Spring Rambles with my Son

Spring is tantalizingly close. We've spent the last few weeks reluctantly trapped indoors, out of the icy cold and slush. Now that we're inching toward warm weather and greenery, I'm anxious to plan some outdoor fun.

Our first task is to plant a butterfly garden outside of our window. We'll be able to care for and watch the flowers grow, but also hope to attract some butterflies. After endless aloud readings of The Very Hungry Caterpillar, it'll be neat for my son to see the life cycle of the butterfly in person, as caterpillar and butterfly friends visit our patch of flowers.

We're also planning a visit to a nearby wildlife preserve. It has a rambling, winding path leading through a bit of wilderness that'll be perfect for long walks and leisurely picnics. There's also a small indoor display, labeling the different plants and animals we'll see.

Until then, my son is enamored with just the mud, rocks and grass that line the edge of our sidewalk. He has a rock collection that continues to grow (and an unfortunate mud collection gathered on shoes and jeans). Being a little closer to the ground, and slightly less impatient to get places, he observes things in the dirt that I would never stop to examine.

As this winter begins to thaw, we're gradually, eagerly, making our way outside to soak up the bits of nature we've missed these last months.

How do you share the change of seasons with your children?

About Liz Moorhead
Liz Moorhead is a high school teacher turned work-from-home mom. An illustrator and writer, she blogs for a top wedding site and shares her own personal experiences on her blog Happy Sighs in between walks to the park with her toddler son – all just outside of Philadelphia.