I just cannot believe the summer is half over. The time goes by way too fast! When the kids first get out of school I always have such great plans. Then life takes over and our summer fun seems to get pushed to the back. We have had some great adventures but I wish we had more. We spend a lot of time as a family outdoors as well. Maybe it is just me being a mom and being hard on myself. I know my kids have been having a blast!
Some of the fun things we have been doing this summer include, Hiking mountains, fishing at the lake, fun at the water park and of course, lots of time with our animals. The heat has made it so we venture out more early evening and not so much midday. Looking at the local forecast I may have to take the kids on a road trip to get more enjoyable weather.
Our youngest who is eight has never been camping before. She keeps asking us to camp out in a tent. I have such great memories of camping from when I was a child. Roasting hot dogs, singing songs, looking up at the stars and just being out with nature. We definitely will be camping out before she goes back to school.
Being outside with my family and sometimes alone, I find peace. It is calming and the whole world slows down around me. All of my worries seem to disappear. I realize what is important and I cherish every minute. My family loves to be outdoors as much as possible.
83 per cent of Canadians have a park close to their home and one in five live within 250 metres of a park – yet, we’re not taking advantage of our proximity to nature! The growing reality is that families can benefit greatly from spending time outside in a natural environment! We live in an amazing country, it is time we get out and enjoy it.
Nature Valley believes there is amazing joy in nature and that nothing calms, energizes and uplifts us the way nature does. This summer, their goal is to get more Canadians outside! They’ve created 100 #NatureMoments for 100 days of summer to show how fun and easy it can be to get outdoors!
Some of their fun ideas include;
- Pick a white dandelion and make a wish as the seeds fly away.
- Hug a tree! It is good for your body, mind and spirit.
- Make a chain out of the flowers you find in the grass. Give it to someone special.
- Play a game of catch barefoot in the grass.
- Pick a wildflower bouquet and give it to someone you love.
- Star gaze – Go outside on a clear night and count the stars. Try to find the “man in the moon” and/or big dipper.
- Pack a simple picnic basket and eat outside with your family.
According to a Nature Valley survey conducted with MARU/Vision Critical*, today’s kids are spending three times more time indoors on digital devices than they do outside in nature. They will be the first to admit it, with 35 per cent saying they do not spend time outdoors because they would rather be on digital devices for gaming and social media. They are missing out on the numerous and significant
benefits that come from spending time in nature.
Overall, Canadians have a strong understanding of the benefits of nature. Over half (55 per cent) believe nature is relaxing; 46 per cent claim it clears their mind; 32 per cent of parents see the cardiovascular benefits for their kids; and 26 per cent believe it encourages independence. But despite this, several factors and barriers dissuade Canadians from prioritizing time outdoors in nature.
Nature Valley’s research revealed several reasons Canadians shy away from spending time outdoors, including:
Societal Pressures – Parents feel tremendous societal pressure to enroll their kids in organized, structured activities, instead of letting them play freely in nature. As a result, scheduled activities tend to fill up kids’ free time – in addition to dinner time, homework time and bed
time.
Not enough time / too tired – A feeling that getting out in nature requires packing up the car and driving somewhere far away. Canadians also deprioritize exploring nature because they are “too tired” (27 per cent).
Canadian weather – 52 per cent were dissuaded by Canadian weather being too hot or too cold and concurrently, because they do not like bugs (24 per cent).
Technology/screens – 35 per cent of Canadians under 18 said they prefer to spend their time with technology, such as social media and gaming.
Getting outside with your children is effortless and will mean a lot to them. You can plan big activities or small as long as you are together.
To download the Nature Valley 100 #NatureMoments for 100 days of summer, visit naturevalley.ca.
How do you enjoy time outdoors with your family?
Disclosure-I received the above mentioned product free of charge. All opinions are my own
We love getting outdoors and doing some beach combing for glass and nice stones.We planted a small garden but it’s been slow coming because of our cold Spring.We made bird feeders last week,that was a whole day of fun !
We will as a family get out and enjoy nature in many ways over the summer and will try to do everyone on the list if possible and we are going to start with a scavenger hunt this weekend #NatureMoments
We’ve gone to the beach a couple of times already, and to the park!
we love going camping with our trailer.. We do nature trails and explore the local sites.
