Welcome to the May Carnival of Natural Parenting: Growing in the Outdoors
This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama. This month our participants have shared how they encourage their children to connect with nature and dig in the dirt. Please read to the end to find a list of links to the other carnival participants.
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We live in a condo in the suburbs of San Diego, CA. We do not have a yard, we have a balcony, but we are surrounded by lots of greenery, beautiful flowers, lizards, insects, spiders, eucalyptus trees, quail, succulent undergrowth…the usual Southern California landscape. We are lovers of the earth and spend lots of time talking about nature and searching for snails, bunnies, roley-poley bugs, etc. We love to visit the local farmers markets and pick out the freshest of veggies, berries, fruits.
As my preschool son, Nathan, gets older, his interest has grown when it comes to the planet and its sustainability. So when we headed East last month to spend time with family, he couldn’t have been more excited that it
Dumping some breakfast scraps into the compost with Grandma...
was Earth Week and we’d be starting a new tradition of Green Easter! My little sponge was soaking it all in. He would tell me daily that he had to go out and spin the compost, even in the pouring rain, he was tromping out there with our dinner scraps. Luckily my mom’s herb garden was already producing some beautiful chives, lemon verbena and mint leaves, so Nathan did a little bit of harvesting and lots of investigating!
When it came time to shop for the weekly groceries, Nathan hit Whole Foods with my dad. My dad called from the car, hysterically laughing, that Nathan spoke up with vigor when the butcher put some chicken breast into a plastic bag before putting it in the deli paper. “Mommy said plastic is a waste!! Papa, we can’t get any plastic! No plastic!” My dad told the butcher that his grandson is learning about being Earth-Friendly and could he please just use the deli paper. The butcher complied, but was not amused! I was proud of my outspoken plastic policeman.
The zest that my little condo guy has for the Earth, its resources, its beauty and its LIFE has really inspired me to be that much more conscious of our eco-system and especially my son’s intelligence. A three year old can grasp more than you think they can! Talking to your kids about your organic and earth friendly choices from a VERY young age will help you to sustain your family’s health, attitude towards the planet and serve many future generations with the tools to keep it all going.
Pouring in a little water to help the food compost.
So proud to be helping the EARTH!!!
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Visit Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama to find out how you can participate in the next Carnival of Natural Parenting!
Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:
- Get Out! — Momma Jorje gives reasons she doesn’t think she gets outside enough and asks for your suggestions on making time for the outdoors.
- How Does Your Garden Grow? — The ArtsyMama shares her love of nature photography.
- We Go Outside — Amy at Peace 4 Parents describes her family’s simple, experiential approach to encouraging appreciation of nature.
- My Not-So-Green Thumb — Wolfmother confesses to her lack of gardening skills but expresses hope in learning alongside her son at Fabulous Mama Chronicles.
- Enjoying Outdoors — Isil at Smiling like Sunshine describes how her children enjoy the nature.
- Five Ideas to Encourage the Reluctant Junior Gardener — For the rare little ones who don’t like to get their hands dirty, Dionna at Code Name: Mama offers tips for encouraging an early love of dirt (despite the mess).
- Connecting to Nature — Mamapoekie shares how growing your own vegetable patch connects your child to nature and urges them to not take anything for granted.
- The Farmer’s Market Classroom — Jenn at Monkey Butt Junction shares how the Farmer’s Market has become her son’s classroom.
- Seeds — Kat at Loving {Almost} Every Moment‘s hubby Ken shares his perspective on why gardening with their kiddos is so important . . . and enjoyable!
- Toddlers in the Garden — Laura at A Pug in the Kitchen shares her excitement as she continues to introduce her toddler and new baby to the joys of fresh veggies, straight from the garden.
- Nature’s Weave — MJ at Wander Wonder Discover explains how nature weaves its way into our lives naturally, magnetically, experientially, and spiritually.
- Becoming Green — Kristina at Hey Red celebrates and nurtures her daughter’s blossoming love of the outdoors.
- Little Gardener — Rosemary at Rosmarinus Officinalis looks forward to introducing her baby girl to gardening and exploring home grown foods for the first time.
- Cultivating Abundance — You can never be poor if you have a garden! Lucy at Dreaming Aloud reflects on what she cultivates in her garden . . . and finds it’s a lot more than seeds!
