As part of the Mud Pie Mission, we’ve been trying to fit in a minimum of 30 “nature minutes” every day. It’s summer, so this goal seems pretty attainable, right? Well, as it turns out, it’s not always so easy to come by 30 free minutes—especially if you think about preparing for an outing plus getting to and from your destination. Ask any busy mom or dad and they’ll tell you … some days the idea of scheduling an additional 30 minutes of anything is near impossible. Even with the break from school, there are still hours spent at work, medical appointments, the gym, errands, play dates, church, family dinner, reading time, summer classes/camps, organized sports, transportation, baths—the list is endless. Every once in a while, all of the above happen in a single day and it’s a small miracle if the dishes get clean. Knowing this all too well, I had to get creative. Here are four ways we’ve managed to meet our goal:
1. Garden Together
This summer, I made it a priority to involve the kids in caring for the yard. Henry is five, so it’s easy for him to take on tasks like weeding and watering. Sadie, who is far too young for real responsibility, still enjoys filling her playhouse pots with water and dumping them on the plants, plucking flowers and playing in the landscaping rocks while we work. It’s important that they witness the commitment to and routine of yard work, but the value of this particular daily chore is much greater. When we head out to deadhead the flowers, water, and weed, it gives us a chance to connect with nature directly, to watch the changes that occur, to see how our actions affect the success or failure of the garden, and to talk about what we see. We’ve watched our bushes go from naked to green to flowering, met new bugs, and tasted our own herbs all in just minutes a day.
2. Dine Among the Elements
Kids thrill at the idea of doing something outside that they normally do inside. When the weather cooperates, it’s actually convenient to throw together a quick picnic dinner out of fridge leftovers or pick up take out, and then lay a blanket down at a favorite park, the beach or right in the back yard. There’s no hot stove adding to the oppressive summer heat, no floors or countertops to clean, no constant reminders to sit still or mind manners … just time to enjoy being under a blue sky with the people you love most and sharing a meal. It’s almost like the food tastes better outside, too. The kids eat more, they laugh more, and they run around and get some exercise afterward. One time, we ended a very busy day with a twilight picnic dinner at Maudslay under a giant tree. Sadie tried to feed grapes to the ants and Henry used a stick to pick up our trash. Thirty minutes became an hour. And as we headed back to the car, bellies full and spirits calmed after a hectic day, we said hello to a family of six (four teens), with their own picnic basket in tow. I hoped that would be us some day; and I knew in that moment a tradition was born.
3. Spy the Sky from Inside
Sometimes nature itself prevents us from getting outside. One afternoon, right as we were about to go on a walk, a thunderstorm hit. It was already 4:30 p.m. and I knew we would miss our window of nature-time for the day. While I was feeling discouraged, the kids had glued themselves to the front window, watching the yellowing sky, the shuddering trees and the leaves and branches that raced down our brick sidewalk in the wind. Instead of flipping on PBS or playing a board game, we pulled up chairs, drank chocolate milk and watched the show from the window. The yellow sky turned dark as night, thunder roared, rain drove against the window like nails. It was awesome. Better than TV. We even turned off the lights in the dining room so everything beyond the window illuminated in the flashes of lightning. We were with nature, but dry and safe, too. The best part? It’s a perfect excuse to snuggle together. Even without a storm, it’s fun to pull open the blinds, turn out the lights and watch the moon or the stars before bed; or greet a new day by letting in the light of the sun, surveying the clouds and guessing the weather for the day.
4. Get Crafty, Naturally
Here’s one final tip I’ve incorporated throughout the Mission. Every time we’ve walked the trails or combed the beach, we’ve collected things. We have everything in the house right now from sticks and dried flowers, to pine cones and shells. I keep them in a box in the kitchen. Sometimes while I’m cooking dinner or cleaning up from breakfast, I’ll pull out the box along with some glue, paper, scissors, markers, paint, etc. While Sadie plays with the treasures, rediscovering their textures or pushing them in her doll stroller, Henry will create collages, paint rocks, build gadgets or retell the story of a particular item and how/where we’d found it. What I like about this activity is that it brings creativity and nature together in a totally unstructured way. I try not to suggest what to do or not do with the treasures because it’s more fun to watch what they’ll do. Henry once got out the Play-Doh and made imprints by rolling the pine cones and poking the sticks in the dough, creating all sort of cool designs. Sadie followed suit. I just stood by watching from the corner of my eye, chopping a green pepper and smiling … while Mother Nature provided a canvas for their imaginations.
If you’ve got quick and easy ways to achieve 30 minutes of nature each day, please comment and share your ideas. We’d love to hear them!
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