We go kayaking on our bay in North Ontario!
We are getting out walking the local trails and outside gardening
lots of biking, and nature trail hikes!
We like to ride our bikes together and go to the park!
We have done lots of hiking!
We’ve gone to the beach, the park and the splash pad!
We rented a cabin and went swimming, hiking etc!
We’ve done lots of biking, and swimming. Also went camping for a week! 🙂
We have done a load of cycling and hiking.
Ha – we haven’t done camping with three kids this summer —- yet.
We collected pretty rocks by the water while camping!
We’ve walked to the park constantly, gone for a hike, and for the next 2 weeks we will be doing some camping.
We have spent time at the beach and gone biking.
We have been spending time out in the backyard, hubby started a new job so no holidays this year, and I have taken my granddaughter to the beach and we have walked on the hiking trail!
we have gone to the local trails and the river trails hiking and a bbq after
we have been doing a lot of hiking and swimming.
Wake up early in the morning and watch the sunrise is awesome and so quiet and peaceful, perfect time of day to enjoy a cup of coffee!
Weplan to dance in the rain atter all of the humidity we have had.
We have been stargazing.
My family went on a day trip to Othello Tunnels in Hope. It’s quite a nice and easy walk, not to mention very scenic. We talked to the locals and found a swimming hole to cool off. We explored a bit of the downtown on foot and took in the parks and wood carvings.
We’ve spent time at the beach and at the park with the dog.
My husband cannot walk aloneand uses a rollator. He cannot walk very far because of arithritis in his spinal cord.
However, I love flowers and spend a lot of time planting, weeding and watering my flower beds. I sometimes just spend time walking around and admiring them.
To get outdoors, I have enjoyed taking walks. I love being out in nature during the warm weather.
We went to the beach one morning before the weather got too hot.
My family and I have went to Tree Top Trekking this summer as well as lots of swimming.
Our grandson has been staying with us, so we’ve been going to the local parks, beach, splash pad, playgrounds, mini putt, his t-ball & soccer games and next week we’re taking him to Niagara Falls.
WE go for walks sometimes we have a marshmallow roast
We’ve done everything from camping to hiking to biking to just a simple picnic to get outdoors this summer.
All 7 of my grandchildren were here in July. We enjoyed sitting out in the yard while they had water fights, played with bubble machines and jumped on the trampoline.
We like getting outside and enjoying our backyard. We have a sandbox, small child pool, soccer nets, bikes, scooters and lots of trees and flowers!
As I have travelled to Nunavut, I loved the idea of collecting small rocks and stones and creating a mini Inuksuk.
We go to the beach, on picnics & camping!
We went to a couple of cottage trips and planned a family picnic!
We have done quite a bit of fishing this summer.
~Jonnie
We’ve been getting out to the beach every chance we get! It’s my son’s first year swimming and he loves it.
We have gone to the beach and went berry picking a few times
We do a lot of cycling and swimming.
We’ve done some long-ish walks – when their legs are longer, we’ll get to go further!
We like to go and play frisbee golf at the park.
We go swimming alot , the park & lots of festivals
We’ve been spending a lot of time swimming in and kayaking on lakes this summer.
We have gone to the beach and have gone fishing a few times this summer.
We spend a lot of time at the pool
From the list, we will “Go climb a tree and sit for a while on a strong
branch.” As a child, my friends and I used to spend hours climbing trees .
~Jonnie
We went camping this summer!
We will look for rainbows during the rainfall!
We walk to the park and the beach.
We have gone to the beach a few times. We also spend almost every Sunday at Bowering Park.
I will walk to the top of a local hill and look at the view. One of my favorite things to do.
We like to go on nature hikes.
We went camping, hiking, fishing and river rafting.
WE have gone to the park almost daily this summer to kick the ball, play tag or just play in the playground.
I have flowers, I also still , after a year, play pokemon go for exercise. I walk to work whatever the weather is (and it gets to -35C here in the winter months) We’ll also be going camping in aug, towards the end for a “star party” at cypress hills SK side
We like to get out to the beach a few times a week. It’s great to bring dinner or lunch with us too!
Camping and fishing!
