Some of my best childhood memories are from the summer. My sister and I would get up early and stay up late because we didn’t have school and we would always be outside with our friends. We would ride our bikes, play hide and seek or tag. Someone usually had a pet we could take for a walk to the park and then there was swimming in the local outdoor pool. Even when we had “nothing” to do we would be outside, maybe drawing on the sidewalk or trading secrets under a tree nearby. My mom would often tease that she never saw us in the summer because we were always out of the house.
Whatever happened to those days?
Have you noticed that children don’t play outside like we used to? We can’t blame it all on technology, but it is true that many kids have a screen of some kind stuck in their face so much these days that they wouldn’t recognize their best friend if they jumped up in front of them! I may sound like I am joking, but it is sadly very true. In fact, according to a survey conducted for Nature Valley by vision critical, today’s kids spend much less time outside than their parents ever did. The good news is that there is still time to change and Nature Valley wants to help us do that.
100 #NatureMoments For 100 Days of Summer
Nature Valley believes that there is an incredible amount of joy to be found in reconnecting with nature and I happen to agree with them. Being outside is almost medicinal in that it can bring people together, calm upset nerves, bring a smile to a frowning face, provide a boost in energy and make you just want to be a kid again. 🙂 That is why they created 100 #NatureMoments for 100 Days of Summer – to help Canadians make enjoying nature easy to do.
Here are some great ways Nature Valley wants you to get outside this summer and create some #NatureMoments with your family and friends.
- wake up early to watch the sunrise •listen to night sounds like crickets
- plant a seedling and watch it grow •spell your name with sticks and rocks
- climb a tree and sit on a strong branch •collect shells at the beach
- go dancing in the rain •take a walk in the local park
- watch the clouds and find 5 shapes •find a spider and watch it weave its web
- go fly a kite •find a stream and float a paper boat
In order to get my kiddos to embrace the #NatureMoments challenge, we talked about ways to be outside more and then made a list. The idea was to make ourselves be accountable to the list, but not make it a chore. Although they were somewhat reluctant to give up that screen time, once we started brainstorming we had fun! These are some of our ideas:
- string up coloured lights on the deck •have a campfire and roast marshmallows
- put up a bird feeder and keep it filled •go to Canada’s Wonderland
- clean up the old swing set and use it •skip rocks at the local lake
- join a soccer team •walk to the local library
- go for daily bike rides •play mini golf
- jump in the mud puddles after it rains •go to the beach to swim
We are always going to have to deal with the reasons we don’t get outside enough, whether it is a work commitment, the weather, barriers like video games and social media beckoning to be played with and even the peer pressure parents feel to keep their children busy with structured activities and lessons. By making our list and sticking to it, my family and I have been able to get back to nature and enjoy doing it together. We still have lots left on the list to do, but many we have repeated several times. Our #NatureMoments are becoming natural habits. 🙂 Join us!
Giveaway
To help us celebrate #BloggersFete this year Nature Valley has generously provided a beautiful prize pack for one very lucky winner! Included with all of this in the above photo is a $25 Canadian Tire gift card, making this prize worth approximately $70! To be eligible to win just complete the Rafflecopter below with your qualifying answers. This giveaway is open to Canadian residents ages 18 and older. Please read our giveaway rules before entering. This giveaway ends on August 15th, 2017 at 11:59 pm. Good luck!
Make sure you join us on August 10th at 8pm EST/5pm PST for our Twitter Party. Nature Valley is sponsoring another wonderful prize pack for our dear readers, along with many other awesome sponsors. ♥
Tell me, what ways do you plan to create some #NatureMoments this summer? Be as creative as you can!
FT&PD
Suz
**Make sure you check out the news about #BloggersFete and our upcoming events!
**Don’t forget we have some great giveaways as well, including ones for cash!!
Disclosure: I have received products from Nature Valley to help facilitate this post. As always, all opinions are honest and my own.
