Summer is winding down.

That’s the truth of the matter.  I can kick, I can scream, I can fight against it, but that would really be wasting valuable, precious moments of summertime.

Our summers seem to begin and end in the same manner.

May is our busy month.  We throw ourselves headlong into several remodeling projects.  June comes around and we say “Meh.  Let’s go camping instead.”  Through June and July we play like winter will never come again.  Wen our anniversary rolls around in mid-August reality hits like the first maple leaves turning red.  We still have all those remodeling projects left unfinished.  We have to finish them before we get closed in for the winter.

From the middle of August until the snow flies we are working frantically trying to get things pulled back together before winter.  When the sound of the first snowflakes drifting down we snuggle down into our blankets, drink our hot coccoa, and pinky swear and spit shake that we won’t procrastinate  next summer.

I spent yesterday sanding down our front porch.  When I finished, Brenton and I considered that this would be the 3rd time we re-did the porch in less than 3 years.  Rather than going to buy paint for the porch, we decided that next summer we are going to re do the porch with a composite, like Azek Porch.  Long lasting, low maintenance, and the look of a classic tongue and groove wood porch.

At dinner time, I mentioned to Brenton that we should consider long term maintenance in the future when we choose building materials.  There is too much other stuff to do with life besides refinishing the front porch again.

In the September 2011 issue of Runner’s World, Jeff Galloway wrote an article about introducing children to running.  In 2 years of subscribing to Runner’s World, this little article, less than 1/2 a page, is hands down, the most useful article I have read.

Jeff breaks down children’s training by age.

As I read, I tucked away this little bit of knowledge:

AGES 6 AND UNDER
HOW FAR? Not very. At this age, playing chase or racing Dad to the mailbox is a great way to introduce kids to running.
RUN/WALK RATIO Run segments should be no longer than 10 to 20 seconds. Walk one to two minutes between each.

ANd on Sunday, we got to use it.  Brenton wanted to try out his new shoes.  We headed to a nearby trail along the lake.

“Run, Mamma! Run!” Samuel would say.  ”No STOP!”

I would stop with an “Eerch!” turn around and count, “Ready! Set! GOOOOOO!”

Samuel and Brenton would race to the finish line (my arms).  Samuel always won by crashing into me and knocking me over with a bear hug.

“That was a good run.  You are such a fast runner.”  I would tell him as I climbed back up to my feet.

A few moments later I would hear his sweet sing-song voice say “Run, Mamma! Run!”

The full article on safe training for children is available here: Family Planning 

I did it!  He caught the bug!

After hiking to the crag on Friday, Brenton mentioned to me, “I need to build up some cardiovascular strength.”  He was gasping for air at this point.  The hike had been steep and Brenton was carrying Samuel.

On the way home, Brenton said, “I’m going to need some different shoes so I can start running.”

On Saturday, he doubled his shoe collection.  Now he has a pair of boots and a pair of running shoes.

Now to map out my training plan for him.

Image via Wikipedia

After years of swearing I would never go climbing, I wasn’t quite sure how to answer when someone asked us to go climbing and I really wanted to say yes.

Lately I have been stepping out of my comfort zone.  It’s hard to say exactly what has pushed me out; I suppose it was a combination of circumstances.  Doing The Wild Bound Project has pushed me to actually do the things I have always said I wanted to do.  Starting the paleo diet and finding out I have a gluten sensitivity has given me the health and energy that I couldn’t have imagined 3 months ago.  Feeling healthy goes a long ways towards feeling adventurous.

Once we got to the crag, I was feeling a bit uncertain.  I watched Brenton do a climb first.  It was his first time out and he promptly earned the nickname “Spider Monkey.”  He is a natural at rock climbing.

This world needs more playing in the sand

This world needs more games of pickup football.

This world needs more splashing in the water even when you didn’t come prepared for swimming.

This world needs more squeals of delight and more days of Summer

Image via Wikipedia

Plans don’t always work out as planned.

On Wednesday we were supposed to go rock climbing. This was going to be my first try at this sort of adventure.  I even skipped my run for the day in preparation.

By the time the climbing adventure was canceled, we had enough time to pay a social call and then come home and head for bed.

Sometimes I watch Samuel and think, “I wonder where he got those genetics because they certainly didn’t show up in his parents!”  For example, by the time Samuel was 3 months old, I knew for certain that he was a cleanie.  Born organized that one is.  My first hint came when my water broke at 1 a.m. on the one day I was sure we wouldn’t be welcoming him.  Yes, my son was born on his due date.  My right on schedule boy.