- Growing in the Outdoors: Plants and People — Luschka at Diary of a First Child reflects on how she is growing while teaching her daughter to appreciate nature, the origins of food, and the many benefits of eating home-grown.
- How Not to Grow — Anna at Wild Parenting discusses why growing vegetables fills her with fear.
- Growing in the Outdoors — Lily at Witch Mom Blog talks about how connecting to the natural world is a matter of theology for her family and the ways that they do it.
- A Garden Made of Straw — Kelly at Becoming Crunchy shares tips on making a straw bale garden.
- The Tradition of Gardening — Carrie at Love Notes Mama reflects on the gifts that come with the tradition of gardening.
- Gardening Smells Like Home — Bethy at Bounce Me to the Moon hopes that her son will associate home grown food and lovely flowers with home.
- The New Normal — Patti at Jazzy Mama writes about how she hopes that growing vegetables in a big city will become totally normal for her children’s generation.
- Outside, With You — Amy at Anktangle writes a letter to her son, a snapshot of a moment in the garden together.
- Farmer Boy — Abbie at Farmer’s Daughter shares how her son Joshua helps to grow and raise their family’s food.
- Growing Kids in the Garden — Lisa at Granola Catholic shares easy ways to get your kids involved in the garden.
- Growing Food Without a Garden — Don’t have a garden? “You can still grow food!” says Mrs Green of Little Green Blog. Whatever the size of your plot, she shows you how.
- Growing Things — Liz at Garden Variety Mama shares her reasons for gardening with her kids, even though she has no idea what she’s doing.
- Moments — UK Mummy Blogger explains how the great outdoors provides a backdrop for her family to reconnect.
- Condo Kid Turns Composter and Plastic Police — Jessica from Cloth Diapering Mama has discovered that her young son is a true earth lover despite living in a condo with no land to call their own.
- Gardening with Baby — Sheila at A Gift Universe shows us how her garden and her son are growing.
- Why to Choose Your Local Farmer’s Market — Naturally Nena shares why she believes it’s important to teach our children the value of local farmers.
- Unfolding into Nature — At Crunchy-Chewy Mama, Jessica Claire shares her desire to cultivate a reverence for nature through gardening, buying local food, and just looking out the window.
- Urban Gardening With Kids — Lauren at Hobo Mama shares her strategies for city gardening with little helpers — without a yard but with a whole lot of enthusiasm.
- Mama Doesn’t Garden — Laura at Our Messy Messy Life is glad her husband is there to instill the joys of gardening in their children, while all she has to do is sit back and eat homegrown tomato sandwiches.
- Why We Make this Organic Garden Grow — Brenna at Almost All The Truth shares her reasons for gardening with her three small children.
- 5 Ways to Help Your Baby Develop a Love of the Natural World — Charise at I Thought I Knew Mama believes it’s never too early to foster a love of the natural world in your little one.
- April Showers Bring May PRODUCE — Erika at NaMammaSte discusses her plans for raising a little gardener.
- Growing Outside — Seonaid at The Practical Dilettante discovers how to get her kids outside after weeks of spring rain.
- Eating Healthier — Chante at My Natural Motherhood Journey talks about how she learns to eat healthier and encourages her children to do the same.
- The Beauty of Earth and Heavens — Inspired by Charlotte Mason, Erica at ChildOrganics discovers nature in her own front yard.
- Seeing the Garden Through the Weeds — Amanda at Let’s Take the Metro talks about the challenges of gardening with two small children.
- Creating a Living Playhouse: Our Bean Teepee! — Kristin at Intrepid Murmurings shares how her family creates a living playhouse “bean teepee” and includes tips of how to involve kids in gardening projects.
- Grooming a Tree-Hugger: Introducing the Outdoors — Ana at Pandamoly shares some of her planned strategies for making this spring and summer memorable and productive for her pre-toddler in the Outdoors.
- Sowing Seeds of Life and Love — Suzannah at ShoutLaughLove celebrates the simple joys of baby chicks, community gardening, and a semi-charmed country life.
- Experiencing Nature and Growing Plants Outdoors Without a Garden — Deb Chitwood at Living Montessori Now shares some of her favorite ways her family discovered to fully experience nature wherever they lived.
- Garden Day — Melissa at The New Mommy Files is thankful to be part of community of families, some of whom can even garden!
