Fall Leaves to Color

Fall feels like it's just slipped by us, but we found some time the other day to make some pretty fall leaves to brighten up our windows.  It was such fun, all three kids really got into it...even the baby's little scribbles turned out cute leaves.  

 

Materials:

• white coffee filters
• markers
• squirt bottle filled with water
• dry dishtowel
• scissors 
• iron 

Method:

• Set your iron to high and iron your filters flat, then use your scissors to cut out some cute leaf shapes.  We did poplars, maples, oak, and other assorted made up leaves :)
• Color neatly or scribble all over the leaves, your choice.  I like using colors that are pretty compatible (e.g. red-orange-yellow or orange-brown-yellow) so that they don't turn really muddy when they mix together.
• Place your colored leaf on the towel and spray until pretty wet.  The colors will bleed together for a nice fall effect.  

We're saving ours to decorate our Thanksgiving table along with our teepee and Native American peg doll.  I'm thinking we may add a little pilgrim to the mix!  We're heading out east a bit to spend the day with my grandparents and keeping dinner simple....although there'll definitely be a homemade pie! What are your plans for the big day?

One Little Native American and His (Her?) Teepee/Lodge

I'm just loving the cute little peg dolls I see popping up on blogs here and there, and I managed to pick up a little bag of them at Hobby Lobby a few weeks ago.  I stared at them a bit, then last week when Little Flower launched into a discourse on Thanksgiving and what she'd learned at school about Native Americans, inspiration struck. 

The lodge (aka teepee, but I guess they're rightly called lodges, just as my childhood song '1 little, 2 little, 3 little Indians' is now '1 little, 2 little, 3 little Native Americans') is constructed of bamboo skewers with the pointy tips cut off (I'm reserving them for a future 'campfire' with felt 'flames').  I tied it with thread then set it in a 'teepee' shape and thoroughly glued the intersecting skewers together.  The 'skins' covering the outside are actually a bit of natural muslin.  I first cut it into a circle, then cut a wedge out (about 1/3 of the circle) and cut a small circle out of the center.  Little Flower decorated it with pictographs she learned about at school, then it was glued and stitched on (see, above the doorflap?). 

My little Native person was originally supposed to be a boy (hence the feathers in the hair, I seem to recall that girls don't get feathers), but everyone else decided that she's a girl.  What do you think?  Either way, I'm sure he/she will make a nice addition to our Thanksgiving table!

ten things to do before summer melts into fall

Labor day has passed and Summer really is winding down. I noticed this morning that all the kindergarten girls who were wearing sundresses two weeks ago have all switched to jeans and hoodies. I'm not ready to give up yet, though! We've got a least a few weekends of gorgeous weather left before it really cools down and sends us inside and I'm planning to make the most of it. Are you in? (image via ehow.com)

1. Camp out in the backyard. It's cool at night, but our sleeping bags keep us toasty. Added bonus: the days are getting shorter so you won't be woken up at 5 am with the sunrise! It'll be a great opportunity to have smores one more time, even if we're toasting marshmallows over candle-flame.
2. Make little nature boats and sail them in the creek. How to: Collect sticks and twigs, break into 3-5" lengths (depending on the size of your desired boat). Use long pieces of grass to tie them into bundles, add a leaf for a 'sail,' and send down the stream. We used to make paper boats, but it felt too much like littering :/
   
3. Play a late-night game of Predator Stalks Prey. How to: Once it's pretty dark, each player gets a shaker (a jar half-filled with popcorn works). One player is designated Predator and is out to find the Prey. Each time Predator shakes his/her shaker Prey must respond with a shake of their own. Once Predator tags a Prey, Prey becomes Predator and the game starts again!
4. Build a set of tin-can stilts. How-to: Collect two large cans of the same size, wash and remove labels and any sharp parts. Use a nail to poke two holes near the bottom of the can, directly across from each other. Cut a length of string twice as long as your (child's) legs, thread it through the holes, and tie off into a loop. Stand on the unopened end of the can and hold the string loops in your hands, then try to walk!
5. Pick quarts and quarts of raspberries, eat quarts more, and make jars and jars of freezer jam. Find u-pick farms near you at pickyourown.org and localharvest.org.
6. Make a kite. My favorite super-easy, kid-friendly pattern is at Family Fun. You probably have all the supplies, it requires almost no wind, and there are no wooden spars to break.
   
7. Make frozen bananas and dip them in chocolate and chopped peanuts.
8. I've got the tire, the rope, and the branch. We have to get that tire swing in before the snow flies!
9. Dry the first apples of fall (almost!) in the sun. How to: Peel and core an apple, then slice crosswise into thin, thin rings. Lay an old sheet on a picnic table or other flat area in the direct sun. Turn once the tops are dry to allow the other side to dry. If you slice them thinly enough they can dry in a day. Thicker rings have to be taken in at night and put out the next day.
10. Invite friends over for a last outdoor barbecue. Let the kids run through the sprinklers until they're wet and silly, then feed them ice cream cake.

So what is your family doing to enjoy the end of summer?

Lace Up Those Boots Kids, We're Going for a Nature Hunt!

I love to be outside. I so appreciate the expansiveness of nature and its juxtaposition against the tiny details you find if you look at anything up close. An anthill under a leaf, the pattern of veins on a leaf, the scent of a butterscotch pine...there's just so much to find. Of course, I also love the capacity of nature to let my children RUN! After a day--even an hour--outdoors they're ready for a bit of quiet time (something that seems to come all too infrequently!).

Yesterday we all seemed to be getting on each other's nerves and it was obviously time for a good outing so we headed to the park to squeeze a little more fun out of summer before school starts. As the kids played and the baby tried to supplement her diet with mouthfuls of bark mulch I put together a list of a few things I thought the children would be able to find if they kept a sharp eye out on a walk around the park. I added illustrations for the non-reader in our group, and check-boxes to mark off as we found each item. My list included a duck, an animal's home, a new type of bug, a flower bud, and a footprint. If you do this, keep in mind the things that you find at your park, the time of year, etc, to ensure that you're looking for things you might actually be able to find!

We had a lovely time looking for each item, and actually managed to find them all...as well as a few things that weren't on our original list, but that we would've walked past if we weren't on the hunt for neat stuff! In the end, Josie added a number of things to our list, including an interesting sort of plum tree and the pea seeds that Jasper spotted.

What do you enjoy doing with your children to bring them closer to nature? Are you doing anything special to savor these last few days of summer?