As a Founding Mother of the National Wildlife Federation's new Be Out There campaign, I've accepted the challenge of finding and sharing ways to help promote outdoor activities families (like mine) can do, together.
Gardening is one of my favorite ways to get my kids outside: they really do enjoy helping me and my husband, Garth [not his real name] grow our own fruits and vegetables, in the summertime.
Earth Day is just around the corner (April 22, 2010) FamilyFun Magazine also has some terrific tips on creative ways to help celebrate, this month:
10 Ways to Make Gardening More Fun: By maximizing the magic and minimizing the chores, our readers bring out the green thumb in their kids.
Tips for Creating Your First Garden (with your kids!): Giving your child his or her own miniature flower garden provides the right balance of big dreams and little tasks. A small garden of annual flowers is easy to take care of, and she will learn many skills as she nurtures seedlings and cuts bouquets for the kitchen table.
Also featured are gardening ideas that bring both city and country kids outside to learn about the earth, and have some fun!
Gardening Craft Projects to Inspire a Young Gardener:
The Stepping Stone Path: This stepping-stone path offers a concrete method of preserving your most precious garden harvest: happy memories.
Create a Gourd Birdhouse: Gourds prove that nature has a sense of humor: their wild markings, eye-popping colors, and space-alien shapes transform the late-summer garden into a natural amusement park. If you've considered growing gourds but wondered what in the world to do with them, this project will answer your question--and please the birds in the process.
Make Your Version of the Very Hungry Caterpillar: This soddy creature makes a fun first-time gardening project while bringing a little bit of spring into your home.
Create a Garden Guardian: With her bean-vine skirt and hair that really grows, our garden guardian is proof that this summer's hot color is definitely green. Plant your seeds at the end of May (or whenever the time is right where you live), and you'll see a full skirt of foliage by mid-July. As if good looks weren't enough, Mrs. Green Beans offers the bonus of a three-month harvest.
Open a "Ladybug Inn": One way for your kids to get acquainted with the industrious ladybug is to gather a few from your garden and put them up indoors for a couple of days in a see-through ladybug inn.
Gardening Projects for Apartment Dwellers, too:
Create a Door Step Garden: Turn an old boot into a stylish planter.
Create a Windowsill Garden: Nothing cures a family-wide case of cabin fever--and makes a home more fun to live in--like a little gardening in the great indoors.
Create Plant Pals for the Indoor Gardener: Your indoor gardener may not get your "bad hair day" jokes, but the fun of this grassy-haired friend won't be lost on him. Like a Chia Pet, the project requires just a sprinkling of seeds, a bit of sun, and a few drops of patience.
Or, if you want something really easy to do, take the Be Out There pledge to spend more time outside with your kids and help celebrate Earth Day, everyday, too!
© 2010 This Full House - All Rights Reserved.
DISCLOSURE: NO PAYMENTS, PRODUCTS, OR OTHER CONSIDERATIONS, OTHER THAN A CHANCE TO SHARE SIMPLE IDEAS AND/OR STUFF WE LIKE, WITH FAMILIES (LIKE OURS) WAS RECEIVED FOR THIS BLOG POST.