We are planning a big summer garden that doing really well thid summer.We love watching every thing grow #NatureMoments this summer and will soon be enjoying the rewards! We also love to swim,fish , go camping walking and biking .\they are all great activities for the summer time! 🙂
We will be camping at a provincial park this month. We’ve already sat outside at a bonfire, caught fireflies, went on hikes and bike rides. Lots of swim days at the pond as well for this month.
We love to go hiking, swimming and fishing to spend time enjoying nature.
We’ll be going on our first family Kayak outing this August! And have plenty of #naturemoments in our own backyard – we’ve planted a wildflower garden that my daughter loves to pick flowers from 🙂
We plan to go camping with the family.
My daughter is coming home and we are going on a road trip which will involve some hiking and site seeing #NatureMoments.
This year we are just staying home as hubby started a new job, but we have been out enjoying fires at night and looking after our small garden, and it’s fun teaching my granddaughter how veggies grow!!
We are going to be planting a garden and rock garden at the cottage for the kids. They get to pick any flowers they want and searching for rocks
I will be spending my time with family enjoying the outdoors . Fresh air sunshine and lots of great food
We are planning a road trip to NYC with the kids to create our own #NatureMoments
Start early planting a vegetable garden where everyone has their own patch! See whose little patch produces the best looking and tasting veggies! Gets everyone active and eating more healthy!
We are planning many small and big road trips this summer. We only use our screens for a short time in the evening.
We plan to make #naturemoments by spending time at our friends cottage. Swimming, fishing, Bonfires
We create #naturemoments by spending a lot of time at the beach and at local parks.
We are planning on hiking in Algonquin Park!
Enjoying time out camping and going for nature walks
My family like to take our dogs for a nice hike at least once a week, it is something that we look forward to after a long week of everyday life.
We also like to sit around the fire pit and relax, tell stories,and of course make s’mores !
We are so lucky we live in a rain forest on Vancouver Island. We go on lots of nature walks. One of our favourites is to go to the floating dock on our lake. Lots of beutiful nights star gazing on our balcony. Zero light pollution.
We definitely want to get out on some of the trails in High Park this summer, my daughter really loves to hug trees – LITERALLY! And definitely do some exploring in the woods and at the beach in Collingwood and Huntsville. Really want to get out into a canoe this summer!
#NatureMoments I built a raised bed and the kids are growing strawberries, carrots, and pumpkins. Connection to nature is part of finding peace.
The summer has been pretty busy! With soccer for all three kids and then wedding planning…..its a lot….but we have taken some time to hit up some small beaches around the area, and also planning on taking the kids to a farm house place to see over 40 different animals this weekend, and maybe before school starts take them to a water park 🙂
Geocaching… We are planning weekend trip and evening geocaching trips to make sure we are exploring new areas, hiking biking and walking. It’s a great way to get outdoors and find new and exciting places in our City and around our city.
We plan to take time to go berry picking this summer and then relax on the beach to go swimming and make sandcastles. #NatureMoments
We will be attending an outdoor wedding, going to the beach, going camping, and other fun activities! Maybe even a road trip!
Going fishing and boating and having campfires
We are camping and having a big Bbq with family and friends.Thank for a chance for this wonderful prize.
I plan on checking out my neighbors beautiful flowers on my daily walk.Sadly I do not have a green thumb.
We will have many #NatureMoments this summer,we planted a small garden and love to take hikes along the beach collecting glass and stones and even swim when the weather pemits.
I plan to take my kids outside and explore nature more this summer! We’re going to the beach to collect shells, we’re hiking some trails and even try geocaching this summer.
We do tons of outdoor activities swimming,hiking etc… My kids love being outdoors.
We do “explore the Bruce” which takes you to different areas of Bruce County including the Bruce Trail, which runs from Niagara Falls to Tobermory.
We have planted a nice big garden this year.
We are planning a HUGE family reunion camping! Its going to be so great!