- Teaching Garden Ettiquette to the Locusts — Tashmica from Mother Flippin’ (guest posting at Natural Parents Network) allows her children to ravage her garden every year in the hopes of teaching them a greater lesson about how to treat the world.
- Why I Play with Worms. — Megan of Megadoula, Megamom and Megatired shares why growing a garden and raising her children go hand in hand.
12 comments
14 pings
Mrs Green says:
May 10, 2011 at 2:52 am (UTC -7)
Oh I'm proud of your plastic policeman too – what a darling post; thank you for sharing. Love the image of him turning that compost come rain or shine!
My recent post Growing food without a garden
ithoughtiknewmama says:
May 10, 2011 at 5:14 am (UTC -7)
I'm so proud of Nathan!!! And aren't his actions an amazing compliment to your green parenting, too?!
My recent post 5 Ways to Help Your Baby Develop a Love of the Natural World
Hobo_Mama says:
May 10, 2011 at 5:30 am (UTC -7)
Wow, that is incredibly inspiring! You're right that I should totally talk more with our own three-year-old about the Earth and sustainability. In other topics of conversation, I've made the same discovery — that his intelligence exceeds my ability to account for it. I do know Mikko's already very into recycling, so we'll continue from there! Thanks for the push.
My recent post May Carnival of Natural Parenting- Urban gardening with kids
Dionna@CodeName:Mama says:
May 10, 2011 at 6:04 am (UTC -7)
I love that three year old passion – Kieran does the same thing with several subjects. The world can be a very black and white place
My recent post Five Ideas to Encourage the Reluctant Junior Gardener
Kelly says:
May 10, 2011 at 6:17 am (UTC -7)
Love it Jess! So adorable and funny and awesome – you've definitely inspired me to discuss this type of thing with my Bean (who cares if she doesn't understand it yet – it's the habit, right?
). It's awesome too to see that you don't have to be out in the country to learn to appreciate nature.
On a more random note – I totally remember being fascinated with roly poly bugs as a kid when I lived in CA!
My recent post Sunday Surf on Monday
Naturally Nena says:
May 10, 2011 at 8:04 am (UTC -7)
your little plastic policeman is adorable!!! And way to go Mama! Your little man's vigor and determination is something we need to see more of in the world! Kudos to you for helping him see the Earth as a precious resource! I love the photos of you both working with the food compost!
My recent post Happy Mothers Day
Sheila says:
May 10, 2011 at 10:04 am (UTC -7)
That is adorable. Way to show him how to grow up sustainably! (Compost is, like, my favorite thing ever. Trash to treasure!)
My recent post Recipe- Eggs with dandelion greens and wild onions
Alexis says:
May 10, 2011 at 11:16 am (UTC -7)
Jessica,
Your son is adorable. And I applaud you for being such a wonderful green influence on him!
My recent post Great Introductions
Garden Variety Mama says:
May 10, 2011 at 3:36 pm (UTC -7)
I love this! You are so right; our toddlers are capable of understanding so much if we just talk to them about it. We have been talking with our 3-year-olds about why local food is better for everyone, and they have a ton of enthusiasm! And I love that your son is so excited about sustainability!
My recent post Growing Things
smilinggreenmom says:
May 11, 2011 at 5:03 pm (UTC -7)
Love it girlie!! This is so wonderful!
Crunchy-Chewy Mama says:
May 13, 2011 at 4:46 pm (UTC -7)
That's great! Thanks for sharing! I do have to say, though, that as my son gets older and cops more of a righteous attitude about our choices being healthier, I have to be careful about how I present things lest he border on insulting. It can be a great eye-opener for an adult when a kid has such knowledge and insight, but since age five is the know-it-all age anyway, it can also seem a little obnoxious! At three, it sure is sweet!
My recent post Talking Real Food with Robyn O’Brien
Jessica_Lang says:
May 13, 2011 at 9:32 pm (UTC -7)
lolol! So true!! One of my neighbors gave my son 5 lollipops in passing today. When we got in the house I said, "those are all sugar, you can have 1 and we'll throw the rest away." Nathan thought it was a great idea to throw them away…he was almost TOO excited, so I said, "Lets not tell Audrey that we threw out the lollipops." Glad I said something to him because he was all set to run right over and ask her why she doesn't "know any better" about sugar being bad for her! VERY embarrassing…I'm still crossing my fingers that he doesn't say anything tomorrow… but plastic bags to the whole foods guy…that's good stuff…ha!