As he grew, I found myself working hard to keep our house in some sort of order.  Like all moms, I would sometimes lay him on a blanket on the living room floor while I tried to get some work done.  When the house was clean, he would lay there cooing and happy playing with whatever toys I had left with him.  When the living room was a mess, Samuel was fretful and anxious.  Nothing could soothe him except picking him up.  I was often thankful for the various baby carriers available.

The cleanie is strong with that one.

I don’t know which side of the family he inherited such a strong need for organization, but apparently it skipped a generation in Brenton and me.

As Samuel has gotten even older, more of his sweet personality has started to shine.  The more recent personality traits that have shown up are perhaps even more foreign to me than him being a cleanie.  He is an extrovert!

Brenton and I make the classic pairing of the artist marries the engineer.  On the Myers-Briggs, the only personality traits we hold in common are that we are both introverts.  Before Samuel came along, Brenton and I were perfectly happy to work side by side on our own little projects in our own little worlds.  I am certain that God molds children to stretch parents.

When Samuel gets to the playground, he looks around and says with a disappointed sigh, “The kids are all gone.”  I see one more way that being his Mama is going to stretch me.

I am thankful that all this stretching comes alongside the tenderest love and affection one human can have for another.  Otherwise, I would retreat in the face of such an enormous challenge.

What can you do with your child to encourage their curiosity while they ride in a stroller on a walk or on a jog?

A lot of how we interact with nature on a jog involves pointing out things we see as we go around.  Whenever we run over the slough, we almost always see a few ducks or a beaver.  When we run through the bushes, we see birds.  There is on place that we usually get attacked by a hummingbird.

We usually pick up a rock or a pinecone some time along the run.

We run through the fountain on warm days.

When we hear birds calling out we call back to them.  My favorite source for learning bird songs is BirdJam.com not only do they have audio of different bird songs, they also have the song written out for you to learn.

This is the song of the robin (link takes you to birdjam page so you can hear it):

Cheerily, cheeriup, cheerio, cheeriup

I know from experience that a toddler can learn to sing “Cherily, cheeriup!”  When he does it at the doctor’s office as they ask him to identify pictures, it really impresses the nurses!

Lately I have been running a set course to try and improve my time.  Since having a child, I have learned that there is always enough time to stop and watch a beaver in the pond or to watch an eagle slowly soaring higher and higher.

Children CAN explore nature from the viewpoint of a jogging stroller or a  kid carrier backpack.

Image via Wikipedia

A few weeks ago, I asked “What Does It Look Like to Connect Children with Nature?”

Your responses have forced me to think.

It comes as no great surprise that most of the readers of this blog place a high value on children getting outside and getting knee deep in nature.

One lone commenter came out in defense of strapping a child in a jogging stroller and getting outside.  Kelli, your comment got me thinking about my assumptions.

As a mom, it is easy to fall into the comparison trap or even thinking that there is one right way to raise every child.

Stay at home moms vs. working moms.  We all have our own source of mommy guilt and mommy pride.  We start out by wanting to give our children the best we know how and eventually we morph into a thought that “my way is the best way.”

When it boils down, every mom is giving her child the best she can in her own way.

The real question we should all be asking is not “What does it look like to connect children and nature?”; rather we should be asking ourselves, “How do I want to connect my children with nature?” Perhaps even “How do I want to connect my children with nature TODAY?”

We have to learn to agree upon the universals:

Children need to get outside.  It is healthy for them physically, mentally, and emotionally.

We need to support, encourage, and enable one another on the particulars realizing that getting kids outside, connecting children with nature will look different in each family, in each situation, in each location, and with each child.

Sometimes it looks like playing in the dirt in the front yard while Mom watches from inside.

Sometimes it looks like a week long camping and hiking trip.

Sometimes it looks like strapping a kid in a jogging stroller to go out for a run.

Sometimes it looks like a discovery museum.

Sometimes it looks like a zoo.

Do what you can do in whatever way you can do it.

I’m cheering you on.

Saturday, While I went out and tried out  my new shoes (They didn’t make me fly, I’m sorry to say), Brenton watched Samuel at the park.

This all sounds like a very normal thing to do, but this was a big day for Samuel!  His favorite thing to do at the park is to bring several small (hot wheels) type cars and roll them down the slides.  On saturday there were a lot of other kids at the park, and one boy in particular wanted to play with Samuel and the cars.  At first, Samuel was against this idea, but after a while he discovered that it is more fun to have someone else to play with than it is just playing by yourself.

Is it too soon to say?

On day 142, Samuel learned to share his toys!

That is a lesson that it is never too soon to learn.