could have there in amongst the trees :-) And what a great program that sounds like. I've not heard of anything like that here. Thanks for sharing x
ReplyDeleteIt is a really fabulous program, I am so happy to have found it. And we do have some amazing adventures.
Deleteand creating memories he will cherish for a lifetime, i'm sure!
ReplyDeleteI hope so :)
DeleteSounds like an amazing program. I was sitting here thinking 'hrm I wish we had something like this here' and then thought perhaps I could initiate something... can I find details anywhere? I'd love to gather with others and do the same around our trees/beaches...
ReplyDeleteFor sure, this is a program created by some mamas through the Art of Mentoring Program. You can find our more about it through the Pine Project http://www.pineproject.org/
DeleteThis particular program is in its infancy but so far is amazing. It comes from the ideas behind the book The Coyote's Guide to Connecting with Nature, which is about mentoring and guiding people to a deeper connection with nature.
If you have any questions let me know, or shot me an email kimcorrigan_oliver at hotmail dot com. I would be more than happy to help answer any questions you have.