We spend most of our summer outside. Living in the country allows my kids to experience nature everyday. This weekend, we are setting off on a week-long boat trip to Georgian Bay. The kids will get to experience the power of water. We plan to do some fishing, some swimming and some camp-fire cooking. I have a scavenger hunt planned for them for a beach day. I”m looking forward to having them experience a lake sunset (and maybe a sunrise too!).
Our 7 year old grandson is staying with us for 3 weeks over the summer, so our #NatureMoments include picnics in our local parks enjoying the birds, flowers, trees, trails, streams, beaches, splash pads, playgrounds, trails, bike rides, plus attending his t-ball & soccer games. We’re also taking him to Niagara Falls to enjoy the botanical gardens & butterfly conservatory.
I am excited you get my dog Bailey outside. He lives outside especially the water.so much fun.
we have already camped out; have a weiner roast/marshmallows thing; played mini golf and gone on our Quads for a run.
Picnics and tea parties on the patio keep the kids engaged aNd outside
We plan to do lots of hiking!
We love exploring our beach strip, we play in the sand, we hike along the trail, throw stones in the water to see who can throw the farthest and who can skip the stones. It’s a great place as loads of different plants to name, wildlife to see, plus we have icecream.vefore the day is done. Last time we made a little water hike to paddle in as the gueese all swam by. Really fun place for the kids!
We enjoy our evening fires which we do every other day ! we will also be heading to a cottage for a week, and going on a hike in Collingwood
We plan on spending more time outside, in nature, as a family!
Will be going to a corn roast and to win this prize would help with the celebration of summer.
There will be lots of adults and children attending.
I always bring Nature Valley granola bars along for snacks when we’re picking wild blueberries. I always think of being out in the bush when I eat them at other times of the year.
This summer had been lots of trips to the park with the grandkids and then to the river to explore.
We go out daily for walks and to view the nature around us. From viewing trees to the animals ans birds that are in our neighbourhood
Planning a trip to the beach with the grand kids.
We have lots of trees and bushes in our yard to provide shade, and we’re very hospitable to the little creatures who share our living space. It’s a great opportunity to teach respect for how they manage to survive, and also how to care for and help them. It makes an impression when the backyard bunny notices it’s you and hops toward rather than away from you.
We’ll create some #NatureMoments by spending time outside rain or shine! We’ll play at the beach and the park, we’ll hang out in the backyard, and we’ll hopefully go camping too!
I plan to create some #NaureMoments by walking some of the local board walks in my area. I love being in the midst of nature. It’s so calm and peaceful!
We are going to the park for picnics and activities, walking the trails by the river, playing frisbee golf and other fun things.
We plan on taking our little grandson on some nature walks through the woods by our home.
We live by a lake so planning an outdoor day for the grand kids which includes fishing, rock climbing, hiking, swimming and kayaking #NatureMoments
We will be spending time outside in our garden and riding our bikes
We like to walk around the reservoir near us and look for insects. We look them up in our book and keep a record. There is usually a picnic involved.
we are taking the little ones geocaching to get into some interesting places we’ve never been
We plan to create some #NatureMoments this summer by taking the kids on 2 camping adventures. Next week I am taking my youngest camping for the first time (and my oldest is coming too) – we’re going with friends and I can’t wait to do the whole tent, sleeping in the woods experience with her, with some short hikes and time at the beach. The following week my husband is taking our oldest back country camping for the first time (well, her first time, he’s done it a lot). Should be amazing experiences for them both!
Hit the trails in BC
We are going to our friends lake house this upcoming weekend and I’m super excited. Hopefully a boat ride will occur!!! There will be dinner and cocktails outdoors with a lovely view of the lake.
I love nature. We have been doing a lot of hiking,swimming and walking! #NatureMoments
We will be going for walk through the trails every day, watching the birds whose eggs we saw this spring
we will go to the cottage and do lots of lake swimming #NatureMoments
My grandchildren love to play at the playgrounds, walk on the trails in the hills, and we love sitting outside watching the birds, playing with bubbles and playing on the trampoline.
