3 Great Nature Playdates

The winter weather in Los Angeles has been beautiful. So beautiful, in fact, that it naturally lent itself to three fantastic outdoor playdates during my kindergartner’s Winter break. And now that we’ve enjoyed a few of what I like to call “nature playdates,” I’m hooked!

Here’s a rundown of where we played and what I learned from each of these adventures.

BEACH
Each year between Christmas and New Year’s, we rent a beachside home in Oxnard with family friends who have twins the same age as my oldest son. This year (at 5 years old), the kids’ enjoyment of their natural surroundings skyrocketed.

Favorite activities: The kids were enthralled by the waves, chasing the tide as it came in and went out again. Eventually, everyone wound up soaked, but no one seemed to care. A few other big hits:

• Building sandcastles (or at least making piles of sand)
• Creating a fairy house
• Digging holes
• Flying a kite
• Hunting for seashells and rocks
• Taking night walks

Lesson Learned: Perseverance pays off. We’ve been bringing our kids to the beach since birth and every year they’ve become a little more comfortable. I’m glad we’ve kept up the tradition in spite of their initial resistance.

PARK
I was lucky enough to enjoy a playdate with fellow blogger, Michele, of Fun Orange County Parks. Her daughter is a true nature girl and showed my son around one of their favorite parks, Cedar Grove Park in Tustin.

Favorite activities: The kids seemed to especially enjoy a rather unique sand feature – pitchers on cables to pulley sand from the ground up to a tower for pouring down a chute back to the ground. Other fun activities:

• Playing follow the leader through the “forest” of cedars and redwoods
• Pretending to be kings and queens in the park’s castle, then passengers and conductors aboard the train
• Taking a hike on the path that runs alongside the park
• Hunting for rocks, sticks and flowers in the dry creek bed next to the cedar grove

Lesson Learned: Kids will discover nature if it’s there. Nature girl was eager to show my son around her “forest” and go for a “hike.” Choose a park with great surroundings and let your kids’ imaginations run wild.

LOCAL HIKING HOT SPOT
A good friend of mine and I planned a playdate at nearby Temescal Gateway Park in Pacific Palisades. I’d only been there for hiking in the past, but my friend assured me it was a great place to take the kids exploring.

Favorite activities: Within just a block of a busy street, you are transported into nature. The kids played for hours, moving easily from one activity to the next. Big hits included:

• Gathering rocks for tossing in the creek
• Taking a short hike to see where the trail might lead
• Making a pile of sticks big & small
• Searching for acorns
• Climbing on fallen trees
• Running through leaf piles

Lesson Learned: Rethink your idea of nature play. I’d never considered this place a nature playground for my kids because I thought of it strictly as a place to hike. I’ll try hard not to do so now.

I hope to enjoy more outdoor playdates with my kids and their friends in the future – and I hope you will too.

Got any ideas for great nature playdates? Please share!