After a long, chilly winter, kids and parents alike are ready to get silly, muddy and creative as they celebrate Spring. Put out the welcome mat for Mother Nature with these tips:
Make mud pies. There’s no better time than Spring to get gloriously, head-to-toe muddy. (And it makes for great family photos!) “Don’t worry about the extra bath your kids will need when they’re done,” says Lisbeth Sanders, a mother of two mud-pie experts. “They’ll remember this day for years to come.”
Plant a special tree or flowers. “Every Spring, we pick a day, put on our ‘grubbies’ and work in the garden as a family,” says Julie Caravaggio. “One year, we removed a section of grass and planted flowers. Now, when I look at that area, I still remember how we all worked on it together.”
Snuggle up with a Spring-themed book. Kathy Mazur originally wrote her book, It’s Springtime In My Backyard (Spring Ducks Books), as part of a project she created with her young daughter, Lauren. The book, about a girl and her relationship with two wild ducks who nest in her backyard at the first signs of Spring, includes a charming, professionally recorded CD of then-seven-year-old Lauren reading the story.
Throw a Spring cleaning party. “I remember three generations of my family washing windows together at Grandma’s house,” says Sanders. “We talked, we laughed and we worked!” She suggests spending a few hours, as a family, helping a loved one or a neighbor who could use a little extra help weeding or scrubbing. Afterward, order pizza and celebrate a job well done – and the satisfaction of helping someone else.
Delight a neighbor with a Spring basket. Help the kids create the basket out of construction paper, suggests Nancy Franklin. Cut the paper into a triangle shape, then roll it into a cone-shaped basket, gluing or taping the edge. Create a handle from a paper strip. Add tissue paper or Easter grass followed by flowers, candies or other goodies and leave the basket on the lucky recipient’s doorknob.
Share some of your own Spring stories. Tell your kids what your family did in the Spring when you were a child. It’s fun to share one of your own childhood stories about coloring eggs or going to a fair or farm to see baby animals. You might be surprised to find your kids asking to hear your stories again and again. When my son was younger, he loved hearing “the bunny-poop story” – about the time my dad put Cocoa Puffs in my Easter basket. The year he found them in his own Easter basket, he was more excited about the Cocoa Puffs than the jelly beans!
Grow your own corn. Kids enjoy watching seeds sprout. And this is easy to do with items you probably already have on hand. Help your child place some dirt or potting soil in a Ziploc bag. Add some water and a few kernels of popcorn. Seal the bag and place it in a sunny window. You should see some sprouting in a week or so.
Kathy is a freelance writer specializing in parenting issues. Visit her website at www.kathysena.
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