The girls are outside playing with a friend....yeah! It's been surprisingly hard to get them outside this winter, especially Manon, who's three. Today it's sunny, around 34 degrees, a perfect day! After getting everyone bundled up and out the door I went out myself, for a walk up and down our road and into one of the adjacent fields. It felt so good, the sun on my face, the snow crunching lightly underfoot, the beautiful white vista. I think it's the first time I've had a walk by myself since the baby was born. Then I hiked through our field to the back door, brought a quick snack of dried fruit along with a water bottle to the girls, and took the compost up to the garden. All little things but I felt liberated from being inside far too much! Here is the garden path in winter:
Danish educator and early childhood specialist Helle Heckman came and spoke at our school a few months ago, shortly after Romain was born. I didn't get to hear her, but heard afterward that she recommended that children be outside for - you guessed it! - five hours a day. Five hours a day! It makes sense and somehow seems impossible to accomplish. I think she's the one who also said that there is no bad weather, only bad clothing. If that's the case, we should be able to get the kids out no matter what. My little goal this year will be to try and achieve the five hours a day, if not every day, then at least regularly. I'll write about it here.
Here they are today, out for about two hours already:
Three hours to go...I wonder how we'll fit it in.
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