Your local nursery, an educational treasure trove.

So today I was feeling stir crazy. I wanted to get myself and my kids out of our comfort zone and go explore. I'd been wanting to teach our 3 year old about different textures, smells, colors and sounds. Away from our home, away from our normal surroundings. 

So where was I going to take her? where could we go where she could touch whatever she wanted and see bright colors and smell a wide variety of scents? I pondered for a while and it hit me....the nursery!

All kinds of colorful flowers, plants and trees. all different kinds of smells and textures. She could touch things  without me worrying about her breaking them, and if she did I could more than likely afford to buy it (unlike most department stores, lol). So off we went. A grand adventure. 

I can not begin to describe the level of excitement my little girl experienced upon arrival at the nursery. Wide open, safe place for her to run around. Water fountains, wisteria, lemon trees and more. There were all different kinds of bees buzzing around. humming birds, roses the size of her face and wagons to pull your bounty in.

Observation was the main lesson I wanted to teach her. So I kept asking her what her observations were, followed by these questions:

What color is that?

How does it feel? ( I'd explain to her what she was "feeling". Soft, smooth, sharp, rough, etc.)

Does that smell nice? ( then I would explain to her, "that's what sweet smells like", or "that's what sour smells like (citrus)".

"Is that a fruit or a vegetable?"

At the end of the visit to the nursery Audrey made her observations and came to the conclusion that she loves moss. She loves moss because its green and soft. She also concluded that roses smelled the best out of everything that she had smelled at the nursery.

When I asked her, "out of everything you saw today, what would you want planted in your garden?" Her response; "oranges, because they taste the best".

There you have it. Besides the cost of gas, it was a free adventure that was educational. Audrey became more aware of different textures, smells, colors and sounds. She learned how to make observations and form her own opinions. I also had the joy of feeling relaxed and comfortable with letting her run around and explore things with her hands and her brother soaked it all in via the comfort of the stroller :)