Nature Week - A Fun (and Messy) Adventure

They warned us!  Yes, they did.  Miss Connie said, " Wear old clothes and galoshes.  We WILL be getting messy.  We are going to be walking through a creek."  Last week was Nature Week at Leah's preschool.  All week long, they meet at Inwood Park for their classes.  We sent Leah off on Monday, ready for an adventure.  As soon as Phil picked her up from class, he called and said. "Get the bath ready!"

Apparently, Leah slipped and fell in while walking through the creek.  And I hear there was quite a leaf fight with Coach Jesse, evidenced by the little pieces of leaves all over her hair.  Leah kept saying, "Why did Miss Connie and Coach Jesse want us to get so dirty?  It's 'gusting!"  Of course, I needed to take pictures/video to capture the moment before we headed in to clean up.  It was like a three wash cycle to get her clean.  First we plopped her in the bath for a full body pre-wash.  Then drained the tub and rinsed her down with the shower, trying to get all those pieces of leaves out of her hair.  We finished with a final wash in the bath.  We had to do the same with her clothes (rinse, scrub, and wash).  Except for her socks, they were beyond saving.

I couldn't wait to chaperone the Wednesday class and see the action first hand.  We started off the day at the playground.  Then, the kids played in the sand.  I thought it was smart to play in the sand before going to the creek and getting wet.  

Next, we went for a hike through the creek.  Down the trail and through the mud we trekked.  On this day, Leah was very careful and successfully hiked through the creek without falling, keeping herself relatively clean and dry.  However, a couple other kids slipped and got pretty wet and dirty!

They were excited to spot a duck swimming through a tunnel.  Then they all chirped like little birdies as Miss Connie feed them gummy worms.  

They also played in a pile of woodchips with shovels and rakes.  Then off to the dirt piles to play with real garden tools.  Leah and her friends made up a spontaneous cheer about gardening.  It was so cute, I asked them to do it again.  Then they listened to the ocean as they looked at and examined shells.

It was a full, fun day!  I was so glad to be part of it.  But, the week was not over yet.  

Friday was Arbor Day, a field trip in which parents (and other siblings) accompanied their child through a variety of nature activities.  We rotated from station to station.  Our first activity was a hike lead by Coach Jesse.  As you can see, Mommy was trumped by Coach Jesse on this one.  Right after Leah asked, "Mommy, is it okay if I don't hold your hand right now?" she promptly ran up to Coach Jesse to hold his hand! 

On the hike, we saw a frog and identified poison ivy.  (For those of you wondering, we did not walk through the creek on this day.)  

Her favorite station was the WORMS lead by Miss Connie.  After they learned about the life cycle of worms, they got to hold a worm if they wanted to.  Leah was the first one ready and waiting for a worm to be handed to her.  Afterwards, she told Miss Connie, "I love those worms.  They are so cute."  That's not exactly the word I would use to describe them.

Leah enjoyed Nature Week to its fullest!  I love that she can look at the pictures and video of herself all muddy and 'gusting and laugh.  She is a little explorer and Mommy isn't always ready to take on creek hiking... so thank you Sunshine and Rainbows for giving her a great fun adventurous week of school and learning.