Nature Inspired Easter Craft

Easter Craft Painted with Flowers

Spring is here, and it’s almost Easter!  To celebrate both exciting events, my daughter and I decided to make an Easter craft using a little springtime nature for our inspiration.  Our project proceeded as follows:

1. I created a bunny template and cut it out of recycled drawing paper.  You can create any template or just use a page of drawing paper.  Since Easter is coming soon, I decided to make a bunny.  Eggs and birds would also make nice templates for this time of year.

   

   Simple Bunny Template

2. Then, my daughter and I took a walk outside to look for flowers and leaves that would make nice paint brushes or stamps.  When doing this, it is important to remember that the stems and flowers need to be somewhat strong enough to hold paint and keep the shape of the flower or leaf.  Also as a rule, we never cut flowers or leaves if there are not many available (unless they are weeds).  To supplement the variety of flowers we found in the yard, I purchased a small bundle of Rainforest Alliance Certified^TM farm flowers from a local store (http://www.rainforest-alliance.org/multimedia/show-your-love).

   

   Hunting for Flowers

   
   

   

   Mostly Weeds

3. Once we collected all of our paint brushes/stamps, we arranged our craft table for our paint project.  I put together a plate with spring-colored, acrylic paints for my daughter to dip the flowers and leaves into for this project. 
4. My daughter picked one flower or leaf at a time and dipped it into a paint color (starting with the lightest colors first).  She blotted the flower or leaf onto the bunny template in a few places and then went on to using the next flower or leaf and a new color.
5. After the bunny template was evenly covered with paint to my daughter’s satisfaction, we waited for it to dry.

   

   Hard at Work

   
   

   

   Painting with Flowers

   
   

   

   A Fun Way to Paint

6. Lastly, my daughter glued a white cotton ball to the rump of the painted bunny.

While my daughter thoroughly enjoyed painting this way, we also loved our hunt for flowers.  It was an excellent opportunity to remind her to take care when working with plants.  After all, they are alive too!  Cutting, trimming, and clipping plants can be beneficial to the plant if done the proper way.  But picking leaves off a plant for no reason can actually hurt the plant if it is done too much.  This outing was the perfect time to demonstrate how to collect flowers and leaves.  Our hunt for flowers was also a prime time to talk about seasonal changes.  During the winter, many plants didn't look very good.  They were still alive, but dormant (or resting).  But now, new growth is showing with new leaves and flowers.  

Zebra Longwing Butterfly Enjoying Lantana

I had a pleasant walk in nature with my little girl collecting flowers and leaves.  It was a joy to witness her excitement while finding signs of spring in the plants around the yard.  You can have the same experience too!  Have fun and enjoy your spring!

A Fairytale Party

Fairytale Birthday Party

We celebrated my daughter’s 3rd birthday with a fairytale birthday party last weekend. Everything went perfectly! And nature was a big part of it!

Nature has been a part of my daughter’s birthdays since the beginning. Her first birthday party theme was jungle animals. Her second birthday party theme was farm animals. She has been in love with animals all of her short life. So, why do a fairytale theme this year? And how is that related to animals and nature? Easy…

You might say telling fairy tales is as natural for human parents as teaching a chick how to behave is for the mother bird. Fairy tales are a very old form of communication that is passed down from adult to child in order to teach the child how to behave. Many of these stories had harsh consequences when the lead character did not act appropriately. Of course today, we’ve watered-down and “Disneyified” these stories so that the lead characters always act perfectly, therefore only good things happen to them in the end. But you can be sure that humans have been telling fairy tales with important life lessons in them for as long as we’ve been able to communicate. Fairy tales have long been an important natural part of a child’s education on how to be a good person.

Treasure Hunt

Our party wasn’t strictly a Disney-esque fairy tale, though. I added a few nature promoting touches to enhance the fairytale party. We held the party at a shelter in a park. In the invitation, I called it a magical cottage in the woods where fairies were known to visit. (As a side note, I learned that the park actually has “fairy” hikes.) The children were invited to dress in fairytale costumes if they wanted. My daughter was a fairy in a bold blue and purple dress with wings and a matching wand. We also had a Peter Pan, several princesses, other fairies, and more!

Fairy Meadow Seed Packet

We used butterflies in a lot of our decorations since many fairies seem to have butterfly wings, and butterflies likely inspired many fairy sightings. With the tables elegantly decorated as they should be with a fairytale theme, we also added a nature fairy keepsake for each family to take home. It was a packet of seeds to plant a fairy meadow. The seed mix included a variety of flowering plants perfect for attracting fairies; I mean butterflies.

Fairytale Grass Seed Planter

In addition, instead of the usual gift bag, each child received a small planter with grass seeds to grow and take care of at home. Each little pot had a picture of a fairytale character on it to keep with the party theme. Plus, as a nature educator, I thought it would be a perfect introduction for three year olds to learn how plants grow. It’s small; the children can set it in a window sill and watch it grow. They can also take care of it by watering it and cutting the grass as it grows.

And of course to satisfy the little fairytale-loving children, a well-known tinker fairy was invited to play with them. Half of the tinker fairy’s activities were done in the great outdoors with a treasure hunt, face painting, and pictures. So the kids were able to spend some time engaged with nature, even at a fairytale themed party this past weekend.

It was a perfect day! The weather was beautiful. The kids had fun! The parents enjoyed all of the details. And my little fairy was crowned the newest three-year-old, fairy princess!

But most importantly, every parent should enjoy telling their children fairy tales. That may be one of the most natural things you can do with your children, and it will teach them how to be good people!

Waiting for Grass to Grow

A Little Bit of Nature Found in an Unlikely Place

Building in the Great Outdoors

With my daughter turning three, we decided to take a little Disney World birthday trip to celebrate in advance (before we have to pay for her to go since only kids two and under are free).  I know, it’s not a very nature oriented trip; but like most little ones, my daughter loves that magical place!  So we were pleasantly surprised when we found that the resort where we stayed has its own “Nature Explore” outdoor classroom.

We’ve stayed at the Wyndham Cypress Palms in the past because it has rooms with a full kitchen, living and dining area, and a bedroom with a door.  While my child is young and taking naps, it’s important to have that door!  The complex also has a nice playground overlooking a beautiful lake.  And just on the other side of the playground, new this year, is the nature classroom.  

Outdoor Classroom Sign

The sign to the outdoor area states, “Recognizing a commitment to connecting children with nature.”  What a great idea!  It has seven stations (music and movement, garden, climbing, messy materials, nature art, building, and gathering).  Most of the stations have objects set out for children to play with at any time during the day.  Plus, the resort holds special guided nature activities there at selected times throughout the week.

The whole outdoor classroom is beautifully landscaped, using many native plants.  The pathways are made of rock and stone (no concrete).  Bird feeders and wind chimes hang in a large oak tree.  The garden has raised beds of butterfly-friendly plants, vegetables, and herbs.  The climbing area has various-sized stumps for kids to move around and climb, while seed pods, pinecones, and shells fill the pockets of the art table.  It was truly a spectacular outdoor classroom for a resort to develop, embracing the environment for its hotel guests.  I applaud their commitment to children and nature!  I only hope this is a trend to be found in many more resorts, parks, and playgrounds in the near future. 

Music and Movement

The Gardens

Climbing

Gathering Area

Nature Art