We ave gone to the beach were they spent time with their cousins, picked blueberries at a local farm,, spend time taking care of the garden and gone for bike rides.
My five year old has her first overnight camping trip next weekend!
Hiking along the river and having a picnic. #NatureMoments
We went to the zoo, Drumheller, Ab and we will be doing picnic.
I would create some #NatureMoments with my kids this summer by going on a walk on our local trail and doing a scavenger hunt!
We always camp in the mountains with huge trees and a river, hiking in the back country as well.
I have become a ‘woman of a certain age’ which make it hard for me to enjoy a lot of the delights of camping, so this year, I have become de facto dog/cat sitter so that my grandchildren can learn to love the outdoors. The dogs are wonderful company for me, and the “old guy” and I enjoy our long, slow walks and many excellent conversations!
Haha, you made me laugh Susan, but I do think your way of enjoying the summer is fantastic! Good for you and the “old guy.” 🙂
going for walks in our local parks
We will take my husband on outings as he has to use a walker-so we will take him for car rides so he can enjoy the rural areas that he grew uo in, farmed and loves.
I enjoy the birds, foxes. and my flower gardens that I pamper, enjoy and love. I enjoy our cool night when. sleep is possible and comfortable.
I enjoy my family and their visits, especially our grandchildren and great grands. We are fortunate to live on this lovely Island in the Gulf of St Lawrence.
It has been a rough summer for us so it is going by too fast, still hoping to make some #NatureMoments by spending time camping and hiking.
#NatureMoments I’ll be munching granola on my nature walks at Cyrpess Hills in Aug at the Star Party ..we try to go every year, this yr we are going for sure and I’ll be walking and reading and just trying to unwind
We like creating treasure hunts while on #NatureMoments. There are so many great hikes near us.
We’ve done a camping trip, lots of swimming, a bit of hiking and we plan to do more of the same for the rest of summer too.
I planted a garden with my grandson,. We spend time outside checking the plants, picking the beans, peas and tomatoes. Waiting for the other vegetables to mature. We spend time looking at the bugs, birds and other critters that visit. #NatureMoments at its finest
Hiking…camping out .
We plan to make our own #naturemoments by growing our own veggies, getting out for as many walks to as many different places as possible and exploring all of the little areas of the city that are often forgotten about.
we are staying home but we are growing a lovely garden that will give us loads of veggies that we can use and we are doing allot of nature trails and walks
Hope to get to Niagara Falls,haven”t been there in years :). Thanks!
We went to Canada’s wonderland and we are planning a family camping trip
I limit screen time and out door time HAS to be greater than screen time.
i just learned how to geocache so im showing my niece and nephew. its a pretty good motivation to get outside and dirty and see some nature
We go biking near the valley or have a picnic in the park
We are driving out to Vancouver Island tomorrow (from Calgary) and plan on doing a lot of hiking and exploring on the island while we are there!
I enjoy packing up snacks and going on day trips
We have a summer bucket list!
We’re going to go on our first overnight hike as a family! We will also be getting to the beach as much as possible!
We are doing a lot of camping this summer and with that we will go hiking and fishing.
My husband and I love to go geocaching -we are going to take the grand children and they will learn how to read clues -directions etc. while getting exercise and fresh air.
We plan to go camping
We are going tocreate some #NatureMoments this summer by going to Tree Top Trekking in Brampton.
planning to stay at a cottage and chill out for a week without technology!
I plan to create some #NatureMoments this summer by packing a picnic basket and then going down to the lake. We are going to take the canoes out and then when we reach the little island we are going to have a wonderful picnic.
We’ll be going bird watching in our local parks.
We took the kids camping! #NatureMoments
We plan to create #NatureMoments when we go camping. Love to walk the trails and enjoy the sounds and sights of nature.
We take our daughter swimming a lot in the summer.
