A Trip to the Farm

Last week we got to make our first (of several, hopefully) trip of the season to a farm.  The farm we visited was definitely geared toward children - there were lots of kids activities, not a lot of pumpkin picking or produce.  We went with my mom's group; and since the farm is in Grandma's town, Grandma got to come too!

There were goats, sheep, and a llama or two to feed

Giant legos to build with

A huge chicken coop - turned corn crib to play in

Swings of all kinds and a kid-friendly zip line

A hay-bale maze to play in, with bridges to cross

Hammocks to laze in

And LOTS of other animals: turkeys, chickens, pigs, donkeys, horses, and cows!

E had such fun playing at the farm with her friends!

A Day at the Garden

This past week we visited the botanic gardens in our city.  I took the opportunity and made it into a learning game for E.

I found these great flower three-part cards at The Adventures of Bear.  And while E is not ready for three-part card work yet, she loves the pictures.  She calls them her "flower keys" because they remind her of keys on a ring after I laminated them and put them on a ring clip.  She took them with her all over the gardens and we found almost every flower.  She was so excited when she found a match!  We even found a dandelion, which I'm sure the gardeners just love.  ;)

Ugh!  Sorry these pictures are not the best.  I'm still getting used to my digital camera outside in the sunshine!

The flowers we were looking for were: dandelion, phlox, cherry blossoms, pear blossoms, sunflower, daisy, magnolia, and daffodil.  We found everything but a daisy and a sunflower - they are not blooming yet in our part of the world.  We also found many tulips, grasses, lettuce, onions, and a few ducks and geese in the ponds.  Oh - and koi, E LOVED the koi pond.

Outdoor Challenge: Week 2

Here's what we've been doing in the great outdoors (or our backyard) this past week.  This is part of the Outdoor Challenge from 5 Orange Potatoes.

Wednesday we went out to swing.  Well, to push the swing.  E put rocks and stick in her swing and gave them a ride.

Thursday was a BEAUTIFUL day!  We played in the sandbox and ate ice cream outside.  And dripped some on the ants.  E stayed miraculously clean, even with her chocolate mustache and beard!

Friday was a park play day with some friends.  And I FORGOT my camera!!!  I wish I had brought it, E found some cute, fat robins and wanted to "pet them."  She spent a good 20 minutes chasing the birds around.  They never flew away, just ran out of reach of her.  I think they were looking for a treat.

Saturday and Sunday we worked in our backyard.  Grandpa came over and helped us plant two trees.  E decided she would help dig, too!

Monday was Grandma day, and while I was at work, they collected rocks and drew with sidewalk chalk on the patio.

And Tuesday, I finally got to work in my garden!  It's almost ready to go. 

Now I just have to get to work on the huge pile of weeds in the corner - that's going to be E's play area once we get it cleaned out.

Outdoor Challenge, Week 1

We have had so much fun participating in the Outdoor Challenge through 5 Orange Potatoes.  I decided to do a weekly post on our outdoor fun, rather than trying to get a post written each day.

Thursday was a day at the park.  E loves to run across the bridges and go down the slide.  And of course, swinging is always her favorite!

Friday was a super fun day!  We spent the day in the mountains, took a hike to a lake (sort of), and got to see a lot of birds.

Here's the lake we went to see - umm, yeah, it's that thing under all the snow!  Note to self, wait until May to go hiking in the higher elevations, please!  Trekking through snow with a toddler on your back is not really all that fun!

Saturday, E spent the morning with Grandma.  They went for a walk and found some "pretty yellow flowers!"  I didn't get any pictures of the walk, but I did take one of the flowers E brought home for me!

Sunday, we took a walk at a pond near our house.  We got to see horses and touch some really soft leaves.

Monday was another Grandma day.  They had a lot of fun drawing with sidewalk chalk in the backyard and playing catch.

Tuesday, we went and bought a new sandbox.  It was horribly windy - my neighbor's fence got knocked down, our gate broke, and you can see in the picture what it did to our patio furniture!!  Needless to say, we didn't stay out long.

I think I'll put today's pictures with next week's post.  Anyhow, to see what more kids are doing outside this month, visit 5 Orange Potatoes.

Hello again!

You may have noticed I took a bit of a blogging break over Easter.  I'm sure many of you understand how the computer can be a major distraction!!  So I thought some time apart during Holy Week would be a good thing.  And now I'm back and ready to get going! 

I have a large Tot School post coming up for the weekend.  It's, like, 3 weeks of tot school, so I want to make sure I get that posted!  I also will have some alphabet fun, Easter pictures, and a craft project or two ready to go soon as well.


Did you know that April is Children and Nature awareness month?  Neither did I!  But 5 Orange Potatoes did, and has put out a challenge for us all!  The challenge is to get outside EVERY DAY for the rest of April and document it with a photo.  Rain or shine, or in the case of us here in Colorado . . . snow!  I'll be participating in this challenge with E.  She has recently developed a paralyzing fear of  . . . ants . . . and so she doesn't like to go outside right now.  Maybe this challenge will help cure her.  One can only hope . . . Silly Girl!  Or, I may end up with a bunch of pictures with a crying girl begging to go back inside.  Ha!  I'll be sharing all my week's photos together over the weekend. 

I hope you will all join the challenge, too!