Throwing Stones

Since my last post, I've been thinking even more about children in nature. I took Richard Louv's book Last Child in the Woods off the bookshelf and skimmed feeling my resolve to spend more time outside build as he talked about the dearth of outdoor play opportunities for modern children. 

Living near the infamous beltway, nature does not seem to be as easily accessible as in our our former home in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, but for kids, it doesn't lack for things to do culturally or naturally. I realize that this winter I've been a bit reluctant to get outside with my younger daughter. It's easy to get in the trap of running errands and putzing around inside while it's cold out. 

With that in mind, I took my younger daughter down to the park today while Booster was in dance class. Thumper loves the swings and is curious about other parts of the playground but, frankly, it's set up for much older kids so she has a hard time climbing around on the equipment. I appreciate playgrounds for what they are, but I do tend to find them somewhat limiting as a place to return to again and again so I decided to take her down to the creek. 

Once there, I wondered why I'd been so hesitant to take her there. Poor thing, I had to teach her how to throw rocks in the water which she thought was great fun. She only interrupted this pursuit to watch the Canada Geese fly overhead.