Teaching Garden Etiquette to the Locusts | Natural Parents Network says:
May 10, 2011 at 2:03 am (UTC -7)
[...] Condo Kid Turns Composter and Plastic Police — Jessica from Cloth Diapering Mama has discovered that her young son is a true earth lover despite living in a condo with no land to call their own. [...]
Experiencing Nature and Growing Plants Outdoors without a Garden | LivingMontessoriNow.com says:
May 10, 2011 at 2:57 am (UTC -7)
[...] Condo Kid Turns Composter and Plastic Police — Jessica from Cloth Diapering Mama has discovered that her young son is a true earth lover despite living in a condo with no land to call their own. [...]
Creating a Living Playhouse: Our Bean Teepee! « Intrepid Murmurings says:
May 10, 2011 at 8:22 am (UTC -7)
[...] Condo Kid Turns Composter and Plastic Police — Jessica from Cloth Diapering Mama has discovered that her young son is a true earth lover despite living in a condo with no land to call their own. [...]
Becoming Green - Hey Red {365} - Hey Red {365} says:
May 10, 2011 at 1:09 pm (UTC -7)
[...] Condo Kid Turns Composter and Plastic Police — Jessica from Cloth Diapering Mama has discovered that her young son is a true earth lover despite living in a condo with no land to call their own. [...]
Growing In The Outdoors: Plants And People | Diary of a First Child says:
May 10, 2011 at 3:29 pm (UTC -7)
[...] Condo Kid Turns Composter and Plastic Police — Jessica from Cloth Diapering Mama has discovered that her young son is a true earth lover despite living in a condo with no land to call their own. [...]
Little Gardener « Rosmarinus Officinalis says:
May 10, 2011 at 4:10 pm (UTC -7)
[...] Condo Kid Turns Composter and Plastic Police — Jessica from Cloth Diapering Mama has discovered that her young son is a true earth lover despite living in a condo with no land to call their own. [...]
Crunchy Chewy Mama » Blog Archive » Unfolding into nature: May Carnival of Natural Parenting says:
May 10, 2011 at 5:16 pm (UTC -7)
[...] Condo Kid Turns Composter and Plastic Police — Jessica from Cloth Diapering Mama has discovered that her young son is a true earth lover despite living in a condo with no land to call their own. [...]
The Tradition of Gardening | lovenotesmama says:
May 10, 2011 at 5:17 pm (UTC -7)
[...] Condo Kid Turns Composter and Plastic Police — Jessica from Cloth Diapering Mama has discovered that her young son is a true earth lover despite living in a condo with no land to call their own. [...]
Growing Outside « The Practical Dilettante says:
May 10, 2011 at 5:21 pm (UTC -7)
[...] Condo Kid Turns Composter and Plastic Police — Jessica from Cloth Diapering Mama has discovered that her young son is a true earth lover despite living in a condo with no land to call their own. [...]
Why we make this organic garden grow | says:
May 10, 2011 at 5:30 pm (UTC -7)
[...] Condo Kid Turns Composter and Plastic Police — Jessica from Cloth Diapering Mama has discovered that her young son is a true earth lover despite living in a condo with no land to call their own. [...]
gardening » Blog Archive » Gardening with baby says:
May 10, 2011 at 7:41 pm (UTC -7)
[...] Condo Kid Turns Composter and Plastic Police — Jessica from Cloth Diapering Mama has detected that her immature son is a loyal earth partner notwithstanding vital in a condo with no land to call their own. [...]
How Not to Grow « Wild Parenting says:
May 11, 2011 at 1:28 am (UTC -7)
[...] Condo Kid Turns Composter and Plastic Police — Jessica from Cloth Diapering Mama has discovered that her young son is a true earth lover despite living in a condo with no land to call their own. [...]
April Showers Bring May PRODUCE says:
June 23, 2011 at 9:17 pm (UTC -7)
[...] Condo Kid Turns Composter and Plastic Police — Jessica from Cloth Diapering Mama has discovered that her young son is a true earth lover despite living in a condo with no land to call their own. [...]
Garden Day | Vibrant Wanderings says:
October 22, 2011 at 1:48 am (UTC -7)
[...] Condo Kid Turns Composter and Plastic Police — Jessica from Cloth Diapering Mama has discovered that her young son is a true earth lover despite living in a condo with no land to call their own. [...]