We have picnic in the parck, go on walks, local outdoor event, the zoo.
I will Dance in the rain with my granddaughters! I loved it as a kid and I’m sure they will love it too.
We actually have not done it yet but we are gong camping on the 18th of August.
We have done some hiking together!
Sometimes we just wander around neighborhoods to admire other people’s gardens and get some ideas for landscaping.
We’ve gone blueberry picking! Nothing better than wild blueberries!!
We use technology and nature as the children love to take pictures on our walks.
We have gone to the beach a few times and to a park at least twice a week.
We are out for a walk everyday on our local trails. Plus we have at least one bonfire a week.
we just walk as much as possible!
we love to go fishing!
there are a lot of things on the Nature Valley lists that we will do.or have done already. we will defeinitely collect sea shells…..and driftwood and cool rocks at the beach!
we have done some beach combing
No kids here but my gf and I get out often. We have done trips to the beach and collected some glass and stones with interesting shapes and colours.
We have done a lot of camping and hiking this year.
we go for lots of walks
We like to go on walks. We also tp the park and play outside
What a wonderful list of ideas for things to do outdoors! We’ll plant flowers in our yard.
We have went to the lake and we did some canoeing.
We have been out stargazing. We went to the lake were there is no street lights to look at the stars.
we learned how to geocache and now we all want to explore new playgrounds to ddiscover treasures in
We’ve done trout fishing and spending time outdoors exploring the walking trails.
We’ve gone camping. Walk the trails and enjoy the outdoors.
We’ve been exploring the local conservation areas and going for walks and swimming.
Went to the beach for the afternoon, visited a beautiful botanical garden park
My family and I go walking in the park every evening to get outdoors.
We will do this one: “Dip your feet in a nearby lake and feel the difference between the warm sun and cool lake.”
We spend a lot of time out side with the puppies everyday playing with them.
To get outdoors we go to the city trails for a hike.
We love going camping and tubing in the river also swimming and walks around the campground !
We will pick a wildflower bouquet and give it to someone we love , everyone loves a wildflower bouquet !
Besides playing in our own backyard throughout the day, everyday, we have gone on many family walks, we have had visits to our favorite parks and splash pads and went to a barbecue charity event for Kids Ability
Make a chain out of the flowers you find in the grass. Give it to someone special. is something I would love to do with my daughters
Our family has gone on a hike as well as fishing
biking with the family. thanks
My son and I got new bikes this summer and have been making good use of them this summer
We go biking on the trails nearby.
went to hike in Banff
We go bike rideing on the trails
And we are going camping labour day weekend.This prize would be awesome to take it camping.
I will dip my feet in a cool lake while being mindful of the difference between the cool of the water and the warm air!!
We have gone to the beach, walked through the nearby nature park and walked around downtown just looking at the sights
Camping at the lake!
We go for walks!
We have been looking for drift wood at local beaches
We’ve had lots of walks and picnics, and we’ve played in the stream a few times.
We’re planning on doing a “star Gaze” when it starts getting dark a littler earlier.
This summer we have gone to the playground a lot, a couple of outdoor festivals and spent some time in the backyard. 🙂
We love walking together and hiking.We also love getting outdoors to play games in the backyard and to go swimming. 🙂
We have lovely flower beds and love to look at them and comment on them. We blow bubbles with our great grandchildren. We play ball games in our back yard with them. We go for rides in our country side. We love Nature.
Ger together at the pool put the music and have a blast together!
We have done alot of walking in the trails near our home, gone to the beach a few times and the park
We have camped and visited lakes this summer.
We have hiked this summer.
We dug clams on Panmure Island, PEI.
Oohhh today’s is playing outdoor hide-and-seek! We’ve done that!
Hiking and Biking are family favorites!
WE WENT CAMPING IN MICHIGAN AND HAD A GREAT TIME
We spent a week on our boat out on Georgian Bay. It was awesome! At home, we play outside and go swimming. #GetOutside
One of the things I will do with my family is “Go dancing in the rain on a rainy summer day.”
we went camping and hiking
We will listen to night sounds like crickets chirping.
We went bicycling together as a family.
We had picnic in nature
We have been walking around the reservoir.
We have gone hiking in the Niagara Escarpment.