Kids Playdate Ideas: Nature Theme
Post by Rebecca and Suzanne of A Feteful Life
Hello, hello! We’ve done books, we’ve done science, and now we’re taking on the great outdoors. The AFL crew is always up for a new adventure and thanks to Land of Nod’s awesome outdoor imaginary play toys, we were able to “set up camp” in our backyard and start exploring the best of what summer has to offer… Nature.
I just love the S’more the Merrier Campfire Set. It was the center of our camp that also included the Indoor Explorer Pup Tent (which I got the kids for Christmas last year and continues to be one of their favorite toys), some lanterns and cushions. And what would an AFL kids party be without a journal of some kind for the kids to take notes of what they observe as we explored.
Ants, ladybugs, worms and dirt?! Yes, please! Who wouldn’t want to eat bugs if they looked like these.
We were so in love with the Meri Meri Fundamentals party collection we used for the science party, we knew that we needed more! This time we used the Meri Meri Toot Sweet Charms collection along with the coordinating paper straws and fell in love again. While the charms collection doesn’t immediately make you think “nature,” we thought their colors and whimsical feel were the perfect fit for our party. We pulled out the blues and greens from the collection and created some DIY food tents, drink flags, favor tags and journal labels. You can find all of these (and more) in our printable party pack.
Hanging above our craft and favor table was this awesome “I LOVE DIRT” pennant banner that we made out of the Land of Nod’s Achievement Banner Flags along with some simple streamers to add some color. Some simple seed starter pots, dirt & packets of seeds were the perfect favor so our kiddos could keep discovering the wonders of nature long after our party was over.
Once Camp AFL was all set up the kids came out and went straight to work roasting our pretend s’mores (marshmallows dipped in chocolate and coated with crushed graham crackers — yum!) over the campfire. Then they filled up on some more provisions before we got to crafting and exploring.
The kids crafted up some scarecrows, trees and flowers thanks to the Eco Crafts Kit. There were so many options for them and it was fun to see them follow the directions but also add their own personal creative marks on their projects.
Once they finished crafting, they grabbed their journals and magnifying glasses and we set out on an adventure walk to find rocks inspired by the I Love Dirt book by Jennifer Ward. It has some simple but great ideas to help you get out into nature and start exploring with your kids.
As I mentioned above, I made each kid a field journal and on the inside cover a made a rock scavenger hunt to help the kids look at the rocks more closely and to see just how cool a simple rock could be. We also had a bucket of water on hand to wash any dirt off the rocks and also to see how the colors or the rocks changed when they were wet.
There’s no better way to end a surprisingly hot afternoon of exploring than by eating ice cream, right? The kids love getting dirty with this faux dirt of crushed oreos, chocolate ice cream & gummi worms. Now get out there and start exploring!
Rebecca and Suzanne are bloggers, graphic designers, and event stylists living in Washington, DC. Rebecca is a mom to two young kiddos and, in her spare time (ha!), likes to pretend she’s a back-up dancer, craft cocktails, and run long distances. Suzanne is a big fan of good design, good wine, and her two rambunctious little boys. They share DIY lifestyle and event styling projects at A Feteful Life. Rebecca also blogs kid-friendly projects at Not-So-SAHM.