We’re going to create #NatureMoments this summer by going to the bird sanctuary.
We go camping, hiking and walking by the beach
We made #NatureMoments with early morning walks along the hiking trails to see and feed the birds. We planted a garden and have made many trips to the park.
We plan to create #NatureMoments this summer when camping, going on hikes, a few trips to the park and the beach!
We will have plenty of #NatureMoments because of all the time spent in the great outdoors. From camping to canoeing to hiking.
We have been spending every other Saturday at the lake. Then we usually spend every other Sunday at Bowering park. We have also been trying to visit as many nature parks as we can before school starts.
We have a vegetable garden that we love. And we also have bird feeders to feed our flying friends
We are going to get back to nature by taking some great weekend trips in manitoba and discovering the great hiking trails we have to offer
We go on a weekly hikes, also go to local farm so that the kids can see some animals . We go fruit picking and also bike riding
Thank you for your wonderful giveaways.
We plan on going on many nature hikes gathering foliage for arts and craft projects to have our #NatureMoments.
We’re going on an island picnic tomorrow! #NatureMoments
While playing around the pool there is a lot of games to play!
It has been a busy but not-so-fun summer as we just moved back to our home after a year+ long reno. We plan on doing as much as we can for the rest of the summer. We will become tourists in our own city and visit some of the local attractions. On other days, we will just spend time in our neighbourhood and at the park. #NatureMoments
We are going camping as we do each year! #NatureMoments
We will be going to the park, the beach, shopping for back to school and riding our bikes!
#NatureMoments We collect stuff from out=r nature walks. We only take what has fallen to the ground, and we search for cool things to take pictures of .
We go camping! Last year, my dad and brother came out for a couple nights with us, and took our kids on a hike and taught them all about the different trees, berries and animal tracks. They loved it!
We will pack a picnic lunch and go to beaches or go on hikes so that we can enjoy many moments in nature!
I would love to win.
Tomorrow we are going to see the CP 150 Train in Toronto and then on Monday off for a few days at the beach and do some exploring. I am going to take my daughter to places I use to go to when I was her age.
We plan to create #NatureMoments by camping, hiking, fishing, birdwatching, swimming, biking, and gardening.
We went to the insectarium that has a beautiful butterfly garden. We also go to a new place to explore each weekend and go on a little walk in the area to discover the scenery and plant and wildlife.
we plan on visiting a lot of beaches !! hiking and exploring new towns in newfoundland
We spend a lot of time outside in the water – this summer though we upped our game by swimming in the Mediterranean Sea!
When visiting my mom for vacation we hit the rivers and lakes as much as possible. My kids will spend all day swimming in the rivers and lakes.
We went away for a week as a family to a great place north of where we live on a great lake.
We just moved to the country so it seems like every day is a #NatureMoment for a city family like us. We’ve been hiking, biking, birdwatching and counting snakes in our yard.
WE TOOK A GREAT CAMPING TRIP TO MICHIGAN AND HAD THE MOST MARVELOUS TIME #NatureMoments
We plan to do some day trips like wonderland.
We are making memories by spending time together (my nieces and I) feeding the neighbourhood ducks, blowing bubbles on the patio, playing at the playground and going for walks! 😀
We are making memories by spending much of our time outdoors. We love walking the trails by our house, going to the beach, collecting rocks to paint and playing at the park
We are spending lots of time at the beach & on picnics! #NatureMoments
We have gone camping, trail walking and trips to the various beaches around here.
we are going camping and hopefully some hiking
We have had some great #NatureMoments already this summer. My daughter and I enjoyed a breathtaking nature walk in Whistler recently.We love getting out in the fresh air and sunshine. We searched for sea glass at the beach. We relaxed in the grass and watched the clouds. We went on a nature scavenger hunt. We are both really looking forward to our upcoming camping trip and swimming in the ocean!
We traveled to BC and saw parts of nature I never thought I’d see my life and that’s how I designed my #NatureMoments.