Friday, April 29, 2016

Nature Study Outing :: Color!


We're doing nature study in our yard this week so that we don't spread our cold to our friends, but I'm dreaming about last week's outing, which was sunny and full of color.  We tried a new park in the foothills outside of town. There was an oak-lined trail and a creek, but the real draw was a meadow full of wildflowers...

lupines everywhere!



We did a tick check when we got home because although we don't have many in our area, the kids certainly put that to the test with all their romping in the grasses!  (And is it just me, or does it look like they tried to get as far away from us as they possibly could while still remaining in eyesight? Yep, sounds about right. ;))

We took home a little nosegay...

from left to right: blow-wives, some kind of yellow clover, q-tips, owl's clover, dove lupine, yellow tarweed, yarrow
...and made some comparisons...

both kinds of goosegrass?
...which got laid out for our weekly tray.


I'd like to introduce you to a couple "friends" this week:

Clarkia was a new find for us! Bright magenta with four delicately toothed petals and narrow leaves.


And owl's clover, one of my very favorites.  (It's that flower below on the left, and you can also see it on a previous post.)  It is lovely and complicated--bits of yellow and polka dots and such. I took a closer look at it this week with our new loupe....and realized it is even more complicated up close!


look at those feathery petals!

But although my favorite part was the wildflowers (it always is!), the kids' favorite might have been the insects we encountered. Lines of ants everywhere carrying dozens of these curly bits below back to their holes along the trail.

anyone know what they are? the leftovers of some kind of seed pod?
One boy caught a cricket with his bug sucker (seriously--it's a thing, and it works!), which is a treat around here.  Everyone wanted a peek.


And we saw this gorgeous tiger moth on the way out.  He stayed perfectly still for us for a long while.


Then there were these two, who spend a large part of the day running circles around the house but as soon as we get into big open spaces, walk around holding hands and then plop down to "nature journal."




And the most lovely thing about this outing? All the moms. It's a pleasure to study nature alongside other moms who get it--who are as engaged and enthusiastic as the kids are, who keep nature journals, who aren't afraid to get (a little) dirty.  More about that another time--I have some chatting I want to do here on the blog about Mother Culture and nature study is a big part of that.

Wishing you a bright and colorful weekend!

13 comments:

  1. Wow, Celeste, your enthusiasm and passion for nature and nature study never ceases to inspire me and motivate me to continue earth science in my own homeschool curriculum (2 in grade 11, 1 in grade 7, 1 in grade 4, 1 in Kindergarten & a 2 year). Although I have been lax about earth science in recent years (you can ask my gradate!) but this year, We have very much embraced nature study in our household like never before this spring, and my kids love it! I personally have a hard time getting into it and usually stick with my younger crowd but we get it done and we do a lot of journaling and at home study. So thank you so much for you continued inspiration with nature study! God Bless!

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    1. Thank you so much for the encouragement! And I'm glad you hear you're having a wonderfully outdoorsy spring! :)

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  2. Celeste, I must tell you that you truly inspire me to do this with my boys. I know I have said that repeatedly, but, it is true. Your work is so lovely as usual. May I ask what you use for supplies for nature journaling or if you can point me to a blog post about what you prefer to use I would love that :) I just read your post and looked at all the lovelies you shared while listening to Joel Clarkson's audio companion to Life Giving Home and it is a wonderful match and makes me smile! Thanks for sharing!

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    1. Thank you so much, Ann-Marie! I will put together a post of my favorite journaling materials. We have tried a LOT of different supplies over the years and have found some that work well for us. And, of course, I'm always trying new ones too... ;) But I will share what have been our tried-and-true. :)

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    2. Thanks, Celeste! Can I ask when you watercolor in your journal are you painting with regular watercolors or using something like water color crayons and then painting? Thanks for your thoughts and I am looking forward to hearing more about what supplies you use :)

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  3. I love this post, Celeste. Good idea about comparing various plants! Thank you for sharing your adventures. :)

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    1. PS - the nosegay is lovely and I agree, IRL friends are one of the best parts of nature groups! :)

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    2. Yep, nature study is definitely better with friends! :)

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  4. I would also like to know what specific supplies you use. Or what blog post to read about your supplies. Your work is lovely.

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    1. I haven't blogged about our supplies, but I will, Jenny! Thanks for the encouragement. :)

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  5. Bridget and Clara are THE cutest ever. Our nosegay received a special dousing of coffee on the way home. I was only able to salvage one or two wilted flowers. And had a very frustrating time trying to identify anything. Birds are soooo much easier. Even though they move. Can't wait to do it again!! I really need to put together a little art/nature study bag so we can do some sketching and painting in the field.

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  6. I think your mystery seed pod is from Stork's-bill - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erodium_cicutarium - we were exploring those yesterday and my daughter took an amazing time lapse photo series of one of the seed pods winding into that incredible shape.

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    1. It is TOO funny that you mention this because I am RIGHT NOW drawing the geranium corkscrews! We solved the mystery yesterday, and I just drew a timelapse of two different kinds of storksbill (aka filaree/geranium) not even five minutes ago in my nature journal. Going to Vox you a photo right now because I can't believe the coincidence! :)

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