Wormy

All three of my children were playing outside today when C came running to find me in the house. 

"Mom, MOOOOOOOM, I FOUND A WORM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Take a picture!"

So, meet Wormy:

Great Outdoor Challenge

It's not too late to join the Great Outdoor Challenge hosted by 5 Orange Potatoes!

Happy Earth Day

We are playing in the dirt today.  What are you doing?  Join us for the Great Outdoor Challenge hosted by 5 Orange Potatoes.

Hello

Kelly just wanted to say hi.  She loves the Great Outdoor Challenge because it means lots of fun for her! 

Playground Fun

It is supposed to rain the next few days so we had to take advantage of the warm weather and spend some time at the playground yesterday.  Are you having fun with the Great Outdoor Challenge?  We are!

Roller Girl

Join us for the Great Outdoor Challenge hosted by 5 Orange Potatoes.

Getting Ready

Baseball season is upon us, and the boys are getting ready.

Join us for the Great Outdoor Challenge hosted by 5 Orange Potatoes.

Scooter Time and Gingerbread Man

Today R had fun riding her scooter up and down the street. 

When C came home from school, he and R played Gingerbread Man.  Run, run as fast as you can, you can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man.

I am really enjoying the Great Outdoor Challenge.  I have to admit that I have never been an outdoorsy person, and I can find excuses to stay in the house.  My kids (and my husband) love to be outside though, and this challenge is getting me out there with them.  We are spending a lot more time outside than we ever have, and I am enjoying it!

April Showers

Join us for the Great Outdoor Challenge over at 5 Orange Potatoes.

Play Ball

Signs of Spring

While participating in the Great Outdoor Challenge, we have been looking for signs of Spring in our yard, and we have found quite a few:

What kind of seasonal changes have you seen in your yard? 

Nature Bracelets

Yesterday we made nature bracelets.  I put some packaging tape around all of our wrists with the sticky side out.  Then, we simply found leaves, flowers, twigs, pebbles, and whatever else we considered to be "items from nature" and stuck them on our bracelets.

We also did some weeding,

played with our dog,

and tried to play frisbee.

Have you joined the Great Outdoors Challenge yet?  Check it out at 5 Orange Potatoes.

Tree Identification

Do you know the names of the trees in your own backyard?  I don't.  I am a bit embarrassed about this and I am going to do something about it!  We are currently participating in The Great Outdoor Challenge hosted by 5 Orange Potatoes.  The challenge is easily met just by spending time outside every day for the month of April.  I am hoping to add a little learning to our outdoor time and one of the things we are going to do is identify the trees in our yard.

This is my favorite tree in our yard.  I love the color, the peeling bark, and the multiple trunks.

We moved into this house around Thanksgiving, and I am not sure what the leaves of the tree will look like yet.  I searched the Arbor Day Foundation website to attempt to identify the tree.  Without knowing exactly what the leaves look like, my best guess right now is that this is a River Birch tree.

I originally thought it was a Paper Birch, but because the bark is cinnamon colored rather than white, it appears to be a River Birch.  I am excited to see what the leaves look like to confirm my guess.

While outside, R, C, and I made some observations about this tree.  We noted the color, the rough patches, and the peeling bark.  We touched the tree and even tried to make a crayon rubbing.

R and I drew pictures of the tree.  Here is R's drawing:

This is my drawing:

R even tried to teach the tree to hula hoop!

What are your outdoor plans for the day?  Head over to 5 Orange Potatoes and join the fun!